A new survey by Esri Ireland shows that a large percentage of Irish office workers don't want to return to the office after the pandemic ends.
One of the few positive things to come out of the Covid pandemic is that it forced employers around the world into an unplanned trial of remote working. Most large companies had said for decades that they couldn't allow staff to work from home as productivity would suffer, and some have since discovered that they were wrong.
Major tech giants such as Microsoft and Twitter have all promised to allow staff to remain remote for the forseeable future, while others have advocated for a return to the office or a new hybrid working model involving limited office time. A new survey by Esri Ireland asked Irish people key questions about the Covid crisis and returning to work, with interesting results.
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The survey reviewed over 1,000 adults living in Ireland and asked questions about people's concerns and considerations regarding where they live. Over 43% of those surveyed said they don't want to go back to the office at all after the pandemic is over, and 51% said they would like to keep working from home at least part time once restrictions are eased.
The survey also delved into home-workers and their living arrangement choices, finding that around 10% of Irish adults would like to move to a more rural location if working from home continues. This comes after decades of housing supply shortage in large cities such as Dublin, which have driven rental and property values up considerably in recent years.
Most of those who would move to a more rural area cited price as their main concern, followed by proximity to work and shops, and then other considerations. Around 47% of respondents also said they didn't want to have a 5G base-station within 500m of their house, with many of them claiming health concerns.
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While the survey showed that over 360,000 people want to move to more rural areas, it also provided a damning snapshot of sentiment from those already living there. Around 39% of rural respondents believed they had poor access to healthcare, and 34% said access to emergency services was poor compared to in cities.
Paul Synnott, Managing Director, Esri Ireland, said: "COVID-19 has made all of us more aware of our localities and the various amenities available to us. With more people considering a move to a more permanent working-from-home set-up, this survey highlights areas where locals are not adequately served by essential services and amenities."
Source: Written based on press release
