Workers with degree-level education are 10 times more likely to have a hybrid working arrangement than those with no qualifications, according to official figures that suggest a societal divide has formed since the first Covid lockdowns.
Almost five years since the start of the pandemic, the Office for National Statistics said hybrid working – part travelling to work, and part at home – appeared to be “here to stay” for some workers more than others.
In analysis highlighting how the shift could amplify pre-existing social divisions, the ONS said the likelihood of hybrid working was split across age groups, job type and education.
As well as the large disparity in hybrid working between workers with degree-level education and those with no qualification, the ONS also found that those aged over 30, parents and managers and professionals were the most likely to log on from home.
While almost half (45%) of people in senior managerial jobs – regardless of sector – followed a hybrid-working model, as few as 3% of those in shopfloor roles in the retail sector, cleaning services, caring and leisure jobs were in a similar position.
More than a quarter of working adults in Great Britain (28%) had hybrid arrangements in the autumn of 2024, the ONS said, highlighting a persistent change in working patterns since an explosion in remote working at the height of the pandemic.
“While the trend in working only from home has fallen since 2021, a hybrid-working model (part travelling to work, and part at home), has become the ‘new normal’ for around a quarter of workers,” it said.
“In 2022, we asked the question: ‘Is hybrid working here to stay?’ It appears it is, but for some workers more than others.”
For those able to have a hybrid arrangement, the ONS said there were significant perks, including an average of 56 minutes saved from commuting, and spending an average of 24 minutes more on sleep and rest and 15 minutes more on exercise, sports and wellbeing.
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The government last month launched a package of sweeping changes to workers’ rights, including making flexible work the default “where practical” alongside other employment protections, as well as a ban on exploitative zero-hours contracts.
Even at its peak, home-based workers remained in the minority in Britain, reaching 49% of working adults in the first half of 2020. Levels were highest in London and other large cities, and lowest in towns in the north of England and the Midlands.
However, growing numbers of employers have announced a push to get employees back to their desks in some occupations where home working was most heavily used, including at Amazon, Goldman Sachs, Boots and Barclays.
Last week, Asda became the latest, making it compulsory for office-based workers in Leeds and Leicester to spend at least three days a week at their desks from January.
Catherine Sermon of Phoenix Insights, a thinktank run by the FTSE 100 insurer Phoenix Group, said it was best “where possible” for employers to adopt flexible working practices.
“Hybrid working can be a gamechanger for workers, enabling them to balance work for a wide range of important reasons such as caring responsibilities, or better manage their physical and mental health,” she added.