Going to the office can be expensive. Here are 3 ways to beat rising costs

Hybrid work arrangements are popular these days for a number of reasons – and one of them is that they can save thousands of workers each year.

a New survey by tech group Cisco – which was conducted this year among more than 6,000 respondents from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines – showed that 86 percent of workers saved money by partially working from home in the past year.

Average savings reached over $7,500 per year with 85% Respondents say they believe they can maintain these savings over the long term through hybrid work schedules.

That’s why “only 5% said they wanted to go back to office at all,” said Bi Kheng Tai, Cisco’s president of Southeast Asia.

According to ciscoThe top three areas where hybrid workers saved money are commuting, food, and social events.

Some 88% of respondents said hybrid work saved them money on fuel and other commuting costs, while 75% said they spent less on food and entertainment. Additionally, 60% said they saved on a post-work lifestyle and social activities.

“Pre-pandemic… you will go out with friends [after work], you will go to see a movie… go have a drink. With the pandemic, we all became very cautious,” said Anupam Trehan, Cisco’s People and Communities leader for the Asian region. “This resulted in savings.”

Jenny Walden, chief innovation officer at American financial services company daily paymentAdded: “While we are able to manage our food and shopping expenses for meals at home, returning to work often means eating out.”

According to Cisco, hybrid work saves employees in Southeast Asia about $144 per week. The survey showed that around 3 in 4 survey respondents would take these savings into account when considering a job change,

Walden pointed to another expense that is rising for people returning to the office: pet care.

“During Covid a high percentage of people got pets to keep them company during isolation,” she said. “Interestingly, they are being challenged to find ways to care for their pets when they return to work.”

A recent report by online pet marketplace Rover found that Pet parenting is getting more expensive, According to the report, more than 70% of pet owners have overspent on food, treats, toys and veterinary visits since the beginning of this year, and 73% worry about price increases.

For workers returning to the office who are worried inflation and expenses like Meal And petrolIndustry experts say there are many ways to manage rising costs.

Walden agreed, adding that employees could ask about it. benefits which are available to them through “employer provided programs”.

“There’s a lot you might not know about,” she said. “You really should take a few hours and look through your company’s employee handbook and their benefits programs to see what they offer you.”

Walden said many employers are “raising opportunities” for employees to save money.

For example, some provide monetary incentives for health benefits. staying fit Or given a certain number of daily steps, she said. Workers can also take advantage of transportation stipends, she said, or simply choose to drink free coffee in the workplace.

“You’d be very surprised that even without knowing it, you can probably save $300 a month just from programs you haven’t signed up for,” Walden said. “If you’re spending $5 for a cup of coffee … it adds up very quickly.”

Walden noted that companies are also using “creative” ways to retain employees these days, especially when labor market hot,

“If they can’t raise your salary, they could possibly do a one-time bonus or they might consider implementing a promotion scheme that’s tied to results,” she said. “There’s a lot of options out there.”