www.managedITmag.co.uk 15 WORKPLACE to by 38%; job hugging (holding on to a job even if it makes you unhappy), admitted to by 35%; billboard days (choosing in-office days specifically to be seen by senior leaders or clients), admitted to by 30%, including 36% of men and 25% of women; and ghost working (cramming at night to gain more free time during the day), admitted to by 29%. Meeting tax falls but there’s still room for improvement The ‘meeting tax’ (the time it takes to get hybrid meetings started) has dropped to 5.9 minutes, from 6.5 minutes in 2025, but technical problems remain a frustration: 73% of UK workers say they have lost time due to technical difficulties, 70% are sometimes unable to hear everyone and 69% have experienced audio echo or distortion. Commenting on the findings, Frank Weishaupt, CEO of Owl Labs, a provider of AI-powered, 360-degree video conferencing solutions for hybrid organisations, said: “Genuine flexibility, where employees are given the support and freedom to get their job done, and done well, should be the longer-term strategy for organisations looking to resolve their employee engagement gap. Hybrid is now almost a given, and we should be working towards an environment where trust and transparency are too.” He adds that providing the right meeting room technology is an effective lever that employers can pull relatively quickly. “Doubling down on employee experience, including by offering better technology, is going to be a key part of employers keeping their best people over the next few years,” he said. https://owllabs.co.uk/state-ofhybrid-work/2026 27% in 2025), employees are far from anti-office. A big majority (92%) say they could be enticed back to the office with additional compensation (33%), the ability to choose their in‑office days (31%) and an employersubsidised commute (29%). One in three (31%) reports that their employer has changed their remote or hybrid working policy in the last year, up from 24% in 2025. Maintaining leadership oversight and visibility is still seen as the main motivation for return-tooffice (RTO) policies, cited by 73% in 2026 and 78% in 2025. Stress is rising, putting engagement under pressure More than one in three (35%) UK employees say their work-related stress has increased in the last year. Top concerns include no career progression (44%), worries about job stability (40%), a lack of flexibility (39%) and a fear of being forced into the office full‑time (39%). Over a third (37%) describe themselves as being disengaged at work, caused by burnout (31%), a paucity of growth opportunities (25%) and not feeling valued (23%). Burnout is more likely to be felt by women (36%) than men (26%). Trust gap exacerbates employee misgivings Six in 10 employees (59%) say their employer uses some form of monitoring software to track login/logout times (32%), meetings attended (22%) and keyboard activity (15%) – 82% believe employers should be legally required to disclose when they’re using such tools. UK employees counter stress with furtive tactics The report identifies covert workplace behaviours adopted by employees in response to stress and changing expectations. These include: working-to-rule, admitted AI use in business is nearuniversal, office policies are in flux and employees are reporting higher levels of stress, reveals the 10th annual State of Hybrid Work Report from hybrid meeting technology leader Owl Labs. Based on a global survey of 8,000 full-time employees, including 2,014 from the UK, the report depicts a workforce struggling to remain engaged despite an AI productivity boost and better meeting room technology. Employees doing more with AI, raising expectations of bosses Almost nine out of 10 UK employees (86%) use AI at work, with 27% using it daily and 26% using it several times a week. Millennials are the most likely to use the technology daily (32%), compared to just 11% of Boomers. Just over one quarter (26%) of AI users are using tools not officially approved by their employer, rising to 32% amongst Gen Z. Over two-thirds (68%) say that AI has made them more productive and 60% say that having AI skills has improved their chances of promotion. On the downside, 57% of UK workers believe AI has raised expectations concerning the amount of work they should do in a day. Others are apprehensive about job security, with two out of five (39%) worried that AI might make their role obsolete. Office policies in flux, but hybrid still the most popular option Hybrid working remains the most popular employment model, cited by 60% of UK workers as their preferred option, compared to 11% who say they would like to work fully remotely. While 29% of UK respondents say they would look for a role offering more flexibility if their ability to work on a hybrid basis or remotely was taken away (up from Stress levels rise as AI-driven workloads and employer monitoring put UK workers under pressure UK workers in the spotlight
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDUxNDM=