Employers admit defeat in work-from-home battle

Australian employers are throwing in the towel on hybrid work, with more than 40 per cent of companies no longer expecting staff to ever make an appearance in the office.

Finder employees in Sydney, Elise Stitt, Raj Lal and Tim Bennett enjoy a free lunch as part of an effort to get them into the office. Picture: John Feder

Australian employers are throwing in the towel on hybrid work, with more than 40 per cent of companies no longer expecting staff to ever make an appearance in the office.

The end of work-as-we-knew-it is revealed in a survey released on Monday, showing only 4 per cent of employers are mandating five days a week in the office.

More than 50 per cent of companies have been forced to offer incentives such as free lunches in a bid to lure people back for even one or two days a week.

The survey of 1177 employers, conducted by the Australian HR Institute last month, shows dramatically shifting attitudes to work in the two and a half years since Covid-19 led to a surge in remote work.

Before the pandemic, 23 per cent of employees worked from home at least one day a week, but this has now almost tripled to 58 per cent. And while only 5 per cent of people worked continuously from home before the pandemic, this is now at 18 per cent.

Finder employees in Sydney, Elise Stitt, Raj Lal and Tim Bennett, enjoy a free lunch as part of an effort to get them into the office. Picture: John Feder

The survey found 34 per cent of companies do not stipulate any time in the office, 28 per cent expect staff in three days a week, and 16 per cent are happy if staff come in two days a week. Another 7 per cent allow continuous work at home, while 3 per cent do not offer hybrid working or remote working as an option.

HR professionals say the trend will continue over the next two years, with almost 80 per cent planning to either stick with the current mix of home and office work (53 per cent) or increase those hybrid work arrangements (25 per cent).

Of those surveyed, 58 per cent say their organisation is requiring employees to attend the office more often, but 39 per cent say their organisation does not require people to check in more often.

And the pressure go back to the pre-pandemic model is coming from senior management: 75 per cent of respondents identified this group as pushing staff to return to the office.

Productivity is not an issue, according to respondents, with 72 per cent reporting employees were as productive or more productive at home and only 7 per cent stating productivity has ­declined.

Some 54 per cent say they offer incentives such as social events, free coffee or meals to encourage employees back to the office. But less than 2 per cent apply disincentives such as reduced pay and benefits, and only 1.5 per cent are introducing bonuses or increasing pay and benefits for those who do return to the office.

At Finder, the comparison website, staff are offered free breakfast and lunch if they come into the office, and global chief people officer Shanyn Payne says it’s an important incentive. Staff can make their own breakfasts but order lunch via the Hamper website, which offers different providers each day.

“We offer that in all of our offices and we actually did it before Covid as well,” Ms Payne said, but it had become much more important now.

“It’s not just to lure people back in but to encourage the collaboration and camaraderie that comes with connecting with your fellow teammates. But crew (now) need a reason to come back into the office, especially in a tech company like us where you can collaborate really effectively with all the different tools that we have. They need an incentive to justify the commute.”

She said only a third of Finder staff in Australia were in the office two or more days a week. Another third never came in, and the remainder came in ­sporadically.

“Employees really want choice and they want the trust in that choice,” she said. “If you want to attract the best talent, employers will have to face up to the fact that hybrid is absolutely the new way and the continued way of working.”

AHRI chief executive Sarah McCann-Bartlett said organisations had to invest time and resources into redesigning work, processes and workspaces.

“Most organisations are thinking about hybrid work only in terms of location, but there are other factors that need to be considered,” she said.

“Hybrid work models need to be designed with connection in mind. And those connections need to be meaningful.”