IT and media employees are in no hurry to get back to office — not until there are proper policies in place

• IT and media employees are in no rush to return to their offices until more stringent measures are in the place, according to the latest edition of LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index.
  
• Those who can’t wait to get back to the ‘physical workplace’ are professionals in the recreation, travel, and consumer goods industry.
  
• Across the workforce, one-third of professionals believe that their savings will increase in the next six months but they are uncertain about job security.
  

As coronavirus restrictions across India reach their fourth month, many are looking forward to returning to the ‘physical workplace’. According to a survey conducted by LinkedIn, professionals in the recreation and travel space, as well as those in the consumer goods industry, are most eager to work from offices/on-site, as soon as it’s allowed.


But not everyone is as excited. People working in the IT industry are leaning towards WFH even if the restrictions are lifted. LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index report believes that this could be because the transition to remote work for IT employees was a lot smoother than it was more employees in other sectors of the economy.


Professionals in transportation and logistics, as well as media and communications, share the same concerns and are likely to continue working from home until absolutely necessary.



Concerns about returning to the office
It is not that the professionals in the IT and Media industry prefer staying at home. But their major concerns are poor workplace sanitisation and lack of cleanliness that would increase the exposure risk to COVID-19.


While one may follow guidelines to a tee, many employees aren’t confident that their colleagues will do the same. Exposure to those not taking such safety measures seriously is another worry that weighs heavily.


On the flip side, many employees are expecting their personal savings to jump in the next six months. But that is shadowed by the fact that when it comes to job security, employees aren’t as optimistic.

More than people who work at large companies and multinationals, the workers at small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are worried about keeping their jobs, according to LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index.

The online professional network, LinkedIn, surveyed 5,553 professionals across India over the last two months and asked what they were the most concerned about when ‘returning to the physical workspace’.

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