Nurture your inner tech pro with personalized guidance from not one, but two industry experts. As illustrated above, I believe work-tracking software should be used to benefit the employee instead of surveillance, which can not only make employees feel uncomfortable but could also degrade trust and cause malcontent. To prevent this from happening, have all employees participate in the work-tracking pipeline instead of just a select few that have not been showing up in terms of work quality. Studies show that many of the most qualified candidates you could hope to attract for your company prioritize remote work. And while that should be reason enough to support it, it’s also good for your bottom line. Most critically, a flexible workplace allows people to take care of their needs as they arise, without judgment.
Remote work makes some employees worry about career progression, and nearly 60% of managers feel remote work is robbing them of opportunities for informal leadership development, according to the Owl Labs survey. This is where remote team-building efforts and one-on-one discussions on career development are critical for the well-being of employees and the long-term growth of the organization. Let’s take a step back and look at how far many of us have come over the last (nearly) two years since the pandemic began. There’s every indication that this is set to continue, and the possibilities are endless for what can be achieved if we continue to put the wellbeing of our people first. Managers and HR leaders have the critical responsibility of helping their workforce navigate this transition by prioritising the mental health and wellbeing of their workers.
Increased productivity
Satisfied employees tend not to jump ship to other opportunities as frequently. As a result, it can reduce your employee turnover as well as the expense of hiring, training and retaining new employees. But even in white-collar office positions, the disability disclosures that many employers require for even the most basic accommodations can present roadblocks. Months after COVID-19 forced millions of people to begin working from home, politicians and pundits worldwide began to speculate that the pandemic would forever change how and where we work.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs proposed that humans must meet certain physiological needs (including sleep) before they will be motivated to seek higher-order needs (Maslow, 1943). A key advantage of remote work is the ability to sleep in, thus allocating more time to rest and recuperate. When we no longer have to commute, we can benefit from additional sleep, which can improve well-being (Hirshkowitz et al., 2015). Resolution Foundation also found a direct link between low savings and poor mental health.
Careers Up Close: Elizabeth Tenney on Power of Voice, Tenuous Funding, and Applying Psychology in Business School
Using online questionnaires, employees in Germany were surveyed about, amongst other things, their current work situation and occupational health. The consent procedure and study protocol were approved by the ethics committee of Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin. The requirement for participation was that the respondents lived in Germany, were employed, and performed a part of their weekly working time in the home office. In this context, 14% of employees in Germany worked from home [41], i.e., approx. The survey was conducted in German; sample items were translated by the authors for this article.
A final advantage to take into account when considering remote work is that you’ll likely experience fewer distractions. In a traditional office setting, it’s easy to get sidetracked by colleagues dropping by your desk, impromptu meetings, or general office chatter. When you’re not tied to a physical office, you can structure your day in a way that works for you and gives you more time for your personal life, including family commitments and social engagements. The fact is, being able to work remotely depends significantly on a blend of sectors of employment, occupation and activity.
Reduced Friction For Employees And Employers
Moreover, 34% of employees responding to a 2019 Owl Labs survey indicated they’d take a pay cut for a remote position. The percentage of working time spent in the home office (Factor https://remotemode.net/ 1) has a positive influence on job satisfaction. It’s hard to believe that we’ve now entered the fifth year of the work-from-home revolution that came out of the Covid-19 pandemic.
