Headline, August 25 2022/ ''' '' TIMES REMOTE TIDES '' '''

''' '' TIMES REMOTE

 TIDES '' '''

WORKERS IN 17 COUNTRIES SAID THAT IF CALLED TO the workplace full time, they might look for another job. But the reality and wisdom is that young workers shouldn't stay remote forever.

In the conversation about returning to in-person office work, it sometimes seems like bosses and workers are operating in different realities.

Many young workers on the first few rungs of their career ladders do not see offices as welcoming places, buzzing with collaboration and mentorship, despite what their bosses promise.

Meanwhile, many senior executives are mystified by calls for change to office systems and cultures that, from where they sat, looked like they were working just fine.

THEY WEREN'T. The pandemic showed a realistic alternative to the daily commute to the office, and now many workers aren't willing to go back to the status quo. Some two-thirds of those who have worked remotely during the pandemic do not want to return to the office, according to a survey conducted by the jobs platform FlexJobs last year. 

A large survey taken in November 2021 of workers in 17 countries found that 71 percent 18-to-24 year olds said that ''if any employer insisted on my returning to workplace full-time, I would consider looking for another job.'' And they can for the moment at least do just that : In a tight labor market, research suggests that recent college graduates have high expectations of their first jobs, including work flexibility and alignment with their employers' mission and values.

There are around 125 million full-time jobs in America, and researchers at Gallup say that half of these jobs - mostly office or ''white collar'' jobs - can be done remotely. But corporate leaders still seems to put a premium on '' face time '' in the office.

Elon Musk recently told his employees at Tesla and SpaceX that he expects them to speed at least 40 hours per week in the office.

Even if they're not announcing mandates, many companies are offering incentives and perks, leaving workers with the distinct impression that working from home is frowned upon. Apple's plans to bring workers back to its campus part-time haven't gone very well, with some employees demanding in an open letter that the tech company ''Stop treating us like school kids who need to be told when to be where and what homework to do.''

Part of the problem is that the collegial, purpose-driven office that senior leaders idealize feels like a myth to many young workers. Since long before Covid-19, most offices weren't delivering the mentoring, collaboration and social fabric that makes in-person work feel worthwhile.

WHEN I was the head of Goldman Sachs human resources team, a new hire - a young woman of color - asked me ''Can In bring my whole self to work?'' It's not a question my generation would have asked, but it's fair and increasingly common one.

Work culture is 10 times as significant as compensation in predicting staff turnover, according to research published by Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management. And culture problem can make those who are marginalized less eager to be in the office :

In survey after survey, women and Black workers say they prefer hybrid or remote working at higher rates that white men.

Despite all this, I want young people to return - at least some of the time - to offices. I hope they won't underestimate the value of actually being in a room with with co-workers ; the shared experience, the serendipity of talking to people not directly related to what you do; the exposure to diversity of ideas and perspectives; the chance to look up and say, ''I never thought about that.''

I know that if I had stayed home early in my career, I would have missed out on finding the friends and mentors who played critical roles in my life. The office was also where I figured out how my industry works, the nature of power hierarchies and how to get along with all kinds of people.

Staying home might seem easier, but it can also let employers off the hook when it comes to making the office more inclusive. If the social moments of the past few years have told us anything, it's that showing up and speaking up about what isn't working can bring meaningful change.

Company leaders have plenty to learn too. My advice to them is to listen to their employees, and learn from workers at all stages of their careers and lives what they need to do their best work.

They also must learn to trust their employees, and to grant them more autonomy and control over how they get their work done. They will do well to remember that when the pandemic forced many people to work from home, their employees largely remained committed and productive.

The Honour and Serving of the Latest GlobalOperational Research on Work, Time and Tides, continues. The World Students Society thanks author Edith Cooper, a former executive at Goldman Sachs. She serves on the boards of Amazon and PepsiCo.

With respectful dedication the Global Founder Framers of !WOW!, Corporate World, and Great Workers, and then Students, Professors and Teachers of the world. See Ya all prepare and register for Great Global Elections on The World Students Society - for every subject in the world : wssciw.blogspot.com and Twitter - !E-WOW! - The Ecosystem 2011 :

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