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Office Work, Workplace Work, Mental Well-Being — 2022 Workplace Trends That Are Likely to Last Into the New Year | Jobs Vox

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  • According to a report by job search platform Indeed India, around one in five IT employees are interested in moonlighting to earn extra money.
  • Most e-commerce, construction and real estate employers preferred their staff to work from the office.
  • However, remote work is expected to continue in the labor market.
  • Employee welfare has become central to many companies, which have begun revising their existing employee policies to reflect this.

The Covid-19 pandemic has completely changed the way people work. The year 2022 was all about work, going back to the office, employee well-being and quietly quitting. Industry experts believe that these workplace trends will continue in India in 2023.

Moonlighting: The debate continues

Moonlighting — which has become one of the most talked about trends this year — means taking on additional or more work on top of your existing job. Business leaders of major companies have been very vocal about this.

IT major Wipro has been the harshest critic of the trend, laying off 300 employees over job performance. TCS and Infosys also criticized the practice which was seen as unethical.

Critics of the practice say that employees’ offer letters clearly prohibit dual employment, and if found to be in violation, companies have the right to fire them. However, moonlighting advocates argue that as long as the hiring does not help a competitor or affect the employer’s performance, it is not unethical.

The government also joined the discussion and clarified the law related to work.

Minister of State for Labour, Rameshwar Teli – on December 19 in a written reply to a labor-related question in the Lok Sabha – said that staff cannot engage in additional work that is against the interest of their employer. “According to the Industrial Employment (Standard) Act of 1946, a worker may not at any time work against the interests of the industrial establishment in which he is employed and may not be employed in addition to his work in that establishment, which may adversely affect the interests of his employer” , he said.

However, according to a report by job search platform Indeed India, about one in five IT workers want to work to earn extra money.

In line with this, companies such as IT major Tech Mahindra, online food delivery platform Swiggy and employee welfare platform Nova Benefits have said their employees are allowed to pursue side jobs as long as it does not affect their work.

As long as employees are eager for additional sources of income, companies will have their hands full trying to come up with strategies to retain talent while meeting their needs for additional income and challenging projects.

Remote work to stay relevant

This year saw a partial reversal of a key pandemic trend, the work-from-home (WFH) option – with many companies, including IT professionals, calling their employees back to the office and ending the VFH option. However, most companies and employees struggle to get back to normal after getting used to the ‘new normal’ of VFH. In 2023, there will be more companies that may become strict about presence in the workplace.

According to data shared by Indeed India, most employers in e-commerce (95%), construction and real estate (90%) prefer their staff to work from the office, while 37% of employers in the IT sector plan to have their employees work remotely.

Employees in the IT sector have already started working physically from the office again, at least three days a week, with VFH only allowed for health reasons.

Chandigarh tops the list of cities where employers prefer people to work from the office, followed by Mumbai and Bangalore, where 26% and 21% of employers preferred hybrid/remote work, respectively, according to Indeed India.

However, companies could face a lot of resistance from employees who don’t want to go back to the office. According to the Tech Talent Outlook job site SCIKEI, 82% of IT employees want to work from home rather than the office. The telecommuting trend, which was initially imposed on employees at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, has now become the preferred way of working.

Newer Nasscom and Indeed India’s
Gen Z and Millennials: Reshaping the Future of the Workforce The report states that while the future of work will continue to be hybrid, their survey has shown this Gen. Zs were more willing to go to the office – 85% of Gen Z preferred to work either entirely from the office or in a hybrid mode (a combination of office and remote work)

Employees believe that working from home allows greater autonomy and productivity while reducing commuting time. “Employees are increasingly showing a preference for organizations that value employee time, have an inclusive work environment and prioritize initiatives such as diversity and sustainability.” These elements will be critical for organizations to create a work model that best suits their sector,” said Sashi Kumar, Head of Sales, Indeed India.

While there may be a return to the office, some degree of remote work will remain, experts believe. “Hybrid mode and telecommuting will remain relevant in the coming years due to the great organizational benefits they offer,” said Anil Agarwal, CEO and co-founder, InCruiter, a Bangalore-based HR consulting platform.

Can companies overcome silent withdrawal?

Quiet quitting is another trend that has emerged this year due to employee stress and burnout. It refers to the fact that the employee does just enough work to cover the contractual obligation and nothing more, in order to spend time on personal activities.

According to an Indeed India report, 33% of surveyed employers believe that low overall job satisfaction (boredom, lack of challenge, etc.) is the main reason for the growing trend of quiet exits, while 21% believe it is a lack of commitment to jobs.

Other employees believe that excessive burnout, work overload and lack of support from managers or bosses have led to an increase in silent quitting.

If businesses want to attract and retain talent, they will need to pay close attention to the needs of their employees, especially the needs of Generation Z and Millennials, as they make up a large portion of the working population. To illustrate, Gen Z and Millennials together made up nearly 90% of the total tech industry employee base in FY22.

While for Gen Z, better financial benefits, career growth and job satisfaction are what matter most when deciding to stay with an organization, millennials look to job stability and flexibility to make this decision, according to the Nasscom-Indeed report.

Many companies have now started revising their existing employee policies, making them more employee-centric. They are also beginning to focus more on the mental well-being of employees, trends that are likely to continue into the new year.

For example, e-commerce platform Meesho gave its employees 11 days of mental health leave this year to help them reset and recharge after the busy holiday season.

This is the second time Meesho has granted mental health leave to its employees this year. The company also announced an unlimited leave policy that allows employees to take up to 365 days of paid leave.

“They (companies) are also trying to make the current work culture more inclusive, where employees are recognized for their hard work and diligence.” Most importantly, achieving work-life balance has become a priority, especially after the pandemic,” Agarwal added.

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