Remote Working Under Pressure
One in Five Companies Has Scrapped Its Home Working Policy, Another Fifth Plans to Scale It Back
Working from home or mandatory presence in the office? What’s the right balance between the two models? This is a divisive issue within the German business community. Currently, 58 per cent of companies allow some form of remote working, such as working from home, for at least part of their workforce.
One fifth (20 per cent) previously offered remote working but no longer do so. Another fifth (20 per cent) have never provided the option of working from home. These are the findings of a survey commissioned by the digital association Bitkom, involving 602 companies with 20 or more employees.
Going in Reverse
Among larger companies, however, working from home remains more widespread. Seventy-one per cent of firms with between 100 and 499 employees offer remote working, rising to 74 per cent among those with 500 or more employees. But these numbers may decline further in the coming months. Of the companies that currently offer home working, 15 per cent plan to reduce the option, and 5 per cent intend to abolish it entirely.
In 30 per cent of surveyed businesses, home working was already scaled back in the past year. By contrast, nearly half (45 per cent) say they intend to maintain their current policy, and 3 per cent plan to expand remote working options.
“Properly organised hybrid working models with the possibility of working from home can benefit both businesses and employees,” says Bitkom President Ralf Wintergerst. “In a tight labour market with a shortage of skilled workers, flexible working arrangements can be a decisive factor in attracting and retaining good staff.”
Motivations
This view is shared by a majority of the surveyed companies. Fifty-seven per cent believe that businesses which do not offer home working will struggle to attract high-quality employees. Forty-six per cent think that calling staff back to the office is primarily aimed at getting rid of unmotivated workers. While a clear majority—two-thirds (67 per cent)—worry that home working could weaken team cohesion, 44 per cent believe that employees are generally more productive when working from home than in the office.
Even a topic that has stirred controversy in recent months is now being viewed more pragmatically by employers: 41 per cent believe it is acceptable for employees to take care of personal matters during home working hours. Wintergerst adds: “Performance is not measured by how long employees sit in front of their screens without a break. Flexible working hours not only help reconcile professional and personal life—they often enable people to be more productive and deliver better results.”
A widely rejected idea in the business community is the potential legal right to work from home, which has been floated in the past but is not mentioned in the current government’s coalition agreement. Nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) oppose such a measure, while only a quarter (25 per cent) would support it.
