The remote work phenomenon: How virtual employment is shaping a new future for parents

Over the last decade, there’s been a surge in remote workers. With ongoing advances in technology, companies are now able to easily access remote employees on a worldwide level. This becomes extremely helpful for any company that deals with clients outside of their region.

There’s also been a paradigm shift between small to medium-sized businesses versus large corporations. In fact, according to remote work statistics, 44% of the US economy is driven by small businesses alone. 

Because of the growth within the small business community, there’s been a demand for remote workers as a cost-effective solution. Over the past decade, the amount of people working from home has increased exponentially, and a huge portion of those people are parents.

The challenges of parenting in 2020

Over the past few decades, the average household has taken a dramatic turn. Unlike the generations of the ‘60s -’90s, we now live in a world where often, both parents must work to provide.

Often, due to a parent’s daily workload, children spend the majority of their weekdays between daycare and school.

Another significant change to the common household is the number of single parents. This makes things even more challenging when it comes to a parent being able to manage a career and the kids all on their own. 

In fact, parents have started to value the lifestyle more than the money when it comes to their career path and place of employment. Remote work, which was once considered a luxury, has now become the driving factor when parents are deciding which companies to apply to and work for. 

The rise of remote work

Remote work makes it very possible to achieve the perfect balance between career and quality time with the kids. It’s also a tremendous benefit to employers as well.

As mentioned, the economy is driven by small business. Often, small businesses experience the growing pains of needing to hire, but lack the funds to create the space needed for that growth to happen.

This is right where remote work comes in handy. Statistics provided through Global Workplace Analytics (GWA) have shown cost savings to businesses of up to $11,000 per employee each year by simply allowing remote work. There’s also a cost-savings due to fewer sick days with remote employees versus in-office ones as well.

For parents, remote work can be both motivating and rewarding. One of the biggest complaints from parents who work outside of the home is the lack of time they have for their children after putting in a full day at the office, plus commuting on top.

By working from home, they immediately cut down drive time, stress and frustration of sitting in rush hour traffic down to zero.

They can also work flexible hours, and take breaks when needed.

Time off to attend school functions and recreational activities for their children are easier to manage, and also provide a gratifying sense of not missing out on or having to take a full day off for their child’s milestone moments.

There’s also a level of comfort when a parent works from home knowing that they are accessible should their child need them. This stress relief allows parents to feel more rested, focused, and eager to put in a full day’s work without compromising time with their families.

In fact, some reports have found that remote employees are often motivated to put in more hours in a day because of the accessibility of their work and the flexible time frames in which they can get that work done.

Another key benefit parents find when working from home is the cost savings from not needing full-time daycare. Whether they cut back the hours or eliminate them altogether, less time in daycare means more time for parents and their children.

The future looks bright for parent employees

Ongoing innovations in technology are making remote work attractive and, more importantly, easily achievable for many companies. The mutual benefits for both employers and remote employees have paved the way for future trends in the employment marketplace.

For parents living in 2020 and beyond, there’s finally a way to have a great work-life balance as a remote employee. All signs point at remote employment trending as the new norm for the future of the office workspace.