A new report from Youngstown State University (YSU) revealed how employees really feel about the salary versus flexibility debate — and it turns out most would rather be at home longer, even if it means making less money.
Last month, YSU researchers asked 1,000 employed Americans for their perspectives on salary, workplace flexibility, and modern job benefits. The newly published report found that more than half of current full-time, in-person employees (55%) would accept a pay cut in exchange for permanent remote or hybrid work. On average, respondents said they’d take 11% less pay.
About half (47%) of the questionnaire participants worked in an office five days a week, 32% were on a hybrid schedule, and 21% were fully remote. Most respondents were millennials (38%) and Gen X (35%), while 19% were Gen Z and 8% were baby boomers.
Of all workers surveyed, 40% would take a pay cut for remote work, while two in five workers claimed to have turned down a job offer due to a lack of flexibility.
Surprisingly (for CEOs, we guess), fully remote employees reported feeling more inspired while working (36%) than hybrid employees (35%) and fully in-person employees (27%). Fully remote workers also did not want to go back to the office — 30% said they’d “consider” quitting if mandated to do so, while 13% would “definitely” quit, according to the report.
Of course, a higher salary was reported as the top career motivator across all generations, especially for Gen Z (66%) and millennials (61%), the report found.
About half (47%) of the questionnaire participants worked in an office five days a week, 32% were on a hybrid schedule, and 21% were fully remote. Most respondents were millennials (38%) and Gen X (35%), while 19% were Gen Z and 8% were baby boomers.
Click here for the full report.