Hybrid is most popular working set-up, but most would rather be full-time in workplace

‘Hybrid’ is the ideal working environment among Brits today, but twice as many workers would like to be 100 percent office-based than work permanently from home, according to the latest research from LifeSearch.

The LifeSearch Health Wealth & Happiness Study asked British workers about their ideal working set up, and the most popular option overall was ‘hybrid’ working, with almost half (44 percent) saying they’d prefer to have at least some time in the workplace and some time from home, rising to 65 percent among Generation X (aged 18-24 years), and falling in popularity with age.

In fact, over a fifth of young workers (21 percent aged 18-24) and 12 percent of all workers stated that if their employer doesn’t offer the working set-up they want and need (e.g flexible working), they would consider changing jobs.

Of those who said they’d prefer a hybrid set-up, the most popular option was a 50/50 split (44 percent), followed by three-quarters of their time in the workplace and a quarter at home (29 percent) and lastly, three-quarters of time at home and a quarter in the workplace (27 percent).

However, over a third of all Brits (36 percent) would prefer to be full-time in the workplace, rising in popularity with age, as 46 percent of over 55s said they’d prefer this set-up (vs 24 percent of those aged 18-24). On the flipside, just 15 percent of all British workers said they’d like to be working full-time from home, again rising in popularity with age.

Over 55s least likely to choose hybrid working

While overall, 44 percent of workers would prefer a hybrid set-up, for over-55s, this drops to just 27 percent with two-thirds saying they’d rather be either full time in the workplace (46 percent) or at home full time (21 percent).

In comparison, two-thirds (65 percent) of 18-24 year olds would prefer a hybrid set up, with a 50/50 split the most popular choice. However, almost six times as many of this age group (24 percent) would choose to be 100 percent workplace based than fully home based (4 percent).

Less than half are happy with their current set-up

The LifeSearch research also claims that less than half of all workers – 42 percent – are happy with their current working set-up and just 18 percent are happier than they were pre-Covid.

Almost one in 10 British workers (9 percent) claim their employer wants them back in the workplace more but they don’t want to go, rising to 13 percent of Generation Y (25-39 years), and only 15 percent say they have been asked by their employer to give their views on how they want to work. Just one in five (19 percent) feel their employer has been clear on what is expected of them in terms of how they need to work.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”It is clear that working from home permanently is not most people’s idea of a good working set-up”[/perfectpullquote]

Emma Walker, Chief Marketing Officer at LifeSearch said:“There has been a bit of an assumption that most people have liked being able to work from home at least some of the time, and our research backs that up. However, it is clear that working from home permanently is not most people’s idea of a good working set-up, especially not for younger adults, quite likely to do with the fact that two in five under 35s don’t have either a suitable home office or a quiet place to work.

“The transition back to the office in a post-pandemic world is going to be tough, and most workers don’t feel their employers are being clear enough about what is expected, or that they have had enough of an input into how they want to work.

“It is therefore really important that employers are open and honest with their workers about what they expect of them, but also that they are listening to their concerns and offering the help, support and flexibility they need as we move into this next stage of the Covid-19 recovery.”

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