Remote working is here to stay - and employees love it, says GitLab report

Remote working is becoming a reality for many as viral outbreaks cause many businesses to take a more cautious approach to office-based working – and according to a new report from GitLab, it's undeniable that many parts of work in the future will be done remotely.

GitLab's Remote Work report surveyed 3000 professionals across Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States to understand what employees think about remote working.

Of these professionals, 83% work full time, 11% work part time, and 6% are small business owners. Respondents work in various fields, including IT networking security, operations, accounting - finance, customer service, management, administration, and human resources.

According to the report, 83% of respondents say they are able to accomplish all of their work tasks remotely and 82% say remote working is the way of the future, suggesting that use cases for remote working will only grow with time.

Of the Australian respondents, 52% say that employers can benefit from improved employee loyalty and retention if they offer a remote working environment.   Employees who work remotely also report being more productive (59%) and efficient (48%).

GitLab CEO and founder Sid Sijbrandij says, "For companies, there are unique operational efficiencies, huge cost savings on office space and a broader pool of job applicants. For employees, this structure enables off-peak lifestyles, family-friendly flexible schedules, and improved work/life harmony. We believe that a world with more all-remote companies will be a more prosperous one, with opportunity more equally distributed."

Almost a quarter of Australian respondents belong to an organisation with no offices, and 58% say they would consider leaving a company to work in a role that offers remote working.

 Forty percent of Australian remote workers surveyed would consider relocating to a lower cost-of-living destination, citing the cost of living (37%) and lifestyle change (22%) as primary reasons.

Fifty percent of Australians surveyed say schedule flexibility is a top benefit of remote work, while 39% cite the lack of commute and 37% say cost savings is a major benefit. Additionally, 32% reported that the absence of a commute enables employees to focus on their families without having to sacrifice their careers.
 
The report also debunks common remote working myths, including the belief that remote workers are mainly travellers. According to the statistics, 59% of Australian survey respondents reported they travelled less as remote employees.

When asked what some of the benefits of remote working are, 39% say that the absence of commutes means that they can spend more time with family, exercise (38%), rest (37%) and work (34%).