NEWS AND INSIGHT NEWS & INSIGHT
APPETITE BECOMES EXPECTATION IN NEW HYBRID AND REMOTE WORKING STUDY
SCHOOL: JE Cairnes School of Business and Economics, University of Galway COUNTRY: Ireland
The shift in working cultures worldwide over the past three to four years has become so pronounced that employees now expect remote or hybrid working options. In a survey of almost 6,000 workers led by JE Cairnes School of Business and Economics dean Alma McCarthy, 92 per cent of participants indicated that remote/hybrid working would be a key factor in their decision to change employer. This perspective is now a “sustained trend”, according to McCarthy, who referred back to the results obtained from prior surveys. “For those who can work remotely or hybrid for at least some of the time, being able to do so now plays a critical role in employer and job choice,” she added. Employees’ growing willingness to change jobs if their remote/hybrid working preferences are not facilitated by their current employer underline the importance of this factor. A total of 55 per cent said they would seek new pastures to have better remote/hybrid working arrangements even if it meant fewer promotion opportunities, up from 37 per cent in the 2022 survey. Meanwhile, 44 per cent said they would change jobs even it meant accepting a lower salary, up from 30 per cent in 2022.
Right now, only three per cent are working fully on-site, according to this year’s survey, with 59 per cent currently engaged in hybrid working arrangements and 38 per cent working remotely on a full-time basis. The annual surveys of professionals in Ireland have been conducted in conjunction with the Western Development Commission. Its chief executive, Allan Mulrooney, pointed to remote and hybrid working’s impact on mobility and prosperity outside the country’s biggest cities: “Remote work has paved the way for novel opportunities in talent attraction and retention, luring young families and new talented workers to revive regions that have borne the brunt of depopulation and declining job prospects for many years. If we persist in prioritising and fostering an environment conducive to remote work, the lasting impact, particularly in rural areas, is undeniable.” In the new survey, 14 per cent indicated that they have relocated within Ireland since Covid-19 because they can work remotely. Among those, 63 per cent relocated from Dublin. TBD
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Ambition | DECEMBER 2023/JANUARY 2024 | 11
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