How the pandemic killed the five-day office work week

Employees return to U.S. offices, but as old routines such as long commutes, train rides, and face-to-face meetings are revived, one thing will never be the same: the five-day workweek.

Few office workers will be chained to their desks now that pandemic has made distance work the norm for white-collar employees. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul acknowledged the impact of this historic change, saying earlier this month that “it may never be a five-day week again.”

• A growing number of Americans are leaving full-time jobs to work independently

“It can be four days with flexibility. It can be three and a half,” he added.

Echoing this idea, New York City Mayor Eric Adams recently alluded to the end of the usual work week in which employees enter the office every day.

“We’re entering a new era of work and what New York will be like,” he said.

Take workers out of their pajamas

In 2019, before the pandemic, the New York City office sector employed 1.6 million people, according to a report by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. But many office workers switched to remote work in March 2020, when COVID-19 made the city the world capital of coronavirus.

At the time, major architectural and design firms were anticipating a return to work that would include unidirectional traffic flow facilitated by directional arrows in officeslimited lift capacity, open windows and lots of plexiglass.

But few of these design concepts have stuck. Instead, offices are becoming less closed and less, well, similar to offices to attract employees. Many workers say they preferred to skip the commutes, which have become more expensive due to rising gas pricesunless there is some kind of benefit, such as free lunch or yoga class, waiting for them in the office as an added incentive.

Facilities such as gyms and high-end restaurants in buildings, not closed cubicles, are causing workers to take off their pajamas, sofas and enter offices.

Office availability rates increased during the pandemic as companies reduced their real estate footprint and left space. The activity of leasing higher quality office space in Manhattan has recovered faster than the general rate, according to CBRE, a commercial real estate company.

“We are seeing that higher quality office space is recovering faster than the rest of the market, and the reason is that tenants who are doing transactions show a desire to get into that kind of space.” said Julie Whelan, a future. work expert at CBRE.

Business districts get a hit

The phenomenon of working from home has also led to a remodeling of the place where business takes place. At the height of COVID-19, “I thought it was a two-city story,” Matt Chmielecki, senior vice president of CBRE’s retail services group, told CBS MoneyWatch. “Residential markets were full of pedestrian traffic, restaurants were pouring into the sidewalk street and the city center felt like a ghost town.”

The lunch crowds that once bustled business districts shrank as professionals moved to work from home. Meanwhile, retailers in residential neighborhoods received help from workers confined to their homes.

“People who would be at work all day are at home, and it’s easier to shop and eat,” Chmielecki said.

It is unclear whether business districts across the country will ever be as populated as before during the work week.

“You have changing dynamics in New York, San Francisco and Chicago, areas with vibrant central business districts,” said Peter Braus, managing partner of Lee & Associates, a New York City commercial real estate company. “It simply came to our notice then [residential] neighborhoods, and that translates nationally. ”

More workers demand flexibility

In general, financial services companies have been the most reluctant to give workers more flexibility to work from the location they choose, arguing that face-to-face interaction is essential both for people’s professional development and for closing business deals. with customers.

However, even Wall Street companies have had to adapt to changing employee expectations.

“They have even apparently indicated that working from home is acceptable one day a week,” Braus said. “When that translates into employment and retail sales, even letting people stay home one day a week, that’s basically a 20% impact on sales.”

The death of the five-day office work week is being driven in large part by workers who saw an improvement in reconciling work and family life while working remotely and who are becoming more demanding with its employers.

“Talent is driving the agenda, no doubt. There was some flexibility in the work week before COVID, but it wasn’t usually the case that people worked remotely one day a week, unless they were traveling business, “said Kathy Wylde. president and CEO of Partnership for New York City, an influential nonprofit group that advocates for businesses.

Many employers have decided to adopt a hybrid work model, with employees splitting their weeks between office work and distance work. Other companies have decided to go the extra mile.

Before the pandemic, in New York City, less than 4% of jobs were completely remote, according to the New York City Association. Today, almost 11% of job offers are for completely remote positions.

“Increasingly, when hiring people, especially women, they ask about the flexibility of the work week. They’ve found that the opportunity to work from home has given them time with their families who really value it, and that’s very true. in the case of those with long commutes, “Wylde said.

This is a particular problem in New York City, where on average, workers travel 42 minutes in each direction. “So people literally recover almost two hours in their day if they don’t have to make that daily commute. We all know that time is the most valuable asset we have,” Wylde said. “I think most employers respond to the needs of employees.”

Offering flexibility has also become key to employers ’hiring efforts, according to Braus ofLee & Associates.

“Employers face this dynamic in which if I tell a potential contractor that they are expected to be between four and five days a week, that could be a disincentive for them to work for my company,” he said. “If you are looking for a new office space, it has to be the best, newest and best office space out there; otherwise there will be a real problem in getting future employees.”