At least six out of ten employees in Malaysia with their current occupations can primarily be done from home.

In a recent student survey conducted at a local private university, it was seen that a great majority of these individuals (78%) claim that working from home is a viable and even productive solution.

The question now is: are we heading for a second lockdown?

Hybrid or remote working may become a more sustainable option for both employers and employees to keep organisations going forward in fragile and uncertain global environment due to varied reasons ranging from climate, war, disease and so on.

However, who is able to work from home is a more fundamental question about remote work.

Whether or not remote work succeeds depends on the basic elements of technological accessibility.

Given that for employees to be able to work from home, of course they must possess a reliable Internet connection and the equipment required.

In a 2020 national survey conducted by Malaysia’s Department of Statistics (DOS), 71% of households had possession of a computer; albeit that it might still be unlikely for most households to have adequate Internet connection.

With this in mind, we had three years from the 2020 pandemic to the 2023 endemic phase to re-equip our workforce with adequate resources and connectivity for them to work form home if necessary.

With the on-going increase in the number of Covid-19 cases, and talks of at least getting staff to work from home once again hitting our general talks. Could this not be a national consideration?

In Malaysia, even before the pandemic there were already a lot of incentives to get firms to increase their investment in technological advancement and Industrial Revolution 4.0.

With Covid-19, businesses are particularly likely to be more inclined towards technology in order to maintain resilience.

If most operations can be converted online, then the effect of physical containment measures on businesses could be negligible.

Furthermore, working from home has a significant positive impact on the workers’ well-being and job satisfaction.

The commute, which is often considered a significant source of stress, particularly in Klang Valley where it averages from about an hour to two and a half hours sometimes — can be either avoided or minimised.

It gives rare opportunity for self-care and rejuvenation, as well as hours of time we can use for personal interests and family affairs.

Increased flexibility promotes a healthier work-life balance, financial savings, lowers burnout, and raises general job satisfaction.

According to Ranstadt Workmonitor Report 2022, 86% of Malaysians consider flexibility in terms of working location to be important.

It is through various survey and research carried out that shows us skilled work is more plausible to be carried out from home.

With semi-skilled or low-skilled performance that need to be physically at the workplace but saying this but less than one-third of the country’s workforce are employed in skilled occupations and this figure from 2021 research by various researchers shows an estimated 67% of jobs can be performed from home after adjusting for Internet access.

In Employer Seek survey of recruitment data collected from 10,000 job applicants in Malaysia across more than 25 industries also reveals that balancing work and life may be accomplished through working from home.

Gen-X employees (72%) and younger Gen-Y employees (71%) are particularly interested in working from home, followed by Baby Boomers (64%) and members of Gen-Z.

It demonstrates that across all age groups, more than 50% of Malaysians are in favour of work-from-home arrangements.

Work-from-home policy has given Malaysian employers more challenges to overcome, especially when they feel they are “not managing staff enough”.

However, the need to have employees work remotely as a result of recurrence of Covid-19 is not synonymous with this way forward for all firms everywhere.

The new normal can be reshaped through the utilisation of best practices where employers help their staff better balance family lives and careers by taking full advantage of available technology solutions — in which case business continuity will emerge in little time coupled with well-developed staff members that help productivity, whilst no more navigating the war of traffic for city dwellers.

The changing dynamics between employers and talent cannot take a back seat further for Malaysia if we want to attract and sustain talents in the country, especially in a robustly unpredictable environment we are in today.

(Associate Professor Dr. Sharmila Sethu, International University Malaya Wales; Punitha Veni Muthusamy, National Institute of Public Administration of Malaysia, INTAN.)