Remote, hybrid and face-to-face work: what is the current situation in Europe? Littler’s study

How has the approach to work changed after 2022, after the “drunkenness” of remote working that accompanied us for two years? To take stock of the situation is Littlerwith the investigation European Employer Survey, based on interviews with about 700 human resources managers and lawyers within companies in the Old Continent. What emerges is that just under a third of the sample (30%) returned to old habits, going to the office every day, and just over a quarter (27%) adopted a hybrid approach, thus alternating days in the presence to others where he works remotely.

The hybrid work revolution? In Europe it is proceeding slowly

There were many who thought, or hoped, to be able to maintain a more flexible approach to work with the disappearance of the health emergency but the data brought by Littler show that employers still prefer the classic forms and ask their employees to introduce themselves. every day in the office.

This, at least, happens to 30% of the interviewees, the most representative group. A lower percentage, 27%, on the other hand, have adopted a hybrid approach and only 5% have the possibility to work entirely remotely.

To underline the fact that speaking of hybrid work, only 11% of those who adopt this model have the possibility to work more days remotely than in the office.

It should also be noted as if it were for employers, the percentage of those forced to go to the office every day would be even higher: according to Littler’s analysis, in fact, 73% of employers would like to see all workers in presence, always. If in some of these cases hybrid forms have been maintained, it is only because of the reluctance of the workers to return to the classical approach. Understandable, after all: in many cases, working remotely has increased productivity, demonstrating that this approach works. And once they have tasted the added flexibility, it is hard for employees to go back.

Why do employees and workers have different views?

Workers would prefer more freedom, employers would like to see them always present in the office, despite the fact that productivity is often lower in that environment. But how come? According to the survey, because reducing costs and increasing productivity is not the priority of those who manage companieswhich instead favors culture and teamwork (53%), the stimulation of creative thinking (54%) and greater commitment on the part of employees (48%).

If we want to be controversial, this data could be interpreted in a somewhat critical way: it is better to see your employees in the office and carry out a discussion of “corporate culture” than to improve performance. Which, understandably, the workers don’t like. As a result, they may be less motivated or even try to change companies to maintain a hybrid approach.

“It is natural that those who have tried remote work are more reluctant to give it up“explains Stephan Swinkels, Littler partner, with international coordination responsibilities.”This means that companies cannot fail to consider the flexibility to acquire and retain new talents and give valid reasons to motivate work in presence. The intention to foster greater collaboration is not enough, because we cannot assume that this happens just because people are in the office: it is the job of employers to create this opportunity“.

The problem of stress

Fortunately, employee well-being is taken into consideration by the overwhelming majority of respondents, with 9 out of 10 taking full steps to support their employees, so as to reduce the risk of burnout due to stress. As Littler’s survey points out, however, these initiatives are not always the most effective.

In more than half of the cases (54%), in fact, we try to act by guaranteeing greater flexibility on schedules, without however thinking together with the workers on how to manage workloads more effectively.

Digital nomads, the most difficult challenge for businesses

One of the growing phenomena is that of digital nomads, people who do not work in the office or from home, but are constantly moving, often abroad. This is not a modality adopted only by freelancers, but also by employees of companies: if in 2021 61% of the sample declared that they had at least one digital nomad in their workforce, now the percentage is growth and 73% of the companies taken under consideration is having to deal with this phenomenon. That doesn’t make employers go crazy with joy: 89% in fact fear that this could create fiscal or legal problems.

“Employers are naturally concerned about the implications this new way of working can bring, particularly for UK-based companies after Brexit.”They underline Carlo Majer and Edgardo Ratti, co-Managing Partner of Littler in Italy. “Unfortunately, employee expectations are not aligned with the reality of the global legal system, as it is very challenging for employers to make ‘work from anywhere’ a reality.“.