Remember when remote working was not allowed and flexible office hours were unheard of? Now workations and bleisure trips have the blessing of one in three (37%) Aussie bosses, signalling a shift in workplace flexibility and remote and hybrid arrangements and a plus for travel professionals, too.
A new Insure&Go survey found 43 per cent of Aussie employees blend business and leisure while working remotely with workations given the green light from their boss.
Despite government and big corporations issuing return-to-office mandates, 36 per cent of employed Australians are still working remotely in some capacity and just three per cent are interested in returning to the office full-time.
And employers are on board with nearly half (49%) of Aussie bosses anticipating offering cross-border remote work options in the next five years, almost double the global average.
Generational and gender attitudes towards workations
There’s also a generational and gender divide in attitudes towards working holidays with 56 per cent of under-50s having taken a workation compared with 25 per cent of over-50s.
Men are the most likely to take a workation with 51 per cent taking a personal domestic trip while working remotely, compared with 35 per cent of women.
Employees aged 30–49 were the most likely to be upfront about where they were working, with 49 per cent gaining their employer’s approval.
Under-30s are also highly likely to seek permission (at 46%). By comparison, 22 per cent of over-50s told employers they would take a holiday while working.
The future of workplaces vs workations
Co-working spaces are now popping up in popular Australian holiday destinations like the Gold Coast, Margaret River and the Mornington Peninsula, fuelling the trend, while others, including travel professionals, are working remotely from luxury hotels and even cruises.
With forecasts suggesting that co-working spaces could take up more than 30 per cent of lettable commercial space within a decade, the trend suggests that workations may soon become a mainstream option for Australian professionals.
Of the survey findings, Insure&Go Commercial & Marketing Director David Mayo said: “Businesses that embrace hybrid or remote models are more likely to attract and retain staff. Employees now expect a degree of flexibility and for many Australians that means the freedom to work from anywhere, including while travelling.”
