During the pandemic, thousands of workers began to review priorities in relation to work and life, which has inflationary effects and caused changes in labor relations. The pandemic gave workers more free time to think about their careers and money habits, and many are now shifting to remote working jobs, rather than going back into the office.
Great Resignation boosts remote working jobs
One of the more recent faces of the effect of the pandemic unleashed by Covid-19 is what has been called the Great Resignation. The term was coined by management professor Anthony Klotz of Texas A&M University. It is a way of trying to explain the movement that has led thousands of workers in the United States to review their current positions in the labor market, evaluating losses, gains and purposes.
A survey carried out by Microsoft in July and released by the World Ecomic Forum indicates that around 40% of workers are considering leaving their current jobs. Another survey by insurance and finance giant Prudential indicates that one in three American workers would not want to work for an employer that would require them to be on-site full-time, leading to many looking for remote working jobs instead.
The same Prudential report also reveals that a quarter of workers plan to look for a new job when the threat of the pandemic diminishes, signaling an imminent war for talent, professionals with solid academic background and experience in their fields of activity.
Everything indicates that the pandemic has given workers more free time to think about their careers, explore entrepreneurship, change consumption habits and save more money. These factors have led many to realize that their current job may not be as satisfying, while remote working jobs offer clear advantages. On the other side of the desk, employers have realised the benefits of having an offshore team.
Economic impacts
In the medium and long term, it is still not possible to say with certainty what the balance of this Great Resignation and remote working jobs movement and its impacts on the economy will be, or how this behavior will shape labor relations. But in the short term, some signs are already clear. While $7.25 is still the federal minimum wage, in some industries, especially in service industries including restaurants, retail and travel, the $15 an hour minimum wage is becoming the norm in practice.
The movement to increase pay has taken place without battles in the courts or regulatory environments, as a result of increased competition for workers. One example is Amazon, which recently raised the starting salary on its units to $18 an hour. This could force other companies to offer equal or superior values in pursuit of a competitive advantage when negotiating with the workforce whether for in-house or remote working jobs.
If, on the one hand, this long-awaited valorization of labor in the US reveals a certain positivity, contributing to adjust decades of distortions in the world of work, on the other hand it could contribute to maintaining high inflationary pressure. Higher salaries, in general, mean increased costs and tend to be passed on to the final value of products and services.
Consumer inflation in the United States, accumulated in the 12 months through August, is at 5.3%, according to data released on Sept. 14 by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The pressure to raise compensation is on the radar of the Federal Reserve, which continues to try to find a delicate balance between rising inflation and the still-recovering job market.
Remote working jobs beat overtime
Paying workers overtime can be a quick fix for worker shortages. But the extra hours create more stress on the workforce, strain and put more pressure on employees who stay with the companies: A remedy with a short-term effect. However, remote working jobs are a long-term answer.
Another ingredient that has been placed in this equation is the large number of requests for retirement. Since the start of the pandemic, about 2 million more people than expected have decided to hang up their tools, according to the New School’s Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis. While some, who had already completed their working time, chose to retire, others were forced to retire after losing their jobs or simply resigned for fear of exposure to Covid-19, while others decided to look for remote working jobs they could do on a semi-retired basis.
Despite advances in automation of repetitive tasks in recent decades, there are many functions where it is not possible to outsource the formulation of winning projects and strategies to a machine. Whether in the United States, China, Europe or Brazil, the competition for the first places in economic development involves the human factor, demanding an increasingly wide range of quality education, training, attracting and retaining the best talent. One of the solutions many businesses are turning to is increasingly creating remote working jobs for their needs, and this offers many benefits.
What do remote working jobs entail?
Remote working jobs are for many people synonymous with the home office, but it’s not necessarily the case. Any work performed outside the company’s premises is considered remote. It is possible to work in cafes, shared offices, libraries or anywhere with internet access. Those who work in the field or are outside the company to take specialization and improvement courses are also working remotely.
And the company can adopt this remote working jobs model in two ways: the first, with 100% of the work performed remotely, and the second semi-attendance, when the employee must attend the company on predetermined days.
When we talk about remote working jobs, the concept is quickly associated with freelancers, who work on their own and define their own routines. But the home office is getting wider and includes companies from different sectors. Technology, communication, sales, education, deliver and many areas are already able to organize the demands with teams working remotely.
In general, only jobs where the employee must necessarily be in loco do not allow the home office. Some examples are: provision of aesthetic services, general services, food preparation, among others. Either way, the company needs to study the remote working jobs landscape to understand how and when to adopt teleworking and whether its team is prepared for this change.
Advantages of creating remote working jobs
1. Cost reduction
The first advantage with remote working jobs is cost savings. Your company will no longer need to maintain a giant structure for the team to work. This means savings on rent, water, electricity, internet and other maintenance expenses. In addition, there are savings with transportation, as the employee does not need to travel from home to the company. When we add it all up, the savings are significant.
But, it is worth remembering: the team needs to have a good structure at home. This means that the employee must have their own environment to focus on work, with good ergonomics, comfort, good lighting and a good internet plan, with speed and stability, to participate in all meetings and access the company’s systems.
2. More possibility of hiring and retaining talent
Many companies prioritize hiring people who live close to the institution’s headquarters, to avoid delays and problems with displacement. With remote working jobs this is no longer an issue. One of the advantages is that it is possible to hire talent from anywhere, even if the employee is in different cities, states or countries. If an employee needs to move, you don’t necessarily have to leave. In this way, the formation of a team with excellent professionals and focused on performance and results is guaranteed.
3. Motivated teams
Remote teams organize their routines with more motivation. This is because people with remote working jobs have more freedom and independence in decision making. In this format, the employee is more focused and develops more projects in less time. In addition, people have more time to devote to their personal lives, which means more time with the family, to exercise or even to sleep a little more. All of this provides better quality of life and health, which also have a positive impact on work.
4. More independent employees
On a daily basis, whenever a challenge arises, it is common for the employee to turn to a superior immediately. When in remote working jobs, he’ll think some more before calling or texting someone else. The result of this is that the employee becomes more independent in solving demands and seeks, on their own initiative, new knowledge and skills.
5. Improvement in the quality of products and services
Teams that work with more focus, creative freedom and autonomy, have more freedom to seek knowledge and propose new things. This will be reflected in the quality of the products and services your company offers. They will be more aligned with your audience’s needs and will be in a constant process of improvement states contract job board Quality Contracts.
6. Increase in business results
Your team is more motivated, costs have been reduced and innovation is part of your organization’s routine. The result of this sum could not be different: there will be an increase in your company’s results. Of course, this is part of a set of actions. But it is always worth noting that happier employees contribute to increasing profits and making the company grow.
