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<\/div>\nAmong Generation X workers, who are now approaching middle age, the ability to work remotely ranks higher than compensation and benefits in terms of what makes them happy about their jobs. Among this generation, remote work also topped having a great boss, a positive workplace culture and career-growth prospects, according to new research on employee sentiments.<\/p>\n
But while employees clearly value working remotely, many also say they feel isolated from their employer and colleagues.<\/p>\n
Generational Views<\/p>\n
A September survey of 1,023 employed U.S. adults<\/a> conducted for global technology and talent consultancy MSH delved into the differences among the generations regarding remote work versus higher pay. While Americans ages 42 to 57 years old (Generation X) say the ability to work in hybrid and remote arrangements brings more happiness to their jobs than other major factors, more employed Millennials (26 to 41 years old) say compensation and benefits make them happier than work-location flexibility.<\/p>\n “The pandemic changed the course of what makes people happiest about their jobs, and preferences and priorities have shifted in what is now a new hiring paradigm for employers,” said Oz Rashid, founder and chief executive officer of MSH, based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. “As demand for high-quality talent continues, employers of all shapes and sizes are evolving to accommodate changing preferences.”<\/p>\n Landon Cortenbach, chief financial officer at MSH, pointed out a finding that more Generation Z workers, ages 18 to 25, say career-growth prospects would be likely to influence their decision to leave a job when compared with work-location flexibility. “That’s a significant data point,” he noted. “While better salaries will always have a lot of power as well, it is the sum of these variables that you have to factor when analyzing why people leave jobs.”<\/p>\n Keep Workers Onboard<\/p>\n In other research, SafetyWing, a fully remote travel and medical-incident insurer based in Palo Alto, Calif., surveyed more than 4,000 in-office and remote employees in eight countries earlier this year. The findings, reported in the firm’s Building Remotely: Employee Retention<\/em><\/a> white paper, show that:<\/p>\n Overall, however, the biggest reason for choosing to leave an employer was still salary, SafetyWing found, with 62 percent of remote workers saying they would have stayed at their previous jobs if offered higher pay.<\/p>\n “The remote worker represents a new workforce, and it’s vital to understand what makes them choose a company and what makes them stay,” said Sondre Rasch, co-founder and CEO of SafetyWing.<\/p>\n Disconnected Workers<\/p>\n <\/strong>Remote working isn’t without its challenges, such as workers feeling isolated from colleagues.<\/p>\n In March, Airspeed, a social platform firm, and business researchers at Workplace Intelligence asked 800 U.S. C-suite executives and 800 employees at remote or hybrid organizations about their perspectives on remote working.<\/p>\n\n
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