New Yorkers Want to Cut in-Person Work Hours, Curb Spending, Report Says

Work from home, WFH, New York

New Yorkers who worked from home during the pandemic seem to have taken a liking to it, as a Friday (March 31) Bloomberg report said many of them want to cut their time in the office by “nearly half.”

Those employees want to spend less money in the city overall. However, this has been a challenge for the city, with various companies also having to adjust to hybrid schedule.

According to the report, the average worker in the city wants to cut their time in an office by 49% and cut the amount they spend by $6,730, which was down from an estimated $12,561 before the pandemic, according to statistics from Stanford University professor Nicholas Bloom.

Bloom said the remote work might have dire effects to the city, costing between 5% and 10% of its city-center population and weakening real estate values.

“People used to live in cities because they had to come into the office five days a week,” he said. “If they don’t have to, and they want a backyard, they move out to the suburbs. We see that across cities, and call it the doughnut effect.”

The report added that Bloom surveyed around 5,000 workers and 1,000 companies about their habits and preferences.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has urged companies to get their workers back in offices. However, many companies, including Wall Street banks, have been reticent to push too hard, fearing they’ll lose workers who have come to enjoy the flexible nature of remote working.

PYMNTS wrote that businesses have been looking into ways to attract and retain employees as work culture changes and people have been leaving work in droves.

Read more: Businesses Offer Creative Perks, Benefits to Meet Employees’ New Expectations

The result has been companies offering higher wages and new benefits and perks.

That comes as 41% of Main Street businesses have reported difficulties in hiring employees in 2022, with 14% saying it was their biggest challenge.