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Working as we knew it will never be the same again, as the coronavirus pandemic changed everything, causing a drastic transformation of where and when we work.
Since most knowledge workers have been working remotely for about a year, some want to return to the office, while others hope they can continue working from home. Regardless of which camp one belongs to, one is the question that remains above all: what exactly will work be like when the pandemic ends? Will we go back to the proven structure 9-5, five days a week?
Maybe yes, maybe no. Some companies are in a rush to get employees to their offices, but at the same time, employee desires are more directed toward a new hybrid work structure future. According to the BBC, some experts in the field of work and productivity suggest that we forget what we knew and suggest new ways of working.
The “3-2-2” working model
Three days in the office, two days of teleworking and two days off. This is the new work structure suggested by some academics. The key here is flexibility, as employees choose and shape their schedule based on their personal preferences. (This is the complete opposite of the Chinese system with the similar name 9-9-6, according to which employees work from 9 am to 9 pm, six days a week.)
Although experts estimate that employers will still require five business days, most likely Monday through Friday, the key element of this model is that it allows employees to choose where to work.
The four-day week
The idea of four business days is not new – some companies have been thinking about the idea or even experimenting with it for a few years. The proposal has been around since the 1970s and has been implemented from time to time with mixed results, but there are many who see it as a realistic alternative.
One reason is that our productivity has evolved in unexpected ways. In a US survey, 51% of respondents said they were most productive when they worked from home, and this was true even for working parents.
On one hand, increased productivity may be due to better concentration away from the hustle and bustle of the office, but another element may have to do with the fact that there is simply not enough work and most employees are just looking for ways to cover their time. Working longer than necessary hours is likely to have devastating effects on productivity and mental health, experts say.
However, the four-week workweek is not a pandemic dream come true – in December, Unilever in New Zealand decided to put this model to the test.
A new reality?
These two approaches represent very different ways of thinking about how we work: 3-2-2 emphasizes flexibility in the 40-hour week. The four-day week maintains structure, but reduces the time employees spend working. What is most likely to happen?
It’s not easy to say for sure. The ongoing pandemic will continue to cause changes in our values and way of thinking, with many predicting catastrophe if the model tested so far changes.
Hybrid models are being tested to some extent now, with Unilever’s CEO telling Reuters that whatever the outcome of the four-day, week-long experiment in New Zealand, which ends in December 2021, the company will never return to the model. family work. five days a week.
Like so many things in our daily lives, the answer is still uncertain, but one thing seems certain: the way we work will never be the same again.
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