Dixya Poudel

It is estimated that currently 52 per cent of the global workers work from home at least once a week. Further, a large number of employees have shown an inclination to work remotely in the near future, too. As the virus spread globally at an alarming rate, the world altered as well. The fear was palpable but with it were resilience and collective determinations to see past these unforeseen circumstances. And it affected not just home life but also office life and how work was carried out globally. Today, workers increasingly rely on remote work for their livelihood that could be a trend well into the future.
Throughout 2020, most people conducted their work from home. Conferences and meetings were carried out through computers and smart phones. Numerous apps for video conferencing skyrocketed and the most popular turned out to be Zoom. It was created by Eric Yuan in 2011 and fast forward to 2020 when it really took off. Today, as the global workforce faces a recession, people have devised creative ways to earn a living.
Even before the pandemic, there were freelance jobs. Freelancers are workers who work for themselves instead of working for a company. Often they work on a contract basis within a certain timeframe for organisations and companies. Freelance jobs can be carried out through the comforts of home and is proving to be lucrative in the current scenario.
Companies such as Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter and offices in Silicon Valley have been allowing remote work whenever possible. Worldwide, the 9 am to 5 pm working hour routine has seen an extensive disruption. An increasing number of employees are working through flexible schedules at home. No longer are there long commuting hours and time lost navigating the traffic. Thanks to remote work, parents with toddlers can work from home while also carving out space for familial responsibilities.
However, not all jobs can be carried out remotely. It especially applies to frontline workers. Doctors, nurses, paramedics and lab technicians have to attend their workplace. And so do media personnel and those in the essential jobs. The past year saw the struggles that they had to go through. Thankfully, vaccinations have put an end to the virus fear so that frontline workers are able to attend their workplaces safely.
Remote work has boosted opportunities to new recruits in foreign locations. It further enabled people to spend time with their families during the lockdown. The world drastically changed in 2020 but employees and employers came to an agreement through remote working hours. Even though workers missed the office camaraderie, they gradually adjusted to the new routine in which their office hours were at their respective homes or at informal settings.
Although critics have decried that productivity has been lost to a vast degree, there have been positive outcomes as well. Remote work can prove to be conducive even after the world overcomes the pandemic. It certainly provides people with convenient working hours.
Thus, the global workplace is set on a course to an entirely new future. It is likely that workers won't be bound to a 9 to 5 routine in the upcoming days. Another important outcome has been safety for workers and their families. When it comes to personal health safety there should be no compromises which remote work has fortunately made possible.