Opponents of remote work often cite lack of engagement and reduced productivity as reasons why they prefer employees in the office. While work habits have changed since the influx of remote work in 2020, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s changed for the worse.

Since the start of the COVID pandemic employers have changed the definition of work to include working away from the office and usually (not always) in an employee’s home. To accommodate a productive and legal work from home policy, HR Morning, an HR consulting firm, identifies five pitfalls to avoid when creating your policy.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in early 2020, many employees began working from home. Although some companies have gone back to in-person work, other companies have realized they are able to function just as well remotely, without any negative effects on productivity.

A recent article published in CCH HRAnswersNow Expert Insights looks at the issue of FMLA coverage for remote workers. In this case, a person worked from their home which was well outside what could be reasonably considered within the coverage area of the FMLA.

As the pandemic has put immense pressure on government employees to deliver public services, new research finds that teleworking has improved team performance. 46% of government employees who telework—both fully remote and hybrid employees—say their team’s performance improved during the past two years. Only 35% of in-person government workers say their team’s performance has improved during the period, according to new research from Eagle Hill Consulting.

MRA, one of ASE’s sister associations located in Wisconsin and Illinois, released the results of their latest Hot Topic Survey on Remote Work and Inflation.  The survey revealed that remote work has become one of the most valued benefits companies can offer.

Elon Musk recently met with the staff of twitter and during that meeting he talked about his 7-word rule for working remote – “if somebody is exceptional at their job.”

As employers move further into remote work arrangements (full-time, part-time, hybrid) with their employees, a basic understanding of the state’s workers’ compensation law is important.

We are still waiting for the moment where we feel confident to say the worst of COVID is behind us and it’s downgraded to an endemic.  When that happens, we will take stock of the pandemic’s legacy on the workplace.  A recent working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research makes the case that remote work will be one of those artifacts from the pandemic.

One of the number one arguments I hear against remote work is maintaining the workplace culture that was established prior to COVID. But I think, in some cases, if the right adjustments were made, culture was improved or at least maintained.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, remote work has been the biggest trend impacting the way businesses operate. There is one growing group of workers: digital nomads. These are people who embrace a location-independent, technology-enabled lifestyle. Unlike regular remote workers, who tend to stay in one place or shuttle back and forth between their home and a vacation retreat, digital nomads travel and explore the world while working.

The pandemic and tight job market might have your organization considering bringing on remote employees who live far away from your office location. But this can create lots of questions for hiring managers. Before jumping in, read these pros and cons.

Michigan’s business leaders see robust growth ahead in the state’s economy during the next six to 12 months and plan a return to in-person office work in the 3^rd (48%) and 4^th (31%) quarters of this year, according to a quarterly economic survey completed by Business Leaders for Michigan. Only 10% have already returned.

In ASE’s latest COVID-19 Business Impact Survey, over 52% of Michigan employers report that some staff will work remotely on a regular full-time basis after the pandemic, if their job allows it. Nationally, more than 80% of employers describe that their organizations’ shift to remote work during the pandemic has been successful, and nearly 40% have reported an increase in productivity, according to a recent Pearl Meyer survey.

More than two-thirds (68%) of U.S. workers prefer a hybrid workplace model after the pandemic ends, according to Prudential’s Pulse of the American Worker survey, conducted by Morning Consult in March. Of those surveyed who have been working remotely, 87% want to continue to work remotely at least one day per week post-pandemic.

A recent EPTW poll showed that 61% of respondents were feeling zoom fatigue, and now there is research to confirm that it’s real.  Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab (VHIL) examined the psychological consequences of spending hours per day on video platforms and found that video calls are tiring people out – creating zoom fatigue.

Can you believe it’s been nearly one year since the pandemic closed offices and forced remote work?  We’ve all had to make adjustments over the past year.  There have been varied levels of success with remote work, much of it dependent on how well the organization was able to adjust and embrace employees working from their homes.

In a recent ASE Member discussion, members talked about how they miss the unplanned interactions in the office. These often become the starting point for solving problems and getting work done.  Studies have shown that the amount of time spent planning projects and communicating effectively for a virtual team is at least double what it is for an in‐person team.  How can your virtual team mimic that informal talk in the lunchroom or catching someone in the hallway?

“I’m not joking when I say this: If you ever work with me and I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect, talk down to someone, I will fire you on the spot. No ifs, ands, or buts.”  That is a direct quote from President Biden on his very first day in the White House. What if corporations took that same stance?

A new survey conducted by TalentLMS looked at how remote work training and work habits have changed since 2019 – now that remote work is the norm rather than the exception.  They strived to answer one main question – does offering your remote workforce training opportunities make a difference in their performance, happiness, and company loyalty?

I recently read a fascinating article from BBC Worklife where they asked leading experts how they felt the world of work has changed as a result of COVID.  They looked at remote work and how it’s been normalized through this pandemic and what effects it’s expected to have long term.

As the COVID numbers are rising, I think it’s safe to say that remote work isn’t going anywhere soon.  We’ve talked a lot about remote work lately, but a recent article in Fast Company shines a different light on it.  It talks about making the most of your now virtual commute. We’ve saved all this time commuting to and from work, but how are we making the best out of that time?

I had the pleasure of seeing Barbara Corcoran speak at a conference about a year ago.  She is a very successful businesswoman and always has great advice.  I recently read an article where she gives five tips to help your team remain productive while working from home.  They are all great reminders as we enter month eight of working remote.

Google recently surveyed more than 5,000 employees and held focus groups to understand the impact of distributed work after recently announcing that they would extend remote work through at least July 2021.