Editing Remote work (section)

==Potential benefits==
===Cost reduction===
Remote work can [[cost reduction|reduce costs]] for organizations, including the cost of office space and related expenses such as parking, computer equipment, furniture, [[office supplies]], lighting and [[heating, ventilation, and air conditioning]].<ref name=profits/> Certain employee expenses, such as office expenses, can be shifted to the remote worker, although this is the subject of lawsuits.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/benefits/pages/lawsuits-put-spotlight-on-paying-remote-workers-expenses.aspx | title=Lawsuits Put Spotlight on Paying Remote Workers' Expenses | first=Stephen | last=Miller | work=[[Society for Human Resource Management]] | date=June 17, 2022}}</ref>

Remote work also reduces costs for the worker such as costs of travel/[[commuting]]<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2020/12/02/in-defense-of-remote-work/ | title=In Defense Of Remote Work | first=Jeff | last=DeVerter | work=[[Forbes]] | date=December 2, 2020}}</ref><ref name=impact>{{cite journal | last1=Watad | first1=Mahmoud M.| first2=Gregory T. | last2=Jenkins | title=The Impact Of Telework On Knowledge Creation And Management | journal=Journal of Knowledge Management Practice | date=December 4, 2010 | volume=11 |issue=4 | url=http://www.tlainc.com/articl237.htm}}</ref> and clothing.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/articles/pros-and-cons-of-working-from-home | title=Pros and Cons of Working From Home | first=Robin | last=Madell | work=[[U.S. News & World Report]] | date=June 30, 2022}}</ref> It also allows for the possibility of living in a cheaper area than that of the office.<ref name=masterclass/>

===Higher employee motivation and job satisfaction due to autonomy and flexibility===
Consistent with [[job characteristic theory]] (1976), an increase in [[autonomy]] and feedback for employees leads to higher work motivation, satisfaction with personal growth opportunities, general [[job satisfaction]], higher job performance, and lower absenteeism and turnover. Autonomy increased remote workers' satisfaction by reducing work-family conflicts, especially when workers were allowed to work outside traditional work hours and be more flexible for family purposes. Autonomy was the reason for an increase in [[employee engagement]] when the amount of time spent remote working increased. Remote workers have more flexibility and can shift work to different times of day and different locations to maximize their performance. The autonomy of remote work allows for arrangement of work to reduce [[work-family conflict]] and conflicts with recreational activities. However, studies also show that autonomy must be balanced with high levels of discipline if a healthy work/leisure balance is to be maintained.<ref>{{Cite journal | title=The Impact of Enforced Working from Home on Employee Job Satisfaction during COVID-19: An Event System Perspective | first1=Jun | last1=Yu | first2=Yihong | last2=Wu | journal=[[International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health]] | date=December 2021| volume=18 | issue=24 | page=13207 | doi=10.3390/ijerph182413207 | pmid=34948823 | pmc=8701258 | doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1=Cook | first1=Dave | title=The freedom trap: digital nomads and the use of disciplining practices to manage work/leisure boundaries | journal=Information Technology & Tourism | date=March 12, 2020 | volume=22 | issue=3 | pages=355–390 | doi=10.1007/s40558-020-00172-4 | doi-access=free}}</ref>

Remote work may make it easier for workers to balance their work responsibilities with their personal life and family roles such as caring for children or elderly parents. Remote work improves efficiency by reducing travel time, and reduces commuting time and time stuck in [[traffic congestion]], improving [[quality of life]].<ref name=impact/><ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Ipsen | first1=Christine | last2=van Veldhoven |first2=Marc | last3=Kirchner | first3=Kathrin | last4=Hansen | first4=John Paulin | date=January 2021 | title=Six Key Advantages and Disadvantages of Working from Home in Europe during COVID-19 | journal=[[International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health]] | volume=18 | issue=4 | pages=1826 | doi=10.3390/ijerph18041826| pmid=33668505| pmc=7917590 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

Remote working greatly increases the freedom employees have to choose where to work, such as a home, coffee shop or co-working space. This approach allows employees to choose their own beneficial working style in their preferred environment, further promoting a healthy work-life balance and providing productivity.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Itam |first1=Urmila Jagadeeswari |last2=Warrier |first2=Uma |date=2024-03-27 |title=Future of work from everywhere: a systematic review |url=https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/IJM-06-2022-0288/full/html |journal=International Journal of Manpower |language=en |volume=45 |issue=1 |pages=12–48 |doi=10.1108/IJM-06-2022-0288 |issn=0143-7720}}</ref>

Providing the option to work remotely or adopting a hybrid work schedule has been an incentivizing benefit companies used in new hiring.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://hbr.org/2022/03/remote-work-has-opened-the-door-to-a-new-approach-to-hiring | title=Remote Work Has Opened the Door to a New Approach to Hiring | first1=Adam | last1=Ozimek | first2=Christopher | last2=Stanton | work=[[Harvard Business Review]] | date=March 11, 2022}}</ref>

Hybrid is a flexible work model that allows employees to split their time between working in the office and working from home.

A 2007 meta-analysis of 46 studies of remote work involving 12,833 employees conducted by Ravi Gajendran and David A. Harrison in the ''[[Journal of Applied Psychology]]'', published by the [[American Psychological Association]] (APA), found that remote work has largely positive effects on employees' job satisfaction, perceived autonomy, stress levels, manager-rated job performance, and (lower) work-family conflict, and lower [[turnover intention]].<ref name=positive>{{cite press release | url=https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2007/11/telecommuting | title=Telecommuting has Mostly Positive Consequences for Employees and Employers, Say Researchers | publisher=[[American Psychological Association]] | date=November 19, 2007}}</ref><ref name=consequences/>

===Environmental benefits===
{{See also|Mobility transition}}
Remote work can reduce [[traffic congestion]] and [[air pollution]], with fewer cars on the roads.

Most studies find that remote work overall results in a decrease in energy use due to less time spent on energy-intensive personal transportation,<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Hook | first1=Andrew | last2=Sovacool | first2=Benjamin K. | last3=Sorrell | first3=Steve | first4=Victor | last4=Court | date=August 19, 2020 | title=A systematic review of the energy and climate impacts of teleworking | journal=Environmental Research Letters | volume=15 | issue=9 | page=093003 | doi=10.1088/1748-9326/ab8a84 | bibcode=2020ERL....15i3003H | s2cid=218789818| doi-access=free }}</ref> cleaner air,<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://eos.org/research-spotlights/remote-work-may-be-keeping-some-cities-air-cleaner | title=Remote Work May Be Keeping Some Cities' Air Cleaner | first=Rebecca | last=Dzombak | work=[[American Geophysical Union]] | date=October 12, 2021}}</ref> and a reduction of electricity usage due to a lower office space footprint.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Sahoo | first1=Bibhu Prasad |last2=Gulati |first2=Ankita |last3=Haq | first3=Irfan Ul | date=2021 | title=COVID-19 & Prospects of Online Work from Home Using Technology: Case from India | journal=International Journal of Online and Biomedical Engineering | volume=17 | issue=9 | pages=106 |doi=10.3991/ijoe.v17i09.23929 | s2cid=239072387| doi-access=free }}</ref>

During the [[COVID-19 lockdowns]], the increase in remote work led to a decrease in global [[CO2 emissions|CO<sub>2</sub> emissions]].<ref>{{Cite news | title=Coronavirus could cause fall in global CO2 emissions | url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/10/coronavirus-could-cause-fall-in-global-co2-emissions | first=Jonathan | last=Watts | work=[[The Guardian]] |date=March 10, 2020}}</ref> Partially due to the decrease in car commuting, carbon emissions dropped by 5.4%; however, emissions immediately increased to the same rate in the following year.<ref>{{Cite web | title=Emission Reductions From Pandemic Had Unexpected Effects on Atmosphere | url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/emission-reductions-from-pandemic-had-unexpected-effects-on-atmosphere |access-date=June 8, 2022 |website=NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)}}</ref>

The increase in remote work had also led to people moving out of cities and into larger homes which catered for home office space.<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Holmes | first1=Torik | last2=Lord | first2=Carolynne | last3=Ellsworth-Krebs | first3=Katherine | year=2021 | title=Locking-down instituted practices: Understanding sustainability in the context of 'domestic' consumption in the remaking | journal=[[Journal of Consumer Culture]] | volume=22 | issue=4 | pages=1049–1067 | doi=10.1177/14695405211039616 | s2cid=244184652 | url=https://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/id/eprint/159206/1/Locking_down_instituted_practices_post_print.pdf}}</ref>

===Increased productivity===
Remote work has long been promoted as a way to substantially increase employee [[productivity]]. A 2013 study showed a 13% increase in productivity among remotely working call-center employees at a Chinese travel agency. An analysis of data collected through March 2021 found that nearly six out of 10 workers reported being more productive working from home than they expected to be, compared with 14% who said they got less done.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.chicagobooth.edu/review/are-we-really-more-productive-working-home | title=Are We Really More Productive Working from Home? | first=Rebecca | last=Stropoli | work=[[University of Chicago Booth School of Business]] | date=August 18, 2021}}</ref>

Since work hours are less regulated in remote work, [[Employee engagement|employee effort and dedication]] are far more likely to be measured purely in terms of output or results. However, traces of non-productive work activities (such as research, self-training, dealing with technical problems or equipment failures), and time lost on unsuccessful attempts (such as early drafts, fruitless endeavors, abortive innovations), are visible to employers.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}}

Remote work improves efficiency by reducing or eliminating employees commute time, thus increasing their availability to work.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.lucidchart.com/blog/how-remote-work-can-be-more-productive | title=How remote work can be more productive than in-person work | work=[[Lucidchart]]| date=May 21, 2020 }}</ref><ref name=impact/> In addition, remote work also helps employees achieve a better work-life balance.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Powell |first=Jessica |date=September 25, 2020 |title=Opinion {{!}} The Rise of Remote Work Can Be Unexpectedly Liberating |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/25/opinion/remote-work-from-home-office.html |access-date=November 23, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

An increase in productivity is also supported by [[sociotechnical system]]s (STS) theory (1951), which states that, unless absolutely essential, there should be minimal specification of objectives and how to do tasks in order to avoid inhibiting options or effective actions.<ref name="Torraco">{{cite journal | doi=10.1002/hrdq.1125 | title=Work design theory: A review and critique with implications for human resource development | date=March 9, 2005 | last1=Torraco | first1=Richard J. | journal=Human Resource Development Quarterly | volume=16 | pages=85–109}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | doi=10.1177/001872675100400101 | title=Some Social and Psychological Consequences of the Longwall Method of Coal-Getting | year=1951 | last1=Trist | first1=Eric Lansdown | author-link1=Eric Trist | last2=Bamforth | first2=K. W. | journal=Human Relations | volume=4 | pages=3–38 | s2cid=145434302}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1177/001872678704000303 | title=Principles of Sociotechnical Design Revisted | year=1987 | last1=Cherns | first1=Albert | journal=[[Human Relations (journal)|Human Relations]] | volume=40 | issue=3 | pages=153–161 | s2cid=145140507}}</ref> Remote work provides workers with the freedom and power to decide how and when to do their tasks and therefore can increase productivity.<ref name=consequences>{{cite journal | url=https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/apl-9261524.pdf | doi=10.1037/0021-9010.92.6.1524 | pmid=18020794 | title=The good, the bad, and the unknown about telecommuting: Meta-analysis of psychological mediators and individual consequences | year=2007 | last1=Gajendran | first1=Ravi S. | last2=Harrison | first2=David A. | journal=[[Journal of Applied Psychology]] | volume=92 | issue=6 | pages=1524–1541| s2cid=6030172 }}</ref>

===Lower turnover intention and higher loyalty===
[[Turnover intention]], or the desire to leave an organization, is lower for remote workers.<ref name=consequences/><ref name=profits>{{Cite news | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2021/10/13/how-remote-work-can-increase-business-profits/ | title=How Remote Work Can Increase Business Profits | first=Benjamin | last=Rojas | work=[[Forbes]] | date=October 13, 2021}}</ref><ref name=positive/> Remote workers who experienced greater professional isolation actually had lower [[turnover intention]].<ref name="Golden 2008"/>

A study of workers in 27 countries surveyed in mid-2021 and early 2022 found they would on average be willing to sacrifice 5% of their pay to be able to work from home two to three days per week. 26% would quit immediately or seek a new job if they were required to work five or more days per week.<ref name=":1" />

A 2017 study showed that companies that offered remote work options experienced a 25% lower turnover rate.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/companies-that-support-remote-work-experience-25-percent-lower-employee-turnover-and-other-findings/ | title=Companies that support remote work experience 25 percent lower employee turnover (and other findings) | first=Greg | last=Nichols | work=[[ZDNet]] | date=October 4, 2017}}</ref>

Surveys by FlexJobs found that 81% of respondents said they would be more loyal to their employers if they had flexible work options.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.flexjobs.com/blog/post/survey-productivity-balance-improve-during-pandemic-remote-work/ | title=FlexJobs Survey: Productivity, Work-Life Balance Improves During Pandemic | first=Rachel | last=Pelta | work=FlexJobs}}</ref> In a 2021 study by [[McKinsey & Company]], more than half of the workers supported companies adopting a hybrid work model, and more than a quarter stated that they would consider switching jobs if their current employer eliminated remote work options.<ref>{{Cite web | last1=Alexander | first1=Andrea | last2=De Smet | first2=Aaron | last3=Langstaff | first3=Meredith | last4=Ravid | first4=Dan | title=What employees are saying about the future of remote work | url=https://fortcollinschamber.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/What-employees-are-saying-about-the-future-of-remote-work-Final.pdf | date=April 2021}}</ref>

A 2021 employee survey reports preferring a more flexible working model. During the COVID-19 pandemic the working model showed the amount of employees who are working fully on site is 62%, with 30% hybrid and 8% remote. Post COVID-19 pandemic working models changed with the amount of employees who were fully on site at 37%, with 52% hybrid and 11% remote.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Getting real about hybrid work |url=https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/its-time-for-leaders-to-get-real-about-hybrid |access-date=November 20, 2022 |website=McKinsey}}</ref>

===Access to more employees/employers===
Remote work allows employees and employers to be matched despite major location differences.<ref name=masterclass>{{Cite web | url=https://www.masterclass.com/articles/pros-and-cons-of-remote-work | title=How to Work From Home: Pros and Cons of Remote Work | work=[[MasterClass]] | date=September 7, 2021}}</ref>

Working responsibility is given to the employee who is skilled in that area of work.<ref name="Hunter-2019">{{Cite journal |last=Hunter |first=Philip |date=January 2019 |title=Remote working in research: An increasing usage of flexible work arrangements can improve productivity and creativity |journal=EMBO Reports |language=en |volume=20 |issue=1 |doi=10.15252/embr.201847435 |issn=1469-221X |pmc=6322359 |pmid=30530631}}</ref>

=== Relocation opportunity ===
Remote workers may have the opportunity to relocate to another city or state for potential job opportunities and or lower cost of living. A 2020 survey found that 2.4% of people or 4.9 million Americans say they have moved because of remote work in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ozimek |first=Adam |date=2022 |title=The New Geography of Remote Work |url=https://www.upwork.com/research/new-geography-of-remote-work|publisher=[[Upwork]]|access-date=April 23, 2023}}</ref>