11 Surprising Statistics on Remote Work for 2024

But, we have to dig deeper to answer questions such as “What is the future of remote work in 2024? Setting the stage for a thriving remote work culture will likely be a key differentiator for adaptable organizations. Companies that hire remotely naturally attract and retain more talent.

Women handle work-life balance better than men

Making remote work flexibility a permanent offering in the future will enable leaders and managers to take advantage of such arrangements and retain their top talents. Yes, recent studies have found that remote workers can be up to 47% more productive than those who work in an office setting. This suggests that remote work can lead to higher productivity levels. Kumospace helps remote workers get the most from their environment, building stronger teams that deliver better business results. As we navigate the evolving remote work landscape of 2024, it’s clear that the future of work is not tethered to a single location but is, instead a dynamic blend of remote, hybrid, and traditional office settings.

Newer studies find that the French tend to offer less flexibility to their workers. In Paris, the economic capital of France, only 7% of responders said that they have fully remote jobs, according to a Bloomberg survey from November 2023. In total, according to this report, in general, women do 58% of unpaid labor, while men do 42%. When it comes to remote workers, women who work remotely take on 72% of unpaid labor, while men who work from home take on only 28%. Although many remote workers say they’d prefer to maintain their work model, it seems there’s a discrepancy between the genders — at least when it comes to the desire (or lack thereof) for going back to the office. When it comes to equity in the workplace, the concerns of remote workers are more palpable.

1. A study shows that by 2028, 73% of all departments will have remote workers.
2. Buffer’s State of Remote Work Report 2022 states that about 86% of remote employees would like to keep working in a remote setting — be it fully remote (56%) or remote-first (30%).
3. Otherwise, they’ll lose their employees to companies that are willing to shift to a hybrid remote work setup.
4. However, the Culture Wizard report also found that 17% still report difficulties with collaboration and communication.
5. Too many remote companies neglect the human resources side of their business.
6. As shown in the Flex Report 2024 Predictions, many believe that 2024 will see a lot more companies issuing structured hybrid work policies.

More than half of all employees want a fully remote job

These key remote work statistics illustrate just how big that impact is. Remote work opportunities are incredibly important for both men and women. According to a FlexJobs survey, 60% of women say they’ll look for a new job if they cannot continue to work remotely, and 52% of men say they’d quit.

Although remote workers are increasingly familiar with cybersecurity threats, risk perceptions vary. For example, 83% of respondents in Delinea’s survey believe clicking on an email from an unfamiliar person is high-risk, but 38% think connecting a personal device to their work network is low-risk. The Wrike report has revealed that almost 59% of remote employees still use personal apps to send and receive confidential files every week.

74% of workers also said that they would quit their current job if another company offered them remote work. Remote and hybrid workers tend to experience higher rates of mental health issues than on-site workers. A study conducted by MIT revealed that workers felt significantly more lonely when working from home than in the office.

1. It speaks to the potential for remote work to create a more inclusive and caring work environment.
2. For example, a study examining dual-earner couples from Ohio State University underscores that women who work remotely are more likely to feel the need to complete more chores than their partners.
3. The statistics indicate quite strongly that productivity actually increases when staff are able to work from home.
4. They also contribute to motivating your team members and fostering punctuality and efficiency.

Challenges and considerations for remote employees

One of the best resources on remote-work culture is the Buffer State of Remote Work. They surveyed some remote employees to learn about their experiences in working remotely. Needless to say, the past two years have been quite interesting.According to Buffer, 97% of people recommend remote work to others. If you take a look at their data from previous years, you’ll see this number fluctuating by only a percent or two. Coincidentally, 97% of remote employees want to continue working remotely until the end of their careers. 3This means that employers should start preparing long-term strategies for the onboarding, development, and career growth of remote employees.

On average, work-from-home employees end up working 1.4 more days every month than their in-office counterparts. 81% said they felt well-paid versus 75% of those who still report to work. 66% said they have good or excellent career advancement opportunities versus 58%. And 54% said their contributions at work are more valued by colleagues versus 48%. And by all indications, remote work arrangements will remain a thing — at least until everything settles back down.

With more and more companies introducing RTO and hybrid models, working across time zones is less of an issue than it was when remote workers were operating under the “work from anywhere” policy. Surprisingly, the same report shows that the majority of people who have another job, side business, or project are actually in-office workers — 68% of them. According to Tracking Happiness which conducted a survey of 12,455 respondents, fully remote increases employees’ happiness by 20%.

However, Owl Labs’ findings from 2023 show that proximity bias is a significant concern for the remote workforce. Nearly half of the respondents (48%) fear that working remotely means they won’t be heard and that their in-office coworkers will have more opportunities for progress. In line with establishing effective communication in remote teams, Buffer also found that 14% of respondents cited working across zones as remote work stats 2024 a remote work challenge. Since some remote employees have been putting in more hours and weekend work, they have also started taking more care of their mental health.

The key takeaway was that companies implementing any remote work model types (e.g., fully remote, remote-first, or hybrid) enjoy higher productivity. Most research shows that employees are more productive when they work remotely. The data shows that 32% of managers are concerned about employee engagement. Plus, employees can devote more time to family life thanks to flexible working options.

The vast majority of employers reported that they wouldn’t lower an employee’s salary if they decided to keep working from home after the pandemic. The majority of employers also reported that they would hire an employee based in a different geographic location at the same rate as an in-office employee. Exclusively remote employees reported a record low connection to their organization’s mission and purpose, with only 28% feeling strongly connected. This disconnect poses a significant challenge for companies striving to maintain a cohesive culture in a distributed work environment. Research underscores this complicated relationship between remote work, employee engagement, and organizational culture.

The most commonly given answer was “three days per week” with a 29% share of respondents opting for this duration. The growing proportion of new remote workers reflects the necessity of WFH for many employees. While some companies plan to stay fully remote and others are rushing to return to offices, for some, the future is uncertain.