Over the course of the pandemic, remote working was a saving grace for many. Not only did we discover a way to work and stay safe, but also a newfound efficiency without an office. Nevertheless, remote workers are not the future for many companies who believe in the oppressive office.
One such company is Australian property giant Charter Halls. After two years of successful remote working, CEO David Harrison has threatened to replace all remote workers with robots.
Remote workers will be replaced with robots
Speaking at the Australian Financial Review Summit, Harrison claimed that employees will need to decide if they want a “career or a job”. The CEO claimed that work-from-home sensibilities are harming jobs and employees, despite evidence otherwise.
“It’s OK when unemployment is 3 per cent,” he said, via Yahoo. “But if we keep having to deal with a lack of productivity and people saying, ‘I want to work from home’, once unemployment rises, I think we will see jobs replaced by robots.”
Harrison claimed that young workers need to learn workplace etiquette in an office. The CEO claimed that allowing remote workers without any office time is a “big problem”, and they should be replaced with automation.
“My view is there will be companies that - because of their business - will go down the automation route anyway. There will be job losses,” He claimed.
However, this is not the future that employees want. As remote workers proved to be more effective and happy during the pandemic, workers are expecting at least a hybrid solution. After all, modern internet has made working from home easier than ever.
Read More: Robots are designed to replace humans, says CEO
Old CEOs don’t understand the workforce
As remote workers become more accepted in everyday society, more of the population is aiming to work from home. In most countries, searches for remote work positions have skyrocketed.
However, companies that have invested in offices or companies that have strict employee surveillance are aiming to shove people back in the office. In extreme cases, companies are looking to have employees use VR headsets to work inside Metaverse offices while at home.
Simply put, this is an out of touch practise that doesn’t make much sense. Since productivity is higher and employees are happier when working from home, it doesn’t make sense to force them back into the office. It’s a matter of not understanding your workforce at all.