Survey Shows That 69% of Gen-Z S’pore Workers Will Quit If Told to Work in Office More Often

From 1 December 2024, all employers in Singapore must fairly consider all formal flexi-work requests. This includes requests for flexi-place, flexi-time, and flexi-load arrangements such as work-from-home, staggered hours, and job sharing.

You can watch this video to know more about flexible working arrangements:

However, Singapore’s younger workforce has shown that even if this guideline was not put in place, employers would still have to consider flexi-work requests to avoid losing their workforce, especially their Gen Zs.

Flex It Or Forget It – Randstad

Randstad, a human resources solutions agency, released the results of its 2024 Workmonitor survey on 22 April.

The study, which took place between 23 October and 11 November last year, surveyed about 760 Singapore-based workers aged between 18 and 67.

Flexi-work Is A Must, Especially For Gen Zs

42% of respondents said they would not accept a job that is too inflexible.

68% of Gen Z workers said they would not work for a company that does not provide sufficiently flexible working hours, while 61% shared the same sentiment regarding flexible working locations.

WFH Is Non-Negotiable For Gen Zs, 69% Will Quit If WFO Increases

46% of respondents said that being able to work from home is non-negotiable. 63% of Gen Zs said working from home is a must-have, followed by boomers in second place (48%).

The large percentage of Gen Zs who have work-from-home as a must-have could be attributed to the fact that many Gen Zs have spent a significant portion of their working years working from home due to the global pandemic, normalising this practice.

Growing up around technology could be another contributing factor.

As for the general growing desire for work-for-home arrangements, signs point at an ageing workforce as well as more people taking on caregiving roles at home.

The survey also found that 49% of Singapore’s workforce said they would leave jobs that require them to work in the office more often. Gen Zs are the most likely to feel this way, with 69% of them agreeing with this statement.

The survey found that two-thirds of respondents have committed to significant life choices such as moving houses or getting pets, with the expectation that flexible work will continue.

Despite Desire To WFH, Employers Are Now Stricter About WFO

Despite the desire to work from home more often, 67% of respondents reported their employers have become stricter about working at the office.

Randstad found that younger generations – Gen Z (74%) and millennials (72%) – feel this disconnect more acutely.

Notably, 26% of respondents have quit their jobs due to the lack of work flexibility.

Workers Prioritise Work-life Balance Over Pay

Randstad’s research also suggests that work-life balance is a higher priority for employees than salary, even amid rising cost of living and inflation.

95% of respondents said work-life balance is important in their current and future jobs, compared to 90% who said salary is important.

Interestingly, Singapore’s workers are not the only ones prioritising work-life balance, as Japan’s youths have also shown they have the same preference.

This is surprising, considering Japan has been grappling with the problem of employees working themselves to death for decades, also known as “karoshi“.

Singaporeans Seek Socially-Aware Employers

Flexible working options aren’t the only things Singaporeans look for when seeking employment.

The study found that social and environmental issues weigh on the minds of many job-seekers in Singapore, who seek employers who share their values and actively work towards measurable outcomes.

37% of respondents said they will not accept a job if the company wasn’t making proactive efforts to be more sustainable.

In particular, Gen Zs are most concerned with this factor, with 67% expressing the strongest desire to work for companies that are making a proactive effort to be sustainable.

In contrast, only 28% of Gen Xers aged between 43 and 58 years old share the sentiment.

Organisational Diversity And Equity

39% of professionals would not accept a role at a company that lacks diversity and inclusion narratives, affirming that organisational diversity and equity are also major deciding factors for talent when choosing an employer.

In the survey, respondents ranked the top 3 most important equity, diversity, and inclusion policies in their current and future employment as:

• Family leave for all employees (53%)
• Diverse workforce (47%)
• Gender pay equity (46%)

A recent study by the Ministry of Manpower showed that in 2023, women earned 14.3% less than men in Singapore, though this is already an improvement from 16.3% in 2018.

Randstad says that companies that have diverse leadership, gender pay equity, and inclusion, are talent magnets, especially in today’s more socially-aware workforce.

Companies with these factors stand to attract and retain more varied, high-quality talent who are passionate about driving the same goals and making a positive impact through their work.

Be Careful What You Wish For

It seems work-from-home is now the trendiest thing that many workers, particularly younger workers, desire, but wishing for complete work-from-home may have its consequences.

If companies were to adopt full-time work-from-home with no more going to offices, it makes it completely possible for companies to outsource roles to any person anywhere in the world.

This could possibly spell trouble for Singapore’s workforce, especially if those overseas are willing to put in more work for lower wages than Singaporeans.

The government has already been trying to “persuade” multi-national corporations here to hire more locals, while some locals have voiced concerns that foreigners are “taking away” their jobs.

But, for now, it looks like a 5-day work-from-home life isn’t on the minds of many employers. A number of employees have also expressed that a permanent work-from-home arrangement would be rather boring and possibly unproductive.