Percentage of employees who are willing to take a pay cut of up to 5% to work remotely, according to Owl Labs/Global Workplace Analytics' Report: 31

Percentage who would be willing to take a pay cut of up to 10% to work remotely: 26

Estimated percentage of employees who are worried that staying remote could negatively affect their career: 50

Source: Owl Labs.

Percentage of American adults with private health insurance who said they'd be willing to receive a vaccine against COVID-19 when it is released, according to EBRI and Greenwald Research's Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey: 55

Percentage who said they are not willing: 25

Percentage who said "it depends" or "not sure": 21

Source: EBRI.

Ranks of clothing and fashion, electronics and technology, and personal care products and services on the list of the types of gifts Americans hope to receive this holiday season, according to a survey by 5w Public Relations: 1, 2, 3

Percentage of Americans who plan to buy gifts online and in store: 61

Percentage who plan to shop online only: 18

Percentage who plan to shop entirely in store: 9

Source: 5W Public Relations.

Percentage of companies that say they are willing to hire 100% remote workers anywhere in the U.S. or internationally, compared to 12% who were receptive to that approach before COVID-19, according to research by the Conference Board: 36

Compared to just 25% of companies before the pandemic, percentage of companies that are now willing to hire remote workers: 88%

Percentage that still prefer that employees live within commuting distance to the office location: 50

Source: The Conference Board.

Percentage of adults between the ages of 25 and 34 who reported that their office had no plan in place to deal with an emergency, according to research by Zogby: 54

Percentage of adults who report they wouldn't know what to do should an emergency occur in school or the workplace: 55

Source: Zogby International.

Percentage of people who believe their company should be doing more to protect the mental health of their workforce, according to a study by Oracle and Workplace Intelligence: 76

Percentage who noted their companies have added mental health services or support as a result of COVID-19: 51

Source: Oracle CX.

When asked about holiday plans, percentage of Americans ages 70 and older who said they won't see family in person or haven't made plans to do so, according to a survey commissioned by Aloe Care Health: 50

Percentage who stated definitively that they won't be seeing family in person this year: 29

Percentage of Americans aged 70-plus who would like to have daily communication with family: 43

Source: Aloe Care Health.

Percentage of U.S. employees working from home who say they work as productively or better at home, according to a survey by Weber Shandwick and United Minds: 70

Percentage who say they have the tools and resources they need: 85

Source: Weber Shandwick.

Percentage of people who say they will not change holiday gift-exchanging plans because of social distancing, according to research by Tophatter Inc.: 41

Percentage of people who said they don't think the pandemic will change their holiday shopping plans much, if at all: 44

Percentage who said they are buying fewer gifts because they have less money or are on a tighter budget than years past: 30

Source: Tophatter Inc.

Idle Thought

"There are years that ask questions and years that answer." -- Zora Neale Hurston, folklorist and writer

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of Americans who plan on traveling to visit family for the holidays -- with more than two-thirds reporting they will be traveling by car or RV, according to an RVshare survey: 47

Though 55% of people are less confident about their holiday travel plans compared to last year, percentage who have already decided they will not be flying over the holidays: 80

Source: RVshare.

Percentage of same-gender newlyweds who took a "buddymoon," compared to 23% of different-gender newlyweds, according to research by Brides.com: 42

Percentage of same-gender newlyweds who said they never wanted to marry prior to meeting their partner, compared with just 9% of different-gender newlyweds: 23

Percentage of men who deemed their wedding day a lifelong dream, compared to 27% of women: 32

Source: Brides.com.

Ranks of updating their resumes, reaching out for career help, developing new skills through free training and exploring a career change on the list of top actions to improve career prospects, according to a survey by Champlain College Online: 1, 2, 3, 4

When asked questions about the current employment and economic landscape, percentage of respondents who agreed that staying current and developing new skills is a requirement in today's competitive job market: 78

Source: Champlain College.

Percentage of remote workers who admit to bad behavior while participating in virtual brainstorm meetings from home (and 1 in 10 have used the bathroom while on a call), according to a study released by Lucid: 62

Percentage of remote workers who met with their colleagues in person against company protocol over the past few months: 17

Percentage of the folks in the C-suite who were the worst offenders: 43

Source: Lucid Marketing.

Percentage of U.S. adults who have reused online passwords, the most common questionable behavior when ensuring personal data security, according to a new report from Bankrate.com: 80

In the past year, ranks of saving passwords on a computer or phone, saving payment information on a computer or phone, using public Wi-Fi and using an ATM somewhere other than a financial institution on the list of questionable behaviors: 2, 3, 4, 5

Percentage of U.S. adults who have received a false fraud alert concerning one of their credit or debit cards: 43

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of U.S. workers who are contemplating professional or lifestyle changes that will impact the workplace going forward, according to a survey by Weber Shandwick and United Minds: 61

Percentage who say they plan to work from home full or part time in the future: 41

Percentage of workers with children who say they plan to work from home full or part time in the future: 52

Source: Weber Shandwick.

Percentage of women who have been discriminated against due to their hairstyle, according to research by All Things Hair: 44.3

Percentage who have been told their hairstyles are not professional: 46.5

Percentage of women who feel pressured to wear their hair differently at work: 52.3

Source: All Things Hair.

Percentage of people across the world who feel that life will never be the same again, an increase of 5% since April, according to Cigna's latest research: 18

Percentage of people in the United States who say the same: 25

Percentage of people in Mainland China who say the same: 5

Source: Cigna Corp.

Percentage of Americans who are spending more time at home than ever before, with the resulting behavior changes creating unforeseen health consequences, like physical pain, constipation and even hemorrhoids, according to research commissioned by Preparation H: 80

Percentage of respondents who reveal they've experienced new aches and pains due to how inactive they've become since the quarantine began: 60

Percentage of Americans who feel they are now living a more sedentary lifestyle: 63

Source: Preparation H.

Of those parents already schooling from home during COVID, percentage who are home-schooling with a parent/caregiver as the primary educator, according to a survey by homeschoolExpert.com: 21

Percentage who are schooling online through a public school: 74

Percentage who are schooling online through a private school: 5

Source: Homeschool Expert.

Idle Thought

"An artist should never be a prisoner of himself, prisoner of style, prisoner of reputation, prisoner of success, etc." -- Henri Matisse, artist

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of employees who say working from home gives them more time with family/better work-life balance, according to Owl Labs/Global Workplace Analytics' Report: 72

Percentage who cited increased productivity/better focus: 70

Source: Owl Labs.

Percentage of moms who say that helping their child learn to be their most authentic self is most important—more important than raising a successful high-achiever or a person of high intelligence, according to Meredith Corp.'s first-ever parents values study: 28

Percentage of moms who are confident in their parenting and rate their skills as excellent or very good: 51

Source: Meredith.

In 2016, the percentage of voting age citizens who cast a vote in the U.S. general election, according to Pew Research: 61

Date upon which early voting in the 2020 general election surpassed 50% of the total vote in the U.S. election in 2016: Oct. 27

Source: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

Percentage of U.S. shoppers who say that free standard shipping is the No. 1 service they expect from brands and retailers this holiday season, according to findings from Episerver: 83

Source: Episerver.

Percentage of Americans who say they have achieved the American Dream, according to a survey by Zogby: 24

Percentage who said it is within reach: 26

Percentage who said it was slipping away: 19

Percentage who have lost hope: 18

Source: Zogby International.

Percentage of Americans who say that their cellphone is their most important belonging during the pandemic, according to a WalletHub survey: 50

Percentage of Americans who plan to reduce the cost of their cellphone due to the COVID-19 pandemic: 35

Source: WalletHub.

Between February 2020 and June 2020, the number by which unemployed individuals increased, from 2 million to 17.9 million, according to the Employment Benefits Research Institute: 15.9 million

Of those workers who lost jobs, number who also lost employer-sponsored health insurance: 7.7 million

Number of dependents for whom they are responsible: 6.9 million

Source: EBRI.

Percentage of Americans who report they won't be traveling to see friends and family this year, according to a survey by Travelocity: 60

Percentage who said they have a personal vacation planned later this year: 25

Source: Expedia.

Percentage of parents with children who believe it is important to be proficient with tech, according to a survey conducted by OnePoll on behalf of VTech: 88

Percentage who believe technology will shape who their child becomes: 87

Percentage who think technology allows their child to be creative in new and different ways, with the same number believing outlets for creative self-expression are important for their child's development: 85

Source: VTech Electronics.

Idle Thought

"Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity." -- Louis Pasteur, chemist and bacteriologist

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)