Is home the new workplace?
2020-06-18
Vancouver B.C. (18 June 2020) — Demand for Metro Vancouver commercial space may be on the decline, according to some workers.
Over half (55%) of employed Metro Vancouver residents now work from home as a direct result of the COVID-19 lockdown. A majority of these employees (40% overall) work from home “all or most of the time”. Affected groups include workers who have experienced no change to their pay or hours (57%) and workers in small to large organizations: 10-49 employees, 59%; 50-499, 59%; and 500-4999, 63%.
In contrast, fewer workers in very small (1-9) and the largest (5,000+) organizations work at home as a direct result of the lockdown (41% and 44% respectively).
The work-at-home trend and demand for commercial space
Three-in-ten (30%) Metro Vancouver workers say their employer may reduce commercial space in Metro Vancouver as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. One-quarter (25%) of workers believe office space reduction is possible, while 6% are definite.
Employees working from home as a direct result of the lockdown are significantly more inclined to expect reduced commercial space (25% “yes” versus 10% among those working at their employers’ location).
The poll, conducted June 12 to 14, finds workers at smaller businesses—10 to 49 employees—most likely to anticipate reduced office space (44%). On the other hand, workers in very small businesses—1 to 9 employees—are least likely to anticipate their employer will reduce office space (27%).
Business decision makers are more definitive in this expectation (14% “yes, definitely” versus 4% among others).
For more information contact:
Barbara Justason
Justason Market Intelligence Inc.
+1 604 783 4165 / Barb@JustasonMI.com / twitter: @BarbJustason
Research Notes
These are the findings of a Justason Market Intelligence (JMI) survey of Metro Vancouver adults who were employed prior to the COVID-19 lockdown. All respondents were aged 18 years and older. Conducted for public education purposes, this research was sponsored by Justason Market Intelligence. Fielding was completed June 12 to 14, 2020.
The sample source is the firm’s online panel of BC consumers, which is recruited primarily through random digit dialling of landlines and mobile phones. The final sample was weighted to match the demographic and regional distributions of Metro Vancouver according to the most recent census. The sample of 523 workers carries a margin of error of +/-4.3 percentage points 95 per cent of the time. Error rate for 402 workers employed during the lockdown is +/-4.9. For current and laid off workers with knowledge of their employers’ decision, the error rate is +/-4.8. Smaller base sizes, including demographic subgroups, carry wider error margins.
Featured image photo credit: Microbiz Mag: https://www.flickr.com/photos/microbizmag/49854468217/
