Date of Graduation
5-2021
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
Degree Level
Undergraduate
Department
Finance
Advisor/Mentor
Worrell, Dan L.
Abstract
As the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the United States and lingered, it brought many new norms in the workplace. At the top of that list is the number of employees now working remotely. Though remote work is not a new concept, mandated lockdown restrictions beginning in March of 2020 prevented most citizens from working in their business offices. Companies were challenged to re-evaluate business practices and determine whether their employees could produce work from home.
There have been benefits recognized in the past for remote work, including employee life balance. The environmental benefits of people working remotely are possibly the most appealing, and those benefits were felt during the pandemic, as polluting transportation emissions decreased.
New ways of communication are the specific focus of employers, as they attempt to keep employee engagement high. Knowledge sharing and involvement present challenges for companies, but research on ways to achieve these things looks promising. While remote work remains a foreign and unwelcome way to work for many, the United States continues to plow through the barriers of traditional work methods.
Many people continue moving out of large metropolitan cities to lower their cost of living, but some employers are responding to this move by lowering salaries to meet cost of living standards in each employee’s new area of residency. Time will tell if this response from employers will reduce the number of those aspiring to escape big city life.
The effects of remote work on employees’ mental health and their performance are key indicators of whether remote work is considered successful. However, these two indicators contradict one another. This leaves companies confused as to how to establish the balance between remote work and in-person work moving forward. Yet employers continue finding ways to make the most out of the current remote work climate.
Keywords
Remote Work; Mental Health; Workplace Communication; Move from Cities
Citation
Oliver, J. (2021). How Remote Work is Shaking Up the U.S. Workforce: Research on the Recent Shift to Remote Work. Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/finnuht/61
