<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Samuel Anderson never imagined his first professional job would involve sitting alone at home, not meeting his colleagues in-person for a year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Melbourne man, who is now 25, had a highly unusual entry into the workforce at the </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/covid-19" rel="" target="_blank" title="start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. "><span>start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. </span></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>After a fair chunk of his early career spent at a makeshift desk at home – and as many Aussies resist the push to return to the workplace – Anderson told 9News.com.au he now much prefers the office over remote work.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/covid-19-five-years-on-how-two-melbourne-mothers-coped-during-longest-lockdown/c37bf353-39ba-4307-b971-484df2b4481e" rel="" target="_blank" title="Alisha and Emilia both gave birth under some of the world's toughest restrictions"><strong><span>Alisha and Emilia both gave birth under some of the world's toughest restrictions</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Anderson was offered a job at Australian Spatial Analytics, a social enterprise and non-profit which focuses on helping neurodivergent adults build their careers, five years ago.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I started a new job in April 2020, about a month [into the pandemic]… and it was different to any other kind of job I'd done before," Anderson explained.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I  went full time in 2021, it was casual up until that point. I hadn't even gone into an office at all."</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/covid-19-pandemic-five-years-on-samuel-spent-early-career-working-form-home-now-prefers-office/70985b6d-3a25-40e8-949d-7e1fa0d4a2ef" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Anderson joined millions of other Australians having meetings on Zoom and using a dining table as a desk during the unprecedented pandemic</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He didn't bond with his co-workers at the water cooler or enjoy an after work tipple like many other generations first working full-time.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I hadn't got a chair yet, I was sitting on my freezer," he laughed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/federal-election-coalition-plans-to-order-public-servants-back-to-office-five-days-a-week/ab321d10-efe8-49e1-b8e7-0f9471420914" rel="" target="_blank" title="Coalition government would require public servants in the office five days a week"><strong><span>Coalition government would require public servants in the office five days a week</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I was lonely at times, but we'd just sit on a call all day. If you wanted to talk, you'd talk.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"But it certainly was like living online."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>According to Dr Melissa Wheeler, a senior lecturer in Business Administration at RMIT, fully remote work took away a lot of opportunities for many young people.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"People who were new to the workplace were really missing out on those mentorship opportunities, which often happen really informally," Dr Wheeler said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It's very hard to do those things in online or remote settings – I don't think it's impossible. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I just think we haven't been trained, or we can't recognise the opportunities when they pop up in remote settings."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He was not getting the physical experiences of being in the workplace, but Anderson said he felt lucky to have a job in the first place.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>His career was able to accelerate during this period despite the isolation.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I wasn't expecting it and it came out of nowhere," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Rather than being resentful or upset that it wasn't like anyone else's [start to their career], it wasn't something I was expecting in the first place.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"For that reason, I was thankful."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Now, five years into his career, Anderson is going against the grain compared to millions of his peers.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>If he can avoid it, he will choose working in an office over remote work.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>" I felt like I was working way too long because, what else am I going to do?" Anderson said.</span></div></div><div class="styles__Wrapper-sc-2o34ro-0 cmwkBV"><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><a href="/content/2025/03/04/10/41/gender-pay-gaps-of-some-of-australias-biggest-companies-revealed"><img alt="The gender pay gaps of some of Australia&amp;#x27;s biggest companies have been revealed 2025" sizes="(min-width: 1024px) 636px, (min-width: 768px) 396px, 100vw" src="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/s0C7Dp3Xxv8XZu0reeGm5jaEoXI=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2Ff7a034a5-6777-4156-b03b-93c8a0781420" srcset="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/s0C7Dp3Xxv8XZu0reeGm5jaEoXI=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2Ff7a034a5-6777-4156-b03b-93c8a0781420 396w, https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/jdYfg9bhR_4wge7A8HqH2s6943k=/636x358/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2Ff7a034a5-6777-4156-b03b-93c8a0781420 636w"/></a></div><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><div class="styles__Headline-sc-2o34ro-4 hpbOlz">Gender pay gaps of some of Australia's biggest companies revealed</div><div class="styles__Button-sc-2o34ro-1 eBjlmW"><a class="styles__ButtonLink-sc-2o34ro-2 hqpklJ" href="/content/2025/03/04/10/41/gender-pay-gaps-of-some-of-australias-biggest-companies-revealed">View Gallery</a></div></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Like, I'll just be on the computer anyway. It  wasn't good for work life balance. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"You need that separation from workspace and leisure.'</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Wheeler said despite its disadvantages, the rise of remote work has given plenty of Gen Z workers the taste of a healthy work-life balance.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>She said younger professionals were now rejecting the traditional 9-5 workday in droves following the pandemic and are demanding flexibility.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They express work in a different way, in a more creative way, in a more burst of productivity, kind of way that we might not be used to," Dr Wheeler said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/scams-australia-funeral-scams-targeting-grieving-families-funeral-director/a5bf5b73-a8cb-45ff-89b2-37552dc5faf5" target="_blank" title="Mark spends hours every week trying to stop scammers targeting grieving families"><strong><span>Mark spends hours every week trying to stop scammers targeting grieving families</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I think we're all saying, wait, hold on a second. In times of crisis, you asked us to pivot so quickly and to master it, and we did it. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"And then you said, wait, now that you've done it, we actually want everyone to return back."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Wheeler thinks a hybrid model is here to stay for office workers.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It's a long-term pandemic impact that won't fade away and will likely benefit future generations of employees.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But as for the notorious four-day week? There's a bit of work to be done before that's universally achievable.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"There's a famous economist, John Maynard Keynes, who said in 100 years people would be working three days a week," Wheeler added.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"But our increasing consumerism has meant that that will never be possible, because when things are so easy to get… there's never a 'good enough.'</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"If we were to, as a culture, as a society, as a world, decide to be more sustainable, to stop producing and wanting as much, then that would be much more realistic."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/how-to-follow-9news-digital/29855bb1-ad3d-4c38-bc25-3cb52af1216f" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP</span></em></strong></a><strong><em><span>: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. 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