Use this script to ask about remote work in a job interview—it won’t raise any red flags with your potential new boss
Despite a global pandemic which forced millions of workers to do their jobs from home, some CEOs have made it clear they don't believe remote work is the future.
Last year, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in-person workers "get more done." Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, echoed that sentiment saying working from home is "morally wrong."
Still, a significant percentage of managers and employees, 68% and 48%, respectively, have expressed they want the option to work remotely, according to a recent survey.
If you're job hunting and the ability to work from home at least some of the time is important to you, it's understandable that you'll want to ask the hiring manager just how often you'd be expected to commute into the office.
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Depending on where management stands on remote work, though, this could raise some red flags about you.
The question could be interpreted as you having a poor work ethic, says Matt Abrahams, a Stanford University lecturer and communication expert.
If you frame it correctly, though, you can get your answer and not set off any alarms in your potential manager's head.
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'I want to be able to connect with my colleagues'
To discreetly ask about the work-from-home policy, Abrahams suggests the following script:
"I want to be able to connect with all my colleagues and managers, so I was wondering how often people are in the office? Do some people work virtually, or is there a hybrid model?"
This way, you're not actually asking to work remotely.
"It's in the context of you wanting to be the best employee you can and connect with your fellow employees," he says.
This only works if you have some flexibility, though.
If you know you want to work from home 100% of the time, Abrahams says it's probably better to be straightforward about that expectation.
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