Remote workers logging longer hours than office peers

A report by Cloudbrink identifies that employees working from anywhere are logging longer hours than traditional office workers.

The study titled "2025 Trends in Hybrid Work Report: The Facts Behind Balancing Security and Performance" indicates a significant transfer of data especially on Fridays, with work-from-anywhere staff beginning as early as 7:00 am and continuing work until 7:00 pm. The findings challenge the notion that remote employees are less productive than their office-bound counterparts.

Prakash Mana, Chief Executive Officer of Cloudbrink, commented, "Employers shouldn't worry that remote workers are slacking off. It's simply not true. Our data shows they actually work longer hours."

However, Mana stressed the importance of addressing technical issues, noting, "What's really impacting productivity is when users waste hours trying to get work done because of network connectivity issues caused by VPNs and other outdated security. There's no question security is a requirement, but it doesn't have to slow down productivity outside the office."

The report analysed data from Cloudbrink's Personal SASE service, revealing a busy work ecosystem extending into weekends. Usage data suggests employees frequently access work resources on Saturdays and Sundays in addition to weekdays.

A survey that accompanies the report surveyed over 251 IT and cybersecurity professionals. More than half of the respondents noted that 40% or more of their workforce operates remotely at least once a week, necessitating reliable access to corporate resources. Connectivity issues were identified as a primary challenge, including unreliable connections, poor audio and video quality, and slow file transfer speeds, directly affecting more than 45% of remote workers surveyed.

The balance between security and performance remains a critical concern. Overall, 70% of the companies surveyed believe that stringent security protocols adversely affect user experience and performance. This highlights a gap in understanding the root causes and solutions to these challenges.

The report sheds light on packet loss as a significant technical limitation influencing performance. Cloudbrink indicates that even low percentages of packet loss, when coupled with latency, can substantially hinder connection speed. "Adding just 0.5% packet loss on top of just 10 milliseconds of latency can cause throughput to plummet by 90%," the report states.

Prakash Mana elaborated, "Unfortunately you can't solve all connectivity issues with a bigger pipe. Frustrated workers paying for high-speed connections still experience maddening upload speeds that get slower instead of faster. Packet loss is the ten-ton gorilla hiding in the shadows, and it's a more prevalent problem than most people think."

The findings are built on data collated from millions of sessions generated by hybrid workers and a comprehensive survey covering a wide range of industries. More than 50% of survey participants hail from organisations with over 5,000 employees.