An inner survey designed by Apple workers reveals respondents need the choice to make money working from home and concern their colleagues might have to depart if the corporate forces folks again to the workplace.

In the survey, which was despatched out in early June, practically 90 p.c of respondents mentioned they “strongly agree” with the assertion “location-flexible working options are a very important issue to me.” A complete of 1,749 folks answered the query. Employees outlined “location-flexible” as the choice to make money working from home indefinitely.

The information comes on the heels of Tim Cook’s announcement that Apple will probably be rolling out a brand new hybrid work mannequin that may require workers to return to the workplace three days per week beginning in early September. While the transfer is a giant shift for Apple, which discouraged distant work previous to the pandemic, it’s nonetheless too strict for some staff. They say that with out the choice to make money working from home every time they need, some will probably be compelled to resign.

The survey will not be scientific — it was despatched out in a Slack channel for workers to debate distant work, and solely a tiny fraction of Apple’s 147,000-person workforce probably even knew it existed. But the truth that nicely over a thousand workers participated in a grassroots survey that wasn’t sanctioned by Apple executives is important. It hints at a shift in Apple’s famously hierarchical tradition.

In response to the assertion “I am worried that some of my colleagues will have to leave Apple due to LACK of location-flexible work options,” 58.5 p.c mentioned they “strongly agree.” A complete of 1,743 folks answered the query. A smaller portion — 36.7 p.c — mentioned they’re anxious they’ll need to resign as a result of lack of flexibility.

Employees despatched the survey outcomes to Cook and Deirdre O’Brien, senior vice chairman of retail and folks, on June 14th. They included a video with private testimonies from 24 Apple staff on why distant working choices are essential.

Two weeks later, Apple despatched out a video doubling down on the hybrid mannequin, saying “we believe that in-person collaboration is essential to our culture and our future.”

The video irked some workers, who felt executives hadn’t listened to their perspective. Even workers who don’t need to make money working from home ceaselessly say the corporate wants to think about extra flexibility whereas the Delta variant continues to surge.

While Apple is encouraging workers to get vaccinated, it’s not requiring everybody to put on masks within the workplace, saying as a substitute that “choosing to wear a mask in places where protocols have been lifted is a personal decision.”

Apple didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark from The Verge.