The working from home model appears to be on the rise again in Canberra, as COVID-19 and influenza cases continue to spread throughout the community.  

Canberra’s office occupancy rates have declined from 60 per cent to 53 per cent in the period between May and June this year, according to the Property Council of Australia’s (PCA) latest report.

Office occupancy rates remained relatively stable across all other capital cities, with Canberra reporting the most dramatic decline.

PCA chief executive Ken Morrison said while occupancy rates have steadily recovered since the beginning of 2022, this month showed a “clear pause in workers heading to the office”.

“The continued spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses, extremely wet weather on the east coast, combined with industrial action in NSW, have all clearly hampered workers being able to get into their CBD workplaces,” Mr Morrison said.

“Before the Delta strain hit in the middle of last year, we saw a real resurgence in the return to office, and we would expect occupancy to lift again once these current unfavourable impacts subside.

“I don’t think these figures are a reflection of workers not wanting to be in the office, but rather a reflection of people being forced to stay home for a range of reasons, whether it be to care for sick kids, rest themselves, or to avoid dangerous weather.”

Pressures on local inner city businesses

With much of Canberra’s office space located in the CBD, a range of local businesses in the city rely on office workers for consistent customer flow.

According to Canberra Business Chamber CEO, Graham Catt, the lack of workers heading into the office clearly does have an impact on surrounding businesses.

“These figures [PCA report] certainly provide data to back up the impressions from businesses in the city. There are certainly businesses that are built around their customers being people that are working in those office buildings in the CBD and other areas with large office complexes,” Mr Catt said.

“The indications are there are certainly employees and employers who are minimising risk by returning to the working from home model, which can impact a whole range of businesses and the economy as a whole.”

While many office-based businesses can easily transition to working from home, Mr Catt says it’s clear that, depending on the type of industry people are in, working from home isn’t always an option.

Furthermore, he said while this current lack of demand in the winter months may be hurting local businesses, the surge in customers during the summer season also impacted their ability to trade.   

“Many of them dealt with, in the first part of this year, an increased demand for services. We heard lots of stories from small businesses about the ongoing pressures, particularly because of absentee staff who couldn’t come into work,” he said.

“So, it’s not just a question of demand; it’s just the ongoing pressures placed on businesses. People not going into the office means a lack of demand, and then when demand is there, they’re not in the position to meet that.”

Mr Catt expressed concerns he has heard from employers who say returning to the work from home model is a challenge; they’re finding it difficult to mentor and support their staff, check in on their mental health, and it has made human resource issues more challenging.

“We know that for some people working from home models work really well, but for others, their home isn’t a good or suitable workplace,” he said.

“Businesses and the private sector in a whole lot of cases have moved to a model where we generally see people working from home two to three days a week, and then in the office for two to three days a week.

“These hybrid models are another adjustment for both employees and employers to keep the balance right.”

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