Cork Board

Working From Home Post-Pandemic

How has Flying Cork Media handled the shift to remote work?

According to Pewresearch, roughly six-in-ten (59%) U.S. workers who say their jobs can be done at home are working from home all or most of the time. Though 60% of U.S. workers don’t have jobs that can be done exclusively from home, it appears that those who have the ability to work remotely have largely done so in the past few years. There has certainly been a shift when it comes to telecommuting, but has this been a positive change? And how has Flying Cork handled the transition?

Post-Pandemic WFH Life

Though the current work from home statistics are less than in October 2020 when 71% of those with jobs that could be done from home were working from home all or most of the time, the current percentage of work from home employees is still significantly higher than the 23% who teleworked prior to the coronavirus.

It is also noteworthy that workers appear to be choosing telecommuting options, even when others are available to them. Among those who have a workplace outside of their home, 61% now say they are choosing not to go into the workplace, while 38% say they’re working from home because their workplace is either closed or unavailable to them. Whereas in the fall of 2020 close to 60% of workers said concerns regarding the coronavirus was a major reason they worked from home, 76% now say their preference for working at home is a major reason they’re doing so.

WFH and Work Satisfaction

Working remotely is a new experience for the majority of workers. According to statistics from Pewresearch, approximately 57% of current remote employees say they rarely or never worked from home prior to the coronavirus outbreak. Has this change had a positive or negative impact on the lives of these employees? It appears to be generally positive with 64% of those who are now working from home but rarely or never did prior to the pandemic saying it’s easier now for them to balance work with their personal lives.

Additionally, 44% say working from home has made it easier for them to get their work done and meet deadlines. According to Youngjoo Cha, a sociologist at Indiana University, two national surveys found that since the onset of the pandemic there’s been a reduction in the percentage of employees who say that working long hours or being available beyond business hours is important to be successful at their organizations.

Flying Cork’s Remote Employees

During the beginning of the pandemic, Flying Cork had the same experience as many U.S. businesses. We required employees to work from home beginning in March 2020. Similar to many, we expected the coronavirus to last a couple of weeks… then months… and now here we are years later. We did not notice any negative impact in terms of productivity when we made the switch to work-from-home; in fact many of our employees have stated that they’re able to be more productive working from home.

WFH post pandemic

Our Content Manager, Lauren, stated regarding work from home life, “I’m happy that Flying Cork hasn’t pressured its employees to come back into the office post-pandemic. It has allowed each of us to choose to work in our ideal conditions, which I believe has been great for morale.”

When businesses began opening their doors again, Flying Cork never made a formal request for employees to come back into the office. Our office space, located in downtown Pittsburgh, has reopened since vaccinations have taken effect. In terms of our office reopening strategy, our ultimate goal was for our employees to have the ability to work where they feel most comfortable, safe, productive, and inspired. We’ve, therefore, given our employees the option to either work from home or utilize the office space at their discretion.

Giving our employees this level of flexibility, we’ve noticed everyone is utilizing it differently. Some of our employees elect to work exclusively remotely while others still will come into the office 1-2 days per week. This flexibility allows our employees to customize the level of in-person interaction they desire in their work life, and it gives them the ability to work in their ideal conditions. It has also given our employees the flexibility to travel and/or relocate while remaining consistent with work. This means workers are more empowered regarding their PTO use while remaining available if necessary, without the need to be physically in the office.

As our Marketing Coordinator, Anya, said, “The flexibility of working remotely with Flying Cork has given me the ideal work-life balance. My time off is completely respected, and I feel supported in my decisions to come into the office or not.”