The pandemic has “imposed” the previously unknown system of teleworking. But what the pandemic brings, the pandemic takes away, and with the end of mandatory teleworking, workers were faced with a return to face-to-face work.
The teleworking regime, which in 2020 was strange and difficult for some workers to adapt to, years later turned out to be one of the changes that workers liked the most. Used to being “masters of their time”, workers are no longer willing to face the daily commute and the financial damage it entails, the stress of traveling and the exhaustion of public transport.
So much so that many workers are asking companies to continue teleworking or to adopt a hybrid system. But many of the workers who are forced to return to face-to-face work are not satisfied and are considering changing their lives.
Workers are increasingly deciding to leave their jobs because they are unable to (re)adapt to face-to-face work. This type of radical change has been dubbed the “Great Resignation” and is justified by workers’ need to have their needs met by the companies where they work, particularly in terms of time management.
For example, in July 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 4 million redundancies at the initiative of U.S. workers, a trend that has been observed, and is still being observed, globally.
The reality is that more and more, the reason for employees to stay with a company or choose to move to another one is no longer just about the pay or the position they hold. Employees want to be part of an organization where they feel valued, where there are opportunities for learning and progression and, above all, that has an organizational environment with which they identify.
Faced with this change in the workplace, employers will have to adapt to the new times. The possible solution to the “Great Resignation” could be new forms of teleworking, more flexible working arrangements, with greater levels of autonomy that satisfy workers.
Of course, we must not forget all the other recommendations to combat this phenomenon, but for now, let’s focus on teleworking or hybrid work à la longue.
Leonor Frazão Grego @ DCM | Littler
