A new survey for the National Recruitment Federation (NRF) has found almost half of Irish workers (49%) now working remotely and have already accepted a salary reduction or expect to have one in the near future as a result of the Covid-19 crisis.
The survey was carried out by Opinions.ie from 13th April – 16th April 2020. The representative sample of 512 individuals included those living alone, couples, and families with children, in urban and rural settings countrywide.
The survey shows that 50% of workers surveyed say they are already experiencing lower household income, or expect to, as a result of lower personal pay or a working partner being unpaid or on reduced pay. Those experiencing reduced earnings were more likely to work in sales (77%) or professional services (51%), to be Dublin based (53%), and to be on a salary scale under €50,000.
However, 73%, over 7 in 10 now working from home have seen their overall outgoings reduced, or are saving money as a result.
The research indicates that cohorts that appear to be benefitting most in terms of savings include those in suburban or rural areas, those who are always office based, and those who normally use either public transport or their car to get to work.
Just 1 in 4 of workers, 25%, are very confident of the security of their role after the crisis; although almost half, 46%, appear quite confident. Of the 24% not confident at all of their job prospects, this cohort includes those living in urban areas, people who have already taken a pay cut, or expect to, and those whose pay is currently supplemented by a Government subsidy.
Over 4 in 10 working from home report that the nature of their role has changed considerably due to Covid-19, beyond just working from a different location. Dramatically changed work practices and the nature of work now done remotely was most likely to affect people under 35 years old, those in the C2DE social grade and those reporting a salary cut.
Furthermore, 4 in 10 working remotely claim that Covid-19 disruption is causing them to evaluate their job and consider a new or different role elsewhere, or a new career or training opportunity. Those most likely to be reviewing their career potential now include the under 35s, those in urban areas, people who have taken a salary cut or whose role has changed as a result of working from home.
Commenting on the research, NRF President, Donal O’Donoghue said, "On balance, it seems, we are happier working from home; and, almost 7 in 10 say they would be happy to work remotely in future. So, leaving aside economic concerns, the notion of a remote working revolution in the future must be seriously examined by employers."
Source: www.businessworld.ie
