{"id":86910,"date":"2022-12-15T13:22:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-15T17:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=86910"},"modified":"2022-12-30T16:03:24","modified_gmt":"2022-12-30T20:03:24","slug":"is-remote-work-going-away","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/is-remote-work-going-away\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Remote Work Going Away? Workers & Employers Debate"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Is remote work going away? Will it continue into 2023 or will remote jobs decline?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Employers argue that remote work is less efficient and less productive\u2014especially in jobs that require collaboration and creativity. However, employees\u2019 priorities have changed\u2014many might not be willing to come back to work even if it means taking a pay cut or losing a job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading for further insight into the future of remote work<\/a> and if it’s going away or here to stay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Is Remote Work Going Away?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In November, Elon Musk announced that he was ending remote work<\/a> at Twitter. This announcement comes just a few months after Musk ordered all Tesla employees back to the office, quipping that those still interested in remote employment should \u201cpretend to work somewhere else.\u201d<\/a> Musk isn\u2019t alone in his opposition to remote work\u2014in September, numerous employers began pushing employees to return to the office<\/a> in either fully in-person or hybrid capacities. This trend raises the question: Is remote work going away?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes: It’s Bad For Business<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Some experts see these recent trends as a sign that remote work is no longer economically viable<\/a>. Indeed, although some workers favor returning to the office\u2014for example, because they miss the socialization<\/a>\u2014most of the arguments against remote work come from employers, who claim that working from home hurts the bottom line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working From Home May Be Less Productive<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

For one thing, some experts argue that working from home is inefficient<\/a> because remote work eliminates opportunities for coordination, cooperation, and on-the-job learning<\/strong>. Similarly, though a majority of research suggests that working from home boosts productivity<\/a>, some studies show that remote work decreases overall output<\/a> and uninterrupted work time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The question of efficiency is especially complicated when it comes to jobs that rely on teamwork. For example, former Google executive David Baker argues<\/a> that in-person interaction is necessary for innovation<\/strong> because it allows spontaneity while decreasing interpersonal tensions. And while research shows that it\u2019s possible<\/em> to recreate this collaborative atmosphere remotely, in practice, employees and managers alike are usually ill-trained and ill-equipped to do so<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remote Workers Are Harder to Manage<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

For those in favor of remote work going away, another argument is that working from home makes managers\u2019 lives harder<\/strong>. For one thing, many managers believe that employees are more motivated and less distracted when they\u2019re being monitored in person<\/a>. Moreover, working from home presents a number of new challenges<\/a> for managers. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n