Alan Sugar and Stuart Rose's attacks on working from home are wildly out of touch with reality: Jodie Hill

What they fail to recognise is that the future of work is here – and it’s flexible.

For too long, rigid archaic working practices have excluded women, carers, disabled people, and neurodivergent individuals from the workforce.

The ability to work remotely has opened the door for countless individuals to contribute to the economy while maintaining a better work-life balance and simultaneously improving diversity and inclusion which are all essential for coming growth.

When I launched Thrive Law in 2018, we operated Smart Working model – where we work when and where I best for us given the tasks we need to complete that day.

We trust our staff to work how they work best. If we don’t trust our staff why do we even employ them? We don’t have a business without our people so it baffles me why anyone would want to treat their team this way.

As someone who is neurodivergent myself, I know firsthand how transformative flexible working can be. Traditional office environments can often be overwhelming, with their sensory overload, copious distractions, unstructured interactions, and rigid schedules.

Remote working allows neurodivergent people to create a workspace that suits their needs, enabling them to focus, deregulate (when needed) and thrive.

Similarly, for many disabled people, home working removes the barriers of commuting and inaccessible office spaces, creating a more equitable playing field. Ignoring these benefits is to ignore a significant portion of the workforce that is ready, willing, and able to contribute when given the right tools and the right environment.

It’s about time we focussed not the facts rather than inflammatory headlines. Take, for instance, the research.

A Stanford University study found that remote workers were 13 per cent more productive than their office-based counterparts. Similarly, the University of Chicago reported that home workers often log longer hours, with productivity remaining stable or even improving. So where is the evidence to back up claims that home workers are slacking off?

Lord Sugar’s vision of people “sitting in pyjamas, touching the keypad every few minutes” is not only patronising but wildly out of touch with reality.

A study by the ONS revealed that remote workers exercise more and sleep longer, leading to improved mental and physical wellbeing. This is a win not just for individuals but for employers, who benefit from healthier, more engaged employees.

The benefits of remote working also extend beyond individual productivity. For parents—particularly mothers—home working is a lifeline. A University of Virginia study found that a 10 per cent rise in home working increased the motherhood employment rate by 1 per cent, while other research showed a significant reduction in the “motherhood penalty.” When women can juggle work and childcare more effectively, everyone wins: families, businesses, and the economy.

Yet, instead of embracing these opportunities, critics like Lord Rose claim home working is part of the UK’s economic decline. What they neglect to mention (quite conveniently) is the wealth of evidence showing the exact opposite. A Harvard Business Review study noted that hybrid work arrangements actually reduce turnover, foster innovation, and support long-term growth. Remote working, far from being a drain, could be a key driver of economic recovery.

Of course, remote working has its challenges as does any newer way of working. Collaboration can sometimes be harder and ensuring effective communication as well as maintaining a strong organisational culture takes deliberate effort. But these issues are solvable. The pandemic proved that businesses could adapt quickly, and hybrid working models offer a compromise that balances flexibility with in-office interaction.

So why the fixation on dragging workers back to the office? For some, it may be about control, nostalgia, excessive overheads, or simply a resistance to change. But the world of work has evolved, and we must evolve with it. Refusing to adapt means alienating the very people who could be driving not just our business but also our economy forward.

It’s time for policymakers and business leaders to listen to the evidence—not outdated rhetoric. Flexibility, including the option to work from home, is not a perk; it’s a necessity for building an inclusive, resilient, and thriving workforce. The future of work is here, and it’s time we embraced it.

Jodie Hill is managing partner of Thrive Law