With many people now working remotely due to the pandemic, a lot of companies are seeing the benefits of having their employees working from home. Despite the growing number of studies showing how much time and money can be saved from remote offices, some employers were still skeptical and wanted to keep stick to the normal office environment they were so used to.
But recent quarantines have forced those skeptical employers to give in and have a most (if not all) their employees work from their home. But once the infected numbers go down and it is safe enough to go back to public places, how will our normal office environment be affected? Will there even be an office to return to? Or will people have to start see their desk in the den as their permanent workspace?
If and when offices reopen, there will most likely be some very noticeable (and some not-so-noticeable) changes to the environment to better protect employees from spreading germs. All doors may be automatic open, elevator buttons might go holographic, and close desk arrangements may be a thing of the past. Building cleaning schedules may become more strict and detailed, and the air vents may be updated to ensure cleaner air circulation.
But all those changes may not seem worth it to some companies. Having their employees stay home and work may seem a lot more beneficial than their employers making potentially expensive changes to shoulder the responsibility of keeping their workers healthy. Downsizing to a smaller office may also seem more alluring to companies now that they have the data to show they can keep performance up whether they’re remote or not.
What do you guys think? Will office life really be affected after this blows over? Or will normal life change to something completely different?