Only 9% companies allowed WFH as of August, most embrace hybrid culture: Aon Survey

Representative Image (Image: Reuters)

More employees are leaving companies that have announced back-to-office plans than where remote working is still allowed, a survey has found.

The work-from-home trend appears to be waning, with only about 9 percent of the companies in a survey in India allowing complete remote working as of August, according to Aon, an HR solutions firm.

The survey found a 29 percent attrition rate in companies that had announced back-to-office plans compared with 19 percent in companies that allow virtual working.

A hybrid model was followed by 68 percent of the companies, while 23 percent were functioning from office/site locations, Aon said in its 28th annual salary increase survey 2022-23 phase I report. The survey covered 1,300 organisations across 40 sectors.

Onsite functioning was led by locally owned companies (35 percent), followed by joint venture companies (33 percent), and foreign-owned companies (12 percent).

Hybrid way forward

The hybrid working model was adopted by companies in engineering services (88 percent), IT-enabled services (79 percent), and professional services (78 percent).

The top onsite companies were in life sciences (42 percent), FMCG/FMCD (41 percent), and automotive/vehicle manufacturing (41 percent).

Companies including Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, IBM, Mercedes-Benz India, and PwC are implementing a hybrid work model as they prepare for their back-to-office plan, Moneycontrol reported earlier.

Most of Lenovo India’s employees – over 60 percent – have opted for hybrid working. TCS said 25 percent of its associates work from the office at least two days a week.

PwC India has moved to hybrid working and doesn't expect people to punch in at a certain time. As of now, there is over 50 percent physical attendance of employees in its offices, including client offices.

“We’ve always been supportive of flexibility and work from anywhere, as long as we don't compromise on client delivery and satisfaction,” Padmaja Alaganandan, chief people officer at PwC in India, told Moneycontrol. “It’s important to empower and trust our people and allow them to structure their work in a manner that enables them.”

Impact on attrition

Attrition for companies varies. Companies that plan to enforce in-office presence in the next few months recorded a 29 percent attrition. The rate for those that already function onsite was 20 percent.

In companies with back-to-office plans and following hybrid models, the attrition rate was 19 percent, the same as in companies that allow working virtually.

Benefits in focus

The survey revealed that 65 percent of the companies introduced mental wellness programmes/stress management and counselling and 46 percent increased insurance coverage for employees or their dependents.

Amid the pandemic-led disruption, the evolution of leave has taken centre stage – 31 percent of the companies had introduced additional leave for sickness, vaccinations or bereavement.

In addition, 69 percent of the companies are now providing creche/day-care facilities through in-house facilities, external tie-ups, or reimbursements.