Global Study Confirms Hybrid Working Established as Norm

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15 December 2022

A global survey of 220 offices in 33 countries has revealed that hybrid working is becoming established as the norm, with people now coming into the office an average of just 1.5 days a week, versus nearly four days a week before the pandemic. 

AWA, an independent workplace consultancy, analysed the experience of 250,000 employees between September and November 2022 as part of their second Hybrid Working Index study. A panel of organisations completed a short survey detailing any hybrid working policies, the total number of employees and desks in each building, and how many people were using the office day to day in a typical week.

The company uses this information to create a detailed picture of office use across multiple sectors and geographies, returning to expand the study on a regular basis.

“Our study shows that employees respond best to being treated like adults in how they manage their time, that the old command-and-control days are over and employers realise that a happy workforce working flexibly is the best way forward.” 

–Andrew Mawson

Managing Director, AWA

Less Than 3% of Employees are Forced to Come Into the Office Every Day

Nearly 28 per cent of employers have practices that vary by team, while 27 per cent insist on people coming in either two or three days a week. Less than 3 per cent of employees are forced to come into the office every day. 

The largest group studied was from the UK, with 79 offices representing nearly 107,000 people responding. It showed people came into the office an average of 28 per cent of the time (1.4 days), peak occupancy was just 36 per cent on Wednesdays, dropping to just 18 per cent on a Friday. 

European Employees Attend the Office Least

Employees in the EU attend the office least, with an average attendance of just 1.15 days a week. UK and North America are broadly similar at 1.4 days per week, while in the Asia Pacific region workers come in 1.55 days a week and 1.65 days in Latin America.

Not-for-profit organisations had the lowest office attendance, with people coming in less than one day a week, while in tech people come in just one day a week. In media, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, attendance was 1.3 days a week and financial services 1.3 days. In the property sector people still come in over four days a week.

Andrew Mawson, Managing Director of AWA, said: “This comprehensive study shows that not only is hybrid working now the norm, but that employers are adapting to this reality to become more efficient in their use of office space. The implications for developers of office space and the inner cities where most of these offices are located are seismic, and planners will have to rethink how they use buildings in the centre of towns and cities in the future.”

“Our study shows that employees respond best to being treated like adults in how they manage their time, that the old command-and-control days are over and employers realise that a happy workforce working flexibly is the best way forward.” 

Picture: a photograph of two people walking down an office corridor in conversation. Image Credit: Unsplash

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 15 December 2022

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