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In recent years, businesses increasingly have offered remote work arrangements to keep employees happy and productive. Now, a new study has quantified just how appreciative remote workers really are–and how much your company stands to benefit.

Video conferencing company Owl Labs surveyed 1,200 U.S. workers between the ages of 22 and 65 for its 2019 State of Remote Work report, and found that employees who regularly work remotely are happier and stay with their companies longer than on-site employees. Of the more than 1,200 people surveyed, 62 percent work remotely at least part of the time.

In the study, released on Tuesday, full-time remote workers said they’re happy in their job 22 percent more than people who never work remotely. The reasons respondents said they decided to work remotely were better work-life balance (91 percent), increased productivity/better focus (79 percent), less stress (78 percent), and to avoid a commute (78 percent).

Not surprisingly, Owl Labs also found that employees are more loyal to companies that offer them increased flexibility. The remote workers surveyed said they’re likely to stay in their current job for the next five years 13 percent more than on-site workers did.

Not only are remote employees happier, but they are prepared to work longer hours, according to the report. Remote workers said they work over 40 hours per week 43 percent more than on-site workers do.

The report also revealed other differences between remote and on-site workers, finding, for example, that remote workers were more than twice as likely to earn more than $100,000 per year. And the higher they were on the corporate ladder, the more likely survey respondents were to have the privilege of working remotely: The job levels with the greatest percentages of remote workers were founder/C-level (55 percent) and vice president (46 percent).

By Brit Morse

Source: Inc.com