Thousands are loving working from home

The New Zealand workforce has been cornered into a period of rapid change and economic shift. Every week the Herald looks at how businesses and workers have pivoted in these uncertain times

Heading back to the office after isolation might feel like a welcome return to normality for some.

But for the majority the home office has become the new normal, with thousands enjoying the change.

Last week we asked readers working from home if they were keen to continue. Had they loved working from home and found they were just as productive? Did they need to be in the office to be motivated? Or was a mix of home and office life the key?

Out of the 7226 people who voted on the Herald website, only 912 people (12 per cent) said they needed to be in the office to be motivated.

Nearly half (48 per cent) said they “loved” working from home and found they were as productive as in the office. A significant 39 per cent said they would prefer a mix of home and office-based work.

Readers who emailed in said they were “surprisingly productive at home” and expected better results and fewer distractions this week when children were back at school.

Other positives included extra time with family and more free time in the weekend. Others noticed they had saved money on petrol, parking, drinks at the pub and food.

Those who were keen to return to the office said they lacked equipment at home to do their job efficiently. Others were lonely.

Large corporations that had the work-from-home model thrust upon them under level 4 said the transition had been relatively smooth. Many were reviewing business models.

Andrew Barnes, Perpetual Guardian founder and champion of the four-day week, said Covid-19 had forever changed the future workspace. He expected many businesses would keep some components of remote working.

“There are many cost savings for a business in doing so, added to the increased productivity,” he said.

“There is also the fact that they have already arranged the technology and systems to support their staff being away from the office.”

Businesses also needed to maintain social distancing at the office which meant keeping between 30 and 50 per cent of staff away for now.

Vodafone had a 50 per cent occupancy in offices and had banned hotdesking, a spokeswoman said.

Auckland Council said it had a 30 per cent occupancy rate and would slowly increase this.

ASB said many staff would continue to work from home, or a mixture of home and work.

Jodie Shelley from 2Degrees said Covid-19 had jolted the company into a new way of thinking. “We’re looking at how we can keep the positive elements of the change.”