Recruitment is a weird and wonderful world at the moment!
You may have seen a few weeks ago that job vacancies hit a record high as the economic recovery continues and in the three months leading up to August alone the number of vacancies rose above 1 million for the first time since records began in 2001 - needless to say there isn't a shortage of jobs out there.
However, the number of people looking to move jobs is drastically low - partly due to the impact of COVID & Brexit uncertainty - but also due to people's expectations of what a new job looks like shifting hugely - especially when it comes down to flexibility and that all-important work/life balance.
I do have my own opinions on this - the balance we are now seeing is the new normal, however I personally believe there is still an important need to get into the office - not because of productivity or micromanagement, but to actually engage with your colleagues, create a culture for everyone to succeed and also to break the habit of rolling out of bed onto your desk (we have all done it!).
New legislation has been proposed which will give employees the right to request flexible working from day one in a new job (rather than waiting 26 weeks as per current rules). This is very important and from what I am seeing, offering flexible working will definitely entice people into your business, but equally, people looking for new jobs need to offer some flexibility back as well.
I am not sure I agree with this article in The Guardian putting forward the argument that employees should cut their wages permanently in order to work from home, but what is surprising is the number of people who would be willing to take a pay cut in order to work from home more often!
So my question is, would you be up for accepting a job which is paying less, in order to maintain your work/life balance? I would love to hear your views!
Aside from reducing the risk of being exposed to Covid-19, remote work gives employees far more flexibility during their work day, a fact that has proven to have no bearing on their productivity. In fact, research has found that productivity is often higher when employees are permitted to work from home. Parents also save a ton of money on before- and after-school childcare, and can free themselves of sometimes long and grueling commutes.
Read the original article here