1.21.21 – CI – Anonymous survey of employees across high-tech industries shows one-third of respondents say they would quit rather than return to office.
You probably can’t believe everything you read in every survey you read, so it’s important to add the caveat that the recent results of a Blind survey showing one-third of respondents would rather quit than work in the office more than 50% post-pandemic might not be scientific.
Just under one-third of professionals said they would quit if they had to go back to the office for 50% of time or more, including 40 percent of the respondents from Salesforce. On the flip side, 80 percent of those working at Tesla would keep their jobs if they have to go to the office.
About five out of every eight Netflix employees who responded to the blind survey said they would NOT quit their jobs if they’re required to go back to the office more than 50 percent of the time.
Here are some comments explaining how users voted:
A Facebook employee simply responded, “I want to go back.”
A Capital One employee said, “I would love 2-3 days in the office and 2-3 days from home.”
A Google employee said “I just want to be able to buy a house for my family and not commute 1+ hour each way each day. I’m even willing to commute 1+ hour each way once or twice a week, but 3 or 4 gets to be soul crushing.”
Another Facebook employee said “That’s surprising to me. Literally everyone in my org responded to a survey that they want to be back in the office.”
I wonder how this phenomenon would play out across AV integration. I know for a fact that our 2019 Integrator of the Year—Solutionz, Inc.—considers itself an in-office company whenever it’s safe to do so and I haven’t heard much about employees jumping ship.
In fact, the company is known for its employee loyalty, with many starting and ending their careers with the family-owned company.
I find it hard to believe the one-third of respondents who say they’d walk away from their jobs would actually do it when faced with the decision of working in the office or not working at all, but maybe I’m just projecting my own beliefs.
I’ve certainly gotten used to working from home and don’t know yet when I’ll be returning to Commercial Integrator World Headquarters, let alone when I’ll be doing it more than half of my work week but I can assure you—and my employers—I won’t be quitting when they ask me to do so.
About the Author
D. CRAIG MACCORMACK, Executive Editor
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Craig MacCormack is a veteran journalist with more than 25 years of experience covering local and national news and sports as well as architecture and engineering before moving into his current role. He joined Commercial Integrator in January 2011.