Microsoft makes remote work option permanent

微软将允许员工永久性在家办公

Microsoft has told staff that they will have the option of working from home permanently with manager approval.

微软公司告知员工，如果得到管理人员的批准，他们可以选择永久性在家办公。

The move mimics the US tech giant's rivals Facebook and Twitter, which have also said remote work would be a permanent option.

此举效仿了这家美国科技巨头的竞争对手脸书和推特，脸书和推特已表示员工可以选择永久远程办公。

It follows a rapid shift away from office working prompted by the coronavirus pandemic.

在此之前，由于新冠疫情暴发，人们的工作地点从办公室迅速转移到家中。

Many companies are reconsidering how much office space they need, expecting a long-term increase in remote staff.

许多公司预计远程办公人员的数量将会长期增长，因此正重新考虑所需的办公空间。

Microsoft said some roles will continue to require an in-person presence, such as those needing access to hardware, the firm added. But many staff will also be able to work from home part-time, without needing formal approval from their managers.

微软公司还表示，一些职位仍将需要来办公室上班，比如硬件相关职位。但许多员工也可以在家兼职，这不需要得到管理人员的正式批准。

As of April, more than 46% of those employed were doing some work from home, according to the Office of National Statistics.

根据英国国家统计局的数据，截至今年4月，超过46%的员工在家办公。

That was comparable to the US, where 42% of the workforce was remote in May, according to Stanford University economics professor Nicholas Bloom, whose research looked at people aged 20-64, earning more than $10,000 last year.

斯坦福大学经济学教授尼古拉斯•布鲁姆表示，这一比例与美国相当。今年5月，美国42%的员工在家办公。这是尼古拉斯•布鲁姆对美国年薪在1万美元（约合人民币67221元）以上、20岁到64岁之间的职场人士进行调查后得出的结论。

While that share decreased to about 35% in August, it still marked a major change. Before the pandemic, just 2% of workers were remote full time, he said.

虽然这一比例在8月份下降到35%左右，但仍是一个重大变化。他说，在新冠疫情之前，只有2%的员工全职在家办公。

"What we're doing now is extremely unusual," he said.

“我们现在所做的极其不寻常”，他说。

Many employers hailed the shift initially as being surprisingly productive. But as the months have passed, some of the drawbacks have emerged.

起初，许多雇主称赞这一转变的成效令人惊讶。但几个月过去了，一些缺点也浮现出来。

For example, at a conference this month, Microsoft's own chief executive Satya Nadella said the lack of division between private life and work life meant "it sometimes feels like you are sleeping at work".

例如，在本月的一次会议上，微软首席执行官萨蒂亚•纳德拉表示，私人生活和工作之间缺乏区分，意味着“有时感觉就像你在工作时睡觉”。

As companies look beyond the pandemic, Prof Bloom said many are eyeing policies that combine two days a week at home with three days of office time, which will remain important for meetings, building company culture and loyalty and basic mental health.

布鲁姆教授表示，随着企业将目光投向疫情之后，许多企业正着眼于每周两天在家办公、三天在办公室上班等政策，这对于举行会议、建立企业文化和忠诚度以及维持基本的心理健康仍然十分重要。

"The radical extremes - so, full-time in the office or full-time at home - are not ideal for most people," said Prof Bloom.

布鲁姆教授表示：“对于大多数人来说，全职在办公室工作或全职在家办公这样的极端做法并不理想。”

But he said he did not expect the pre-pandemic office to return.

不过，他说，他认为我们回不到疫情前的办公状态。

"The Microsoft statement is completely in line with everything I've been hearing," he said. "There's pretty much uniform consensus now that the pandemic has permanently shifted the way we work."

他说：“微软的声明和我听到的完全一致。现在人们几乎一致认为，新冠疫情永久性地改变了我们的工作方式。”

A Willis Towers Watson survey of US employers in May found that they expected 22% of staff to continue working from home after the pandemic, up from just 7% in 2019.

韦莱韬悦（一家全球咨询管理公司）今年5月对美国雇主进行的一项调查发现，他们预计22%的员工在疫情结束后将继续在家办公，而2019年这一比例仅为7%。

About 55% of employers said they expected staff to work from home at least one day a week after concerns about the virus passes, a PWC survey found. And more than 80% of employees said they supported that idea.

普华永道的一项调查发现，约55%的雇主表示，在对病毒的担忧消除后，他们预计员工每周至少有一天在家工作。超过80%的员工表示支持这个想法。

Analysts say such a shift could have widespread implications, reducing demand for office and residential properties in expensive city centres. Rents in New York and San Francisco have already dropped.

分析师表示，这种转变可能产生广泛影响，降低对城市中心昂贵的写字楼和住宅的需求。纽约和旧金山的房租已经有所下降。

Prof Bloom said the changes in the workplace may help ease affordability issues, but won't spell the end of city centers.

布鲁姆教授表示，工作场所的变化可能有助于缓解经济负担，但并不意味着城市中心的消失。

"The affordability levels of New York and San Francisco may go back to where they were in 2005," he said. "It's clearly not the case they're going to empty out."

他说：“纽约和旧金山的可负担水平可能会回到2005年。很显然，城市中心不会完全清空。”