Twenty-one per cent of Kiwis are prepared to drop their salary by up to 20 per cent in order to work from home, with a further 37 per cent prepared to take a hit of up to 10 per cent for this same privilege, according to a recent poll by recruiting experts Hays.
Less than half of the 1,419 New Zealanders polled, 42 per cent, said they are happy to commute if it means more money.
Interestingly the poll was also completed in Australia where a much higher percentage of people, 55 per cent, would drop their salary by up to 20 per cent and a further 22 per cent would drop it by up to 10 per cent in order to work from home. Just 23 per cent of Aussies are happy to commute if it means more money.
“All jokes aside, both New Zealanders and Australians have a hard work ethic and put in long hours at work, but these results suggest that us Kiwis have it better than our Aussie neighbours when it comes to the time it takes us to commute to work,” says Jason Walker, Managing Director of Hays in New Zealand.
“While three in four Aussies are prepared to sacrifice some of their salary to work from home and reclaim some work-life balance, just over half of Kiwis feel the same way. We live in a country not only of stunning natural beauty but where most of us can afford to live within a relatively short commuting distance from our workplace. Our travel time into work is often shorter than many Australians experience. Over in Australia the cost of residential housing is increasing fairly rapidly, forcing people to live further away from the main CBDs.
“This makes the thought of working from home far more attractive, and as a result more Aussies would be happy to take a salary cut if it meant less time stuck in traffic or on a crowded train.”
But for some people working from home is not all they thought it would be. As Jason explains, “Some home workers feel isolated from their team and colleagues, and it takes self-discipline in order to get through a to-do list rather than take the dog for a walk. So if you are easily distracted, need social interaction or cannot ignore domestic tasks, working from home might not be for you.
“Of course there are also jobs that do not suit working from home as they require face-to-face client interaction or your presence at a particular work site, such as tradespeople, medical professionals and teachers. However roles that are essentially completed in front of a computer can certainly be performed from home.”
The poll was conducted on www.hays.net.nz and www.hays.com.au between December 2015 and early February 2016. 1,419 people completed the New Zealand poll and 8,654 the Australian.
Hays, the world’s leading recruiting experts in qualified, professional and skilled people.
For further information please contact Jason Walker, Managing Director of Hays in New Zealand, on [email protected] or +64 (0) 9 375 9424.