A recent study by one of Australia’s leading suppliers of video collaboration technology, Logitech, has found that 42% of Australians would rather work from home, rather than  receive a pay rise!

 

The survey was conducted throughout the country with some very surprising results.

 

“I think it’s incredible that people would choose to work from home as much as they’d like, rather than take a salary increase. It really demonstrates how Australians have taken to the new challenges of home offices and the importance of flexibility over money”, said Sean Byrne, Head of B2B ANZ, Logitech.

 

Tradies have been found to be a bigger distraction at home over children and pets, a large number of people have the guts to take video calls in bed and people are beginning to change their appearance because of how they see themselves on video calls!

 

25% of people said they’d altered their appearance as a result of seeing their blemishes (and other people's blemishes) on video calls. These alterations included changing hair colour, removing excess hair and actual alterations to the face such as lip fillers, botox, new eyebrows and new eyelashes.

 

Many people have developed new hobbies during the Covid period and a whopping 40% of  Aussies have become more active. “While lockdowns make people want to leave the house and exercise, it’s fantastic that so many people are walking, running and riding bikes for the first time. Many people are also taking up arts and crafts too, such as photography, learning a new language, drawing and even knitting”, said Byrne.

 

More than half of the people surveyed said their company hadn’t invested in technology to make video conferencing more effective at their homes for staff. However, 52% of respondents felt they could be more productive with new technology.

 

“It’s far more than just headsets and webcams that can help productivity, but specialised conference room products for small to large teams, that help with inclusivity, increased clarity and ultimately a better video experience”, stated Byrne.

 

Other findings from the survey included:

 

• * 27% of people do video conferencing in pyjama pants (and 5% with no pants at all)
• * More people have had tradies knock on their door and distract them during a video call (23%) than dogs barking or jumping on the table (21%) or children arguing or crying (13%)
• * 18% of people are prepared to take work video calls in bed

 

Most people (64%) agreed that video conferencing saved travel time for work and client meetings and that allowed for a greater work life balance (44%).

 

“It was great the survey results showed that video conferencing during this tricky time was allowing more people to speak to colleagues that they might not otherwise do (32%). Almost three quarters of respondents reported an increase in their work efficiency from video conferencing and this is absolutely incredible”, Byrne concluded.