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The real impact of working from home

With our two feet in the middle of the fourth wave, we can already look back at the impact of teleworking on employees.

Around 40% of employees worldwide moved from their offices to their homes for extended periods of time. Never before have we had the opportunity to observe the impact of (forced) telecommuting on such a large scale.

Today, we let Sofie and An speak for themselves.

They both work in HR and confirm that at the beginning of the first wave we could not estimate what such a drastic change in working conditions would mean. Meanwhile, there have been scientific studies, welfare surveys and, of course, many testimonials to fall back on. They remarkably often point in the same direction.

Instagram

Sofie on the phone. "Did you see on Instagram today the Tips for working from home with a toddler by Elisabeth Lucie Baeten? Spot on!" For screenwriter Baeten it's simple: working from home with a toddler equals this just doesn't work out. In Dagboek van een thuiswerker (Diary of a home worker) from May 2020, she already sketched how the fun of not having to go to an office is quickly lost. Exaggerated and sharp, but above all funny because based on what was then still a new reality for many.

Sofie as a work-from-home mom

"As long as the nursery and school were still open, it was all right, but when they closed, it was sometimes 'le bordel'. I was happy when the youngest's afternoon nap and a Meet coincided, but when she woke up too early, I was sitting there with my daughter on my lap. Not really how I like to present myself professionally. I have resolved to make use of those Corona parental leave days next time. Sometimes we took it too far trying to cope at the time."

Sofie says several things here: that it was an intricate puzzle to make the best of it and that she and her partner did so. That she wanted above all to continue to function professionally. That she takes into account that this kind of situation could happen again in the more or less near future. That the balance between work and family sometimes tipped the other way for her. Fortunately, there are still solutions for her family.

Sofie in HR function

"Yesterday, one of our employees, a woman in her 50s with a non-ideal home situation, begged if she could please come to the office every day again. Just at a time when we have to ask her to come in even less or not at all.

For some people, not being able to come to work means something else than having to reorganise. For them, it's sometimes their only social contact and the loss of that, especially in uncertain and increasingly discouraging times, becomes really acute."

That lady's story is exemplary of this recent American Psychiatric Association study which states that the majority of home workers report experiencing negative mental health effects such as isolation and loneliness.

The office community often becomes a strong support system and workers feel lost without the shared workplace.

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An, as an HR manager and privately

Whereas in the first welfare survey of the Flemish government the majority of its employees still saw sufficient positive aspects to working from home, the third survey shows changed figures.

Of the more than 6,000 people questioned, almost 10% less than before now indicate that they are doing well. Also, the number of people who are able to balance work and private life well has decreased by 10%, whereas their score on the same question in September was still considerably more positive. At the same time, the percentage looking forward to being at work more often has increased by 12%.

In these figures, An sees the increasing burden on employees and colleagues who initially saw more benefits, such as no longer having to commute to Brussels and therefore having more time with their families. Now she herself hears and notices that it was precisely this commuting time that enabled her to switch off and literally leave her work behind.

Picking up your children at school at 3.30 p.m. became a possibility, but at the same time it meant that you had to open your laptop again later in the evening. For colleagues who are conscientious, but even more so for those who are perfectionists, being able and allowed to stop working is something they struggle with.

What is certain is that everyone runs into something different: for some it is keeping their focus, while others experience problems getting away from work at the end of the day.

What has changed in An's opinion compared to the first poll? "I think we saw it quite positively then. We all had a perspective: that things would improve again and that more contacts would become possible. That did happen for a while, but turned out to be too short-lived. We also thought that we would be able to divide our time differently for good, while the pressure-pressure of the past soon set in again, along with the brief return to our workplaces and social activities."

Facing yourself

We also learned something in the smaller things. An and her colleagues already knew about the phenomenon, but now they experienced for themselves that 'Zoom fatigue' is something to take into account.

The limited freedom of movement, the hyperfocus on understanding the other person in the event of faulty sound and, above all, the effect of seeing yourself in the picture all the time, demands a great deal of energy.

"What I miss as well is being able to pop in on a colleague to exchange ideas. The kind of informal consultation on the way to the meeting room, so to speak. Physically going to a place to meet helps to push other tasks temporarily into the background, but also strengthens your relationship with colleagues. Being able to ask how things are at home, for example, is something you normally do when you get coffee together. It's precisely this space to vent that has been neglected and I miss it. It makes some people feel less committed to their jobs, because that social connection also ensures commitment to their jobs.

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No room for an office chair

The fact that it is not easy for everyone to create a healthy working environment at home is expressed in many ways. Working at the kitchen table seemed more appealing than traffic jams, but their backs and necks quickly and inexorably remind people of the importance of good ergonomics.

Prevention services were involved in the search for affordable and feasible practical solutions to support employees in this.

That this is an area that needs to be addressed on an ongoing basis is evidenced, for example, by a study of the well-being of homeworkers by the British Institute for Employment Studies (IES), conducted during the first two weeks of the first lockdown. It shows how homeworkers quickly experienced a significant increase in musculoskeletal complaints. Compared to their normal physical condition, people reported a number of new aches and pains, especially in the neck (58%), shoulder (56%) and back (55%).

The good news is that with simple interventions in routines and equipment, many complaints can be prevented.

Many companies allow the loan of a suitable office chair and a second screen, but you can't magically manifest the extra space to put them in...

Do you see your employees?

Do you see the family man or woman for whom the work-life balance is sometimes almost non-existent when working from home? Do you see for whom there is no longer a switch off because of the lack of fixed working hours? Do you know who can be reached "at all hours"?

The government's "Get a grip on yourself" campaign, which can be heard in radio commercials this week, is already focusing on this, both on a personal level and for entrepreneurs who want to help their employees maintain their bearing.

Do you know in which families sitting at home without entertainment has led to a flood of domestic problems because frustration, depression and anxiety have taken over? Do you see where this has led to violence and who therefore needs urgent help?

New work accidents

Finally, Sofie tells us about an additional nuisance: accidents at work at home.

A colleague had set up her desk upstairs to work in peace. She went downstairs to get her ID to log in. In her socks. The result was a complex ankle fracture and three months of rehabilitation. Call in the FOD WASO? What should this service recommend? And what about the colleague who broke her foot when her laptop fell on it? Safety shoes under the kitchen table?

Long story short

We thought we'd keep it short this week 😉 .

Reality and its "progressive insights" demand that we, as prevention advisers, constantly shift with it, adjust and expand our risk analyses.

But above all, we must keep in touch with the world of employees and employers. That we continue to look for strategies that truly support people in what challenges them and gives them meaning: their work.

Keep it as safe as possible! Take care of yourself. See you soon!

Seekurico Ltd

Rode Kruisstraat 49
3540 Herk-de-Stad (B)

info@seekurico.be
Phone +32 (0)474 37 94 63

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