According to a new poll, roughly 40% of workers would rather work remotely and not return to their offices when the pandemic is over.
The benefits of not having to commute on crowded trains, interstate traffic, or busses that stop every 30 seconds is leading many Americans to want to stay at home, according to a Harris Poll survey for USA Today.
The survey asked 2,100 remote workers from March to April their thoughts on closing up their home offices and returning to their cubicles and desks.
It found that 84% said shedding their commute to work was the most significant benefit of working outside the office, with 58% saying they would seek a new job if they couldn't continue their current job remotely, according to FlexJobs.
With commuting being a big drainer of monthly income, many have argued the benefit of saving money makes working from home that much sweeter.
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A study from Upwork found that from March to August of last year, employees who drove to their jobs before the pandemic saved $758 million per day after they started working from home.
As employers continue to fight historic labor shortages and what some call the "Great Strike of 2021," keeping employees happy may be the key to keeping businesses running.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that 4.3 million people quit their jobs in August, the highest reported by the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey series.
Economist Dr. Jack Rasmus shared his thoughts on the current turnover in the workforce, sharing that this is normal to see when coming out of a recession. However, it is usually seen with unionized workers.
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"[This] is typical when you start coming out of a recession," Rasmus said. "That's when labor militancy grows, but this thing about the 5 million unorganized not going back to work leading the great strike wave of 2021, as I call it, is kind of a new phenomenon.
"We've never had it led by nonunion workers, but that's understandable because the unions have been largely destroyed in the private sector."
Companies will need to do something to keep workers employed, which may just be keeping them at home.
