How many days a week do you work in the office? According to one report, Londoners now spend an average of 2.3 days a week in the office, while another review found that working from home can have significant health benefits, such as reducing stress levels and encouraging people to eat more healthily.

Despite this, data from Virgin Media O2 found that 40% of companies are calling back staff to work five days a week from the office. And, a recent study has shown the negative impact this is having on people’s wellbeing and career paths. According to research by SkillsHub, four in 10 people would consider quitting their job if they had to return to the office full-time, and a fifth would consider quitting their job if they had to attend the office for three or more days a week.

When asked about office environments, many people cited that their office was negatively affecting them. One in five said that their workplace caused them stress and anxiety, while over 20% said that they were worried about how much coming into the office cost them.

Moreover, when the data was split between genders, more women than men said that the office negatively impacted their productivity. Women were also more likely to say that the workplace causes them stress and anxiety and that working in an office environment was not suited to their physical needs when compared to their male counterparts.

Commenting on the research, Sean McPheat, CEO at Skillshub, said: “Our research reveals that many employers may be putting themselves at risk of mass resignations if mandatory in-office policies are enforced without proper consideration. However, as well as formal in-office policies, many factors impact recruitment and retention. For one, training plays a significant role. Also, employee engagement and motivation go hand in hand with productivity, but common barriers to employee engagement include a lack of clear communication, inadequate training resources and limited growth opportunities.”

Images: Getty