Since 2020, remote and hybrid working has become much more common situations in many industries. However, the number of people returning to office work over the past five years has grown as the pandemic model falls out of favour. With some workers enjoying the benefits of hybrid or remote, looking for a new job comes with the challenge of matching their current position. This can cause some anxiety for jobseekers, but what do recruiters think of remote/hybrid expectations?
The short answer is: Durban recruitment agencies don’t favour one model outright but they do prioritise fit, feasibility, and client demand. The longer answer reflects how the local job market has matured since 2020, with remote, hybrid and office-based roles all firmly embedded in hiring strategies across KwaZulu-Natal.
Recruitment agencies in Durban operate at the intersection of candidate preference and employer reality. While candidates increasingly ask for flexibility, agencies are still guided by what hiring companies can operationally support. The result is a pragmatic, role-by-role approach rather than a blanket preference.
How Durban’s hiring landscape has changed
Durban’s economy is diverse but distinct. It combines logistics and port operations, manufacturing, engineering, tourism, finance, customer service and a growing digital services sector. Each of these industries places different demands on where and how work is done.
Since 2024, most Durban-based employers have settled into stable post-pandemic operating models. The experimental phase of fully remote work has largely passed, replaced by clearer structures. Recruitment agencies have adapted accordingly. Instead of “remote-first” or “office-only” thinking, they now assess:
- The nature of the role
- Client infrastructure and security requirements
- Team collaboration needs
- Candidate productivity and experience level
This shift means agencies are less concerned with where candidates want to work and more focused on whether that preference aligns with the role they are recruiting for.
When recruitment agencies favour office-based candidates
For many Durban employers, physical presence still matters. Recruitment agencies tend to favour office-based or partially office-based candidates for roles where location is not optional.
These include:
- Manufacturing, engineering and technical roles
- Logistics, shipping and port-adjacent operations
- Junior roles that require close supervision and training
- Client-facing positions involving walk-in customers or on-site teams
Durban’s strong industrial and logistics footprint makes this especially relevant. In these sectors, agencies know that candidates insisting on full remote work are unlikely to be shortlisted, not because of bias, but because the role cannot be performed remotely.
Agencies also observe that employers hiring early-career professionals often prefer in-office attendance. Face-to-face mentorship, faster onboarding and skills transfer are still seen as critical, particularly in technical or operational environments.
Where remote work is genuinely favoured
That said, recruitment agencies in Durban are actively placing candidates into remote and hybrid roles, particularly where skills are scarce or competition is national or global.
Remote-friendly roles typically include:
- Software development and IT support
- Digital marketing, SEO and content roles
- Finance, accounting and payroll functions
- Data analysis and business intelligence
- Certain customer support and sales roles
In these cases, agencies may even favour remote-ready candidates, especially those with proven self-management skills, strong communication habits and experience working independently. Employers recruiting for these roles are often more concerned with output than physical presence.
Recruitment agencies also recognise that remote work has become a talent attraction tool. For hard-to-fill roles, flexibility can be the deciding factor that secures the right candidate.
The rise of hybrid as the default compromise
Across Durban, hybrid work has quietly become the most common expectation—and recruitment agencies reflect this in how they screen and shortlist candidates.
Hybrid typically means:
- Two to three days in the office
- Core collaboration days on-site
- Remote work for focused or independent tasks
Agencies often favour candidates who are open to hybrid arrangements, even if they personally prefer remote work. Flexibility signals realism and adaptability, both of which are highly valued by employers.
From a recruiter’s perspective, candidates who insist on rigid conditions, whether fully remote or fully office-based, narrow their own opportunities. Those who express openness to hybrid models tend to progress further in the hiring process.
What agencies actually assess when candidates state a preference
Importantly, Durban recruitment agencies do not treat work-location preference as a standalone deciding factor. Instead, they evaluate it alongside:
- Role requirements
- Seniority and experience
- Past performance in similar environments
- Client expectations and company culture
A senior software engineer with a track record of remote delivery will be assessed very differently from a junior administrator requesting the same arrangement. Context matters.
Recruiters also increasingly probe why a candidate prefers remote or office work. Well-articulated reasons, such as productivity, caregiving responsibilities or reduced commute fatigue, are received far more positively than generic demands.
What this means for candidates in Durban
If you are job-seeking in Durban, the key takeaway is this: recruitment agencies favour alignment, not ideology.
Candidates improve their chances by:
- Being honest but flexible about work preferences
- Matching expectations to role realities
- Demonstrating accountability and communication skills
- Showing awareness of employer constraints
Remote work is no longer viewed as a perk or a risk, it is simply one option among several. Likewise, office-based work is not a step backwards; for many roles, it remains the most effective setup.
So, do agencies favour remote or office-based candidates?
Neither. They favour candidates who fit the role and the client.
In Durban’s evolving job market, recruitment agencies act as translators between what candidates want and what businesses can realistically offer. Those who understand this dynamic, and position themselves accordingly, are the ones most likely to succeed, regardless of where they work from.