The Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management recently launched a public campaign about the advantages of hybrid working: working partly at home and partly at the office. The corona crisis is not over yet, but luckily more and more is possible. The government's advice is now: 'Work at home if possible and at the office if necessary.' Therefore, now is the time to think about what benefits we want to keep from working from home. Sometimes at home, sometimes at the office. This saves travel time and crowds during rush hour. Hybrid working is win-win. What do you gain with it?
Many Dutch companies also want to focus more on working from home in the future. This is apparent from a major study by the ministry that was published in July this year. More than 1.100 companies with more than a hundred employees participated. And that's good news now that traffic jams are increasing again. Working from home with some regularity saves a lot of time and ensures that others can continue driving. Traveling outside rush hour ensures a better spread and therefore less congestion on the road and in public transport. Minister Visser and State Secretary Van Weyenberg recently gave the go-ahead for the campaign.
“We look forward to meeting each other live again. The figures from Rijkswaterstaat show that the road is already getting busier and traffic jams are increasing, many people will have noticed this already. And that's exactly what we weren't looking forward to. So see if you can work from home, so you don't get stuck during rush hour. Little bits help, because if we have 8% fewer cars on the road during rush hour, that will cut traffic jams by half.”
“During the corona crisis, many of us have discovered how nice it can be to work from home. More freedom, no travel time and often better coffee. Many employers and employees now want to keep it. With 'working partly at home, partly at the office', you will soon be able to choose, for example, to only come to the office on days with less peak traffic. Or start your day from home and then travel to your workplace outside rush hour in a quiet train or bus and do some work in the meantime.”
More free time and a more accessible Netherlands
For several years now, more and more commuters have been using road and rail at the same time, resulting in crowds in public transport and traffic jams. Due to the corona crisis, we have experienced that working from home and following education remotely is also possible. The personal benefits of hybrid working are different for everyone. One thing is the same for everyone: it saves us all time. And that leaves time for things that are also important to you. In addition, we can use our infrastructure more efficiently and contribute to the accessibility of the Netherlands. It ensures better traffic flow on the road and less congestion in public transport and contributes to reducing nitrogen and CO2 emissions. So win-win.
Employers and central government
The cabinet is in talks with employers and educational institutions about hybrid working and staggered travel with flexible start and end times. Additional measures, such as financial incentives, are currently being explored. For example, from 2022 it will be possible to give employees a tax-free home working allowance. It is up to employers and employees to make agreements about an appropriate division between work on location and working from home.
Hybrid working is the starting point for the central government. It has been agreed with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management that now that more employees can go to the office again, there will be no meetings before 10 a.m. and after 15 p.m. for which presence in the office is necessary. That saves traveling during rush hour. The other ministries are also looking at how hybrid works can be set up. This is of course tailor-made and does not suit every profession. The basic principle is to only come to the office if this has a clear added value compared to working from home and to avoid rush hour where possible, according to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management.
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