The benefits of remote work arrangements have proved to be sustainable as well as economical; contrary to some of the stigma that still exists surrounding virtual employees.
Since 2015 when approximately 37% of the U.S. Labor force was working from home/or remotely, the percentage has increased to almost 50%.
There was an argument that virtual employees would be less productive due to the lack of interaction with their colleagues and teammates. It was also assumed that most people would not apply the same discipline to completing work in the required time if they were away from the office and without micro-management.
Studies and actual real-life scenarios have yielded the following for flexible companies:
· Less overhead cost; resolve office space limitations and on-site liability
· Employees work more from their home office, less distractions allow more productivity and less errors, they are in better moods
· Less absenteeism from work at home employees, they have more flexibility, are available and dependable, they can still participate in remote meetings and exchange information quickly, and the arrangements are attracting new talent as more and more people need flexibility
· Employees often work longer without worry for the additional time it takes to commute to and from another office location
· Remote workers have accepted lateral (forego raise) and even lower salaries in exchange for savings on costly lunch, clothing expenses, or commuting costs (public transportation or gas)
Added bonuses: virtual assistants for instance, can offer their services while having their own health insurance, thereby allowing the hiring company to save on overall labor cost.
Average Salary Calculations- -$55K with taxes & benefits=$70K, plus desk and equipment cost= $89K
Employee Productivity Estimated-1950 annual working hours, an estimated 200 hours of PTO, with about 9 hours a week/468 hours are unproductive=totaling about 1282 true hours
Actual On-site productivity= For approximately 66% of productivity the total compensation is around $69/hour. A virtual assistant/remote employee can be hired for at least 30-35% less.
These stats say the overall benefits of virtual hires, can literally outweigh factors of skepticism, and in the meantime also fill a vacant role in shorter time. In the coming year it’s anticipated that more companies and job seekers will advocate for virtual job arrangements.