RTP — According to Gallup’s recent State of the Global Workspace Report, remote workers are more likely to be engaged but less likely to be thriving. The report looks at employee engagement and well-being, measuring a worker’s “attachment to their team and organization.”
Overall, remote workers were shown to be engaged at a level of 31%, considerably higher than the rate of 19% for those who were “on-site, non-remote-capable.” Hybrid workers, those able to work at home and in-office, came in on the lower end of that range, at 23%.
Stress, anger, sadness, loneliness
Despite these encouraging numbers, the news wasn’t all rosy. Fully remote workers reported between 4 and 7% more stress, anger, sadness and loneliness than their peers. They were also less likely to describe themselves as “thriving” versus those in hybrid work situations.
While remote workers value their flexibility, it seems to generate its own tensions. Past Gallup research has shown these workers require more effort to collaborate and coordinate with their teams. Remote work also leaves employees with the burdens of handling their own technology and equipment, tasks that are typically managed for them in hybrid and in-office work environments.
Much of an employee’s success is related to their management. The report stated that as much as 70% of a team member’s engagement could be attributed to the person’s manager. At the same time, the manager engagement metric declined last year, with managers under 35 and female managers experiencing a decrease in engagement of between 5 and 7%. The report suggested that management satisfaction was strained by increased needs and pressures from executives and employees alike.
Working against stereotypes
The fact that remote workers are more engaged than their in-office peers clearly tells a different story than we’re used to. The typical narrative, and much of the case against remote work, centers on the idea that remote workers are disconnected from their teams due to physical distance or by having distractions at home. If the reported levels of stress are any indicator, most of the remote workers surveyed seem to be pushing hard against that stereotype, and are feeling the strain of putting the work in to stay engaged.
Here in the Triangle, the success of remote workers is a particularly important story. Remote workers are represented in the Triangle and North Carolina overall at a much higher rate than most of the rest of the country. A 2024 Qualtrics report identified Cary as having the most remote workers in the nation, and Charlotte is consistently high on remote worker counts.
The cost of engagement
Overall, the report indicated that global engagement in the workplace had declined for the year 2024. Aside from the onset of COVID in 2020, this is the first time employee engagement has dropped since 2009 according to the report.
And what are the costs of a 2% drop in employee engagement? A staggering $438 billion in lost productivity. According to Gallup, a fully engaged workplace could grow the global economy by an extra $9.6 trillion, representing a 9% increase in the global GDP.
Improving employee engagement numbers is incredibly important for businesses, and should remain a key benchmark for organizations as they grow. With continued increases in options for hybrid and remote work, more effort is needed to enhance engagement among a workforce that will continue to become more diverse — and potentially more isolated.
