With confinement, teleworking is very popular. Mentalities are changing. In the United States, we are starting to see companies that are completely cutting offices. On the one hand, it's a huge savings and they can put 100% of people to telecommute permanently. In France, PSA has made telework the norm and office work the exception. And the CFDT will make strong proposals on the subject next week.
The crisis, as we have said a lot, is accelerating changes… To the point that teleworking could become the norm in certain companies…
Yes, with the crisis many companies have had to adapt, so have the employees, and we realize that in many cases, teleworking may well become the rule while presence in the office would become the exception. Perhaps the most spectacular example is the automotive group PSA. Who has set himself the goal of reducing the office presence to… a day or a day and a half and a half on average. A revolution ! Which has many advantages: less travel time for employees, who suddenly work more efficiently, and potentially huge savings in rent for the company. This is why, with the crisis, many employers see telework much more favorably than before…
So much so that some people want to delete all the offices…
And yes ! It starts in the United States where companies have decided to put everyone into telework: 100% of the workforce! As it is still necessary to maintain the link, these companies plan to bring together once or twice a year all employees in a large meeting. A giant barbecue costs less than renting offices year-round and is more festive ... In France, unions, notably the CFDT, are working on innovative proposals. It could for example be a question of fixing as a rule 2 days of teleworking per week for all the trades which lend themselves to it. It would become the norm. And if it saves money, there is a good chance that the idea will be retained by the employers. The crisis, as you said, is a tremendous accelerator of change ...