According to Skanska’s survey among people in CEE, nowadays nearly half of office workers go to the office every day.
The same percentage being valid for Romanian employees who have returned to their workplaces.
18% of Romanian employees work in a hybrid model, with 3 or 4 days a week in the office, while 20% of Romanian employees work only from home.
Top choice: hybrid model with office work dominating
For 51% of the employees surveyed, the ideal working model involves at least 3-4 days a week working from the office. This trend is visible in all CEE countries.
Specifically for the respondents from Romania, 27% would like to work in the office at least 3-4 days a week, this being their ideal working model.
Another 22% of them would like to work exclusively from the office and 19 % would prefer to work only from home.
Offices need to offer more than before
The most important aspects of remote working listed by CEE employees include the ease of organizing family life (51%), good working conditions at home (48%), and saving time on commuting to the office (45%).
The study notes several differentiators in terms of what would motivate employees in the four countries to return to the office.
For Romanian employees, the most important thing is for the workplace to reach high-quality standards, including sanitary ones and the possibility to relax and work outdoors.
For Polish employees, a first motivating factor would be the possibility to use the restaurants or canteens at the employer’s expense.
Employees in the Czech Republic and Hungary, on the other hand, want to work in a quiet place or individual, separate rooms for work.
Hungarians would also appreciate free parking spaces.
Dream office: comfort, safety, and good IT connection
Among the first three indicators of an ideal office for Romanians are: very good quality IT equipment (39%) and green, open spaces for work and relaxation (33%).
Other crucial aspects include a quiet space that allows concentration (32%), professional lighting that does not tire the eyes (27%), separate or individual workspaces (18%).
Among the barriers that Romanians have regarding returning to the office are the impossibility of serving a warm and healthy meal at work (14%).
17% do not want to spend their time in a confined space with air conditioning, and 26% fear of getting the virus once they return to the office.
The study also confirms the great importance of safety issues. The results show that high sanitary standards can encourage working in the offices, while lack of them causes fear of contracting the virus.
Daily disinfection of the office (41%), lower population density (37%), and non-contact solutions (37%) are the main factors that would positively affect employees’ sense of safety.