[New Survey] Do UK workers want to go back to the office?

Over 95% of UK workers do not want to return to the office full time from our survey of 500 UK workers.

Some 25% of respondents also said they would prefer to work from home permanently.

With UK businesses looking to start bringing back workers to the office in some capacity and potentially even more when the government hopes to end all social distancing restrictions.

We surveyed 500 UK workers to understand how they are taking the prospect of going back to the office.

Key Findings

• Fewer than 5% of UK workers want to go back to the office full time, with the prospect of a more flexible working being more enticing to the workers.
• 90% of UK workers are not looking forward to going back to the office
• ⅗ respondents prefer to work from home than the office, with 13% now actively looking for remote working working opportunities
• Most employers have not helped their employees with new equipment for working from home throughout the pandemic
• ⅗ workers have encountered aches and pains from working from home, despite this – they still would actively want to work from home more post-pandemic.

Back to the office full time?

Most large businesses have stated that they won’t be bringing workers back full time. With a hybrid approach being the most common response that they will be using.

Following the forced work from home experience for office-based businesses, the realisation of the increase in productivity and happiness of employees has driven the change in approach.

Alongside the potential benefits for employers of saving money in other forms such as electricity and office space – the long term hybrid approach is seen as a win win for all involved.

That said, businesses should be supporting their employees by providing suitable work from home furniture and accessories to ensure they stay healthy and maximise their productivity.

How to stay healthy working from home

With over 60% respondents developing some kind of back or neck pain caused by working from home. The dining table & rigid dining chair option is simply not functional for the long term.

Businesses should support their workers by purchasing ergonomic desks, chairs and accessories to not only reduce potential back and neck pain but also boost productivity.

Also, promoting regular breaks, exercise, and other initiatives can be set up easily to help workers maintain a healthy work life balance even when working from home. Initiatives such as no meeting Wednesday, early finish Fridays, free virtual yoga sessions are all affordable ways of keeping workers healthy.