Employers witnessed productivity loss in WFH and want to open offices

The Corona pandemic did bring disease with it and many changes in the various population’s lifestyles. When the outbreak started, the corporates began moving to a work-from-home system. Many of the employees and employers were happy with the structure and speculated that this could be a new normal. They were also anticipating that the traditional office spaces would be replaced with this new normal. However, a survey found that employers are not as happy as expected with the arrangement during the outbreak. Colliers, a commercial real estate firm, surveyed various employers in June, and the result showed that workers’ productivity had dropped by 22.6%. The percentage increased to 23.4 in November’s survey result. The president of real estate management services at Colliers Canada, John Duda, expressed his thoughts over workers’ productivity and the usual sentiments of “Zoom Fatigue.” According to John, all these factors reflect that employers will be less inclined to say no to more/fewer office areas. To put this into perspective, in June’s survey, 46% of the participated employers said that they would probably reduce the physical office size. But, the percentage sank to 37 in November. About the tenants, they were 20% less likely to admit that they need a smaller space, and around 30% of them stated that they need the same or even more space in some cases in November’s survey. According to John, in the beginning, people were enthusiastic and excited about the new arrangement. They were all ready to indulge and make the most out of the WFH arrangement. But as time flew and things started to settle, businesses realized the loss of productivity, and now all of them are like, “we cannot function like this in the long run.” They all are fatigued with the WFH situation, especially are concerned about the production. Furthermore, the report shows that people value their offices and want to return whenever the vaccine is available and so do the employers. 54% of the businesses in Canada stated that they need all of their employees at the office when the outbreak settles down. More than international companies, regional and small businesses are eager to bring 100% of the workforce back to the office. John also said that situations are frequently changing, and once the vaccine is available, the possible approaches will reshift. He also admitted that people are not thinking about long-term agreements when it comes to leasing. Calgary Economic Development’s president and CEO, Mary Moran, also admitted that no potential Calgary firms decided on the permanent WFH model. She explained that the companies would assess the performance based on the WFH duration’s productivity. However, according to the general stats, when workers operate from home more than twice a week, productivity gets hampered. Mary also said that she is concerned about the mental health of the people working from home. As it is relatively easy to wake up and start working from your home table, but the monotony could negatively affect the brain without regular social interaction. Mary further expressed her concerns over the vacant sky-high downtown office tower before the outbreak due to layoffs in the energy sector and still remains elevated at 27.8%. She also admitted that a few Calgary companies might choose to remain in the WFH arrangement. Some could do the opposite, but neither will significantly impact the vacancy rate of downtown. That means the vacancy rate will not come down anytime soon for the city’s downtown. Mary Moran is more concerned about the energy sector’s affairs instead of people choosing the WFH model. She said that the Husky-Cenovus merger was unexpected for many, and there is more to come. The energy sector’s consolidation will have a negative effect, and the office shredding will continue for some time more. That is more problematic to Moran than this WFH situation.