If you’re tired of hearing about a pandemic resurgence or the Great Resignation, you’ll be happy to know there’s an alternate perspective that’s gaining momentum. Even though the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has some people returning to lockdown mode, a healthy percentage of the population has had enough of their tunafish complexions and want to get back to the office in 2022. That’s according to a survey by OnePoll that queried 1,000 employed Americans on their job perspectives for the coming year.
The survey has nine in 10 US workers looking forward to a return to office life, but the reasons vary. For example, 60% of respondents said they were sick of video conferencing and simply excited to see and catch up with co-workers. Another 48% said they happily anticipated in-person meetings and sitting at their office desks. (They haven’t heard about the new space management and hot-desking trends, so…sorry about that.) Meanwhile, 47% were sartorially motivated—they just want to wear business clothes again.
The 46% who work near good restaurants said they looked forward to going out to lunch again. But around 40% were mutants who were excited to get back to cafeteria food and commuting. I’m betting those folks don’t live near NYC.
Omicron Still Has Teeth
The survey wasn’t all roses for a return-to-the-office movement. Two-thirds of respondents said that the idea of once again having to make small talk with co-workers gave them anxiety. And a healthy 60% of those said they wanted to permanently work from home to avoid social awkwardness.
The survey also didn’t dispense with the Great Resignation concept. Sixty-eight percent of respondents are planning to look for a better job in 2022, and 67% expect a raise or a promotion in the coming year. If they don’t get it, many of that group will probably start looking for a new gig, too.
Another downer is the current state of COVID-19. Like Apple and Google, among others, many employers have delayed the return-to-work dates they promised employees for early 2022. Others are canceling travel and in-person event participation: Microsoft, for one, announced it wouldn’t be attending the 2022 CES event in January.
And if you consider data from other sources, OnePoll’s results might even be slightly optimistic. A similar poll of 1,000 full-time US employees conducted by Workhuman for Fortune says that only 50% of respondents were happy to be returning to work in 2022. In that poll, 15% said the thought of going back to the office had them worried, while 8% said the concept was downright stressful. A Gartner survey had two-thirds of its CEO respondents saying they were going to delay their announced return-to-office date.
