Many S. Korean workers satisfied with telecommuting: survey

By Park Sae-jin Posted : September 24, 2020, 16:59 Updated : September 24, 2020, 16:59

[Gettyimages Bank]


SEOUL -- About half of South Korean companies, smalll and big, have chosen to have their employees work at home in July, a survey showed. Many workers were found to have satisfied with remote working, though they picked the difficulty in communication as the biggest obstacle in telecommuting. The survey led labor ministry officials to think that telecommuting may become a regular format in the future.

According to a survey of 400 human resources (HR) department workers and 878 office workers, conducted by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, 48.8 percent of companies had fully or partially telecommuted in July.

Some 66.4 percent said the work efficiency of employees has increased thanks to the remote working environment, while 51.8 percent hoped that their companies will continue to adopt telecommuting after the coronavirus pandemic is over. The survey showed that 62.6 percent picked the difficulty in communication as the biggest obstacle in telecommuting while 44.1 percent expressed concern about inequality in telecommuting.

Just like their company-friendly colleagues, ordinary office workers showed a positive reaction toward remote working. About 91 percent of workers said they were satisfied with their telecommuting environment and 73.9 percent felt their work efficiency increased while working at home.

"Nowadays, I do everything related to my work at home. I cannot imagine going back to my office when the pandemic comes to an end," Jin Seo-yeon, a 32-year-old businesswom, told Aju News. "I try to finish my work early to spend more free time at home. My work efficiency has increased greatly," she said.

The labor ministry speculated that workers preferred telecommuting because of positive effects such as reduced time taken in commuting and increased work efficiency. 86 percent of workers said the biggest positive effect of telecommuting is no need to commute while 36.5 percent mentioned the imprioved quality of life.
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