Asia is winning the battle on return to office.

Asia is winning the battle on return to office.

How Asia and Europe Are Beating the US in Office Occupancy

Companies around the world are grappling with the decision of whether to adopt an in-person, hybrid, or fully remote work environment. Interestingly, it seems that Asia and Europe are leading the way in getting people back into the office, while the US lags behind. This article will explore the factors behind this discrepancy and shed light on how cultural differences, transportation, and government policies play a role.

According to data from real estate services firm Jones Lang LaSalle, office occupancy rates in Asia-Pacific stand at an impressive 79%, just slightly higher than Europe at 75%, while the Americas linger at 49%. This stark difference suggests that US companies, more than their Asian or European counterparts, are embracing the freedom to choose their preferred work model. The most recent American Time Use Survey also revealed that over a third of American employees worked from home on an average day in 2022.

American companies have been trying to entice employees back to the office, citing the benefits of increased productivity and team cohesiveness that come with in-person work. Meta, for example, requires employees to work in the office three days a week and has even implemented perks like company swag and happy hours to incentivize a return. TikTok, on the other hand, uses a tool called myRTO to monitor and enforce in-person office attendance.

In contrast, Asian companies seamlessly transitioned to in-person work more efficiently, largely due to their effective control of the pandemic’s spread. European nations displayed mixed outcomes, with countries like France and Greece boasting higher rates of in-person work compared to Germany or the United Kingdom. Some European countries, such as Belgium and Spain, have even implemented “right to disconnect” policies, which grant employees the right to disengage from electronic communication during non-work hours.

Interestingly, a McKinsey Global Institute study predicts significant reductions in office space for American cities like San Francisco and New York City by 2030, while Shanghai and Tokyo will experience much smaller decreases. This reinforces the notion that Asia has adapted better to the return-to-office trend.

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Upon closer examination, research from June reveals that US workers averaged 1.4 paid work-from-home days per week, significantly higher than France at 0.6 days and China at 0.8 days. Surprisingly, Japan and South Korea have fared particularly well, with workers averaging only 0.5 and 0.4 remote work days per week, respectively.

A survey by Nikkei and Nikkei Research in Japan found that over three in five workers still go into the office five or more days a week, with remote work mostly popular in the information technology and consultancy sectors. Notably, large Japanese banks have offered more flexible work options compared to their American counterparts. However, the reliance on outdated devices like fax machines has led many Japanese workers to return to the office. Bloomberg suggests that reliable public transportation and cultural factors contribute to the successful push back to the office in Japan.

Similarly, in South Korea, where employees work remotely for less than two days per month, many workers never stopped going into the office, as reported by The New York Times.

While Asia and Europe are significantly ahead of the Americas in terms of global office occupancy, the future of remote work remains uncertain. It is unclear whether this disparity even needs to be resolved, as different countries and companies navigate their own unique paths towards a post-pandemic work environment.

Are you a worker in Europe or Asia who has recently returned to the office or never worked from home? We would love to hear your story. Reach out to us at [email protected].

• Japan
• remote work
• South Korea