Work remotely forever: Airbnb

Airbnb told its 6,000 employees on Thursday that they now have the option to permanently work remotely. Airbnb joins a group of companies that have ditched return-to-office plans like Zillow and PwC. Meanwhile, Airbnb has also told its US employees that they can move to anywhere in the country and there would be no reduction in their payment. 

Earlier, Airbnb had return-to-office plans for employees scheduled for September 2022. But its chief executive Brian Chesky has been a proponent of workplace models that offer more flexibility and options to travel. He also notes that last year one in five guests at Airbnb reported that they were using Airbnb to work remotely. The company's remote work policy is its latest effort to encourage people to use Airbnb as pseudo-offices. 

Nearly 10% of the American workforce works remotely. This number was much higher in May 2020 when one-third of the workers were working remotely during the height of the pandemic. Last year Airbnb launched a year-long program called Live Anywhere on Airbnb that gave 12 people the chance to travel the world while working from Airbnb locations. 

Source: The New York Times