The Future of Work: Remote/Controlled report states that the pandemic has “led employers to question the extent to which government intervention in private sector operations will be a momentary public health response, or a long-term ideological shift”.

Whilst organisations continue to ascertain how staff will return to the office, COVID-19 has “simultaneously obscured some ongoing developments and accelerated other cultural shifts”, according to the report.

The report is based on global research amongst the C-suite in organisations with annual revenue of at least £250 million. It found that in the next three to five years, over 70 per cent of senior executives in some of the country’s largest companies expect that their remote workforce will be located in significantly more countries, including in jurisdictions where they currently have no physical presence.

Additionally, 43 per cent said they would plan to differentiate pay between remote and office-based workers, with remote workers to be paid less than their office-based counterparts. 80 per cent said they plan to measure productivity and output rather than monitor hours worked and 77 per cent plan to use digital tools to monitor workers’ wellbeing.

HSF partner Natalie Gaspar explained that due to the significance of these changes, it was unsurprising that over 60 per cent of senior executives expected to see an increase in “employee activism” within the next three to five years.

“As the pandemic recedes and people return to the workplace across the country, employers will have to wrestle with a number of thorny issues that may act as a lightning rod for employee activism,” she said.

“Much of this is uncharted territory for Australian businesses and employer-employee relationships will be tested. For employers that get it wrong, or are perceived to get it wrong, the risk to reputation and revenue has the potential to be significant.”

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Partner Drew Pearson added that COVID-19 had raised significant queries for employees.

“The pandemic has raised complex questions about employers’ responsibilities for the welfare of their workers, and their rights, and the rise of hybrid working and rapid changes in policies around pay and surveillance will create further legal and ethical challenges for employers,” he said.

“Hybrid working could split the workforce into tiers of predominantly home and office workers, which has unexplored implications for pay. Employees working from home save time and money on travel and subsistence costs – so is it right that they are paid the same as their peers who are required to work in an office?

“The counterargument is that rewarding employees for coming into the office will penalise groups that choose not to, which are more likely to include working mothers – potentially exacerbating the gender pay gap,” Mr Pearson added.

However, large corporations are already taking steps to mitigate the risk of employee activism, with 94 per cent globally having already implemented measures to restrict worker actions; such as public comments, attending marches, signing petitions, picketing and strike action. This is up from just 46 per cent in 2019.

Ms Gaspar added that while post-pandemic workplace changes create real challenges for businesses, there are also great opportunities.

“The potential for activism remains a constant threat and employers need to be focused on the future,” she said.

“The employers that succeed will ultimately view adapting to these organisational challenges as less a matter of compliance and more securing competitive advantage.”