COVID-19 and Remote Work – Happiness, Productivity & Money
COVID-19 has impacted all sectors of the global economy and continues to change the way we live and work. It’s undeniable that businesses and employees will have to adopt to the new normal in 2020 and beyond.
Companies are already changing the way they do business and 74% of CFO’s plan to permanently shift their employees to work remotely post COVID-19 according to Gartner.
What if we told you that the change has already happened and 79% of full time employees in United States are now working remotely?!
We surveyed over one thousand full time US employees that earn over $25,000 to find out what percentage is working remotely as a result of COVID-19, how happy and productive they are and the impact remote work has had on their finances.
Below you will find the key findings of this survey study.
KEY FINDINGS
Remote Work Shift Due To Covid-19
79.4% of full time employees have shifted to working remotely as a result of COVID-19.
20.6% of full time employees have NOT shifted to working remotely as a result of COVID-19.
Satisfaction With Current Work Arrangement
91.9% of employees who are currently working remotely are happy to work remotely.
42.9% of employees who are NOT working remotely are Not Happy to come into work.
Productivity
56.8% of employees who are currently working remotely report being more productive.
18.6% of employees who are currently working remotely report being less productive.
Best & Worst Aspects Of Remote Work
47.7% of employees who are currently working remotely cite ‘No Commuting’ as the best aspect of remote work.
37.2% of employees who are currently working remotely cite ‘Distractions’ as the worst aspect of remote work.
Distractions
43% of employees who are currently working remotely cite ‘Kids & Family’ as the biggest distraction.
42.9% of employees who are NOT working remotely cite Co-Workers as the biggest distraction.
Money & Expenses Related To Remote Work
72.1% of employees who are currently working remotely report saving most money on commuting costs as a result of the shift.
37.2% of employees who are currently working remotely report spending most money on computer hardware and accessories as a result of the shift.
47.6% of employees who are NOT working remotely expect to save up to $200 per month by shifting to remote work.
Millennials
85.4% of Millennials have shifted to working remotely as a result of COVID-19.
95.2% of Millennials who are now working remotely are happy with the shift.
‘Flexibility’ and ‘More Free Time’ are cited by 35.3% (total) of Millennials as the best aspects of working remotely.
‘Loneliness’ and “Distractions’ are cited by 53.1% of Millennials (~26.5% each) as the worst aspects of working remotely.
Outlined above are the key findings of the survey study we conducted. The sections below will outline and break down the data behind each key finding and the additional insight we were able to uncover through our study. The methodology and demographics are discussed at the end.
You can skip to each section by clicking on one of the buttons below:
HAPPINESS
This section will cover the data pertaining to employee happiness among those who have shifted to working remotely versus those that have continued coming into work during COVID-19. We uncovered some interesting insight about both group of employees and you can view the detailed findings below.
Remote Work Shift Due To Covid-19
79.4% of full time employees have shifted to working remotely as a result of COVID-19.
20.6% of full time employees have NOT shifted to working remotely as a result of COVID-19.
Happiness Among Employees Who ARE Working Remotely
91.9% of employees who are now working remotely due to COVID-19 report being happy with the current arrangement. While only 5.8% report being unhappy and 2.3% report no change in the happiness levels due to the current work arrangement.
Happiness Among Employees Who Are NOT Working Remotely
47.6% of employees who are not working remotely and are continuing to come into work report being happy with the current arrangement. While 42.9% report being unhappy and 9.5% report no change in the happiness levels due to the current work arrangement.
Best Aspects Of Remote Work (Currently Working Remotely)
47.7% of employees who are currently working remotely cite “No Commuting” as the best aspect of working remotely with ‘Flexible Schedule’ and ‘Less COVID-19 Exposure’ at 20.9% and 15.1% respectively. ‘Saving Money’ and ‘More Free Time’ were also cited as positive aspects OF remote work.
Best Aspects Of Remote Work (Currently NOT Working Remotely)
Employees who are currently still coming into work cite ‘Saving Money’ as the biggest potential upside of shifting to remote work. This is followed up by ‘Flexible Schedule’, ‘Less COVID-19 Exposure’ and ‘No Commuting’.
It’s interesting to note that perceived upside of working remotely versus actual upside of working remotely shows a stark difference in responses. Employees who are currently working remotely report ‘No Commuting’ as the biggest upside at 47.7% while those who are still coming into work report ‘Saving Money’ as the biggest potential upside at 28.6%.
Desire For Remote Work Among Employees NOT Working Remotely
About one third of employees who are still coming into work said that they would prefer to keep coming into work while 36.1% said that they would prefer to completely shift to working remotely.
PRODUCTIVITY
This section will cover the data pertaining to employee productivity among those who have shifted to working remotely versus those that have continued coming into work during COVID-19. We uncovered some interesting insight about both groups of employees and you can view the detailed findings below.
Productivity Among Employees Who Are Working Remotely
55.8% of employees who are currently working remotely report being ‘More Productive’ as a result of the current work arrangement. 18.6% report being less productive and 25.6% report no changes in their productivity.
Worst Aspects Of Remote Work (Currently Working Remotely)
‘Distractions’ are cited by 37.2% of current remote workers as the number one worst aspect of working remotely. This is followed up ‘Loneliness’ and ‘Setting Up A Home Office’ at 23.3% and 16.3%. ‘Communicating With Co-Workers’ and ‘Unplugging After Work’ were also cited as downsides of working remotely.
Worst Aspects Of Remote Work (Currently NOT Working Remotely)
‘Distractions’ are cited by 28.6% of employees who are still coming into work as the number one potential drawback of working remotely. This is by followed up ‘Unplugging After Work’ and ‘Setting Up A Home Office’ at 19.4% and 18.7%. ‘Communicating With Co-Workers’ and ‘Lack Of Office Perks’ (ie: snacks) were also cited as potential downsides of working remotely.
Distractions Among Employees Working Remotely
‘Kids & Family’ are cited by 43% of employees who are working remotely as the number one distraction they face during work hours. This is followed up by ‘Staying Motivated’ and ‘Social Media’ at 24.4% and 14% respectively. ‘Digital Entertainment’ (ie: Netflix, YouTube) and ‘Online Shopping’ were also cited as distractions.
Distractions Among Employees NOT Working Remotely
‘Co-Workers’ is cited by 39.9% of employees who are not working remotely as the number one distraction they face during work hours. This is followed up ‘Social Media’ and ‘Meetings’ at 33.3% and 19.1% respectively.
MONEY
This section will cover data pertaining to financial ramifications of remote work among those who have shifted to working remotely versus those that have continued coming into work during COVID-19. We uncovered some interesting insight about both group of employees and you can view the detailed findings below.
Biggest Money Savers For Remote Employees
‘Commuting Costs’ is the number one money saver for employees who are now working remotely. 72.1% indicated that they are saving most money on not having to commute as a result of new work arrangement. ‘Clothes & Accessories’ and ‘Child Caring’ were also cited frequently at 9.3% each.
Biggest Expenses For Remote Employees
‘Computers & Hardware Accessories’ (ie: printer, camera, etc.) is the number one expense for employees who are now working remotely. 37.2% of employees working remotely indicated that they spent the most money on ‘Computers & Hardware Accessories’ as a result of new work arrangement.
‘Food’ and ‘Office Furniture’ were also cited as having increased expenditure by 25.6% and 20.9% of remote employees respectively. About 4.2% indicated that their electricity bills have gone significantly while another 4% indicated that they did not incur any additional expenses.
Biggest Expenses For Employees NOT Working Remotely
‘Commuting’ is the number one expense for employees who are not working remotely. 61.9% of employees who are not working remotely indicated that they spent the most money on ‘Commuting Costs’.
‘Food’ and ‘Child Caring’ were also cited as the biggest expenditures by 14.3% and 12.8% of non-remote employees respectively.
Potential Monthly Savings For Employees NOT Working Remotely
47.6% of employees currently not working remotely expect to save up to $200 per month if their work shifted to a remote arrangement. Another 28.6% expect to save between $200 – $500 a month while 14.3% indicated that they will not save any money by working remotely.
47.6% of employees who are NOT working remotely expect to save up to $200 per month by shifting to remote work.
MILLENNIALS
Millennials are an important demographic to highlight as baby boomers retire and millennial employees dominate the make up of the work force across United States in 2020 and beyond. We isolated millennials in our data (age demographic: 25-34) to highlight the impact that the shift to remote work due to COVID-19 has had on their happiness, productivity and money.
Remote Work & Happiness
85.4% of Millennials have shifted to working remotely as a result of COVID-19.
95.2% of Millennials who are NOW working remotely are happy with the shift.
Best Aspects Of Working Remotely According To Millennials
No commuting was still the top choice among millennials as the best aspect of remote work. Time related (ie: more free time and flexibility) benefits were cited by 35.3% of respondents while only 5.9% indicated that less COVID-19 exposure was the best aspect of working remotely.
Worst Aspects Of Working Remotely According To Millennials
Millennials cited ‘Distractions’, ‘Loneliness’ and ‘Home Office’ set up as the top three worst aspects of remote work. ‘Communicating With Co-workers’ and ‘Unplugging After Work’ were also mentioned by a smaller percentage of millennials surveyed.
Biggest Distractions Faced By Millennials Working Remotely
38.2% of Millennials cited ‘Kids & Family’ as the biggest distraction they faced while working remotely.
23.5% of Millennials cited ‘Social Media’ as the second biggest distraction faced while working remotely.
SURVEY METHODOLOGY & DEMOGRAPHICS
For the purpose of this study, we only surveyed full time employees (excluding self employed) who earned $25,000 or more annually. The reason we only surveyed those earning $25,000 or more was to omit employees that earn below minimum wage but who are still employed full time (ie: restaurant employees) and can’t work remotely due to the inherent make up of their job responsibilities.
The demographic composition of the 1070 individuals surveyed is as follows.
Age
Income
Conditional Question Branch
We then asked a different set of questions depending on whether surveyors answered ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to the question of, “Has Your Job Shifted To Remote Arrangement As A Result Of Covid-19”.
This was done to find out the key insights in the areas of happiness, productivity and money from employees who have started working remotely as a result of COVID-19 versus those who have had to continue coming into work during the pandemic.
The survey was conducted through SurveyMonkey services.
WRAP UP
Based on the data we gathered, remote work is the way of the future – at least to some degree. Employees are happier, more productive and save more money when working remotely. It remains to be seen how businesses, small and large, incorporate remote work into their corporate structures.
Here are a few resources pertaining to remote work that employers as well as employees may find useful:
The best part about this survey is people saying their co-workers are the biggest distraction at work. I can relate…
Thanks for putting this together guys. The data is interesting and does tell a strong story to support remote work. I think it would also be interesting to see the data parsed according to employee position within an organization (ie: manager vs entry level).
Thank you for executing this survey and sharing the results so openly – much appreciated!