Employees in Japan against returning to the office full time

Despite an increasing number of organisations in Japan returning to pre-pandemic style work, many employees are not willing to return to the office on a permanent basis.

According to a nationwide survey recently conducted by Tokyo-based organisation XTalent, which supports career transitions among the child-rearing generation, nearly half of the 1,085 respondents (48.7%) say they are not willing to work onsite, which outstripped the 1.3% of respondents who want to return to the office full time. 37.9% of respondents favour a hybrid work arrangement, citing the importance of collaborating face-to-face with colleagues.

For employees who are raising children, 198 of 407 respondents in managerial or higher positions in their 30s and 40s said they are considering quitting their jobs or had already done so due to dissatisfaction over inadequate remote work systems.  26.4% of employees also favour the option to work once a week in the office, with the option of working in the office three times a month or less the next popular option at 23.7%, followed by twice a week at 22.2%. Fewer than 20% of respondents want to go fully remote.

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An XTalent representative commented, “For the generation raising children, working styles that include remote work with flexible hours make it easier for employees to demonstrate their performance, leading to greater satisfaction. By implementing the ways of working that employees desire, it makes it easy to keep talent,” reported The Mainichi.