Even if they sulk on Mondays and Fridays, 81% of workers are back in downtown Montreal towers at least one day a week. The increase in traffic delights the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, but it hopes for even more.
Posted at 10:30 a.m.
The Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal has surveyed employers and employees in Greater Montreal for the fifth time since June 2021 to understand everyone’s behavior regarding the return to work in the metropolis.
Even if downtown Montreal this fall looks like a long four-day weekend, there are still 34% more workers than at the same time last year. Full-time teleworking has dropped, giving way to work in hybrid mode with a clear preference for two days a week.
“We are making these observations, but it is too early to know if we are at a point of balance, affirms in an interview Michel Leblanc, president and chief executive officer of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, who specifies that other surveys will be made until a stabilization of the behavior of workers and employers is observed.
Two days in attendance: the most popular option
“The transition from 2 to 3 days in presence mode at the office is a transition that catches the eye, continues Michel Leblanc. We’ll see how it stabilizes. »
Although the Chamber dreams of it, full-time face-to-face work will not be favored in the near future, the poll indicates. Because of the 46% of companies that require a certain presence in the office, 93% answer that they will only require a presence for one to three days between now and the holidays. Only 4% of these companies said they would consider requiring attendance 5 days a week.
Wednesday is the preferred day for workers and employers to be in the office (66%), followed by Tuesday (65%) and Thursday (60%). This gives headaches to restaurateurs and merchants who see the traffic of workers melt to 22% on Friday and 38% on Monday and complicates the management of public transport.
In this regard, the subway and the car are tied (46%) when workers are asked what mode of transportation they use to get downtown.
The President of the Chamber sees this as the result of an issue about confidence in the health measures put in place in public transport, which is stagnating at 55%.
“It means that one in three people do not have confidence,” he analyzes. It’s either I’m not moving, or I’m driving. There is communication work to be done. Transit organizations say they did what they had to do and it was done well, but people obviously, one-third, are still worried. »
Out of sight out of mind
The survey also paints a picture of the issues related to teleworking. It is not productivity that worries respondents, but rather the loss of team spirit. It is singled out by 52% of managers and 32% of employees.
Michel Leblanc also observes issues of integration and retention of new employees who after 18 months have no more friends in the company, he explains. “They have colleagues they saw once a month or once on zoom. So changing companies is like changing zooms and computers. »
It’s crazy how much we live in the city center
Hoping to convince even more workers and especially the youngest to come downtown, the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal is launching the advertising campaign this Wednesday It’s crazy how much we live in the city center. The advertisement emphasizes all the surprises that life can offer when you dare to leave home to go to work.
Young people are the most likely to come to work in the presence of the office, explains Michel Leblanc, because they like the activity in the city center and they will be able to develop their professional network there.