FlexJobs, the leading career service for remote and hybrid work, announces the release of the 2024 Remote Work Stats & Trends Report. With most people wanting a fully remote (51%) or hybrid (46%) job, the new report dives into the latest data, statistics, and insights surrounding the state of remote work.
“Whether you’re embracing a hybrid or fully remote model, it’s clear that the future of work is rooted in flexibility,” says Sara Sutton, founder of FlexJobs. “As demonstrated in our annual report, the far-reaching impacts of remote work benefits both employees and companies by helping build a more productive, empowered, and resilient workforce overall.”
Outlining the current state of remote work, the report provides a by-the-numbers investigate the broad impact of remote work on key areas including job and hiring trends, employee well-being and productivity, multi-generational workforces, the future of work, and more.
The report finds that 63% of people say “having remote work” is what’s most important to them in a job, even ahead of salary (61%), having a flexible schedule (55%), work-life boundaries (54%), or having a good boss (48%).
According to FlexJobs, 95% of workers want some form of remote work. More specifically, 54% want to work from home full-time, 41% say hybrid is their preferred work arrangement, and only 5% prefer full-time office work. Women prefer fully remote work environments more than men, with 58% identifying remote work arrangements as the ideal way to work, compared to 42% of men who want to work from home full time.
A Gallup survey finds that eight in 10 people are working hybrid or remote. Owl Labs finds that 67% of managers think it’s likely that within the next year, their employer will change their policies surrounding remote and hybrid work, despite 79% of managers stating that their teams are more productive when working remotely.
FlexJobs’ survey reveals that 56% of professionals know someone who has or plans to quite due to return-to-office mandates. In a FlexJobs survey, the top reasons workers say they’re interested in making a career change are remote work options (50%), higher pay (48%), and better work-life balance (46%). Gallup finds that employers benefit from a larger talent pool, better employee value proposition, and less turnover.
Research from Global Workplace Analytics shows that businesses lose $600 million per year due to workplace distractions. Remote work helps reduce attrition and unscheduled absences and increases productivity. In fact, a FlexJobs survey finds that 77% of working professionals state they are more productive when working remotely than in a traditional office.
FlexJobs estimates that people who work from home save, on average, $6,000 or more per year, and employers can save up to $11,000 per remote employee. Additionally, 63% of working professionals are willing to take a salary cut to work remotely, with 17% stating they would take a 20% decrease in salary. Pay cuts may not be necessary, though, as WFTResearch has shown remote workers make an average of $19,000 more than their in-office counterparts.
Employees believe that remote work positively impacts their mental (93%) and physical (90%) health, according to the survey. Half (48%) of respondents say decreased stress levels is their job health benefit from remote work. Additional impacts include less burnout (36%), healthier food choices (35%), reduced anxiety and depression (34%), improved mental health (33%), improved sleep (32%), increased exercise (30%), improved physical health (28%).
The biggest remote work challenges, according to the survey, include not getting out often enough (28%), overworking (28%), working across time zones (19%), developing strong relationship at work (19%), troubleshooting technology issues (18%), dealing with non-work distractions (17%), being invisible to the boss (16%).
