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    Super Commuters

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    9 views7 pages

    Super Commuters

    Uploaded by

    ronaldquezada038
    Super Commuters

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    224, 14:55 ‘The workers taking on now ‘super commutes’ - BBC Worle bog ‘The workers taking on new ‘super commutes’ Ni Hh) / Hl ii TH By Bryan Lufkin vith Apel 2022 Before, it was generally top-level executives who lived ‘super-commuting lives. Now, more and more workers are embracing the idea. 1 September 202", product marketing manager Blaine Bassett moved from San Francisco Whatis Worklife? How We Work How WeLive How We Think nipsutwoewbbe.com/worlfelartce!202204 13-he-workers-taking-on-new-super-commutes we 224, 14:55 ‘The workers taking on wou comms 88 Wa “ae war expecting rear mol hi ar fc th oan ge 17 tetas Dern ted bebve wrateaorase tatoo Dee enccandmnonato enew hott pitedup thr rer ‘At the time, his San Francisco-based employer, travel and expense- managment company TripActions, was stil operating remotely; he figured it was only a matter of time before things reverted to pre-pandemic norms, so he considered the move ‘temporary. Seven months later, however, Bassett is still living in Lake Tahoe, even as his company has started calling staff back to the office, a four-hour drive away. That means for Bassett, a once-daily commute is being replaced with aless frequent —but much longer one. It's called 2 ‘super commute’: defined as a commute that takes 90 minutes or longer one- way. “As you can imagine, [it] takes a bit of planning” says Bassett, who travels two or three ‘times a month by car from his home to his company’s headquarters. He can't go into the office at a moment's notice anymore, and has to “check traffic times wel in advance, leave atthe crack of dawn an cry to cram as many in-person meetings into the day as possible. | frequently spend the night with frends or ata hotel so I can get two days in the office outof the commute But the long-distance trek and increased costs are worth it, since he's able to keep ving in Lake Tahoe, working remotely the rest of the month. “When need a break or havea one-on-one,” he says, “I take calls wile walking inthe redwood forests, or down at the lake” ‘After moving 300km from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe last winter, Blane Bassett makes the -super-commute back to his office afew times a month (Credit: Courtesy of Blaine Bassett) Super-commuters aren't a new phenomenon. In sprawling countries like the US, for example, some workers, mainly senior executives, have been commuting tong distances for years. But the pandemic has increased this phenomenon, as more people shift to an employment model that combines remate work and occasional visits tothe office. Could this new form of commuting be the future, as workers embrace hybrid, and build tives further away from urban hubs? “The new super-commuters Historically, the workers doing these kinds of long-haul commutes have had certain things in common; they were often very senior or wealthy knowledge workers in spheres like tech, who were allowed to live far away and come in sparsely, sometimes even by ‘commuter flight services. But now, super-commating is evolving into something abit cfferent, Remote work has become far more normalised, even in sectors where it was rare pre-pandemic. t's common Whatis Worklife? How We Work How WeLive How We Think nipsutwoewbbe.com/worlfelartce!202204 13-he-workers-taking-on-new-super-commutes a 224, 14:55 ‘The workers taking on now ‘super commutes’ - BBC Worle For some people, that means living far from the office, potentially somewhere cheaper, and working a hybrid schedule, combining home working days with visits to the office ~ whether weekly, monthly or quarterly via a significantly longer commute. Data suggests ‘many workers think this is a reasonable trade-of; 4.9 milion Americans have moved since 2020 because remote work allowed them to do so, while more Australians moved cout of major cities in 2021 than at any pointin the last two decades. Some workers may have fallen into super-commuting somewhat by accident, That was the case for Daryl Fairweather, chief economist for Redfin, areal estate company with headquarters in Seattle, Washington. In autumn 2020, she and her husband moved to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin a tiny resort town of 8,000 people -to be closer to her husband's family. They've been there ever since. "We just decided to stay, we liked itso much," she says. "Ive always lived in cities my entire life, and this is my fist time living in a rural area. tm surprised with how much | Uke it ary! Fairweather s going to super-commute quarterly from her new home in Wisconsin, US to Seattle, Washington, over 3,000km away (Credit: Courtsey of Daryl Fairweather) During the pandemic, her office in Seattle (which is 3,200km [1,988] away from Lake Geneva) dct call staff back in for months. Now that the firms shifting to a hybrid ‘model, however, she willbe expected back there on a quartery basis, That means she'll travel tothe headquarters for three or four-day stays every three months, with the company footing the bill.“ would have considered [super-commuting] before the pandemic," says Fairweather. “Ljust didn think of it asa real option” The group of super-commuters has expanded as companies have allowed middle-class knowledge workers to come into the office two days a week, or one week a month — Robert Pozen other workers, meanwiile, got ataste of super commuting during the pandemic, and are looking for opportunities that would allow them to continue that lifestyle despite the logistical challenges. “1am actually interviewing in places that have a hybrid policy for permanent roles, ‘meaning two to three times [per week] inthe office in London” says freelance creative strategist Alex Totaro, who moved from London to Weymouth, Dorset, 200m (124m) away in the southern part ofthe UK, last year. "1 am currently weighing all options” ‘When Totaro moved to Weymouth, he was employed by a London-based company that had gone remote, but hadn't announced whether it was going to be permanent oF not. “They kept extending it as many companies did, and I decided the gamble [of moving] was worth it, considering it was somewhere on the train ine that, despite the three-plus-hour Journey, would still be doable,” he says. Whatis Worklife? How We Work How WeLive How We Think ipsum bbe.com/worlfelartce!202204 13-he-workers-taking-on-neW-super-commutes a 224, 14:55 ‘The workers taking on now ‘super commutes’ - BBC Worle someplace cheaper, Since he went freelance late last year, he's been looking for job ‘opportunities that would allow him the same combination of city-based work and rural living, “Lam still considering super-commuting both from a financial point of view, as well, as quality of life,” he says. "London rent has gotten extremely expensive.” Bassett echoes that sentiment: "I got relly tied of living in a major city, San Francisco, during the pandemic,” ne says. And for him, living further away but still having to come into the offic, isn’t so bad. The extra-long commute means he can “enjoy the time as get to.catch up with old friends, listen to podcasts and focus on work problems that need extra time or thought’ ‘Super:commuting did't deter lex Totaro from moving three hours from hs old office in London to Weymouth, Dorset in the southern UK last year (Credit: Courtesy of Alex Totaro) Is this the future? Robert Pozen, senior lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan School of Management, says the evolution ofthe hybrid workplace means that new-style super- commuting is here to stay. “The super-commuters are mainly knowledge professionals who don't have to be physically present every day that's about half the workers in the US,’ he points out. Bill Fulton, director of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University in Texas, says it's likely that super-commuters who commute between states "work at higher-level Jobs — not atthe very top, but higher up" But Pozen believes that more people will be able to super-cammute as hybrid gets more entrenched. “The group of super-commuters has expanded as companies have allowed middle-class knowledge workers to come into the office two days a week, or one week a month,” he says Fulton points out ts not all plain sailing. “Companies want their workers, especially the supervisors, inthe office on a regular basis - maybe not five days a week, but more than once a month. So, there's lot of tension right now between those who want to commute long distances very occasionally - whetherits 90 miles by car or 500 miles by plane -and employers who want them close.” Bassett acknowledges his new work model comes with challenges, too. “There are

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