There are two sentiments I keep hearing as an executive recruiter: 1) that workers do not want to go into the office, and 2) that employers are unwilling to allow remote work models.
To determine just how strong workers’ convictions are, Legal Tech Talent Network hosted a poll on LinkedIn. The goal was to determine just how many workers in the Legal Tech vertical would accept a new position requiring them to report to work in an office. The question we posed was:
Legal Techies in the job market: Would you accept a job with an employer that does NOT allow remote work?
I hypothesized that many would prefer to work remotely, but the results we received were staggering:
No, I will only work remotely: 54%
Maybe, depends on the role: 29%
Yes, I’ll go into the office: 18%
With 119 total votes, this poll also received the most responses of any LinkedIn poll we’ve hosted to date, indicating that a greater number of LinkedIn members have stronger feelings about this particular issue than other matters addressed in previous poll questions. Of course, we know candidates have been saying they prefer to work remotely. Still, the fact that the most significant number of respondents told us they simply will not take an in-office position in the future proves that the battle for remote work is only intensifying.
As often as I hear that professionals do not want to go back to an in-person work model, I hear employers state that they are unwilling to foster a remote-work model. This begs the question, “Why?” We presented another poll, this time for companies to answer:
Legal Employers, HR Pros, Managers: What is the main reason your company is hesitant to allow NEW HIRES to work remotely?
Whether due to the specificity of the question, the fact that many employers are allowing hybrid or remote work, or another reason we just don’t know, this poll only received three responses, which is not significant enough in sample size to be conclusive. The results, nonetheless, were as follows:
Lack of Ability to Supervise: 100%
Information Security Issues: 0%
Owner/CEO says “No”: 0%
Other (please comment below): 0%
As an executive recruiter, I know firsthand from many conversations with job seekers that they are frustrated and confused as to why they cannot work remotely. Unfortunately, this resounding silence from employers may only help solidify the workers’ positions. One thing we do know is the employers who are more transparent and sympathetic to workers’ desires in this current climate are the ones attracting the most workers.
Ultimately, the ravine between worker responses and employer responses has left us with even more questions that we want to ask to paint a holistic picture of the battle for remote work.
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David A. Netzer
President
Legal Tech Talent Network
https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidnetzer/