"I Hate Going to Work, So I'm Leaving"... Office Workers Planning to Leave for Remote Work

More Companies Ending Remote Work as Social Distancing Ends
1 in 5 Office Workers Say They Would Consider Changing Jobs if Returning to Office
Preference for Remote Work Due to 'Work-Life Balance'... Reduced Fatigue and Help with Self-Development
Some Complain of 'Endemic Blue' Amid Revival of Office Culture Like Gatherings and Workshops
"Companies and Employees Should Discuss and Revise Work Conditions Including Remote Work"

As social distancing measures are lifted, more companies are discontinuing remote work. Photo by Getty Images Bank

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] "Anyone who wants to work remotely must work at least 40 hours a week in the office, or leave Tesla."

This statement by Tesla CEO Elon Musk has recently become a hot topic. Some interpret it as signaling the end of remote work, which began with the spread of COVID-19. This was an email Musk sent to Tesla employees, in which he emphasized the importance of coming to the office, saying, "The higher your seniority, the more your presence should be felt," and "The reason I spent a lot of time at the factory was to show the people on the production line that I was working alongside them. If I hadn't done that, SpaceX would have gone bankrupt long ago."

Like Musk's decision, most companies that introduced remote work policies along with strong quarantine measures are returning to office attendance policies. However, workers who have already become accustomed to working from home are not only voicing their dissatisfaction but also, according to a survey, one in five would consider changing jobs if they had to return to office work.

Since social distancing measures were lifted in April, the number of companies maintaining remote work has decreased. According to a survey conducted by the Korea Employers Federation on the status of remote work following the lifting of social distancing on the 8th, 72.7% of responding companies were implementing remote work. This is an 18.8 percentage point decrease from last year (91.5%), suggesting that some companies have stopped remote work in line with the government's easing of quarantine policies such as lifting social distancing.

However, workers who have already become accustomed to remote work strongly empathize with its necessity. According to a report titled "Changes in Working Methods and Work-Life Balance in the Non-Face-to-Face Era" published by the Korea Labor Institute on the 2nd, many respondents said remote work helped improve work productivity. This was based on a survey conducted from July to September last year targeting 3,000 workers working remotely. When asked whether remote work helped achieve efficient work goals, 38.6% responded affirmatively, while 15.1% said it did not help.

Regarding the question "Does remote work help complete tasks on time?" positive responses accounted for 41.6%, higher than the 14.5% negative responses.

The main reason they preferred remote work was work-life balance. Among respondents, 32.5% said the possibility of balancing work and family increased after remote work, and 35.4% reported a decrease in physical fatigue. Additionally, 35% of workers evaluated that remote work helped with self-development.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

As a result, remote work has become an important working condition influencing decisions about changing jobs. According to the "2022 Qualtrics Employee Experience Trends Report" by experience management (XM) company Qualtrics in February, a survey of 1,031 Korean full-time workers aged 18 and over found that 18% of respondents said they would consider changing jobs if they had to return to full-time office work. This means one in five would consider leaving their job if returning from remote work to office work.

With the revival of workplace culture such as company dinners and workshops due to office attendance, many workers are complaining of "endemic blues." Experts see this as stress caused by adapting to a changed daily life. It is analyzed that those who enjoyed "life with evenings" through exercise and self-development after work find it difficult to adjust to a lifestyle requiring more time investment at work.

Professor Kim Tae-gi of Dankook University's Department of Economics suggested that companies and workers need to negotiate their respective interests regarding working conditions such as remote work. Professor Kim explained, "From a company's perspective, if work performance is good, there is no reason to insist on office attendance. Conversely, not all workers agree with remote work. Workers who value work-life balance will support remote work, but those with heavy workloads or who need interdepartmental coordination will prefer office attendance. Ultimately, (labor-management conflicts over remote work) can only be resolved if companies and workers restructure working conditions and wages."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.