The survey of 937 UK managers found that staff who work entirely from home are on average 11% less likely to be given a promotion than those who are entirely office-based and 9% less likely to receive a pay rise.
Hybrid workers who split the working week between home and office are on average 7% less likely to be promoted and 7% less likely to be given a pay rise.
The downsides of WFH are significantly greater for men than women, with managers being 15% less likely to promote men who work entirely from home than those who are completely office-based, and 10% less likely to give a pay increase. The respective figures for women are 7% and 8%.
The study by Agnieszka Kasperska, Professor Anna Matysiak and Dr Ewa Cukrowska-Torzewska of the Faculty of Economic Sciences at the University of Warsaw highlights the importance of company culture and workstyles to the career prospects of flexible workers.
While there was no penalty for working at home (fulltime or hybrid) in companies with supportive environments, organisations with very demanding work cultures were notably less accommodating.
In fact, managers in those companies are around 30% less likely to promote and 19% less likely to give a pay rise to men who work entirely from home vs. men who work full-time in the office. The figures for women are 15% and 19%, respectively.
Presenting the findings at the British Sociological Association’s annual conference in April, Agnieszka Kasperska said: “Our findings indicate that individuals working from home still encounter career penalties, irrespective of the widespread adoption of this mode of work. Both male and female remote workers experience career penalties, but they are substantially larger for men.”
She added: “In more supportive organisations, where there is less pressure and family-friendly policies exist, we don’t find such negative consequences of remote work.”
