Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

5-2023

Source Publication

Nicola Countouris, Valerio De Stefano, et al. "The future of remote work" ETUI, The European Trade Union Institute, 08 May. 2023.

Keywords

Remote work; telework; hybrid work; future of work; algorithmic management; artificial intelligence

Abstract

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, remote work has acquired quasi-Marmite status. It has become difficult, if not impossible, to approach the issue in a measured and dispassionate way, which is one of the reasons books such as the present one are being published. Remote work is often seen as anathema by some who associate it with laziness, low productivity and the degradation of the social fabric of firms and of their creative and collaborative potential. The notorious views of CEOs such as Tesla and Twitter’s Elon Musk or JP Morgan’s Jamie Dimon come to mind, indicative – in the view of the authors of this chapter – of a certain managerial culture fearing the ‘loss of control’ that comes with remote work. It should be acknowledged that, even in certain worker-friendly quarters, the spread of remote work is accompanied by concerns about social isolation, unsustainable work intensification, the blurring of private life-working life boundaries and the deterioration of career prospects (Balzano 2022). But remote work is also sometimes portrayed as a kind of new Jerusalem for the future of work, allowing better work-life balance, greater productivity, autonomy and creativity, and higher levels of mental and physical well-being.

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