Staff would give up money and perks to work flexibly

Beside the seaside: Some 39 per cent of workers would like to live closer to beaches, mountains or countryside

UK firms could save more than £30bn annually as workers would happily sacrifice pay and benefits to make their ideal work/life balance a reality, research has claimed.

Mobile operator Orange has released the Connected Britain report, based on research from YouGov and observations by futurologist James Bellini, with data extrapolated from 3,281 UK office workers.

The chance to live and work in their dream location would see 16 per cent of workers take a pay cut averaging £6,900. More than two in five would happily forego their company car. The report calculates that such cost savings could total £31.7bn per annum across UK plc.

About a quarter would take a less senior position or reduce career progression opportunities to be situated in their ideal spot. Two in five workers claim to be happy in their current location, but 39 per cent would prefer to be nearer to the coast, the countryside or mountains.

Orange's UK corporate marketing director Robert Ainger claimed the cost of enabling flexible working practices would be more than offset by the money that companies could save by doing so.

"Setting up an employee to work from home need not involve significant investment, just the willingness to give them the tools they need to get the job done," he said. "Rather than waiting for the current economic climate to improve, savvy businesses will act now to reap the rewards offered by flexible working."

Overall, the survey highlights a desire for employees to migrate from the North East and the Midlands towards more rural areas such as Devon. The South West, currently the UK's fifth most populous region, was respondents' most desired destination, with London in second spot.

About half of the workers moved to their current location because of a job offer. A mere four per cent are situated so as to be close to family and friends, but 26 per cent would like this to be their primary reason for choosing where to live.

Working away from the office some or even all the time would appeal to 87 per cent of employees, although 31 per cent would spend up to an hour traveling to work if it allowed them to live exactly where they wanted.

Futurologist James Bellini claimed the trend towards remote working could benefit both workers and the businesses that employ them.

“Connectivity is the vital resource of our future economy and businesses that ignore its power risk commercial marginalisation," he said. "This rapidly emerging digital age will have a profound impact on working practices as people will be able to work wherever and whenever they choose.

"This will generate substantial economic returns as e-workers of the future will be more productive, better motivated and happier. In turn, the businesses they work for will be more adaptable, more responsive to changing market conditions and more profitable."