tag:theconversation.com,2011:/au/topics/working-from-home-83727/articlesWorking from home – The Conversation2024-03-07T19:23:53Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2245102024-03-07T19:23:53Z2024-03-07T19:23:53ZWorking from home can make us healthier and happier. Employers benefit too. Here’s the evidence if you need any convincing<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580287/original/file-20240306-20-2qvls8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=23%2C23%2C7786%2C5187&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-writing-on-her-notebook-3059747/">RF Studio/Pexels</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Some of us used to imagine a world where the morning commute was a short stroll from your bedroom, the dress code included comfy slippers, and the closest coffee shop was your kitchen. Then working from home became a reality for many during the COVID pandemic, reshaping our work-life balance.</p>
<p>During the early days of the pandemic in 2020, our team was partway through a year-long <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0248008">study</a> examining lifestyle and wellbeing in Australian adults. Our findings, captured during the early COVID period, revealed that people working from home slept nearly half an hour more and drank slightly more alcohol. Dietary habits and mental health indicators were unchanged. </p>
<p>Fast forward to today. Many <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/earnings-and-working-conditions/characteristics-employment-australia/aug-2023">employees</a> still work from home and <a href="https://melbourneinstitute.unimelb.edu.au/data/taking-the-pulse-of-the-nation-2022/ttpn-11-july-2022">many more want to</a>. The Fair Work Commission is <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/work-from-home-battle-begins-and-the-decision-could-affect-millions-20240221-p5f6kb.html">reviewing</a> whether it needs to create basic rights for flexibility, allowing people to work from home. </p>
<p>While some of the health evidence about working from home is mixed, overall it shows giving workers the flexibility to choose to work from home can be good for their physical and mental health.</p>
<h2>It saves time commuting</h2>
<p>Before the pandemic, the typical Australian spent <a href="https://melbourneinstitute.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/3398464/HILDA-Statistical-Report2019.pdf">4.5 hours commuting</a> each week, a grind linked with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/hec.3199">poorer mental health</a> and lower scores of how we rate our own health. </p>
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<p>In Australia, the transition to home offices has given us <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w30866">about an hour and 18 minutes a week</a> of extra time. </p>
<p>Yet, intriguingly, <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w30866">43% of this newfound time is channelled into more work</a>, with a fraction (9%) to caregiving activities and leisure pursuits (33%). So are we optimising this shift? </p>
<h2>We move and snack more when working from home</h2>
<p>With extra time dedicated to leisure when working from home, there is more opportunity to be physically active and less sedentary.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jth.2018.03.008">study from the United States</a> of 108,000 people, work-from-home days were more likely to include significant bouts of walking or cycling.</p>
<p>By having more time available, slower yet <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2020.102777">active transport options become viable</a> for short trips, such as cycling to the supermarket or walking to pick up children from care. </p>
<p>However, this silver lining is clouded by findings from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/1348-9585.12212">Japan</a>, where remote workers reported less movement and more sitting during office hours, hinting at a complex trade-off between work and leisure-time physical activity.</p>
<p>Dietary habits, too, are evolving with working from home. The convenience of proximity to our kitchen pantries has led to an increase in <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182211882">snacking</a>. </p>
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<img alt="Person gets chip out of packet" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580296/original/file-20240306-20-mzwlfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580296/original/file-20240306-20-mzwlfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580296/original/file-20240306-20-mzwlfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580296/original/file-20240306-20-mzwlfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580296/original/file-20240306-20-mzwlfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580296/original/file-20240306-20-mzwlfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580296/original/file-20240306-20-mzwlfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">We tend to snack more at home.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hand-takes-out-potato-chips-inside-1732920281">Oleg Krugliak/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>However, as we snack more and see a rise in our overall energy intake at home, there’s also a noticeable shift towards a <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/22/11882">broader selection</a> of healthier food options. Consumption of vegetables, fruits and dairy has gone up, complemented by a surge in preparing meals at home.</p>
<p>In the office, limited by the constraints of a packed communal fridge or the wait to use the microwave, opting for a less nutritious but quicker takeaway lunch often seems the better choice. </p>
<h2>What about mental health and wellbeing?</h2>
<p>When considering mental health and wellbeing, the results are nuanced. </p>
<p>Generally, when working from home is compulsory, as was common during the early pandemic lockdowns, mental health and wellbeing <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182211882">tend to decline</a>. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/most-of-us-will-recover-our-mental-health-after-lockdown-but-some-will-find-it-harder-to-bounce-back-169029">Most of us will recover our mental health after lockdown. But some will find it harder to bounce back</a>
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<p>Conversely, when people choose to work from home, their mental health and wellbeing often improve. This is especially the case when they’re well supported by colleagues and their organisation, and can manage their isolation level, meaning they have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12633">flexibility</a> in their work-from-home arrangements. </p>
<p>There are concerns working from home can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2022.111552">negatively impact</a> team cohesion and collaboration, feelings of attachment and social ties within the workplace, and opportunities for promotion.</p>
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<img alt="Workers look at a laptop, laughing" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580298/original/file-20240306-26-ueqem6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580298/original/file-20240306-26-ueqem6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580298/original/file-20240306-26-ueqem6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580298/original/file-20240306-26-ueqem6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580298/original/file-20240306-26-ueqem6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580298/original/file-20240306-26-ueqem6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580298/original/file-20240306-26-ueqem6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Some employers worry staff can’t collaborate as well when working from home.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/three-men-laughing-while-looking-in-the-laptop-inside-room-XkKCui44iM0">Priscilla du Preez/Unsplash</a></span>
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<p>While connecting with colleagues is difficult to replicate remotely, it’s important to note job performance and productivity appear to be stable or, in most cases, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054529">improved</a> when working from home. </p>
<p>Additionally, those working full time at home or in a hybrid model report job satisfaction and wellbeing to be stable or improved. They also report a reduction in work-family conflict – this is particularly so for <a href="https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4393288">women</a>.</p>
<h2>Some people need more flexibility than others</h2>
<p>For some people, the flexibility to work from home alleviates some of the structural barriers to working.</p>
<p>Women, especially mothers and caregivers, report <a href="https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4393288">improved wellbeing</a> with the option to work from home. The added flexibility helps to balance paid employment with unpaid caregiving and household duties, which disproportionately <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8462.12538">fall on women’s shoulders</a>. </p>
<p>Similarly, workers with disabilities <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-020-09936-5">tend to favour working from home</a>, as a solution to overcoming <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/bjir.12645">transportation and accessibility challenges</a> posed by traditional workplaces. Providing alternative working arrangements allows a greater number of people living with disabilities to engage in paid employment, which is linked to improvements in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2014-204147">mental health</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/working-from-home-has-worked-for-people-with-disability-the-back-to-the-office-push-could-wind-back-gains-209870">Working from home has worked for people with disability. The back-to-the-office push could wind back gains</a>
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<p>Working from home is not a one-size-fits-all approach and appears best positioned as one choice among many to support a better, more inclusive, and flexible work environment. Just as our homes transformed into makeshift offices overnight, our approach to work must evolve, embracing the diversity of needs and lifestyles. </p>
<p>Let’s hope a legacy of COVID will be a healthier, more balanced workforce.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224510/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carol Maher receives funding from the Medical Research Future Fund, the National Health and Medical Research Council, the National Heart Foundation, the SA Department for Education, Preventive Health SA, the SA Department for Innovation and Skills, Healthway, Hunter New England Local Health District, the Central Adelaide Local Health Network, LeapForward.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachel Curtis receives funding from the Medical Research Future Fund, National Health and Medical Research Council, SA Department for Education, Healthway, Hunter New England Local Health District, and SA Department for Innovation and Skills.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ty Ferguson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Fair Work Commission is considering basic rights to work from home. Here’s what the evidence says about the impacts of working from home on physical health and mental wellbeing.Ty Ferguson, Research Associate, University of South AustraliaCarol Maher, Professor, Medical Research Future Fund Emerging Leader, University of South AustraliaRachel Curtis, Research fellow, University of South AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2208452024-01-21T19:02:25Z2024-01-21T19:02:25ZIs linking time in the office to career success the best way to get us back to work?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569452/original/file-20240116-29-qbii27.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C330%2C7249%2C4230&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/overhead-view-man-using-laptop-on-1285683112">LightField Studios/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Working from home introduced in response to the harsh pandemic lockdowns in 2020 was expected to be a short term arrangement with staff returning to the office as soon as restrictions were lifted.</p>
<p>Yet, almost four years later, most office workers are still following hybrid arrangements - splitting their week between home and office, with no plans to return full-time to the workplace anytime soon.</p>
<p>In what some employees consider an aggressive move by their bosses to get them back where they can be seen, some companies are now linking office attendance to pay, bonuses and even promotions.</p>
<h2>It pays, for some, to return to the office</h2>
<p>Linking office attendance with pay has taken off after <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/from-docking-bonuses-to-desk-checking-the-wfh-clampdown-begins-b76j285cz">Citibank workers in the UK</a> were told last September their bonuses could be affected if they didn’t work a minimum of three days per week from the office.</p>
<p>In Australia <a href="https://www.afr.com/work-and-careers/workplace/companies-have-started-linking-bonuses-to-working-in-the-office-20231031-p5egfb">Origin and Suncorp</a>, have done the same thing, as has ANZ where staff are required to work at least half their hours – averaged over a calendar month – in the office.</p>
<p>If these conditions are not met, it may be taken into consideration <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/bosses-raise-the-pressure-as-work-from-home-tension-reaches-pivotal-point-20231213-p5er7o.html">in performance and remuneration reviews</a> at the end of the next year. </p>
<p>“If you are one of our people who are yet to be spending more than half your time in the workplace, we need you to adjust your patterns unless you have a formal exception in place,” an <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/bosses-raise-the-pressure-as-work-from-home-tension-reaches-pivotal-point-20231213-p5er7o.html">internal email to ANZ staff</a> said.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-it-worth-to-work-from-home-for-some-its-as-much-as-one-third-of-their-wage-217554">What's it worth to work from home? For some, it's as much as one-third of their wage</a>
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<p>In the US, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/11/17/amazon-says-employees-may-risk-promotion-if-they-ignore-rto-mandate.html">Amazon has told corporate employees they may miss out on promotion if they ignore the company’s return-to-office mandate</a>, which requires employees to be in the office at least three days a week. </p>
<p>A post on Amazon’s internal website viewed by CNBC said:</p>
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<p>Managers own the promotion process, which means it is their responsibility to support your growth through regular conversations and stretch assignments, and to complete all the required inputs for a promotion</p>
<p>If your role is expected to work from the office 3+ days a week and you are not in compliance, your manager will be made aware and VP approval will be required.</p>
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<h2>Not everyone is happy</h2>
<p>To say the reaction to these measures has been divisive is an understatement.
Up to now, some hybrid work arrangements may have been ill-defined, and employee expectations confusing.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two workers sit several desks away from each other in an otherwise empty office" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569453/original/file-20240116-29-3qdsso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Some employees will miss out on promotions and bonuses if they refuse to spend at least part of their working week in the office.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/young-people-sitting-halfempty-office-during-1735136462">PressMaster/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>The messaging offered here is clear, employees know what is expected of them in terms of office attendance, and the repercussions they may face if they don’t meet those expectations.</p>
<p>And it’s important to remember that these initiatives are only aimed at incentivising workers to attend the office for part of the week, typically 2-3 days out of 5, which still represents a significant flexibility gain compared to what these firms offered before the pandemic.</p>
<h2>Is showing up the best measure of performance?</h2>
<p>However, critics have raised concerns that linking attendance to pay could hurt high achievers who don’t meet their in-office quotas - will they miss out on bonuses or a promotion simply because they don’t show up to the office enough, regardless of how well they are doing their job otherwise?</p>
<p>Is office attendance really that important, compared to other performance and outcome metrics, and will employees feel they are being treated like school children? </p>
<p>There are also fears about the impact strict attendance requirements will have on diversity, with women, parents, and people <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/bosses-raise-the-pressure-as-work-from-home-tension-reaches-pivotal-point-20231213-p5er7o.html">with neurodiverse needs</a> more likely to favour a higher proportion of remote working.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/switching-off-from-work-has-never-been-harder-or-more-necessary-heres-how-to-do-it-211044">Switching off from work has never been harder, or more necessary. Here's how to do it</a>
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<p>Additionally, monitoring and managing attendance creates additional work for managers, and could lead to regular awkward conversations about attendance expectations. </p>
<p>Measuring office attendance may not be as simple as it first sounds either.</p>
<p>If an employee is required to maintain an average of 50% office attendance and they are invited to visit a client interstate for a day, or travel overseas to present at a conference, do these count as “in office days” or “WFH” days? This needs to be established and communicated to staff in writing. </p>
<h2>One-size doesn’t fit all</h2>
<p>With hybrid work arrangements there is no one right or wrong strategy. Different companies will take different approaches, based on the specific needs of their particular organisation and staff, and only time will tell how successful their respective strategies prove to be. </p>
<p>What we can be certain of is the fact hybrid work will not be disappearing anytime soon, so the focus for 2024 needs to be how to make this arrangement as efficient as possible, rather than trying to turn the clock back to 2019. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/working-from-home-since-covid-19-cabin-fever-could-be-the-next-challenge-209962">Working from home since COVID-19? Cabin fever could be the next challenge</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/220845/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John L Hopkins does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Four years after working from home was introduced, employers are using various incentives, some say ultimatums, to get workers back into the office.John L Hopkins, Associate professor, Swinburne University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2099622024-01-15T19:18:02Z2024-01-15T19:18:02ZWorking from home since COVID-19? Cabin fever could be the next challenge<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568741/original/file-20240110-25-1xi2zx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=16%2C92%2C5590%2C3640&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Being confined to our homes for long periods without access to different activities can expose teleworkers to cabin fever.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/working-from-home-since-covid-19-cabin-fever-could-be-the-next-challenge" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>As Canada opened back up after the COVID-19 lockdowns, many businesses encouraged their workers to head back to the office. Yet, despite restrictions being lifted in Canada and around the world, teleworking as a regular working arrangement has remained <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/careers/leadership/article-while-most-canadians-prefer-working-from-home-survey-highlights/">popular across different industries</a>. </p>
<p>Different polls over the last three years show an increased interest in teleworking among Canadian workers. The polls indicated that many <a href="https://financialpost.com/fp-work/canadians-work-from-home-more">Canadians prefer teleworking</a> and some <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/8812305/canadian-workers-remote-jobs-ipsos-poll/">would consider changing careers to maintain their teleworking status</a>. </p>
<p>The popularity of teleworking seems obvious enough. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0921-3449(02)00082-4">It provides more flexibility</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2006.12.004">reduces the need to commute</a> and can <a href="https://researchbank.swinburne.edu.au/items/3e7c083c-e708-4a31-bf86-a522d65637a1/1/">improve productivity</a>, among other indirect benefits. </p>
<p>However, being confined to our homes for long periods without access to different activities can expose teleworkers to cabin fever, <a href="https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/cabin-fever#signs">a lack of motivation and anxiety</a>. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man with a young child in his lap working on a laptop." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=431&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=431&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=431&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568743/original/file-20240110-21-p8398h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Teleworkers can find contentment in having more daily interactions with their partners, children and immediate family.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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</figure>
<h2>Benefits and downsides of remote work</h2>
<p>In a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-9822-5_175">recently published study</a>, we conducted extensive interviews with 14 teleworkers who moved during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. We found that remote working arrangements enabled some people to move away from big cities and economic centres to purchase homes in more affordable areas. In some cases, teleworkers were able to achieve better living standards that were not possible without teleworking. </p>
<p>Another indirect impact of telework was the health benefits associated with higher productivity and less commuting. Most of us have first-hand experience of exhaustion after long commutes in the morning and back from work in the afternoon. That fatigue can often leave us feeling spent. Not needing to commute means we can be more productive and accomplish more with our day.</p>
<p>There are other indirect benefits like having more time to cook meals at home, eating healthier, <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-canadians-savings-stockpile-is-a-300-billion-quandary-for-the/">having increased financial flexibility</a> and improved overall quality of life.</p>
<p>However, along with all these benefits, there are some downsides that people should consider before signing up for remote work. If you plan to move away from the city to a more affordable area, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00038628.2023.2253780">our research shows you will probably become car dependent</a>. </p>
<p>Moving away might also mean leaving friends and family behind. That means you either need to travel farther to visit them, resulting in higher travel costs, or you will not see them as often as you’d like. </p>
<p>That might be fine for some, but others might need a significant degree of social interaction while working from home. Not being able to see family and friends as often can be isolating and detrimental to our well-being.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman wearing exercise clothes sits on a floor using a laptop. Dumbbells are on he floor beside her." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568744/original/file-20240110-22-4hv48m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Small actions such as short walks, exercising and social interactions can help reduce cabin fever.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<h2>Dealing with cabin fever</h2>
<p>Teleworkers might experience reduced social interactions after a while or have reduced physical activity. Being at home for extended periods of time can leave some feeling like they’re experiencing <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shaw.2021.01.010">cabin fever</a>. The symptoms of cabin fever include <a href="https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/cabin-fever">irritability, feelings of restlessness and loneliness</a>.</p>
<p>Habits and behaviours might change over time after moving away or working fully remotely. Behavioural changes can encompass a broad spectrum, including but not limited to shifts in transportation mode, thermostat setpoints, physical activity and numerous other traits, all of which can significantly impact both the lives of teleworkers and the environment.</p>
<p>Some teleworkers find contentment in having more social interactions with their partners, children and family. Others might need a certain degree of social interaction with their co-workers in the office. And some other individuals might need active social interactions with their friends, family members, and co-workers. </p>
<p>Teleworking without social interaction or physical activity can lead to cabin fever in the long run. Most of us who worked during lockdowns experienced the urge to leave the home even for a short walk. Small actions such as short walks, exercising and social interactions can help reduce cabin fever. Teleworkers should constantly be aware of such impacts of teleworking that can impact their quality of life in the long run. </p>
<p>Whether moving away from the city or staying downtown, working fully remotely can trigger cabin fever if teleworkers develop bad habits and behaviours. To avoid such problems in the long run, remote workers should consider how they can maintain social interactions, physical activity, and other wellness practices. Such activities can provide necessary breaks from the confines of their homes, helping to prevent cabin fever and foster healthy teleworking habits and behaviours.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209962/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>While teleworking can come with many benefits, being alone at home can leave us feeling isolated and unmotivated.Farzam Sepanta, PhD Candidate, Building Engineering, Carleton UniversityLaura Arpan, Professor, Department of Communication, University at BuffaloLiam O'Brien, Professor in Architectural Conservation and Sustainability Engineering, Carleton UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2175542024-01-15T19:05:15Z2024-01-15T19:05:15ZWhat’s it worth to work from home? For some, it’s as much as one-third of their wage<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568781/original/file-20240111-17-lne5r7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=25%2C158%2C1776%2C939&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>A significant proportion of Australian workers – about <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167268123003074">one-fifth</a> – would be prepared to sacrifice between 16% and 33% of their salaries for the right to work from home, which works out at A$12,000 to $24,000 of those workers’ salaries.</p>
<p>But a much larger proportion, more than one half, would be prepared to sacrifice nothing, being either not strongly convinced about the benefits of working from home or actively preferring to go into the workplace.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, our findings are consistent with those of other surveys conducted both during and before the pandemic, suggesting the widespread move to working from home during COVID hasn’t changed preferences.</p>
<p>Before COVID, on the day of the 2016 Australian census, only <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167268123003074?via%3Dihub#bib0002">2% to 8%</a> of the workforce in major Australian cities worked from home. </p>
<p>During COVID, on the day of the 2021 census <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/australias-journey-work">21%</a> worked from home. A Bureau of Statistics survey conducted amid lockdowns in late 2020 found <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/people-and-communities/household-impacts-covid-19-survey/sep-2020">31%</a> worked from home most days.</p>
<p>Our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167268123003074">survey</a> of 1,113 workers from Australia’s 17 largest urban areas was limited to those in jobs whose tasks could be done either remotely or in central locations.</p>
<h2>What we found</h2>
<p>We offered the workers surveyed a choice of eight job arrangements with different salary ranges calculated with reference to their current salaries, and different degrees of flexibility about working from home.</p>
<p>We also asked about attitudes to remote working, experience with remote working, commute patterns and age, gender, education and household size.</p>
<p>We found most workers – 55% – weren’t prepared to sacrifice salary for the right to work remotely. Most of these (31% of all workers) didn’t see significant benefits to working from home.</p>
<p>But a substantial proportion, 23.5% of all workers, while seeing benefits to their productivity and health and wellbeing from working from home, were concerned about what it would do to their organisational relationships, learning opportunities and prospects for advancement.</p>
<p>Interestingly, workers who had the most experience of working from home before the pandemic raised these concerns most often. Workers with the least experience of working from home pre-pandemic were the least likely to be concerned about its impact on their careers and work relationships. </p>
<p>This might be because before the pandemic we didn’t have great work-from-home policies and procedures to support remote workers.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/remote-working-improves-the-lives-of-female-managers-but-at-a-cost-198326">Remote working improves the lives of female managers - but at a cost</a>
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<h2>Gender matters, age matters</h2>
<p>Women valued the ability to work from home far more than men, on average 28% more. This indicates that women are more likely to make a trade-off between long-term career prospects and the benefits of flexible work. </p>
<p>In terms of age, workers in their 30s and 50s valued the ability to work from home the most while workers in their 20s valued it the least. This might be because workers in their 20s at the start of their careers are the most likely to value direct interactions with their colleagues and supervisors.</p>
<h2>Knowledge workers value remote work the most</h2>
<p>Middle and high-income earners in white-collar “knowledge economy” jobs were the most likely to value working from home. They were willing to forgo $12,000 to $24,000 of their annual salary to have the ability to do it some of the time. </p>
<p>Workers in low-wage clerical or administrative jobs in sectors such as retail and training were among the least likely to value working from home. They were also among the most concerned about its impacts on their relationships with colleagues and opportunities for learning and advancement.</p>
<p>Workers in small firms also placed low values on the ability to work from home, perhaps because these firms lacked the technological capacity to fully support it.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-shift-to-working-from-home-will-be-difficult-to-reverse-208728">The shift to working from home will be difficult to reverse</a>
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<h2>Opinions split on productivity</h2>
<p>About half of the workers surveyed thought they were less productive at home. About another quarter found no impact. The final quarter found a significant improvement in both the quality and quantity of their work. </p>
<p>Many said that while their working from home might cut the amount they got done per hour, it didn’t cut the total amount they got done because the flexibility it offered allowed them to catch up at other times.</p>
<p>High and medium-wage professionals were the most optimistic about their productivity at home, and workers in low and medium-wage service jobs the least optimistic – a pattern that mirrored what they were prepared to sacrifice for the right to work at home.</p>
<h2>How to become an employer of choice</h2>
<p>Our findings suggest many employers of knowledge economy workers might be able to attract and retain high-quality staff by offering the ability to work from home in lieu of higher salaries.</p>
<p>But this will not be the answer for all employers looking to retain the best staff.</p>
<p>With many workers wary of what could happen to their career prospects if they stayed at home, and 55% of workers placing no value on remote work, some employers will need to find other ways to attract the best workers. </p>
<p>Many workers value both face-to-face relations and flexibility. Finding the right balance will become increasingly important now that COVID has shown us how many of our jobs can be done from home.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217554/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>This research wass funded by the iMOVE Cooperative Research Centre, the Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts, and Transport for NSW.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Akshay Vij receives funding from the Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts, Transport for NSW, and the iMOVE Cooperative Research Centre.</span></em></p>Half of the Australian workers whose jobs could be done at home appear not to value the option. Another fifth value it very highly.Lynette Washington, Research Fellow, UniSA Business, University of South AustraliaAkshay Vij, Associate Professor, UniSA Business, University of South AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2164612024-01-05T16:14:52Z2024-01-05T16:14:52ZPlants and bookcases in, living rooms and blank walls out: how your Zoom background can make you seem more competent<p>Working from home has made job interviews and starting a new role easier in many ways. You don’t have to worry about a missed train or spilt coffee derailing a job interview if it’s on Zoom – but you still need to impress your interviewer.</p>
<p>Your home surroundings help show off your personality to the person on the other end of the Zoom call. Anyone who judged the bookcases of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/01/arts/quarantine-bookcase-coronavirus.html">politicians and celebrities</a> during the early days of lockdown will be familiar with this. </p>
<p>My colleagues and I recently <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0291444">conducted a study</a> that found the objects in your digital background can affect how people view you. We already know that people make snap first impressions based on <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.857511/full">faces</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencefocus.com/news/hardwired-trust-confident-voices">voices</a>. On a video call, you have to represent yourself, but also your environment. </p>
<p>The messy table behind you may be seen as an indication of your personality and capabilities. An unmade bed shows a lack of attention to detail. On the positive side, plants that you’ve kept alive showcase your responsibility and maturity. </p>
<p>We created still images of men and women with smiling and neutral expressions in front of various backgrounds on a Zoom call. We then asked 167 people to rate the faces using a seven-point scale on how trustworthy and competent they thought they were. </p>
<p>We didn’t mention the backgrounds, which allowed us to find out whether the same face would be rated differently depending on what was behind them.</p>
<p>We found that plants or a bookcase in the background significantly increased ratings of trust and competence. Conversely, a living room or novelty background showed lower ratings. A blank or blurred background fell somewhere in the middle. We also found that smiling faces and females were generally regarded as more <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0243230">trustworthy and competent.</a></p>
<p>When we looked specifically at faces with neutral expressions, we found no gender difference in ratings of trust or competence when they were seated in front of the plants and bookcase. However, the male faces were rated as significantly less competent if in front of a living room, novelty background or blank wall. </p>
<p>All the faces in the database we used are white, thus avoiding race becoming a confounding factor and allowing us to just focus on the effect of the Zoom backgrounds. However, we know from other research that subconscious bias about race, class and disability <a href="https://harvest.usask.ca/items/668b2e7e-2c70-4052-859c-f0f6a7b7ea28">can affect</a> how job applicants are viewed. Zoom backgrounds may give an impression of someone’s heritage, disability or socioeconomic status, so interviewers must still make an effort to remain unbiased.</p>
<h2>Tidy up your background</h2>
<p>Most of us put a lot of time and effort into our appearance for a Zoom meeting or interview. But much of what our webcam actually picks up is what’s behind us. </p>
<p>Our research shows that there are small tweaks you can make to help make a good virtual first impression: put some plants behind you, or turn your desk so you’re framed by a bookcase. </p>
<p>Of course, a downside of working from home is that many factors are out of our control. You may have to share a home office (or desk) with a flatmate or partner, or have construction going on nearby. As our findings show, if you don’t have much control over your background, smiling can help. There are also AI tools which allow you to <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/15/23961943/microsoft-teams-ai-decorate-background-voice-isolation">virtually “tidy up” or add a little sparkle</a> to your background space. </p>
<p>So, after you’ve gone over your notes and popped on some smart clothes (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xx5E7VcXip0&ab_channel=Podduturi">at least on the top half of your body</a>) take a look at your video preview or over your shoulder. Does that background give the best first impression? If not, how close is your nearest garden centre?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216461/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paddy Ross does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Research can help you make a good first impression in a virtual interview.Paddy Ross, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Durham UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2180622023-12-06T15:53:38Z2023-12-06T15:53:38ZRural communities are being left behind because of poor digital infrastructure, research shows<p>In an era where businesses and households depend on the internet for everything from marketing to banking and shopping, the lack of adequate digital access can be a significant hurdle. And our recent research shows that many <a href="https://research.aber.ac.uk/en/publications/the-socio-economic-impact-of-the-covid-19-pandemic-on-ceredigion-">homes</a> and <a href="https://research.aber.ac.uk/en/publications/the-economic-impact-of-the-covid-19-pandemic-on-ceredigion-busine">businesses</a> in the UK are being left stranded in the digital age.</p>
<p>Our two studies focused on a rural county in Wales, Ceredigion, where the lack of reliable digital infrastructure worsened the impacts of the pandemic on families and businesses. Poor digital accessibility and connectivity exacerbated the stress levels of families who were already having to juggle home schooling and working from home. </p>
<p>Similarly, businesses had to struggle with issues around internet provision, availability of effective digital infrastructure and digital proficiency while working and running businesses from home. </p>
<p>Our research involved two online surveys. One focused on households and the other on businesses and the self-employed between April and June 2021. The survey questions were designed to address the challenges and opportunities brought about by the pandemic. </p>
<p>Some important themes emerged in the responses we received to both surveys. These were insufficient digital accessibility and connectivity, lack of digital skills and training opportunities and the cost of broadband and mobile access.</p>
<h2>Household experiences</h2>
<p>Our research showed that 12% of homes did not have enough digital equipment for their needs during the pandemic and 76% of these included children who were being home schooled. Schools and some workplaces provided equipment in some instances, but 18% of households had to borrow equipment. </p>
<p>Despite that ability to borrow, many homes found themselves juggling equipment between homeworking adults and children learning online. Many pupils relied on small mobile devices to access lessons, while others lacked access to equipment like printers.</p>
<p>These problems were compounded in rural and remote areas, where slow broadband speeds and a lack of reliable mobile signal were cited as the biggest issues. Other issues included the cost of broadband and mobile access, the lack of digital skills or training opportunities to improve digital skills, poor customer service from broadband providers and issues with connectivity.</p>
<h2>Business and self-employed experiences</h2>
<p>The pandemic brought similar challenges to businesses. The closure of non-essential firms during the pandemic led to a <a href="https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/e-commerce-in-the-time-of-covid-19-3a2b78e8/">surge</a> in e-commerce. Companies that could embrace online sales were able to continue operating despite lockdowns and restrictions. </p>
<p>But businesses that were slow to adopt e-commerce or lacked the necessary infrastructure struggled to adapt. In fact, our research found that 47% of businesses faced difficulties with digital access and connectivity during the pandemic. Some of the other issues faced by businesses included:</p>
<p>• a lack of reliable broadband or mobile (37%)</p>
<p>• slow broadband speed (29%)</p>
<p>• poor mobile signal (26%)</p>
<p>• lack of digital skills or access to training schemes (16%)</p>
<p>• the cost of access (13%)</p>
<p>People working from home in rural locations also had problems due to a lack of digital infrastructure, poor connectivity and a lack of digital skills. </p>
<h2>Bridging the gap</h2>
<p>In the future, an increased reliance on online work, education and public services, such as online health and welfare support, will further disadvantage those without adequate internet access. The digital divide is widening between those with higher incomes and those with lower incomes. </p>
<p>For example, households with higher incomes were <a href="https://www.scirp.org/reference/referencespapers?referenceid=3051117">more likely</a> to have had access to technology for home schooling and remote working during the pandemic, unlike those with lower incomes.</p>
<p>The gap in access to digital technology is often determined by location too. Remote and sparsely populated areas often lack adequate broadband and mobile signal coverage. Bridging this digital divide is crucial for economic growth, social inclusion and access to essential services. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-teachers-supported-children-and-parents-through-covid-19-school-closures-181380">How teachers supported children and parents through COVID-19 school closures</a>
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<p>To address the digital divide, the UK and devolved governments need to invest in digital infrastructure in rural areas to ensure that everywhere has at least a minimum quality coverage. Local authorities could introduce schemes that enable people to gain access to cost-effective computer devices and internet access.</p>
<p>Expanding digital literacy and empowering businesses in rural areas is also crucial. Enhancing digital skills training would better prepare future generations for the digital world. </p>
<p>Additionally, businesses in rural areas require tailored support, such as funding for digital infrastructure upgrades, training opportunities and guidance on consumer privacy and protection, to enable their digital growth and sustainability.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/218062/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Aloysius Igboekwu currently volunteers for a Childcare charity as a Trustee. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Maria Plotnikova and Sarah Lindop do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New research reveals the digital divide that was exposed by the COVID pandemic.Aloysius Igboekwu, Senior Lecturer in Finance, Aberystwyth UniversityMaria Plotnikova, Lecturer in Economics, Aberystwyth UniversitySarah Lindop, Senior Lecturer in Finance, Aberystwyth UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2154332023-10-18T19:06:57Z2023-10-18T19:06:57ZStress levels in Australian workplaces among the highest as we battle constant interruptions and irritating colleagues<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554156/original/file-20231017-25-5qeprj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=209%2C183%2C4893%2C3672&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>As more companies <a href="https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/attention-office-resisters-the-boss-is-counting-badge-swipes-5fa37ff7">mandate</a> the amount of time to be spent in the office, employee stress levels are on the rise. </p>
<p>A recent <a href="https://www.conference-board.org/press/mental-healthor-worsens-US-workers">study</a> found 34% of employees reported lower mental health levels compared to six months ago. Alarmingly, 37% also reported decreased levels of engagement and sense of belonging.</p>
<p>So why might the return to the office be increasing employee stress? Research indicates a combination of commuting, cost of living pressures, noisy open-plan offices, work culture, interruptions, decreased autonomy and coworker relations are contributing to workers feeling more stressed.</p>
<p>In Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace 2023 <a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/349484/state-of-the-global-workplace.aspx">Report</a>, the US and Canada region along with East Asia tied for the highest level of stress at 52%, and Australia and New Zealand had the second-highest rate at 47%. These results maintain the record high set in 2021.</p>
<p>And an analysis of 382,000 employee exit interviews found <a href="https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/article/1792272/employee-burnout-record-levels-research-suggests#:%7E:text=New%20analysis%20conducted%20by%20Glassdoor's,increasing%20by%2048%20per%20cent">reports</a> of employee burnout have almost doubled in the past year. </p>
<p>The return to the office appears to be a contributing factor with <a href="https://www.conference-board.org/press/mental-healthor-worsens-US-workers">52%</a> of employees preferring flexible/hybrid work to minimise mental health concerns.</p>
<p>So how might returning to the office be making employees more stressed?</p>
<h2>Noisy offices are a significant contributor to stress</h2>
<p>As staff have returned to the workplace they have been confronted with the thing employees dislike most about open plan offices, according to research: noise. </p>
<p>Noise has significant implications for both employee well-being and performance. Our <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-management-and-organization/article/abs/openplan-office-noise-is-stressful-multimodal-stress-detection-in-a-simulated-work-environment/F3EF8D2DF47767F18CBF5C081D6AB3A0">research</a> found relatively moderate levels of open-plan office noise caused a 25% increase in negative mood and a 34% increase in physiological stress.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Woman talking on phone distracting colleague who is trying to work" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554160/original/file-20231017-25-q7tlnj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Constant interruptions and loud conversations have contributed to higher stress levels in the workplace.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/search/annoying-colleagues?image_type=photo">Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>In addition to making employees more stressed and cranky, noisy open-plan offices reduce performance. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027249442030668X">Research</a> shows employees in quieter one-person offices perform 14% better on a cognitive task than employees in open plan offices.</p>
<h2>Fewer interruptions when working from home</h2>
<p>In addition to not having to commute, for many employees, fewer interruptions and less noise from coworkers were some of the key benefits of working from home. </p>
<p>Modern knowledge work requires employees to focus and concentrate for lengthy periods. That is hard to do when colleagues are having impromptu meetings next to your desk, or discussing their weekends as you struggle to hit a deadline.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/not-just-nice-to-have-nature-in-the-workplace-makes-employees-happier-and-healthier-80077">Not just nice to have: nature in the workplace makes employees happier and healthier</a>
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<p>In many open-plan offices, the drive for increased interaction and collaboration comes at the expense of the ability to focus and concentrate. When distraction makes it hard for employees to focus, cognitive and emotional resources are <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0090261617302000">depleted</a>. The <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/hrm.20004">result</a> is increasing stress and errors, undermining performance.</p>
<p><a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/1054972.1055017">Research</a> shows it takes about 23 minutes to get back on task after an interruption. Being constantly interrupted by impromptu questions and random conversation will not only reduce productivity but can lead to <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/job.1973?casa_token=ZoZPjTQ84W8AAAAA%3AteS3T5GqIeWE5lnHNaJ7q3ESwK4GYgLeqifywHB_x4_6k5dNCPbYj1TO0CPWqgeqtXqOnA9BeNSToQ">withdrawal</a> from work.</p>
<p>To cope with the unwanted noise and interruptions, increasing numbers of employees are <a href="https://theconversation.com/workers-hate-office-noise-but-is-using-headphones-to-shut-out-colleagues-the-solution-209134">wearing headphones</a> while they work.</p>
<h2>Keeping tabs on your employees</h2>
<p>As resistance to returning to the office continues, companies including Meta, Google, JP Morgan Chase and Amazon have <a href="https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/attention-office-resisters-the-boss-is-counting-badge-swipes-5fa37ff7">stated</a> they will use technology to monitor building access card data and system usage to track employees who are not complying. Employees have been advised repeated violations could lead to termination.</p>
<p>A recent <a href="https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/work-in-america/2023-work-america-ai-monitoring">study</a> by the American Psychological Association found employees who were subject to monitoring technology were 14% more stressed than those not monitored.</p>
<p>And 42% of employees who were monitored intended to look for a new job within the next 12 months, compared with 23% who were not monitored.</p>
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<p>Employees who are monitored while working reported higher levels of feeling they do not matter at their workplace (to their coworkers [32% vs. 17% of those not monitored] or to their employer [36% vs. 22%]), they are not valued (26% vs. 17%), and they are micromanaged (51% vs. 33%).</p>
<h2>Commuting is stressful and expensive</h2>
<p>The lost time and expense of commuting on top of rising cost of living pressures has been a consistent <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/we-asked-workers-why-theyre-not-coming-back-to-the-office-186b7565">theme</a> as to why employees don’t want to return to the office five days a week. </p>
<p>The Real Australian Commute Report 2022 <a href="https://www.realinsurance.com.au/news-views/the-real-australian-commute-report">surveyed</a> 5,000 Australians revealing the average cost of commuting per day is now $20. According to a recent <a href="https://fortune.com/2023/05/31/commuting-yearly-costs-time-more-expensive/">study</a> published by Fortune, the time Americans spent commuting in 2022 increased by 239 hours, a 20% jump from 2019 figures. </p>
<p>But it’s not just the cost in time and money that is of concern, commuting adds to employee stress. A <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/20413866221131404?casa_token=CS8hgkK_m7kAAAAA%3ApCNjpJ8F58Io2HqruV0Ny-tKPcAMFr9gRklL3a0gB8HDuX_ynt2GMO8_-VRvvKIXfl8P8_GDIllmT48">systematic review and meta-analysis</a> of the relationship between commuting and stress found objective measures of commuting (distance travelled and time spent) were positively associated with strain outcomes, especially perceived stress.</p>
<h2>Our coworkers can be part of the problem</h2>
<p>Returning to the office is great for social connection and can lead to a range of positive work outcomes. However, our coworkers can also be a source of <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/25bf3855-3d28-47bf-af73-120dd3a58829">stress</a>.</p>
<p>During my research, I am frequently told by employees of colleagues who eat offensive smelling foods at their desk, make loud sounds while eating, and conduct animated personal phone calls right next to them. Then there are those who wear sweaty gym gear for the rest of the day after working out at lunchtime.</p>
<p>Most <a href="https://www.latimes.com/books/la-et-jc-anarctica-stabbing-books-20181030-story.html">famously</a> perhaps in the annals of annoying colleagues was the case of the employee on a research station in Antarctica who stabbed a coworker who persisted in telling him the endings of books he was planning to read.</p>
<h2>Workplace culture remains crucial</h2>
<p>Being back in the office brings the culture of the organisation into sharp focus. More than <a href="https://www.conference-board.org/press/mental-healthor-worsens-US-workers">one in four workers</a> (26%) indicate a toxic work culture is negatively impacting their mental health.</p>
<p>Employee stress, under performance and turnover are inevitable if organisations are more focused on tasks or just getting their staff back in for face-time for the sake of it, rather than on results. Similarly, if poor leadership is tolerated and understaffing is the norm, low morale and high turnover are likely to follow.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/does-your-employer-have-to-tell-if-theyre-spying-on-you-through-your-work-computer-214857">Does your employer have to tell if they're spying on you through your work computer?</a>
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<p>Well designed workspaces that include acoustic treatment, psychological safety, effective leadership, healthy organisational culture, and work arrangements that support autonomy and employee well-being are crucial to reducing stress and employee turnover.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/215433/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Libby (Elizabeth) Sander has previously received an Industry Connections Grant to examine the effects of noise in open-plan offices.</span></em></p>Working in the office might promote creativity and team building but for some employees the post-COVID return to work has led to heightened stress levels.Libby (Elizabeth) Sander, MBA Director & Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour, Bond Business School, Bond UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2104512023-09-14T04:47:40Z2023-09-14T04:47:40ZThis desk is mine! How noisy offices can make us more territorial<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540065/original/file-20230731-17770-55o3rp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5120%2C2598&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>From colleagues chatting about their weekends or having intense phone conversations, to email alerts and loud tapping on keyboards, the evidence that open-plan offices take a toll on our wellbeing continues to mount. There’s a clear relationship between noise levels and physiological signs of stress <a href="https://theconversation.com/open-plan-office-noise-increases-stress-and-worsens-mood-weve-measured-the-effects-162843">such as heart rate</a>. </p>
<p>This stress can also manifest in unconscious actions to reclaim control – and while some of these behaviours are therapeutic and benign, others are more toxic. </p>
<p>Our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0148296322009109">research</a>
shows that office noise increases the likelihood of people wanting to reclaim personal space through territorial behaviours. This might include creating a psychological and physical “border” around their workspace using potted plants, or seeking to mark space as theirs with photos and other personal items. </p>
<p>This means the amount of desk clutter in your open-plan office may be a sign of noise-induced stress. </p>
<p>More noise is also associated with negative feelings such as frustration and anger, as well as antisocial behaviours such as social withdrawal and (to a lesser extent) disagreement with colleagues. </p>
<h2>Measuring noise effects</h2>
<p>Our study involved 71 participants, working in offices with varying levels of privacy in four different areas of a university.</p>
<p>Over ten working days, every participant kept a diary, recording their perception of noise levels and how they felt twice a day (mid-morning and mid-afternoon). </p>
<p>This type of research is known as a diary study. It is used by researchers in psychology, organisational behaviour and marketing to study and understand long-term changes in attitudes and behaviour. </p>
<p>To measure the perception of office noise, we asked participants to respond, using a seven-point scale (1 = “strongly disagree” to 7 = “strongly agree”) to statements such as “I am disrupted by telephone noises” and “I am disrupted by office machines”. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="View of desks and screens in a crowded open-plan office." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540352/original/file-20230801-113388-cyoc54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540352/original/file-20230801-113388-cyoc54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540352/original/file-20230801-113388-cyoc54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540352/original/file-20230801-113388-cyoc54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540352/original/file-20230801-113388-cyoc54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540352/original/file-20230801-113388-cyoc54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540352/original/file-20230801-113388-cyoc54.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Noisy offices can provoke frustration and worker conflicts.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>To measure their mood and behaviour, participants then rated (also on a seven-point scale) statements such as:</p>
<ul>
<li>what is happening around me at the moment is a frustrating experience</li>
<li>I feel angry about what is happening around me</li>
<li>I feel like withdrawing from my coworkers </li>
<li>I want to be left alone in my workplace</li>
<li>I am experiencing disagreements of ideas with a coworker</li>
<li>I create a border around my workspace</li>
<li>I decorate my space the way I want.</li>
</ul>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/open-plan-office-noise-increases-stress-and-worsens-mood-weve-measured-the-effects-162843">Open-plan office noise increases stress and worsens mood: we've measured the effects</a>
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<h2>Marking territory</h2>
<p>We then used statistical techniques to gauge the strength of the link between noise, negative feelings and the behaviours mentioned above. </p>
<p>We found a moderately strong statistical link between office noise and feelings of frustration, anger and anxiety. We also found people in noisy offices are more likely to withdraw psychologically from their work, perhaps by taking longer breaks than permitted, spending work time on personal matters, or surfing the internet.</p>
<p>We also found a weaker link between office noise and conflict or disagreement between colleagues, on either work-related or non-work issues.</p>
<p>The link between office noise and territorial behaviours was more nuanced, because whereas feelings of anger or annoyance might be fleeting, it takes time and planning to add a pot plant or framed photo to your desk to stake out your territory.</p>
<p>In other words, your colleague talking loudly on the phone about football might annoy you, but it won’t cause you to immediately decorate your office cubicle with more photos of your pet cat.</p>
<p>However, we found that for every one-point increase (on the seven-point scale) in anger, frustration or anxiety suffered by our survey participants, the likelihood of them going on to display territorial behaviours at their workspace increased more than threefold.</p>
<p>To put it simply, we found that noisier workplaces are more likely to put workers in a bad mood, and over time these negative emotions are associated with increased territoriality.</p>
<p>Perhaps unsurprisingly, we also found these effects are strongest in low-privacy spaces such as open-plan offices, and less noticeable in smaller and more private settings such as a single-person office.</p>
<h2>A psychological coping mechanism</h2>
<p>People personalise their work spaces by adding photos (a form of territoriality) not only to claim their workspace or because they are just nice, but they deliberately decorate or modify their work spaces with these photos to reflect their identities. The opportunity to reflect their identities (that is, bringing their “whole self” to work) is thought to increase workers’ satisfaction and wellbeing and, ultimately, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272494499901664">organisational wellbeing</a>.</p>
<p>Personalisation is more important for women than men, and they personalise their space <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494499901664">with different items</a>. Women are more likely to display items such as photos and letters from friends and family, while men tend to personalise with things to do with sports and entertainment.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Men and women personalise their spaces differently." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540079/original/file-20230731-15-ue7sj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540079/original/file-20230731-15-ue7sj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=312&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540079/original/file-20230731-15-ue7sj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=312&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540079/original/file-20230731-15-ue7sj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=312&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540079/original/file-20230731-15-ue7sj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540079/original/file-20230731-15-ue7sj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540079/original/file-20230731-15-ue7sj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Men and women personalise their spaces differently.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>We are emotional creatures with a need for distinctiveness, self-identity, control and belonging. This doesn’t disappear when we go to work. A sense of psychological ownership over one’s workplace and work <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/job.249">is associated</a> with increased job satisfaction and organisational commitment.</p>
<p>This helps to explain why in a “hot-desk” office, most people tend to return to the same workspace daily.</p>
<p>Workplaces with hard rules against personal items in open-plan offices, or hot-desking offices where workers are required to leave the space clear at the end of the day, may well be negating a simple way for their workers to cope. In the process, they may even be harming their organisational wellbeing and productivity.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/working-from-home-immoral-a-lesson-in-ethics-and-history-for-elon-musk-205992">Working from home immoral? A lesson in ethics, and history, for Elon Musk</a>
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<p>The other cheap and obvious way to reduce office noise is through hybrid working, reducing the number of people in the office at a given time. </p>
<p>Employers pushing to have workers return to the office should balance the perceived productivity gains against the evidence that noisy offices means employees might be grumpier, more frustrated, and more likely to put up walls – both literal and metaphorical.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210451/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Oluremi (Remi) Ayoko receives funding from Australian Research Council. </span></em></p>Our research shows office noise increases the likelihood of people wanting to reclaim ‘personal space’, along with antisocial behaviour and disagreements.Oluremi (Remi) Ayoko, Associate Professor of Mangement, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2113922023-09-13T15:53:13Z2023-09-13T15:53:13ZRemote work marks the path to a greener future<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/545066/original/file-20230828-179828-jpbkwv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=14%2C3%2C2382%2C1444&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/es/fotos/z3htkdHUh5w">Kristin Wilson/Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There is more to working from home than skipping the traffic and getting to wear pyjamas all day. In fact, for a lot of people it’s becoming the new normal. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/remote-work-statistics/#sources_section">According to a recent report</a>, 12.7% of full-time employees in the US are now working from home, with another 28.2% enjoying a mix of home and office work. This shift is far from temporary – it’s expected <a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/397751/returning-office-current-preferred-future-state-remote-work.aspx">to nearly triple</a> compared to what it was before the pandemic. </p>
<p>But what does all this mean for our cities and our planet? It’s not just about changing how our cities look and feel; it could be a big step toward a cleaner, more eco-friendly future. Want to know what doing Zoom calls in your living room (or wherever you like to work) means for the Earth? Let’s look at how this trend is affecting our planet, and how it can make changes for the better.</p>
<h2>Reduction in commuting</h2>
<p>Since the pandemic lockdowns, people all over the world have been working from home more, saving <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/13/1/607">fuel by not driving to work every day</a>. At the height of the pandemic, long distance travel also took a big hit, as activities such as commercial flights <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2020/apr/03/how-is-the-coronavirus-affecting-global-air-traffic">dropped by half compared to before</a>. This 50% cut in global travel and commercial flights was <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/23/coronavirus-pandemic-leading-to-huge-drop-in-air-pollution">massively beneficial for the environment</a>.</p>
<p>Evidently, by using less fuel, fewer greenhouse gases are released into the air. That means less smog and pollution, leading to cleaner air for all of us to breathe. The lockdown, when the change was sudden and extreme, showed how strong the impact of limited travel can be. However, it amounted to little more than giving the Earth a short break, as the effects <a href="https://www.un.org/en/desa/no-pandemic-did-not-help-climate-action">did not last long enough to have a meaningful impact on climate change</a>.</p>
<p>Rush hour traffic jams are another, much maligned part of many people’s lives, and working from home helps with that, too. Less traffic means fewer car engines running and polluting the air we breathe. This means that towns and cities become less crowded, and the air in them is cleaner.</p>
<p>However, an obvious issue such as traffic has ramifications that illustrate how profound and complex this issue is: with fewer people driving, roads and public transportation do not wear out as quickly. That means less work fixing them and fewer natural resources used to make those repairs, or to build new roads. The environmental impact of this is huge, and perhaps not obvious at first glance.</p>
<p>Remote work is not just changing work; it is changing the way we live and the way we think about our planet.</p>
<h2>Energy Consumption</h2>
<p>Do you ever wonder about how much energy we use when working from home? This is not an easy question to answer. Of course, staying at home might push your energy bills up because of extra heating or cooling and using your computer more. <a href="https://www.iea.org/commentaries/working-from-home-can-save-energy-and-reduce-emissions-but-how-much">Studies have shown an increase of anything from 7 to 23%</a>. But there is another side to this story.</p>
<p>Think about big office buildings with all their lights, air conditioning, and machines. These workplaces use a lot of power, and with more people working from home, many of these buildings are using less energy, especially during the busiest times of the day.</p>
<p>Also, working from home gives people more control over how they use energy. This means they can choose to install solar panels or energy-saving appliances, or that they are simply more careful about turning off lights and devices when they are not in use. Combined with offices using less power, this could really help to cut down on overall energy use and, as a consequence, <a href="https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-and-the-environment.php">pollution</a>.</p>
<p>Working from home is changing how we think about energy. It has the potential to help us all connect our daily lives, as individuals and as a society, to the bigger picture of taking care of our planet.</p>
<h2>Urban Planning and Sustainability</h2>
<p>Remote work also allows us to reshape <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/13/1/607">our cities and towns</a>. Imagine how the way we build and plan communities might change if people were able to work where they live. It is leading to a new way of thinking about where we live, as people move away from crowded city centres and spread out more evenly.</p>
<p>This means that towns, suburbs, and even rural areas need to get ready for new ways of living. They have to plan for things like where people will live, where they can catch a bus or train, and where they can enjoy some <a href="https://www.hrmorning.com/articles/eco-friendly-benefits-of-remote-work/">fresh air in parks</a>. And this all has to be done in a way that is carefully planned and has a limited environmental impact.</p>
<p>Working from home can also help us to can do more in our own neighbourhoods. If we can work, shop, and socialise with friends nearby, it means that our community bonds can become closer and stronger.</p>
<p>Remote work is opening the door to new ideas for how we build our communities, with a focus on being smart and sustainable. It provides a chance to build places to live that are more in tune with the way we want to live our lives. </p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>The impact of working from home goes far beyond just escaping the classroom or office; it is having a massive impact on our planet. It is changing how our cities and towns look and feel, making them more friendly to the environment.</p>
<p>But there is a catch: we have to be smart. We need to find creative solutions and really commit to living and working in a way that helps our planet. That means thinking carefully about how we use energy, how we get around, and how we build our homes and communities.</p>
<p>So the question now is: how are we going to make the most of this chance to make the world a better place?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211392/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Patryk Makowski no recibe salario, ni ejerce labores de consultoría, ni posee acciones, ni recibe financiación de ninguna compañía u organización que pueda obtener beneficio de este artículo, y ha declarado carecer de vínculos relevantes más allá del cargo académico citado.</span></em></p>Working from home is more than avoiding traffic; it’s reshaping cities and saving the planet. Discover how this trend impacts your world.Patryk Makowski, PhD Candidate, Technological University of the ShannonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2113392023-08-10T19:59:50Z2023-08-10T19:59:50ZCan employers stop you working from home? Here’s what the law says<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542057/original/file-20230810-29-k9dewx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C7940%2C3773&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Zoom, the videoconferencing company whose fortunes soared with the pandemic-driven shift to working from home, has <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/aug/07/zoom-tells-staff-to-come-into-the-office-at-least-two-days-a-week">reportedly</a> told its staff to get back to the office – for at least two days a week, if the commute is no more than 80 kilometres. </p>
<p>It’s part of a trend of employers winding back the work-from-home flexibility that enabled most to keep operating through the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.</p>
<p>In Australia, close to 90% of employers have implemented mandatory in-office days, according to <a href="https://www.roberthalf.com.au/press/87-australian-companies-have-implemented-mandatory-office-days-staff">a survey of 300 hiring managers</a> commissioned by recruitment agency Robert Half. The survey shows 19% insisting on five days a week, 28% on four days, and 26% on three days. Almost a third of respondents reported at least one employee quitting in response.</p>
<p>Particularly for parents and younger workers, working from home is not something they will readily give up. </p>
<p>Which raises the question: can an employer, having first directed you to work from home, now turn around and mandate you don’t?</p>
<p>In many cases, the short answer is yes – though some people have a stronger case to argue for flexible work – and correct procedures must be followed. </p>
<h2>Is it a ‘lawful and reasonable’ direction?</h2>
<p>Whether you are employed permanently, as a casual or on a short-term contract, you are required to follow “lawful and reasonable” directions from your employer. Even if this isn’t stated specifically anywhere, Australian courts have ruled this requirement is “implied” in every employment contract. </p>
<p>A direction to return to the workplace will be lawful and reasonable except in extreme cases – for example, where it is contrary to a government directive or another law. </p>
<p>If you can perform your role at home and have a legitimate reason to do so – such as an underlying health issue – you may have grounds to argue a directive to return to the office is not reasonable.</p>
<p>But a detailed and considered plan requiring employees to return to the workplace safely will be lawful and reasonable. Failing to comply with this direction may be a valid reason for disciplinary action, including dismissal. </p>
<h2>Is consultation required?</h2>
<p>If your work is covered by an award or enterprise agreement, you can collectively assert your right to be consulted, on the basis that a return-to-work order constitutes a “major workplace change”. </p>
<p>The Fair Work Ombudsman <a href="https://www.fairwork.gov.au/tools-and-resources/best-practice-guides/consultation-and-cooperation-in-the-workplace">says consultation</a> requires giving notice, discussing the proposed changes, providing written information and giving “prompt consideration” to any matters raised by employees and their representatives.</p>
<p>Even though the employer ultimately doesn’t need consent, the consultation still needs to be genuine and properly consider employees’ views, following the processes set down in the applicable award or agreement. </p>
<p>This is the issue in the dispute over the Commonwealth Bank of Australia directing employees to be in the office 50% of the time. The Finance Sector Union is challenging this in the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/2023/jul/12/commonwealth-bank-wfh-office-rule-union-dispute-work-from-home">Fair Work Commission</a>, arguing the bank breached its obligation to consult. So even if the commission agrees, the policy won’t necessarily change.</p>
<h2>What about flexible work arrangements?</h2>
<p>If your award, enterprise agreement or employment contract contains “workplace flexibility” provisions, you may have rights to work from home or to make a request. </p>
<p>In addition, the national employment standards under the Fair Work Act give employees the right to request “flexible work arrangements” if they’ve been with the employer for at least 12 months, and: </p>
<ul>
<li>are a parent or carer of a child of school age or younger </li>
<li>a carer<br></li>
<li>have a disability </li>
<li>are at least 55 years of age<br></li>
<li>are pregnant </li>
<li>are experiencing family or domestic violence, or caring or supporting an immediate family or household member experiencing family or domestic violence.<br></li>
</ul>
<p>Casual employees have similar rights if they have been working regularly and systematically for at least 12 months and have a reasonable expectation of continued work on the same basis. </p>
<p>Employers who get a request for flexible working arrangements need to respond in writing <a href="https://www.fairwork.gov.au/employment-conditions/flexibility-in-the-workplace/flexible-working-arrangements">within 21 days</a>.</p>
<p>An employer can only refuse a request on “reasonable business grounds”, and where they have genuinely tried to agree to alternative arrangements to accommodate the employee’s circumstances, and have considered the consequences for any refusal. </p>
<p>Reasonable business grounds include such factors as the size and nature of the business. These include the request being too costly and having a significant adverse effect on efficiency, productivity or customer service. </p>
<p>As of June 6 2023, employees have had a right of appeal to the Fair Work Commission, which has new, more expansive powers to resolve such disputes by mediation or conciliation, or by making a recommendation, and, if required, by arbitration. </p>
<h2>Reasonable adjustments for employees</h2>
<p>The right of review for flexible work arrangement requests, though limited to certain employee categories, could well become a hotly contested area.</p>
<p>If an organisation mandates their workers return to the workplace – whether exclusively or in part – the employer needs to provide clear guidelines. The “humane way” to introduce such a policy (regardless of any legal requirement) is to consult with employees over the change. </p>
<p>If an employee seeks a flexible work arrangement, the employer needs to actively engage with them and give them opportunities to provide supporting evidence regarding any special circumstances. That way, they can accommodate employees – so far as is practicable – and if required, make reasonable adjustments. </p>
<p>In sectors with persistent labour shortages, employees will have more leverage to have their views heard and negotiate and, in some cases, even request a review.</p>
<p><em>* If you’re an employee <a href="https://www.fairwork.gov.au/employment-conditions/flexibility-in-the-workplace#ways-to-request-flexible-working-arrangements">wanting to request</a> flexible working arrangements, such as working from home, or an employer wondering <a href="https://www.fairwork.gov.au/employment-conditions/flexibility-in-the-workplace/flexible-working-arrangements">how to handle</a> such requests, you can read more at <a href="https://www.fairwork.gov.au/employment-conditions/flexibility-in-the-workplace">the Fair Work Ombudsman</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211339/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Giuseppe Carabetta does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>If an organisation mandates their workers return to the workplace – whether exclusively or in part – it needs to provide clear guidelines.Giuseppe Carabetta, Associate Professor, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2098702023-07-24T20:09:53Z2023-07-24T20:09:53ZWorking from home has worked for people with disability. The back-to-the-office push could wind back gains<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538854/original/file-20230723-8728-chavi7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C20%2C6669%2C4436&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/photo/business-people-discussing-in-office-meeting-royalty-free-image/1167777577?phrase=disability+at+work&adppopup=true">Getty</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>A push is underway to get employees back into the office. The Commonwealth Bank kick-started this conversation recently, with reports the organisation is requiring staff to work at least half the week <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/cba-faces-fair-work-fight-after-ordering-staff-to-return-to-office-20230712-p5dnqw.html">on-site</a>. </p>
<p>A range of organisations are directing employees to return to the office. These <a href="https://www.afr.com/property/commercial/return-to-office-standoff-coming-soon-to-a-workplace-near-you-20230404-p5cxwp">reportedly</a> include Amazon, General Motors, Meta and Disney.</p>
<p>But although COVID lockdowns have ended, many employees want to continue to work from home. Earlier research (by the lead author of this article) <a href="https://www.afr.com/property/commercial/return-to-office-standoff-coming-soon-to-a-workplace-near-you-20230404-p5cxwp">shows</a> working from home has particular benefits for <a href="https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7680104/working-from-home-can-make-more-improvements-for-aps-workplaces/">employees with disability</a>. </p>
<p>So there may be more at stake for workers with disability when it comes to corporate mandates about where they do their job.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/part-time-work-is-valuable-to-people-with-disability-but-full-time-is-more-likely-to-attract-government-support-202711">Part-time work is valuable to people with disability – but full time is more likely to attract government support</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A much shorter commute</h2>
<p>We began our research at the height of the pandemic lockdowns in 2020 (with the assistance of the Community and Public Sector Union). We <a href="https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.wwwproxy1.library.unsw.edu.au/doi/10.1111/1467-8500.12580">repeated our survey</a> of almost 5,000 public servants (just over a quarter who identified as living with disability) in 2021. We found disabled employees valued working from home highly. </p>
<p>Almost half (47%) of employees with disability would like to work from home two or three days a week. Over 40% want to work from home for four or five days a week. </p>
<p>Our findings tally with other research, including a <a href="https://www.research.lancs.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/the-changing-workplace(d8426fb8-e71e-4984-93e8-586500395e39).html">small survey</a> in the United Kingdom that found more than two-thirds of disabled employees want to work from home four or five days a week. </p>
<p>Why do disabled employees prefer to work from home? As with other employees, not commuting is a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7645902/">significant benefit</a>. This is particularly beneficial for employees who have mobility impairments.</p>
<h2>But commuting isn’t the only issue</h2>
<p>Working at home also enables better management of health conditions. Our disabled survey respondents experienced reduced negative sensory issues and increased capacity for focus. One respondent told us: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Due to disability, less distractions and calmer environment, [I am] able to manage my conditions better and perform better.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Another person said it means greater working capacity:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I am disabled, and [working from home] reduces fatigue and pain. I have few sensory issues working from home.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Working from home also reduces the time taken to manage disability or chronic health conditions. One respondent mentioned “less time spent trying to use facilities due to mobility issues”. Another asserted she was “no longer wasting time adjusting my environment to suit me”. </p>
<p>Respondents also said their mental health improved thanks to reduced stress, less anxiety and feeling happier at work. Almost two-thirds of disabled employees in our research believed they were more productive when working from home than at an office or external workplace. </p>
<p>Productivity gains are being realised by managers and organisations. We found disabled employees believe managers and organisations support them working from home, and these gains are likely to continue. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="people on escalator, one man holds vision assistance cane" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538860/original/file-20230724-160937-5m7r5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The much-shorter commute is one reason many people with disability prefer working from home.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/photo/visually-impaired-man-travelling-on-an-escalator-royalty-free-image/1094970408?phrase=disability+commute&adppopup=true">Getty</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-is-lagging-when-it-comes-to-employing-people-with-disability-quotas-for-disability-services-could-be-a-start-199405">Australia is lagging when it comes to employing people with disability – quotas for disability services could be a start</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Benefits to organisations</h2>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-21/retirees-in-demand-as-employers-face-tight-labour-market/102626676">tight labour market</a>, organisations need to keep their workers. </p>
<p>A large <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w30446">study</a> of almost 24,000 people across 27 countries found a quarter of employees said they would quit if forced back to the office. McKinsey <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/hybrid-work-making-it-fit-with-your-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-strategy">researchers</a> found disabled employees were 14% more likely to leave than employees without disability if they could not work in a hybrid way from both home and the office.</p>
<p>Increasing the <a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2022-12-15/long-left-out-of-job-market-people-with-disabilities-reap-benefits-of-covid-19s-teleworking-boom">employment of disabled people</a> enables organisations to access an under-utilised talent pool. </p>
<p>Labour market participation is comparatively low for disabled people. Only 48% of adults with disability are in the labour force, compared to 80% of those <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/disability/people-with-disability-in-australia/contents/employment/employment-rate-and-type">without disability</a>. Researchers have <a href="https://theconversation.com/part-time-work-is-valuable-to-people-with-disability-but-full-time-is-more-likely-to-attract-government-support-202711">found</a> the employment rate for disabled people in Australia has decreased over the past decade. </p>
<p>In the United States, labour shortages post-COVID have <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/gusalexiou/2022/10/27/new-research-confirms-boon-of-remote-working-for-disabled-employees-in-the-us/?sh=7e55736a5aa4">reportedly</a> led to increased numbers of disabled people being employed. Australian human resource practices appear to be lagging, with the exception of the public service, which recently announced it would <a href="https://www.themandarin.com.au/225256-aps-bargaining-is-more-than-just-improvements-to-flexible-working-and-wfh/">remove the cap</a> on the number of days a week an employee can work from home. </p>
<h2>What else can employers do?</h2>
<p>Creating inclusive workplaces that value and accept disabled workers means including those working from home. This can be facilitated by:</p>
<ul>
<li>training managers in how to manage hybrid teams (who work from home and a central workplace), hybrid employees and disabled employees working from home </li>
<li>assessing the <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10926-020-09936-5">skills and capabilities</a> of disabled employees, rather than focusing on how they fit into a “traditional” workplace </li>
<li>allowing employees with disability to work from home to increase their autonomy, productivity and health outcomes</li>
<li>enabling managers to approve requests from disabled employees to work from home above any organisational cap. Higher levels of approval can be onerous and may deter employees from requesting to work from home.</li>
</ul>
<p>Organisations need to take a nuanced approach to working from home. Some employees may benefit from spending more time in the office. For disabled employees, enabling them to exceed a mandatory – and often arbitrary – work-from-home cap may deliver the best outcomes for both organisations and employees. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/real-life-autism-disclosures-are-complex-and-reactions-can-range-from-dismissal-to-celebration-199869">Real-life autism disclosures are complex – and reactions can range from dismissal to celebration</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209870/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The Community and Public Sector union assisted with the development and distribution of the surveys conducted by the first author and mentioned in the article. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Helen Taylor and Vindhya Weeratunga do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Avoiding the office commute is just one reason why working from home suits many workers with disability better. Employers need to take a nuanced approach to workplace flexibility.Sue Williamson, Associate Professor, Human Resource Management, UNSW Canberra, UNSW SydneyHelen Taylor, Research associate, Australian Defence Force AcademyVindhya Weeratunga, Lecturer, School of Business, Australian Defence Force AcademyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2087282023-07-05T20:23:31Z2023-07-05T20:23:31ZThe shift to working from home will be difficult to reverse<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/534899/original/file-20230629-21-w6520s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C51%2C5778%2C3751&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Remote work, which began as a temporary disruption to normal work, has become permanent for many workers since the onset of the pandemic. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/David Goldman)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-coronavirus-pandemic-has-revealed-how-fragile-everyday-life-is-134637">sudden disruption of everyday life</a>. While many things are back to the way they were before, one change has proven harder to reverse: working from home.</p>
<p>Three years after the switch to remote work, there is little sign people are growing tired of it. In fact, experiences of working from home have become more positive over time. What’s more, our latest research shows that remote work is not eroding people’s well-being. </p>
<p>This evidence points to one conclusion: employers should focus more on managing new hybrid work models and less on trying to force employees back into their cubicles.</p>
<h2>Who is working from home?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.environicsinstitute.org/projects/listing/-in-tags/type/survey-on-employment-and-skills">Survey on Employment and Skills</a> has been tracking the pandemic’s impact on the workplace over the past three years. </p>
<p>The latest wave — a survey of 5,904 Canadian adults conducted in March 2023 — found that almost two in five (38 per cent) people worked remotely at least some of the time in the early months of 2023. These individuals had previously worked outside the home before the pandemic.</p>
<p>The likelihood of working from home varies significantly by occupation. A majority of office workers (57 per cent) and executives or managers (57 per cent) work from home at least some days.</p>
<p>But working from home is much less common among skilled trade workers (16 per cent). The likelihood of working from home is also higher for workers with more education or higher incomes.</p>
<p>These figures remind us that COVID-19’s impact on work goes beyond the appeal of remote work. It has also created a new division in the labour force between those whose jobs can be done at home (mostly white-collar workers) and those whose jobs cannot (mostly blue-collar and service workers).</p>
<p>This new division is likely to continue because those who are still working from home like the new arrangement.</p>
<h2>People prefer remote work</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.environicsinstitute.org/projects/project-details/work-at-home-or-live-at-work-the-complexities-of-new-working-arrangements">From the start</a>, a majority of those who switched to remote work said they preferred it to in-person work.</p>
<p>The proportion of people holding this view increased to 74 per cent in 2023 from 63 per cent in 2020. In addition, over the past three years, seven out of 10 individuals working from home said they wanted their employer to allow them to do so after the pandemic ends.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman works on a laptop at a table inside a camper" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/534904/original/file-20230629-21-wep8ks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/534904/original/file-20230629-21-wep8ks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534904/original/file-20230629-21-wep8ks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534904/original/file-20230629-21-wep8ks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534904/original/file-20230629-21-wep8ks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534904/original/file-20230629-21-wep8ks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534904/original/file-20230629-21-wep8ks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Three years after the switch to remote work, there is little sign people are growing tired of it.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When people say they would like to work from home, they really mean it. Forty-three per cent of those who want to keep working from home say they would like to do so every day; three-quarters (73 per cent) say at least two to three days a week. Only one in four envision working from home occasionally.</p>
<p>Another indicator of how hard it will be to reverse this trend is that a small, but noticeable, group of workers have reorganized their lives around working from home.</p>
<p>About one in ten said they switched jobs to make it easier to work from home. The same proportion said the option to work from home allowed them to relocate to a different community. Given the life choices some have made, getting them back into the office will take more than a <a href="https://stlawyers.ca/blog-news/rbc-employees-return-office/">memo from their managers</a>.</p>
<h2>Health and well-being findings</h2>
<p>The biggest obstacle to getting everyone back into the workplace is the fact that people who are working from home seem to be doing better — or at least no worse — than those who are not.</p>
<p><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/6929809/coronavirus-work-from-home-negative-side-effects/">At the start of the pandemic</a>, there were concerns that adjusting to working from home, like finding a suitable workspace and dealing with distractions, would negatively impact people’s <a href="https://mentalhealthcommission.ca/resource/prioritize-your-mental-wellness-while-working-from-home/">mental well-being</a>.</p>
<p>But three years later, those who work from home are reporting slightly higher job satisfaction, mental health and overall well-being than their counterparts who are working outside the home.</p>
<p>They also <a href="https://www.environicsinstitute.org/projects/project-details/toronto-social-capital-study-2022">appear to have a similar number of connections to friends</a>, suggesting they do not feel more isolated.</p>
<p>Since there are specific demographics of workers that are more likely to work remotely, our analysis controlled for things such as education and occupation. </p>
<p>The results confirmed that people who are working from home are genuinely more satisfied and healthy than those who are not. At the very least, they are not more likely to report feeling lonely or isolated. These positive outcomes were most noticeable for women and for younger workers.</p>
<h2>New workplace challenges</h2>
<p>Our survey not only provides insights about the current remote work situation, but also sheds light about what it was like to go into the workplace every day prior to the pandemic. </p>
<p>For many workers, it would seem the pre-pandemic arrangement was inconvenient, tiring or stressful. People worked in-person jobs because no other option was on offer. The pandemic forced an alternative out into the open, and what began as a temporary disruption has become permanent. </p>
<p>Employers now face the challenge of not only accommodating ongoing remote work arrangements, but also managing new inequities between those whose jobs lend themselves to remote work and those whose don’t.</p>
<p>Employers also need to think more about the job satisfaction and mental health — not just of remote workers, but of those who can’t work remotely and find themselves in a workplace that feels a lot more empty than before.</p>
<p><em>Author’s Note: Most data cited is from the Survey on Employment and Skills, conducted by the Environics Institute, the Future Skills Centre and the Diversity Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University. The Survey on Employment and Skills is funded primarily by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Centre. Additional data is from surveys funded by the Toronto Foundation, Community Foundations of Canada, and other Toronto-based community organizations.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/208728/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Parkin does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment and their position with the Environics Institute.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Justin Savoie provides statistical research consulting services to the Environics Institute on an occasional basis. The present article is based on findings from such work.</span></em></p>The biggest obstacle to getting everyone back into the workplace is the fact that people who are working from home seem to be doing better — or at least no worse — than those who are not.Andrew Parkin, Sessional Lecturer, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of TorontoJustin Savoie, PhD Candidate, Political Science, University of TorontoLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2059922023-05-25T02:34:37Z2023-05-25T02:34:37ZWorking from home immoral? A lesson in ethics, and history, for Elon Musk<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527439/original/file-20230522-15-y07zqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C152%2C2550%2C1316&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Lewis Hine/Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Elon Musk doesn’t like people working from home. A year ago he declared the end of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/jun/01/elon-musk-return-to-office-pretend-to-work-somewhere-else">remote work</a> for employees at car maker Tesla. Now he has called the desire of the “laptop classes” to work from home “immoral”.</p>
<p>“You’re gonna work from home and you’re gonna make everyone else who made your car come work in the factory?” he said in an interview <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/16/elon-musk-work-from-home-morally-wrong-when-some-have-to-show-up.html">on US news network CNBC</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>It’s a productivity issue, but it’s also a moral issue. People should get off their goddamn moral high horse with that work-from-home bullshit. Because they’re asking everyone else to not work from home while they do.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>There’s a superficial logic to Musk’s position. But scrutinise it closer and the argument falls apart. While we have a duty to share workload with others, we have no duty to suffer for no reason. And for most of human history, working from home has been normal. It’s the modern factory and office that are the oddities. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-many-days-a-week-in-the-office-are-enough-you-shouldnt-need-to-ask-166418">How many days a week in the office are enough? You shouldn't need to ask</a>
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<h2>Working from home and the industrial revolution</h2>
<p>Prior to the industrial revolution, which historian date to the mid-1700s to mid-1800s, working from home, or close to home, was commonplace for most of the world’s population. This included skilled manufacturing workers, who typically worked at home or in small workshops nearby. </p>
<p>For the skilled craftsperson, work hours were what we might call “flexible”. British historian <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/past/38.1.56">E.P. Thompson records</a> the consternation among the upper class about the notorious “irregularity” of labour.</p>
<p>Conditions changed with the rapid growth and concentration of machines in the industrial revolution. These changes began in England, which also saw the most protracted and tense conflicts over the new work hours and discipline factory owners and managers demanded.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A home textile workshop, in Britain or Ireland. This image dates from the 19th century." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527925/original/file-20230524-17-9w9r0e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527925/original/file-20230524-17-9w9r0e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527925/original/file-20230524-17-9w9r0e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527925/original/file-20230524-17-9w9r0e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527925/original/file-20230524-17-9w9r0e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=459&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527925/original/file-20230524-17-9w9r0e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=459&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527925/original/file-20230524-17-9w9r0e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=459&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A home textile workshop in Britain or Ireland. This image dates from the 19th century.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Judgements of conditions for workers prior to industrialisation vary. Thompson’s masterpiece study <a href="https://www.bard.edu/library/pdfs/archives/Thompson-The_Making_of_the_English_Working_Class.pdf">The Making of the English Working Class</a> (published in 1963) recounts bleak tales of families of six or eight woolcombers, huddled working around a charcoal stove, their workshop “also the bedroom”. </p>
<p>But it also mentions the stocking maker with “peas and beans in his snug garden, and a good barrel of humming ale”, and the linen-weaving quarter of Belfast, with “their whitewashed houses, and little flower gardens”. </p>
<p>Either way, working from home is not a novel invention of the “laptop classes”. Only with the industrial revolution were workers required under one roof and for fixed hours.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/meet-the-matchstick-women-the-hidden-victims-of-the-industrial-revolution-87453">Meet the matchstick women — the hidden victims of the industrial revolution</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Misapplying a concept of justice</h2>
<p>Musk’s moral argument against working from home says that because not all workers can do it, no workers should expect it. </p>
<p>This has some resemblance to the “categorical imperative” articulated by 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant: “Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.”</p>
<p>But acting according to the same <em>principle</em> does not mean we all have the same options. We can, for example, want all workers to have the maximum freedom their tasks allow.</p>
<p>The wider error Musk appears to be making is misapplying what ethics researchers call distributive justice. </p>
<p>Simply put, distributive justice concerns how we share benefits and harms. As the philosopher John Rawls explains in his book <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=ACyVDwAAQBAJ&dq=Justice%20as%20Fairness%3A%20A%20Restatement%20cambridge%20university%20press&lr&source=gbs_book_other_versions">Justice as Fairness</a>, in distributive justice we view society as a cooperative activity, where we “regulate the division of advantages that arises from social cooperation over time”.</p>
<p>Research on distributive justice at work typically concerns how to pay workers fairly and also share the suffering or “toil” work requires. But there is no compelling moral case to share the needless suffering that work creates. </p>
<h2>How to share more fairly</h2>
<p>Clearly, professionals benefit from work in many ways we might argue are unjust.
As economist John Kenneth Galbraith observed satirically in <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Economics-Innocent-Fraud-Truth-Time/dp/0618013245">The Economics of Innocent Fraud</a>, those who most enjoy their work are generally the best paid. “This is accepted. Low wage scales are for those in repetitive, tedious, painful toil.”</p>
<p>If Musk wanted to share either the pay or toil at Tesla more equally, he has the means to do something about it. He could pay his factory workers more, for example, instead of taking a pay package <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-63628186">likely to pay him US$56 billion</a> in 2028. (This depends on Tesla’s market capitalisation being 12 times what it was in 2018; it’s now about 10 times.) </p>
<p>To share the “toil” of work more fairly, he wouldn’t just be <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-sleeping-habits-tesla-factory-floor-twitter-late-nights-2022-11">sleeping at work</a>. He’d be on the production line, or down a mine in central Africa, dragging out the cobalt electric vehicle batteries need, <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/02/01/1152893248/red-cobalt-congo-drc-mining-siddharth-kara">for a few dollars a day</a>.</p>
<h2>Elon, the floor is yours</h2>
<p>Instead, Musk’s idea of fairness is about creating unnecessary work, shaming workers who don’t need to be in the office to commute regardless. There is no compelling moral reason for this in the main Western ethics traditions. </p>
<p>The fruits and burdens of work should be distributed fairly, but unnecessary work helps no one. Commuting is the least pleasurable, and most negative, time of a workers’ day, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01441647.2019.1649317">studies show</a>. Insisting everyone has to do it brings no benefit to those who must do it. They’re not better off. </p>
<p>Denying some workers’ freedom to work from home because other workers don’t have the same freedom now is ethically perverse. </p>
<p>Musk’s hostility towards remote work is consistent with a long history of research that documents managers’ resistance to letting workers out of their sight. </p>
<p>Working from home, or “<a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=9LgIEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR1&dq=Anywhere+Working+and+the+Future+of+Work&ots=c7lRsbZT_X&sig=eXjic-t1XqAY0ehZ8Kb-C5WKW5M#v=onepage&q=Anywhere%20Working%20and%20the%20Future%20of%20Work&f=false">anywhere working</a>”, has been discussed <a href="https://theconversation.com/50-years-of-bold-predictions-about-remote-work-it-isnt-all-about-technology-135034">since the 1970s</a>, and technologically viable since at least the late 1990s. Yet it only became an option for most workers when managers were forced to accept it during the pandemic.</p>
<p>While this enforced experiment of the pandemic has led to the “<a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-economic-and-labour-relations-review/article/abs/public-servants-working-from-home-exploring-managers-changing-allowance-decisions-in-a-covid19-context/1603C6B399ECCBE3DFF8ACD91FF4C39D">epiphany</a>” that working from home can be as productive, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/3-ways-bossware-surveillance-technology-is-turning-back-the-management-clock-189070">growth of surveillance systems</a> to track workers at home proves managerial suspicions linger. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/3-ways-bossware-surveillance-technology-is-turning-back-the-management-clock-189070">3 ways 'bossware' surveillance technology is turning back the management clock</a>
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<p>There are genuine moral issues for Musk to grapple with at Tesla. He could use his fortune and influence to do something about issues such as <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2023/02/08/battery-push-by-tesla-and-other-ev-makers-raises-child-labor-concerns/?sh=7f3e61dd7789">modern slavery in supply chains</a>, or the inequity of <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-63628186">executive pay</a>. </p>
<p>Instead, he’s vexed about working from home. To make work at Tesla genuinely more just, Musk’s moral effort would better be directed towards fairly distributing Tesla’s profit, and mitigating the suffering and toil that industrial production systems already create.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205992/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dale Tweedie receives no funding from any organisation that would benefit from this article. </span></em></p>Elon Musk says wanting to work from home is unethical when not all workers can do it. Here’s why this argument is wrong.Dale Tweedie, Senior lecturer, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2011692023-03-14T01:55:57Z2023-03-14T01:55:57ZOur bedrooms aren’t refuges anymore – working, studying and eating in them is bad for our sleep<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515022/original/file-20230313-28-zhatqn.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=428%2C0%2C2867%2C1907&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Image: study participant</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s the end of a long day and you’re finally home, ready to unwind and recharge for the next day. You head to your bedroom, hoping to find solace and relaxation in your personal refuge. But it’s not just a place for sleeping anymore, as our <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/2/406">recently published study</a> shows. Your bedroom has become a catch-all place for all sorts of activities – from work to entertainment to exercise – and it’s having a major impact on your sleep.</p>
<p>We asked 300 Australians about their sleep environments and how they use them. Half of them said they have or might have a sleep problem. And almost half said their bedroom was also their living space and they would prefer a different arrangement. </p>
<p>Despite this preference, with the rise of remote work and digital entertainment, many of us have transformed our bedrooms into multi-functional spaces. We use them for work calls and emails, watch movies or play video games, and even exercise before bed. </p>
<p>This versatility comes at a cost. It can be difficult to mentally disconnect from these activities and create a peaceful environment that promotes restful sleep.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1536579446605770752"}"></div></p>
<h2>What’s driving these changes?</h2>
<p>Urban density, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-27/rising-rents-pricing-tenants-out-of-the-market/102028332">rising rents</a> and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-01/house-price-declines-ease-in-february-with-sydney-posting-rise/102033596">housing costs</a>, and changes in how we work affect how we use our bedrooms and what they mean to us. The COVID pandemic meant more people started working from home and many had a set-up in their bedrooms. Using the bed for activities other than sleeping became more common.</p>
<p>Like eating, sleep is fundamental for human survival. <a href="https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=Report+to+the+Sleep+Health+Foundation+2016+Sleep+Health+Survey+of+Australian+Adults&btnG=">Sleep studies</a> show a lack of sleep has significant impacts on our wellbeing, mental and physical health as well as social and work performance. </p>
<p>Despite its importance and the fact that we spend around a third of our lives asleep, our domestic sleep spaces and how we use them are relatively unexplored. We wanted to question if today’s bedrooms are still quiet places of refuge or privacy where one rests – and that no longer seems to be the case for many people.</p>
<p>The sleep environment plays a significant role in the way we sleep, and we wanted to learn more about where we sleep today when it isn’t simply a <a href="https://www.unsw.edu.au/news/2023/03/bedrooms--more-than-just-a-sleep-space">room with a bed</a>. And not everyone sleeps in a bed. Sofa beds are the second-most-mentioned sleep space in our study, while close to 10% sleep in a spare room and 1% sleep in a car. </p>
<p>About 50% sometimes or always use the bed for studying, working or eating. And
59 respondents had a desk in their bedrooms, while 80 mentioned studying or working from their bedrooms, and 104 mentioned using their laptops. One in six people worked from their bed. Among the other activities in the sleep environment, watching TV or streaming shows was predictably the most common, followed by reading, studying or working, eating and then exercising.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6EwgA0c-xvQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Professor Dorothy Bruck talks about good sleep habits.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>People spent an average of about 9.5 hours a day in their sleep environment but just over seven hours sleeping. That’s two-and-a-half hours a day in their sleep area not sleeping. About 20% of respondents spend 12 or more hours in the rooms they sleep in. </p>
<p>Younger participants spent more time in their bedrooms than any other age groups. For children and teenagers their bedroom plays an important role in play, developing their own personality and character and becoming socialised. However, our study surveyed Australian residents 18 years and older. </p>
<p>One of the significant concerns to highlight is about a quarter mentioned having a sleep problem and another 26% were not sure whether they have a sleep problem or not. That suggests nearly 50% are not sleeping well. While 60% said they have a consistent sleeping routine, these figures suggest a consistent routine isn’t necessarily a good routine.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="man lies awake in bed at night with mobile phone next to him on bedside table" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/514351/original/file-20230309-26-h9ha7f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/514351/original/file-20230309-26-h9ha7f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514351/original/file-20230309-26-h9ha7f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514351/original/file-20230309-26-h9ha7f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514351/original/file-20230309-26-h9ha7f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514351/original/file-20230309-26-h9ha7f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514351/original/file-20230309-26-h9ha7f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">About half of the study participants said they had or might have problems sleeping.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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</figure>
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<p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-there-such-a-thing-as-the-perfect-alarm-tone-we-think-so-and-this-is-what-it-might-sound-like-178902">Is there such a thing as the perfect alarm tone? We think so (and this is what it might sound like)</a>
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<h2>We still have much to learn about bedrooms</h2>
<p>We have a relatively good understanding of the environmental factors that contribute to good sleep. These include noise levels under 40 decibels and limited or no lighting during sleep. Yet we know very little about bedroom layouts and furnishings. </p>
<p>Bedrooms are one of our most private spaces. A Belgian researcher resorted to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/joid.12231">forensic crime scene photographs of bedrooms</a> from the 1930s and ’40s to gain insight into what bedrooms actually look like. Because what we can glean about bedrooms from <a href="https://www.dezeen.com/2022/08/27/ten-green-bedrooms-interiors-lookbook/">architectual and interior magazines</a>, home renovation TV shows or <a href="https://www.bebitalia.com/en-us/en-husk-letti.html">sales room</a> <a href="https://www.spacefurniture.com.au/products/maxalto-dike-bed">displays</a> is based on idealised and aspirational settings. </p>
<p>The kitchen, on the other hand, is very well researched and the outcomes are practically applied to our everyday lives. We know more about efficient kitchen layouts, counter top heights, drawer width, ideal distances between sink and working top <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0956713521005715">to enhance hygiene</a> and how many <a href="https://understandingdesign.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Lillian-Gilbreths-Kitchen-Practical-How-it-reinvented-the-modern-kitchen..pdf">steps are taken to prepare a meal</a>, among many other details. </p>
<p>It should be noted that many of us, particularly renter-occupiers, are limited in what we can do to personalise and change our bedrooms. It would be ideal if our laws allowed renters more flexibility to customise their space beyond just furnishings, especially if they intend to stay for a long time.</p>
<p>This <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/2/406">study</a> is the first part of a research project that in its next phase will survey existing bedrooms in homes. If you are interested in participating please contact the authors.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-do-we-wake-around-3am-and-dwell-on-our-fears-and-shortcomings-169635">Why do we wake around 3am and dwell on our fears and shortcomings?</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201169/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Almost half of the participants in a study of bedrooms said they have or might have a sleep problem and they would prefer not to use the room for multiple activities.Christian Tietz, Senior Lecturer in Industrial Design, UNSW SydneyDemet Dincer, Lecturer in Interior Architecture, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1983262023-02-02T14:56:47Z2023-02-02T14:56:47ZRemote working improves the lives of female managers - but at a cost<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/506084/original/file-20230124-25-q2pruk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A woman working from home. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/afro-caribbean-woman-working-from-home-during-the-royalty-free-image/1253792493?phrase=zoom%20meetings%20africa&adppopup=true">Alistair Berg/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a question that would have been unthinkable a few years ago: do we really need to be in the office all the time? </p>
<p>At the height of the pandemic, working remotely was viewed as a safeguard, protecting employees from the spread of infections. Over time a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8834350/">consensus</a> has developed that working remotely has had benefits but has also raised <a href="https://theconversation.com/working-in-isolation-can-pose-mental-health-challenges-heres-what-anyone-can-learn-from-how-gig-workers-have-adapted-194712">health concerns</a>.</p>
<p>To provide some answers to the question, I did <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.949914/full">research</a> on the experience of working remotely from the perspective of 23 female middle managers working in the South African public service. </p>
<p>It was clear that remote work had positive and negative aspects. </p>
<p>On the positive side, working remotely offered flexibility. Employees could balance individual and work tasks. This gave them some freedom and autonomy. In essence, work-life balance was somewhat promoted.</p>
<p>One participant, a human resource manager, said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>During the height of the pandemic, I could spend more time connecting with other facets of my life outside work. I could read more at home. Do some gardening. Even connect more with the world around me. Yes I got to do some work but I also managed to do things I could not do previously. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>On the negative side, the women said they experienced a blurring of work boundaries and an extension of their office hours.</p>
<p>Based on the findings, I make three recommendations for managing the downside of working remotely. First, organisations may need to provide employee support; an important part of this is to trust their staff. Second, policy around remote working may need to be in place and reinforced. Such policy needs to strike a balance between getting the work done and respecting the individual rights of employees. Finally, a culture of open communication can be useful on both sides to achieve this. This includes setting goals and addressing misconceptions around working remotely.</p>
<h2>The upside</h2>
<p>The female managers in the study extolled the work-life balance that remote work can offer. </p>
<p>The managers praised remote working as cutting back unnecessary time spent in traffic while commuting to work. They could spend more time with family and pay attention to personal wellness activities such as going to the gym. </p>
<p>Remote working also had the potential to enhance the quality of relationships, thanks to the physical presence at home.</p>
<p>Another participant, an accounting manager, said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I think remote working also saved my marriage. My partner and I are appreciative of being in professions where we can work remotely. This assisted both of us to work in the same room at home. Such time was just the bond we needed. Remember in a week we usually spent half of the week at the office before the pandemic. It was wonderful to work from home not just for the work aspect but also our relationship.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But the research also revealed that remote working posed some challenges.</p>
<h2>The downside</h2>
<p>Three main problems emerged. First, despite viewing remote working as a possibility, organisational will did not exist to see it through. There appeared to be mixed feelings in organisations, to support or not to support remote working. </p>
<p>Second, for some managers, managing people remotely was not a feasible option. This was largely due to the perception that for one to be an effective manager some form of physical presence was needed. The physical presence factor for these managers served as a form of surveillance, an ability to monitor that work was actually being done. Such a management approach created levels of suspicion and rendered remote working ineffective. </p>
<p>Thirdly, the managers in my study expressed concern around the extension of the working hours. Remote working distorted the boundaries of work and forced employees to be available at any time. This included receiving work-related calls at odd hours. Some employees felt that going to the office protected them from being bothered after work hours. </p>
<p>A participant observed:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The organisational structure within the South Africa public service is still that one of command and control. This works well within physical spaces. With working from home that command and control manifests in the excessive calls. Someone can call you late at night. That was salient nightmare for remote working for me.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>What should be done</h2>
<p>The findings of this research show there is a need for nuanced organisational responses to remote working. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/remote-work-has-made-developing-relationships-with-colleagues-harder-heres-what-workers-and-bosses-need-now-194883">Remote work has made developing relationships with colleagues harder – here's what workers and bosses need now</a>
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<p>First, organisations should seek to support employees where remote working is in place. They may need policies to guide such modes of working.</p>
<p>Second, employees have a responsibility to speak out. While there is a need to be productive in organisations, this should not come through violation of individual rights. There can be no flexibility to the expression of individual rights.</p>
<p>Third, the findings show the need for investment in training and support services around remote working. This may include psycho-social support for employees who may be struggling with dealing with aspects related to remote working. Further, organisations need to invest in hardware and software support that enhances the remote working experience.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/198326/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Willie Tafadzwa Chinyamurindi receives funding from a) The National Research Foundation, b) The South African Medical Research Council, c) The Council for Scientific Industrial Research and d) The National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences.</span></em></p>Remote working policy needs to strike a balance between productivity and individual rights of employees.Willie Tafadzwa Chinyamurindi, Professor, University of Fort HareLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1959302022-12-29T20:56:20Z2022-12-29T20:56:20ZDigital nomad visas offer the best of two worlds: what you should know before you go<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500249/original/file-20221212-93608-ctxrb1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C251%2C6709%2C3380&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Imagine starting your work day with a fresh coconut juice perched by your laptop as you gaze over the ocean or a tropical rainforest. </p>
<p>It’s the sort of thing to fantasise about during long, tiresome commutes and days in a claustrophobic, noisy office. </p>
<p>But so long as you have the right type of job, and an accommodating employer (<a href="https://theconversation.com/elon-musks-hardcore-management-style-a-case-study-in-what-not-to-do-194999">not Elon Musk</a>), it could be your reality.</p>
<p>The war for talent is no longer just between companies. More than 40 nations or territories now offer “digital nomad” visas to attract those able to be employed in one country while living, and spending their income, in another. </p>
<p>Fancy the beach? A bunch of exotic islands are on the list. Prefer tropical forests? Try Brazil or Costa Rica. </p>
<p>Looking for history? There’s Spain or Greece. Love Wim Hof-style <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/a70a8678-5281-400e-8dc3-cba56cbd6e54">ice-bathing</a>? Iceland beckons.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Iceland's Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, about 50 km south-west of Reykjavík." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500931/original/file-20221214-14-myirxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Iceland’s Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, about 50 km south-west of Reykjavík.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What is a digital nomad visa?</h2>
<p>Think of a “digital nomad” visa as a cross between a tourist and temporary migrant visa – a working-on-holiday visa. Instead of the visa giving you the right to work in the country, it’s allowing you to stay so long as you’re gainfully employed and bringing money into the local economy. </p>
<p>How long you can stay varies, from 90 days in Aruba in the Caribbean to up to two years in the Cayman Islands. Most are for 12 months, with an option to renew. </p>
<p>Some places, <a href="https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/digital-nomad-visa/latvia/">such as Latvia</a>, restrict visas to employers registered in an OECD country. But generally the key requirement is that you can show you have no need to find local work and can meet minimum income requirements.</p>
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<p><iframe id="QPY38" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/QPY38/3/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<hr>
<p>Generally, the visa conditions simplify taxation issues: you continue to pay your income tax in the country of your employer. </p>
<p>But this varies. For example, in Greece (which offers a two-year renewable visa) you are exempt from paying local income tax only for the first six months. </p>
<h2>Combining work and travel</h2>
<p>A key driver of the digital nomad trend is the ability to maintain a career while ticking off other personal goals, particularly travel and the ability to experience a different way of life. </p>
<p>Moving somewhere with a cheaper cost of living could be another motivation. </p>
<p>But before you decide to pack up, there are some things to consider to ensure being a digital nomad is right for you.</p>
<h2>You’re a long way from home</h2>
<p>The first is whether reality will live up to the fantasy. </p>
<p>As a digital nomad you’re a very remote worker, with all the pros and cons that come with that.</p>
<p>Some <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/00483481211229375/full/html">studies</a> have shown remote workers can feel socially and professionally isolated. </p>
<p>Having an employer that’s supportive of your move will help. A 2017 <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1359432X.2018.1541886?casa_token=pbCgsWDjx2EAAAAA%3AdCFn0NynlWycJ0JTa0l0khkI0XYtTHYc4LV-QPb5XQ3qpC5y4OE6sztSnm11rKgovsZAXpEGYnJu">review</a> of prior studies on remote work found organisational support greatly reduces the psychological strain and social isolation felt by remote workers. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-just-the-isolation-working-from-home-has-surprising-downsides-107140">It's not just the isolation. Working from home has surprising downsides</a>
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</em>
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<hr>
<p>But working from home is one thing; being in another country is entirely another. Living a long way away from family and friends and support networks is likely to be more challenging, no matter how idyllic your location. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Woman with laptop sitting beside pool in tropical location." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499420/original/file-20221207-20-tcptf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C860%2C5472%2C2776&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499420/original/file-20221207-20-tcptf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499420/original/file-20221207-20-tcptf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499420/original/file-20221207-20-tcptf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499420/original/file-20221207-20-tcptf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499420/original/file-20221207-20-tcptf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499420/original/file-20221207-20-tcptf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Even with a great view, remote work can have its downsides.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>If you like predictable structure and routine, the uncertainty and inevitable inconveniences that arise may mean it isn’t for you. </p>
<p>And while you may be exempt from paying local income tax, you’ll have to comply with all other local laws – such as <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/indonesia-ban-on-sex-outside-marriage-problematic-for-bali-tourists-20221206-p5c42a.html">Indonesia’s new laws</a> making sex outside marriage potentially punishable with a year in jail.</p>
<h2>Foreign countries do things differently</h2>
<p>If those things don’t faze you, here are three tips to make the transition easier. </p>
<p>First, all the usual considerations about remote work apply – and some are amplified. You will absolutely need reliable high-speed internet, and access to support services. Living in a remote village might be alluring, but how close is the nearest computer shop?</p>
<p>Second, understand when you’ll need to work. You may be on a different time zone to colleagues or clients. The novelty of an ocean view could easily wear thin after a few weeks of getting up in the middle of the night for zoom calls. How available you need to be could be a big factor in choice of destination. </p>
<p>Third, you may still find maintaining work-life balance a challenge. <a href="https://www.igi-global.com/chapter/escaping-the-cubicle/275123">Research</a> has shown how easily work-life boundaries are blurred with remote work. The desire to prove you’re not slacking off may make it even harder.</p>
<p>But if you have the right personality, and you’re lucky enough to have the right job and employer, being a digital nomad might bring you the best of two worlds.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195930/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Libby (Elizabeth) Sander does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>More than 40 nations or territories now offer ‘digital nomad’ visas, allowing you to live in one country while being employed in another.Libby (Elizabeth) Sander, MBA Director & Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour, Bond Business School, Bond UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1956412022-12-04T19:02:02Z2022-12-04T19:02:02ZHILDA finds working from home boosts women’s job satisfaction more than men’s, and that has a downside<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498779/original/file-20221204-55824-xmkv40.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=203%2C0%2C3790%2C1994&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wes Mountain/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The shift to working from home is <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w28731">unlikely to reverse</a>.</p>
<p>Data from the <a href="https://melbourneinstitute.unimelb.edu.au/hilda">HILDA</a> (Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia) Survey released on Monday show the proportion of Australians working “most hours” from home jumped from around 6% before the pandemic to 21% in 2020. Unpublished data available to researchers shows a further jump to 24% in 2021.</p>
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<p>While the rise was most pronounced in Victoria (which was in lockdown when the 2020 survey was conducted) there were big increases in all states except Tasmania. </p>
<p>Working from home increased in every industry but agriculture. It increased the most in industries dominated by office jobs.</p>
<h2>Easier to work at home, or harder?</h2>
<p>The 2020 survey asked those who had increased their hours working at home whether their ability to do their jobs was “much better”, “a little better”, “about the same”, “a little worse”, or “much worse”.</p>
<p>There are arguments in <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/research/completed/working-from-home">each direction</a>. On one hand, working from home can give workers greater control of their time, making it easier to balance work and non-work activities. And at-home workers often report fewer meetings and interruptions, meaning work at home can be less stressful. </p>
<p>On the other hand, working from home can blur boundaries between work and non-work time, pushing work into unsocial hours. And it can mean workers spend more time isolated, without the opportunity to interact with colleagues. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/about-that-spare-room-employers-requisitioned-our-homes-and-our-time-139854">About that spare room: employers requisitioned our homes and our time</a>
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</em>
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<p>What the survey found was that the proportion of these workers who reported negative effects on their ability to do their job (42%) far outweighed the proportion who reported positive effects (24%).</p>
<p>Another way of looking at the result is to say that given that one-third of those working more at home reported little change in their ability to do the job, more than half found things no worse.</p>
<p>Although the number reporting negative effects outnumbering the number reporting positive effects might seem surprising, it is less surprising given that many of the people who suddenly had to work from home in 2020 lacked dedicated workspaces and had to share space with other household members working at home and children forced to learn remotely.</p>
<p>In non-pandemic times, when working from home is voluntary and home workspaces are better set up, assessments are likely to be more positive.</p>
<h2>Women feel better off, men not much</h2>
<p>The 2020 HILDA Survey found minimal effects of working from home on job satisfaction. But preliminary unpublished research we have undertaken on data from the 2021 survey paints a different picture – one divided on gender lines.</p>
<p>Focusing on people employed in both 2019 and 2021, and controlling for worker characteristics, we find a significant positive association between changes in the extent of working from home and changes in job satisfaction among women, but not men.</p>
<p>Furthermore, the improvement among women is concentrated on women with children.</p>
<p>The largest increase is found for those who work two days in the workplace and three days at home. </p>
<p>For mothers who shifted to the two-day/three-day arrangement, average job satisfaction increased by around 0.9 of a point on the scale of zero to ten, which amounted to a 12% improvement.</p>
<p>The findings suggest the main benefit for workers from working from home arises from the improved ability to combine work and family responsibilities – something that matters to women more than men as they continue to shoulder the bulk of home and care work.</p>
<p>Greater opportunities to work from home should thus lead to the greater involvement of mothers in paid work. This is a good thing. But there is at least one potential problem.</p>
<h2>Working from home can be a trap</h2>
<p>It is well-established that the workers visibly present in a workplace are more likely to be <a href="https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/faculty-research/publications/does-working-home-work-evidence-chinese-experiment">promoted</a> and get <a href="https://pubsonline.informs.org/doi/10.1287/orsc.2018.1265">extra responsibilities</a> than the workers who are not.</p>
<p>If women become less visibly present at a faster rate than men, their efforts are less likely to be recognised and they are more likely to be excluded from tasks and roles that enhance their promotion prospects.</p>
<p>Unless attitudes change, this downside of working from home is likely to become more apparent for women.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195641/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Wooden is Director of the HILDA Survey project which is funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services. He also receives funding from the US National Institutes of Health which is supporting a research grant on the effects of COVID-19 and COVID-19 mitigation policies.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Esperanza Vera-Toscano is employed in HILDA Survey project which is funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services. She also works on the project funded by the US National Institutes of Health on the effects of COVID-19 and COVID-19 mitigation policies.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Inga Lass does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Women are much more likely to feel better about working from home than men, especially mothers. But it is more likely to get them overlooked for promotions.Mark Wooden, Professorial Fellow, The University of MelbourneEsperanza Vera-Toscano, Senior research fellow, The University of MelbourneInga Lass, Senior research fellow, Federal Institute for Population Research (BiB). Honorary Senior Fellow, Social and Political Science, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1941702022-11-09T19:00:07Z2022-11-09T19:00:07ZMorning or evening type? Choice of hours is the next big thing in workplace flexibility<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494335/original/file-20221109-24-noeyg3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C640%2C3882%2C1944&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Are you a morning or evening person? Studies show we have strong differences in when we feel most creative and do our best work during the day. </p>
<p>These differences go far deeper than just personal preference. Whether you like to get up early (a “lark”) or go to bed late (an “owl”), and when you are more productive, is a <a href="https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article/21/6/569/2725974?login=true">biological predisposition</a> related to the settings of your <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdf/S0960-9822(06)02609-1.pdf">internal body clock</a> that synchronises your bodily functions with the rotation of the planet. </p>
<p>Research suggests <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-2869.2007.00580.x">genetic effects</a> account for about half of the variability between individuals. Environmental factors and age explain the rest. </p>
<p>Yet most workplaces take a cookie-cutter approach to time, forcing us to work standardised hours. There are clear organisational advantages to this, but the disadvantage is that you (and your colleagues) may not be working at your most productive times. </p>
<p>In the past few years we’ve seen a revolution in where we work. The enforced experiment of remote working during the pandemic has done much to overcome decades of managerial resistance to greater flexibility. Is it now time for a revolution in when we work?</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/even-google-agrees-theres-no-going-back-to-the-old-office-life-177808">Even Google agrees there's no going back to the old office life</a>
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<p>If done well, my research suggests, it could lead be the next big gain in productivity – but only if the downsides are acknowledged and competing needs balanced.</p>
<h2>Variations in chronotypes</h2>
<p>Differences in the human body clock are often referred to as <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdf/S0960-9822(06)02609-1.pdf">chronotypes</a>. </p>
<p>Chronotypes exist on a morningness-eveningness <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S019188690100085X?casa_token=1Dn-A1lPQ5EAAAAA:KoMmLqt3BXswcN3bQkhmrkjyCgd0_N3CB7oTfiJ_hzUs7mQRFFnlhedPFrW0ZT5PrCG1U826Sw">continuum</a> but individuals are often broadly <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3109/07420528.2012.719971?casa_token=gFO7T7ForakAAAAA%3AarK5aCKAItp84XOJv5-OQUAlMCtsVK6aFNf8GMfWlH1iV4kLRDCeO_EhpwIcAJk2fzmk-ohlDvoR">classified</a> based on the timing of their daily performance peaks as either morning types, evening types or intermediate types.</p>
<p>Most kids are morning types. Most teenagers are evening types. In the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982204009285">working-age population</a> about 20% can be categorised as either morning or evening types while 60% are intermediate types. </p>
<p>Women are slightly more likely to prefer earlier hours than men up until menopause, when differences disappear. People who live <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/srep39976">further from the Equator</a> are more likely to be evening types. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Woman resting head on desk. Women are more likely to prefer earlier hours to men up until menopause, when sex differences in chronotypes disappear." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494303/original/file-20221108-14-ho3gjw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C727%2C4500%2C2270&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494303/original/file-20221108-14-ho3gjw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494303/original/file-20221108-14-ho3gjw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494303/original/file-20221108-14-ho3gjw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494303/original/file-20221108-14-ho3gjw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494303/original/file-20221108-14-ho3gjw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494303/original/file-20221108-14-ho3gjw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Women are more likely to prefer earlier hours to men up until menopause, when sex differences in chronotypes disappear.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>Chronotypes determine when during the day we feel energised and prefer to be active and perform demanding work. They also determine when we feel tired and prefer to work on less demanding tasks or to rest. So they are important to to productive you are.</p>
<p>If you’re a lark, you may be missing your best hours working 9am to 5pm. If you’re an owl you may be knocking off when you’re at your most alert.</p>
<h2>The pros and cons of time flexibility</h2>
<p>Could greater work-time flexibility be the next big key to unlock greater well-being and productivity? My research suggests yes, but only by acknowledging that increased work-time flexibility can also lead to negative consequences. </p>
<p>The downside – particularly if time flexibility is combined with remote working – is less interaction with colleagues, leading to greater <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/04/zoom-remote-work-loneliness-happiness/618473/">isolation</a> and lower <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/worklab/work-trend-index/hybrid-work">creativity and innovation</a>. </p>
<p>The benefits of “serendipity” – unplanned hallway and cafeteria discussions – are <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-death-of-the-open-plan-office-not-quite-but-a-revolution-is-in-the-air-140724">well-recognised</a>. The less time we spend with coworkers, the less likely we are to connect, make friendships and develop team spirit. </p>
<p>But these problems are no more insurmountable than the challenges of remote work.
There are comparatively easy ways to mitigate unintended side-effects through designing work-time arrangements that balance individual and organisational interests.</p>
<h2>How to manage chronotype diversity</h2>
<p>The key is for organisations to segment work time into four parts.</p>
<ol>
<li><p><em>Fixed on-site working hours:</em> during these times employees are expected to attend office and be available for in-person meetings, collaborative work and social gatherings. There is no hard-and-fast rule on how many days this should be, but surveys suggests employers generally want <a href="https://www.wired.co.uk/article/best-day-return-office">at least three days</a> a week, while workers want less.</p></li>
<li><p><em>Fixed flexible-location working hours:</em> during these hours all employees can work remotely if they want, but work a set number of standard work hours – say 10am to 3pm. These hours will depend on the needs of the organisation and the degree of teamwork required. </p></li>
<li><p><em>Flexible working hours:</em> beyond fixed working hours, workers can choose when to work to make up their full hours.</p></li>
<li><p><em>Lockout hours:</em> it is important to prevent excessive, potentially self-harming behaviour by setting limits through “lockout hours” – 7pm to 7am, for example – during which employees are strongly discouraged from working unless absolutely necessary. </p></li>
</ol>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-many-days-a-week-in-the-office-are-enough-you-shouldnt-need-to-ask-166418">How many days a week in the office are enough? You shouldn't need to ask</a>
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<p>Increased work flexibility is one of the few positive outcomes of the pandemic. But revolutions are rarely smooth. We have to be conscious of the potential pitfalls to avoid them. </p>
<p>Through careful attention to unintended consequences, and developing new work structures, there’s no reason to think we can’t have more flexibility over where and when we work.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194170/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stefan Volk does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>More choice over when we work be the next big gain in productivity.Stefan Volk, Associate Professor and Co-Director Body, Heart and Mind in Business Research Group, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1927402022-10-20T21:38:28Z2022-10-20T21:38:28ZBurnout and isolation: Why employees and managers can’t ignore the social and mental health impact of working from home<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490917/original/file-20221020-20-55pft3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=213%2C44%2C4699%2C3226&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The pandemic made many people more aware of the impossibility of severing work from life.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/burnout-and-isolation--why-employees-and-managers-can-t-ignore-the-social-and-mental-health-impact-of-working-from-home" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred on a variety of workplace maladies, including “<a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/351545/great-resignation-really-great-discontent.aspx">the great resignation</a>,” “<a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/398306/quiet-quitting-real.aspx">quiet quitting</a>,” “<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/two-jobs-pandemic-1.6577522">overemployment</a>,” <a href="https://www.statcan.gc.ca/en/subjects-start/labour_/labour-shortage-trends-canada">labour shortages</a> and conflicts between managers and employees over <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2022/02/16/covid-19-pandemic-continues-to-reshape-work-in-america/">returning to in-person work</a>. </p>
<p>Employee burnout and well-being may be at the heart of several of these issues. </p>
<p>Two new studies highlight the importance of social connection in the workplace and illustrate why working from home may not be the optimal workplace arrangement. Hybrid work-from-home schedules may help prevent burnout and improve mental health.</p>
<h2>So, what is burnout?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://icd.who.int/browse11/l-m/en#/http://id.who.int/icd/entity/129180281">International Classification of Diseases</a> describes burnout as “a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” </p>
<p>As a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/karlynborysenko/2019/05/29/burnout-is-now-an-officially-diagnosable-condition-heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-it/?sh=54b94c62b99b">diagnosable condition</a>, burnout consists of three symptoms: </p>
<ol>
<li>physical exhaustion, </li>
<li>disengagement with work and colleagues, and </li>
<li>cynicism for one’s job and career. </li>
</ol>
<p>For many who have experienced burnout, it can feel just like the metaphor that describes it: something akin to a burnt-up shriveled match stick, cold to the touch. </p>
<h2>What causes burnout and how can it be stopped?</h2>
<p>According to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/edwardsegal/2022/10/15/surveys-show-burnout-is-an-international-crisis/?sh=7d4422ed7cf7">global research</a>, approximately 50 per cent of employees and 53 per cent of managers are burnt out in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Workplaces are clearly not thriving. </p>
<p>As a social epidemiologist studying contemporary emotional distress within the context of public health crises, I’ve been keen to understand what factors contribute to burnout and how it can be successfully managed — particularly given the ongoing challenges created by COVID-19. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A row of matches with red tips, with one burnt up match" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490930/original/file-20221020-24-zk0f61.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490930/original/file-20221020-24-zk0f61.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490930/original/file-20221020-24-zk0f61.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490930/original/file-20221020-24-zk0f61.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490930/original/file-20221020-24-zk0f61.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490930/original/file-20221020-24-zk0f61.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490930/original/file-20221020-24-zk0f61.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Burnout can feel just like the euphemism that describes it: something akin to a burnt-up shriveled match stick.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>You might think researchers would know everything there is to know about burnout at this point. After all, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1176/ps.29.4.233">burnout has been studied</a> since at least the late 1970s. <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28903843/">Many of the studies conducted since</a> then have focused on workplace conditions, such as pay, hours, management styles and the nebulous “workplace culture.” </p>
<p>As such, management of burnout has often focused on reshaping work environments and reforming bad managers. While these are of course necessary, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/1348-9585.12360">it’s not immediately clear that they’re enough</a>. </p>
<p>With the emergence of the pandemic, many people have new levels of awareness of the impossibility of severing work from life. For some, that awareness comes from how tired they are when they get home from a shift. For others working from home, it may come from the disappearing divide between home and office. </p>
<p>In any case, our emotional and psychological well-being is with us whether we’re at work or at home. As such, it makes sense that we take a holistic view of burnout. Social connection is a key driver of burnout.</p>
<h2>The social costs and benefits of working from home</h2>
<p>In a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/1348-9585.12360">recent study</a> by my lab at Simon Fraser University, we sought to identify the most important risk factors for burnout. We looked at a range of variables, including the classic factors of workload, satisfaction with pay, dignity in the workplace, control over one’s work, and pay adequacy, as well as more novel variables such as home ownership, an array of demographic factors, social support and loneliness.</p>
<p>In conducting this study, we found that loneliness and lack of social support come out as leading contributors to burnout, perhaps just as important — if not moreso — than physical health and financial security. In summary, the study contributes to a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/09/opinion/burnout-friends-isolation.html">growing understanding</a> of burnout as a social problem driven by isolation. </p>
<p>One potential and evolving source of isolation is the emerging trend of working from home. As many people have had the privilege to learn, there are many benefits of working from home. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/15/pet-time-and-power-naps-working-from-home-during-the-covid-crisis">It enables people to save time on their commutes and have more freedom to get chores done around the house or take a quick nap on their breaks</a>. This means they have more time and energy for friends and family at the end of the day. </p>
<p>On the other hand, <a href="https://hbr.org/2021/03/remote-workers-need-small-talk-too">working from home means losing out on those water cooler conversations and casual collisions with coworkers</a> — which have a <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2120668119#sec-2">surprisingly profound</a> impact on well-being. Furthermore, considering <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/11/friends-relationships-work-productivity-career/">how important workplaces and schools are for finding and building friendships</a>, a loss of these spaces could have serious long-term consequences for people’s social health — especially if the time spent with others at work is now spent at home alone.</p>
<h2>The importance of social connection to health and happiness</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Three people having a discussion while gathered around a laptop" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490934/original/file-20221020-13-hip9f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490934/original/file-20221020-13-hip9f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490934/original/file-20221020-13-hip9f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490934/original/file-20221020-13-hip9f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490934/original/file-20221020-13-hip9f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490934/original/file-20221020-13-hip9f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490934/original/file-20221020-13-hip9f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Research highlighted the importance of social connection to workplace well-being.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Pexels/Kampus Production)</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>To understand the impacts of working from home on mental health, my team conducted a <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191811588">second study</a> to look at differences in self-rated mental health across individuals who work only from home, only in person, or who worked partially in-person and partially at home. We controlled for potentially important factors such as income, hours of work, occupation, age, gender, and ethnicity.</p>
<p>Our results showed that 54 per cent of those who worked only in person and 63 per cent of those who worked only at home reported good or excellent mental health. From these results, you might conclude that working from home is best for mental health — a finding contrary to a <a href="https://www.uprightpose.com/the-health-dilemma-of-the-work-from-home-era/">growing number of studies that highlight the disadvantages and challenges of working from home</a>. </p>
<p>However, there’s a catch: a whopping 87 per cent of those who reported a hybrid work arrangement — meaning they worked partially in-person and partially at home — had good or excellent mental health. </p>
<p>While the type of work done at home and in-person certainly shapes these trends, our findings nevertheless point to the possibility that hybrid work might give employees the best of both worlds — especially within the context of our first study, which highlighted the importance of social connection to workplace well-being. Indeed, hybrid work arrangements may allow employees to maintain those positive connections with colleagues while also providing a better balance between work and life. It really may be the best of both worlds — at least for those who can work this way.</p>
<p>As employees and employers continue to adapt to the new normal in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, our research provides a strong reminder for us to all remember the importance of social connection. It’s all too easy to forget that <a href="http://ccare.stanford.edu/press_posts/good-social-relationships-are-the-most-consistent-predictor-of-a-happy-life/">strong social relationships and communities are the foundation of health and happiness</a> within and outside the workplace.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/192740/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kiffer George Card receives funding from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the Canadian Research Coordinating Committee, Michael Smith Health Research BC, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. He is affiliated with Simon Fraser University’s Faculty of Health Sciences, The Pacific Institute on Pathogens, Pandemics and Society, The Institute for Social Connection, The Community-based Research Centre, the GenWell Project, The Island Sexual Health Society, and the Mental Health and Climate Change Alliance.
</span></em></p>Two new studies highlight the importance of social connection in the workplace and illustrate why working from home may not be the optimal workplace arrangement.Kiffer George Card, Assistant Professor in Health Sciences, Simon Fraser UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1880092022-08-26T04:36:25Z2022-08-26T04:36:25Z‘Let’s just do it’: how do e-changers feel about having left the city now lockdowns are over?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480536/original/file-20220823-24-ug4rqq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C283%2C4031%2C2685&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Author provided</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 2020, propelled by the pandemic and the push to work from home, thousands of Australian households made the decision to move from the city to the country. A significant swathe of these internal migrants were “e-changers”, workers holding on to their city jobs and working remotely. </p>
<p>During the thick of the lockdown period, as growing numbers of city slickers swapped their urban lifestyles to work in remote and rural settings, we <a href="https://accan.org.au/files/Grants/2022%20E-Change%20RMIT/ACCAN_Report_Final3web.pdf">undertook online interviews</a> with householders in <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/blog/career/australias-super-connected-lifestyle-locations">e-change coastal hotspots</a> and “lifestyle towns” in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. We were interested in their experiences of lifestyle migration, including the challenges facing these pioneers of remote working and living. We then spoke to our e-changers one year later to see how they fared.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/fancy-an-e-change-how-people-are-escaping-city-congestion-and-living-costs-by-working-remotely-123165">Fancy an e-change? How people are escaping city congestion and living costs by working remotely</a>
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<p>One of the early pandemic e-changers was Charles and his partner. They relocated to a coastal location two hours’ drive from Melbourne in March 2020. </p>
<p>Before the pandemic Charles was a busy librarian in a large inner-urban university. Working in the buzzing heart of the city, his day job involved regular face-to-face engagement with academic staff and students in the library and across the campus. </p>
<p>Fast forward to today and Charles’s daily routine when working remotely looks very different. His workday – now largely spent online – is still extremely busy, but it might start with a surf and end with a walk on the beach. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477807/original/file-20220805-5528-m6dhww.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477807/original/file-20220805-5528-m6dhww.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=798&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477807/original/file-20220805-5528-m6dhww.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=798&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477807/original/file-20220805-5528-m6dhww.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=798&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477807/original/file-20220805-5528-m6dhww.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1003&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477807/original/file-20220805-5528-m6dhww.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1003&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477807/original/file-20220805-5528-m6dhww.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1003&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">These days a workday for Charles might start with a surf and end with a walk along the beach.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To many, this scenario probably sounds like a dream lifestyle, especially for those of us who spent large chunks of the past two years under lockdown. But is the <a href="https://www.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/4159380/GMR_3.pdf">shift to remote regional work</a> as idyllic as it seems? What kinds of people decided to become e-changers? And what have their experiences been? </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/flexibility-makes-us-happier-with-3-clear-trends-emerging-in-post-pandemic-hybrid-work-180310">Flexibility makes us happier, with 3 clear trends emerging in post-pandemic hybrid work</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>3 kinds of e-changers</h2>
<p>The e-changers in our <a href="https://accan.org.au/files/Grants/2022%20E-Change%20RMIT/ACCAN_Report_Final3web.pdf">study</a> were a diverse group of people with various motivations for moving to the country. We found three broad groups of e-changers, marked by different stages of life. </p>
<p>The first group – represented by older couples like Charles and Di – had often been planning a lifestyle change for some time, in early anticipation of retirement. </p>
<p>The second group were younger couples and singles. They were often motivated by a desire to live closer to natural amenities such as beaches, forests or mountains. Research manager Irene and her partner, for instance, moved from inner Melbourne to Mt Macedon in Victoria in May 2020. Irene recalled:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We’d been talking about this for a while because we’re both from regional areas.
But after the first Melbourne lockdown, we thought ‘let’s just do it’, so we found a rental here. For us it was about having greater access to the outdoors – we both enjoy biking, hiking, running and climbing.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The third and largest group were households with dependent children. They were generally seeking more affordable and larger homes with space for their children to spend time outdoors. Kevin, an engineer whose family relocated from Sydney to Wollongong, is a good example of these aspirations:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>When we had our second child […] we wanted to buy a family house but were priced out of Sydney, so we cast our net around remote and regional areas – the Blue Mountains, the Central Coast, but Wollongong came top of the list based upon distance to my office, a more relaxed lifestyle, closer to beach and bush, good schools, good health care, wasn’t too small, wasn’t too large.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480513/original/file-20220823-24-kli3rl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480513/original/file-20220823-24-kli3rl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480513/original/file-20220823-24-kli3rl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480513/original/file-20220823-24-kli3rl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480513/original/file-20220823-24-kli3rl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480513/original/file-20220823-24-kli3rl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480513/original/file-20220823-24-kli3rl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">When Mick, a senior manager, and his wife moved to the country from Melbourne, he converted part of a farm shed into an office space.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-city-is-becoming-increasingly-digital-forcing-us-to-rethink-its-role-in-life-and-work-189118">The 'city' is becoming increasingly digital, forcing us to rethink its role in life and work</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Different groups, different outcomes</h2>
<p>We spoke with our e-changers one year later. How were they finding the experience of living a significant distance from the cultural life and amenities of a major city? </p>
<p>While they miss the cosmopolitanism and vitality of the city, Charles and Di are still enjoying the calmness, daily encounters with wildlife and close connection to neighbours in their small coastal locale. But they now rent an Airbnb in Melbourne for a couple of nights a week. These regular commutes enable them to reconnect with colleagues and get a dose of urban vibrancy. </p>
<p>By contrast, Irene and her partner have returned to Melbourne from Mount Macedon. While the e-change experience was a “fun break from the city and an experience of regional life”, Irene’s commitment to her career meant she wanted to be near her office. Lengthy commutes on the train – made worse by service cancellations and delays – made her city workdays long and tiring.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/it-seemed-like-a-good-idea-in-lockdown-but-is-moving-to-the-country-right-for-you-148807">It seemed like a good idea in lockdown, but is moving to the country right for you?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Long-term e-changers Kevin and his family have no regrets about the move. They cannot imagine returning to the city. For Kevin, the flexibility of working from home has enabled him to share more of the role of home care, such as cooking dinner and doing school drop-offs, with his partner, a busy healthcare worker. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>It’s [working from home] the way forward. I don’t think anyone’s gonna go back.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, for professionals like Kevin, living and working remotely still has some limitations in terms of access to transport and airports. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We have to have access or a link to a major centre, whether through rail, public transport, so we never lose that ability to be able to go into a meeting in the city if they need to. And I think Australia is going to get better at that.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480516/original/file-20220823-13-8jt4mz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480516/original/file-20220823-13-8jt4mz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=798&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480516/original/file-20220823-13-8jt4mz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=798&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480516/original/file-20220823-13-8jt4mz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=798&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480516/original/file-20220823-13-8jt4mz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1003&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480516/original/file-20220823-13-8jt4mz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1003&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480516/original/file-20220823-13-8jt4mz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1003&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Kevin enjoys working from home but hopes public transport access to the city will improve.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188009/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tania Lewis received funding from The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) to conduct this research.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Glover received funding from The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) to conduct this research.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julian Waters-Lynch received funding from The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) to conduct this research. </span></em></p>Can we now work from anywhere with an internet connection? We interviewed workers who left the city but held onto their jobs to see how they fared. One year on, some had no regrets. Others moved back.Tania Lewis, Professor of Media and Communication and Co-Director, Digital Ethnography Research Centre, RMIT UniversityAndrew Glover, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Sustainable Urban Precincts Project, RMIT UniversityJulian Waters-Lynch, Lecturer in Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Organisational Design, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1891182022-08-24T20:01:57Z2022-08-24T20:01:57ZThe ‘city’ is becoming increasingly digital, forcing us to rethink its role in life and work<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480493/original/file-20220823-22-y3dtnz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=71%2C0%2C5577%2C3744&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The role of the city is changing. To find out how, we surveyed more than 2,000 Victorians living in Melbourne, its suburbs and regional centres in April 2022. </p>
<p>The survey is the first of its kind in Australia and documents a pivotal point in Melbourne of social and economic reopening after long and stringent COVID lockdowns. The findings are <a href="https://www.rmit.edu.au/events/2022/august/infrastructure-demands-required-for-a-digital-cbd">being released today</a> in our Digital Infrastructures report as a part of the <a href="https://www.rmit.edu.au/partner/research-partnerships/future-digital-cbd">Digital CBD project</a>. </p>
<p>At the threshold of a “new normal”, we found the <a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-in-victoria-262-days-in-lockdown-3-stunning-successes-and-4-avoidable-failures-172408">long lockdowns</a> to contain the spread of the virus, and the rapid adoption of digital technologies, have changed the way we engage with the city. It’s now seen as less a place of work and more of a place for socialising, shopping and services.</p>
<p>What people told us is that at the time of reopening in Melbourne, they were getting into the city about once a month on average. This included people living in the suburbs and regional centres. People who went into the city for work did so for an average of only nine hours a week.</p>
<p>It’s not surprising they were visiting the city centre much less often but, still, it raises the question of <a href="https://eurocities.eu/latest/city-dialogue-on-urban-development-and-covid-19/">what we want to use the city for</a>. That was the subject of a <a href="https://theconversation.com/liveable-cities-who-decides-what-that-means-and-how-we-achieve-it-48825">long and complex debate</a> even before the pandemic.</p>
<p>We surveyed a representative sample of 2,064 people. This means we can be confident that what they told us broadly represents experiences across the population. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2h16KJmR2Vk?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">RMIT researchers interviewed people about how they feel about Melbourne and the rise of a digital city.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/liveable-cities-who-decides-what-that-means-and-how-we-achieve-it-48825">Liveable cities: who decides what that means and how we achieve it?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What is the role of the city in the wake of the pandemic?</h2>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/few-australians-have-the-right-to-work-from-home-even-after-covid-heres-how-that-could-change-187696">Work remains the main reason</a> for people to engage with the city. Our survey respondents in the workforce did so for an average of nine hours a week. </p>
<p>When we look at the work-from-home data we gathered, one in seven employed people work from home completely, and a third practice hybrid work arrangements in Victoria. We found that on average people will work from home two days a week. These averages are taken from people who live and work full-time and part-time across the regions and suburbs, not just in the inner city. Most employed people valued and wanted to continue to have this choice of whether to work from home or in the office. </p>
<p>So, Melbourne city can’t really be thought of as the place where workers go – that is, the office hive. What people told us makes it seem like a lifestyle space. Indeed, what they felt was important in Melbourne was the hospitality scene, essential services (such as medical appointments), and the cultural and creative life, including education, sport and shopping.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1534033645626859521"}"></div></p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/few-australians-have-the-right-to-work-from-home-even-after-covid-heres-how-that-could-change-187696">Few Australians have the right to work from home, even after COVID. Here's how that could change</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The suburbs as ‘cities’</h2>
<p>But many could easily <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/business/the-economy/a-tale-of-two-suburbs-and-how-covid-has-changed-the-way-we-shop-20220309-p5a301.html">find those activities in their suburbs</a>. This means getting to the city is much less important for them. </p>
<p>Those living in the regions had more trouble remembering when they last visited the city, which suggests it is not essential to their everyday lives.</p>
<p>Despite these perceptions of the shifting centrality of the city in people’s daily lives, residents felt they were spending about the same amount of time in the city as before the pandemic. This observation needs to be treated with caution because a quarter of Melbourne residents in our survey were spending much less time in the city than before the pandemic.</p>
<h2>Are people ready for a digital city?</h2>
<p>These findings suggest we need to ask whether a city can depend on its reputation for lifestyle to hold its position in a global economy, or as a political centre and trade gateway. As digital technologies have been rapidly adopted during the pandemic, we think it is more important to consider how we can position Melbourne as a digital city of the future.</p>
<p>A digital city refers to the array of connected devices and infrastructures that complement the city’s business, cultural and social life. Digital activities range from personal devices such as smartphones to initiatives like the <a href="https://www.theurbanlist.com/melbourne/a-list/the-lume-melbourne2">digital art gallery</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1559410185663221761"}"></div></p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.rmit.edu.au/partner/research-partnerships/future-digital-cbd">our report</a> on the new infrastructure demands for Melbourne, we see the city as an eclectic hub that supports entrepreneurial, creative, cultural, learning and digital endeavours that interweave the regions and connects to the global context.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/tech-diplomacy-cities-drive-a-new-era-of-digital-policy-and-innovation-89959">Tech diplomacy: cities drive a new era of digital policy and innovation</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Digital inclusion is vital</h2>
<p>But for city residents to know how to engage with and benefit from a digital city, they need to have the skills and access to technology. Melbourne residents also told us about their digital abilities. Like the findings from the <a href="https://www.digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">Australian Digital Inclusion Index</a>, we found Melburnians have high digital abilities, but not all are ready for the digital city of the future.</p>
<p>Digital skill-building is essential. We also need to ensure technologies are accessible and affordable and that internet access is reliable so <a href="https://www.digitalinclusionindex.org.au/key-findings-and-next-steps/">no one is left behind</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1552847832046260225"}"></div></p>
<p>The pandemic has transformed the city. This is an opportunity for some more imaginative thinking. </p>
<p>Our report highlights the investments we need to make to create a more inclusive city. We now need to think about what is needed, materially and socially, for a digital city to foster wellbeing for every individual and across society.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189118/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexia Maddox receives funding from the Victorian Higher Education State Investment Fund (VHESIF).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jacinthe Flore receives funding from the Australian Research Council and RMIT University.</span></em></p>A survey of more than 2,000 people as Melbourne reopened after COVID lockdowns shows the pandemic and digital technology have made the city less a place of work, more a place to visit now and then.Alexia Maddox, Research Fellow, Blockchain Innovation Hub, RMIT, RMIT UniversityJacinthe Flore, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1883222022-08-16T16:41:40Z2022-08-16T16:41:40ZProcrastinating is linked to health and career problems – but there are things you can do to stop<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479349/original/file-20220816-25-vlxids.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=33%2C0%2C4459%2C2964&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Procrastination is an all-too-common problem</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/teenage-girl-listening-music-looking-her-1008197395">Yulia Grigoryeva/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Do you ever beat yourself up for procrastinating? You might be composing that message to a friend who you have to let down, or writing a big report for school or work, and doing your best to avoid it but deep down knowing you should just get on with it. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, telling yourself off won’t stop you procrastinating again. In fact, it’s one of the worst things you can do. This matters because, as my research shows, procrastination isn’t just a time-sapper but is actually linked to real problems. </p>
<p>Procrastination is not a result of laziness or poor time management. Scientific studies suggest procrastination is due to <a href="https://compass.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/spc3.12011">poor mood management</a>. </p>
<p>This makes sense if we consider that people are more likely to put off starting or completing tasks that they <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886999000914">feel aversion towards</a>. If just thinking about the task makes you anxious or threatens your sense of self-worth, you will be more likely to put it off.</p>
<p>Research has found that <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/psyp.13782">regions of the brain</a> linked to threat detection and emotion regulation are different in people who chronically procrastinate compared to those who don’t procrastinate frequently. </p>
<p>When we avoid the unpleasant task, we also avoid the negative emotions associated with it. This is <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.609874/full">rewarding</a> and conditions us to use procrastination to repair our mood. If we engage in more enjoyable tasks instead, we get another mood boost. </p>
<p>Tasks that are emotionally loaded or difficult, such as studying for an exam, or preparing for public speaking are prime candidates for procrastination. People with <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12144-021-02075-x">low self-esteem</a> are more likely to procrastinate as are those with <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/per.2098">high levels of perfectionism</a> who worry their work will be judged harshly by others. If you don’t finish that report or complete those home repairs, then what you did can’t be evaluated. </p>
<p>But <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4899-0227-6_7">guilt and shame</a> often linger when people try to distract themselves with <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563215004343">more pleasant activities</a>. </p>
<p>In the long run, procrastination isn’t an effective way of managing emotions. The mood repair you experience is temporary. Afterwards, people tend to engage in <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2002-10572-023">self-critical ruminations</a> that not only increase their negative mood, but also reinforce their tendency to procrastinate. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Women stares at laptop with her face in her hands" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479351/original/file-20220816-5614-zqcgvx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479351/original/file-20220816-5614-zqcgvx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479351/original/file-20220816-5614-zqcgvx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479351/original/file-20220816-5614-zqcgvx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479351/original/file-20220816-5614-zqcgvx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479351/original/file-20220816-5614-zqcgvx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479351/original/file-20220816-5614-zqcgvx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">We put off tasks because they feel overwhelming.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/bored-young-african-american-girl-tired-1444225961">fizkes/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How is procrastination harmful?</h2>
<p>So why is this such a problem? When most people think of the costs of procrastination, they think of the toll on productivity. For example, studies have shown that academic procrastination <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/european-psychiatry/article/academic-procrastination-in-university-students-associated-factors-and-impact-on-academic-performance/D230B8D2D670DC7C2884294A274A08B5">negatively impacts student performance</a>. </p>
<p>But academic procrastination may affect other areas of students’ lives. <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/03075079.2013.854765">In one study</a> of over 3,000 German students over a six month period, those who reported procrastinating on their academic work were also more likely to engage in academic misconduct, such as cheating and plagiarism. But the behaviour procrastination was most closely linked with was using fraudulent excuses to get deadline extensions. </p>
<p>Other research shows employees on average spend almost a <a href="https://www.humanresourcesonline.net/how-much-time-are-your-employees-spending-procrastinating">quarter of their workday procrastinating</a>, and again this is linked with worse outcomes. <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ijsa.12048">In one US survey of over 22,000 employees</a>, participants who said they regularly procrastinated had lower annual incomes and less job stability. For every one-point increase on a measure of chronic procrastination, salary decreased by US$15,000 (£12,450).</p>
<p>Procrastination also correlates with serious <a href="https://www.elsevier.com/books/procrastination-health-and-well-being/sirois/978-0-12-802862-9">health and wellbeing</a> problems. A tendency to procrastinate is linked to poor mental health, including higher <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10942-017-0271-5">levels of depression and anxiety</a>.</p>
<p>Across numerous studies, I’ve found people who regularly procrastinate report a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886902003264">greater number of health issues</a>, such as headaches, flu and colds, and digestive issues. They also experience <a href="https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/91791/1/Procrastination%20and%20self%20compassion%20rev2%20FINAL.pdf">higher levels of stress</a> and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311908.2015.1074776#:%7E:text=Research%20to%20date%2C%20testing%20the%20procrastination%E2%80%93health%20model%20%28Sirois%2C,health%20problems%20and%20behaviors%20that%20included%20sleep-related%20outcomes">poor sleep quality</a>. </p>
<p>They were less likely to practice <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886906004454">healthy behaviours</a>, such as eating a healthy diet and regularly exercising, and use <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1002/per.1985?journalCode=erpa">destructive coping strategies</a> to manage their stress. In one study of over 700 people, I found people prone to procrastination had a 63% greater risk of <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10865-015-9629-2">poor heart health</a> after accounting for other personality traits and demographics. </p>
<h2>How to stop procrastinating</h2>
<p>Learning not to procrastinate isn’t going to solve all your problems. But finding <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.780675/full">better ways to regulate your emotions</a> could be a route to improving your mental health and wellbeing.</p>
<p>An important first step is to manage your environment and how you view the task. There are a number of <a href="https://www.waterstones.com/book/procrastination/fuschia-m-sirois/9781433838064">evidence-based strategies</a> that can help you quarantine <a href="https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bjso.12243">distractions</a>, and set up your tasks so they <a href="https://theconversation.com/working-from-home-here-are-five-ways-to-reduce-procrastination-and-be-productive-133636">provoke less anxiety and feel more meaningful</a>. For example, reminding yourself why the task is important and valuable to you can increase your positive feelings towards it. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886910000474">Forgiving yourself</a> and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15298868.2013.763404?journalCode=psai20">showing yourself compassion</a> when you procrastinate can help break the procrastination cycle. Admit you feel bad without judging yourself. Remind yourself that you’re not the first person to procrastinate, and you won’t be the last.</p>
<p>Doing this can take the edge off the negative feelings we have about ourselves when we procrastinate. This can make it easier to get <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0146167212445599?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%20%200pubmed">back on track</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188322/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Fuschia Sirois does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Understanding the why of procrastination is key to breaking the habit.Fuschia Sirois, Professor in Social & Health Psychology, Durham UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1876962022-07-29T02:40:12Z2022-07-29T02:40:12ZFew Australians have the right to work from home, even after COVID. Here’s how that could change<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476601/original/file-20220728-28783-b63gwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C495%2C5016%2C2515&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Before the pandemic, working from home was a luxury. Then it became a necessity. Since lockdowns have eased it has become a contested space between what employers and workers want. </p>
<p>Now <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/unions-want-the-right-to-work-from-home-included-in-enterprise-agreements-20220721-p5b3cj.html">unions</a> – including the Financial Services Union, National Tertiary Education Union (of which I am a national councillor) and the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance – are pushing to enshrine working from home as a right.</p>
<p>What does it mean to have a right to work from home, and why should there be one? And what conditions are needed to make such a right effective?</p>
<h2>What is the current situation?</h2>
<p>One way to make working from home a legal entitlement for all would be to change the <a href="https://www.fairwork.gov.au/employment-conditions/national-employment-standards">National Employment Standards</a>, which provide a <a href="https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/consol_act/fwa2009114/s3.html">safety net</a> for all workers, whether they are on an award, enterprise agreement or individual contract.</p>
<p>The standards give workers the <a href="https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/consol_act/fwa2009114/s65.html">right to request</a> flexible working arrangements but only in certain circumstances – if they have caring responsibilities, a disability, are older than 55, or are experiencing domestic violence. </p>
<p>Employers can only refuse these requests on “reasonable business grounds” such as costliness, impracticability and negative impact on productivity and customer service. This leaves a lot of room to reasonably reject a request.</p>
<h2>A right through collective agreements</h2>
<p>The unions are taking the easier step of securing these rights for their members through collective bargaining – inserting clauses into the enterprise agreements that set pay and conditions above the safety net.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="About a third of Australian workers have their pay and conditions set by a enterprise bargaining agreement" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476614/original/file-20220729-21-504bdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476614/original/file-20220729-21-504bdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476614/original/file-20220729-21-504bdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476614/original/file-20220729-21-504bdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476614/original/file-20220729-21-504bdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476614/original/file-20220729-21-504bdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476614/original/file-20220729-21-504bdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">About a third of Australian workers have their pay and conditions set by a enterprise bargaining agreement.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>What those clauses would say is indicated by the Australian Council of Trade Unions’ <a href="https://www.actu.org.au/media/1449328/d59-working-from-home-charter.pdf">Working from Home Charter</a>, which states:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Working from home should be offered to all suitable workers to accept on a voluntary basis. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>The Financial Sector Union’s “<a href="https://www.fsunion.org.au/working-from-home-guide-to-best-practice/">best-practice</a>” guide similarly advocates that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Employees should be able to enter into and out of work from home arrangements based on their personal circumstances, responsibilities and preferences. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Employers will still be able to refuse requests, but only with good reason. The clauses being sought by the National Tertiary Education Union, for example, will limit refusals to situations when requests cannot be accommodated. </p>
<p>In short, a right to work from home will place the onus on employers to justify why they are seeking to deny working from home arrangements.</p>
<h2>Why should there be such a right?</h2>
<p>The case for a right to work from home has been made by the <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/media-centre/media-releases/more-40-cent-australians-worked-home">seismic shift</a> resulting from the pandemic.</p>
<p>It has shown that, in many instances, work can be performed effectively while working from home. Contrary to managerial concerns that productivity would suffer, research suggests those working from home <a href="https://theconversation.com/even-google-agrees-theres-no-going-back-to-the-old-office-life-177808">have higher productivity</a>.</p>
<p>Most workers and many businesses have embraced the change. There is a clear benefit to workers in reduced commuting time and costs (especially for those with long commutes). </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/even-google-agrees-theres-no-going-back-to-the-old-office-life-177808">Even Google agrees there's no going back to the old office life</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>There are also social benefits</h2>
<p>Working from home may be “<a href="https://theconversation.com/have-we-just-stumbled-on-the-biggest-productivity-increase-of-the-century-145104">the biggest productivity increase of the century</a>”. It helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions – which is why it is part of “<a href="https://agreenment.adapt.it/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/agreenment_guidelines-1.pdf">green bargaining</a>” for European trade unions. It can also promote a more gender-balanced workforce, as the Productivity Commission’s <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/research/completed/working-from-home/working-from-home.pdf">research</a> suggests: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>More women than men are in jobs that can be done remotely. Additionally, since women in Australia still carry most of the responsibility for raising children, and are also more likely than men to care for others, the option to work from home may allow them to access employment.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Working from home can particularly benefit women with caring responsibilities, though there are also risks to manage" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476615/original/file-20220729-24-g87izk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476615/original/file-20220729-24-g87izk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476615/original/file-20220729-24-g87izk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476615/original/file-20220729-24-g87izk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476615/original/file-20220729-24-g87izk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476615/original/file-20220729-24-g87izk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476615/original/file-20220729-24-g87izk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Working from home can particularly benefit women with caring responsibilities, though there are also risks to manage.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>More generally, the Productivity Commission expects that reducing “cost” of working will increase the labour supply.</p>
<h2>Health is still an imperative</h2>
<p>With the COVID-19 pandemic not yet over, there are also powerful safety rationales.</p>
<p>Paul Kelly, the federal chief medical officer, <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/news/chief-medical-officer-professor-paul-kellys-interview-on-abc-radio-national-on-20-july-2022">has called</a> working from home “an important health and safety measure”. </p>
<p>As an essential control measure for workplace safety – required in certain situations under work, health and safety legislation – it can even be an act of social solidarity. </p>
<h2>5 crucial safeguards to manage risks</h2>
<p>Working from home is not without risks. </p>
<p>It may undermine workplace community, and the collaboration and innovation generated from “<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-death-of-the-open-plan-office-not-quite-but-a-revolution-is-in-the-air-140724">serendipitous interaction</a>”. But this is less an argument against a right to work from home and more one to <a href="https://www.afr.com/technology/industry-insight-hybrid-work-is-not-a-remote-future-20210708-p58836">wisely manage</a>.</p>
<p>Equally the risks to individual workers need to be managed.</p>
<p>To be effective, a right to work from home should be underpinned by provisions to safeguard five things:</p>
<ul>
<li><p><strong>Genuine choice.</strong> This including the ability to exercise the right to work from home as a group and through trade unions. </p></li>
<li><p><strong>Working hours.</strong> There is a serious risk of “<a href="https://australiainstitute.org.au/report/working-from-home-or-living-at-work/">time theft</a>” as the line between work and home life is blurred. (The “reasonable limitation of working hours” is a <a href="https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights">human right</a>.)</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Workplace safety.</strong> Employers still have work, health and safety obligations to employees working from home.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Digital safety.</strong> This includes <a href="https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/guidance-and-advice/assessing-privacy-risks-in-changed-working-environments-privacy-impact-assessments">data privacy protection</a> and a <a href="https://www.australianunions.org.au/2022/02/23/the-right-to-disconnect-allowing-workers-to-properly-unplug/">right to disconnect</a> outside set working hours.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Equity.</strong> This includes ensuring working from home does not exacerbate the <a href="https://socialeurope.eu/the-home-as-office-whats-gender-got-to-do-with-it">double burden of paid work and care</a> and distributing costs fairly. The general rule should be that employers provide work equipment and cover necessary costs such as electricity. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Working from home is fundamentally changing where and how we work. A right to work from home with robust support will steer this transformation in a positive direction.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/working-from-home-what-are-your-employers-responsibilities-and-what-are-yours-133922">Working from home: what are your employer's responsibilities, and what are yours?</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187696/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joo-Cheong Tham has received funding from the Australian Research Council, the Australian Council of Trade Unions, European Trade Union Institute and International IDEA. He is a director of the Centre for Public Integrity; a national councillor and Victorian division assistant secretary (academic staff)-elect of the National Tertiary Education Union.</span></em></p>Who’s allowed to ask to work from home – and who isn’t? This is what unions are arguing for to extend that right to more people.Joo-Cheong Tham, Professor, Melbourne Law School, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1874272022-07-26T20:05:04Z2022-07-26T20:05:04ZWorking from home: 7 tips to boost wellbeing and productivity<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475805/original/file-20220725-25-slro76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=55%2C77%2C7333%2C4841&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://image.shutterstock.com/image-photo/businesswoman-working-on-laptop-computer-600w-1708606831.jpg">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Telstra and Westpac are the <a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/coronavirus-update-australia-telstra-westpac-encourage-staff-work-from-home-covid-19-wave/4bdb581f-1ad7-4d46-bb79-b460e85903a4">latest companies</a> to encourage staff to work from home, just a few months after some of them returned to the office. </p>
<p>Working from home for extended periods can <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/00483481211229375/full/html?casa_token=pXpuOLzcnwgAAAAA:a79KNhqriGj77CxzD3TpQvwzKraj7PKn2Y9yFATu4m-NzJC0Nv7AsPeWIkX3g_VH1D9FnTPDc4n3y5AvcXVOHp7bqQXlm_L8xPt50t_v_0PK5w3F7ZY">leave employees</a> feeling socially and professionally isolated. When people work from home, they have fewer opportunities to interact and acquire information, which may explain why remote workers feel <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2008-16251-016">less confident</a> than their office-based counterparts.</p>
<p>Researchers <a href="https://www.latrobe.edu.au/news/articles/2022/release/pros-and-cons-of-working-from-home">also report</a> working from home (WFH) is linked to negative physical health outcomes such as increased musculoskeletal pain and weight gain, as well as exhaustion.</p>
<p>If you are still working from home or your employer has just reinstated it, the good news is there are evidence-backed tips that can help overcome the challenges. Here are seven tips to navigating the coming weeks and months. </p>
<h2>1. Maintain your connections</h2>
<p>A chief complaint in surveys about working from home is social isolation. We miss connecting with our colleagues and friends. </p>
<p>Loneliness has significant implications for our work, with <a href="https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/ambpp.2011.65869714">research</a> showing work loneliness can result in emotional withdrawal, which ultimately leads to deteriorating performance and wellbeing, as well as <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1745691614568352?casa_token=XofIRHMw5XkAAAAA%3AXkIlmOxQOFUfU8yDl0mwKJz0_fdfjqw1F37nT8vdlCc6X0-KwyblOy4oa2xi6i31bX_IDZ2eAxu9">poorer health</a>.</p>
<p>Now lockdown restrictions have ended, maintaining connection is easier. Planning regular meet-ups with colleagues is an easy and effective way to overcome the social isolation felt working from home. Infection risks can be lessened by wearing <a href="https://theconversation.com/masks-are-strongly-suggested-by-health-authorities-as-the-winter-covid-wave-hits-heres-how-effective-they-are-187006">respirators</a> when you can’t socially distance. You should also stay home if you’re sick. </p>
<p>Some companies are now also implementing <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23748834.2022.2050103">walking meetings</a>. As well as connecting with others, it’s an easy way to get some exercise as well as the stress-reducing <a href="https://content.iospress.com/articles/work/wor2211">benefits</a> of nature. In one <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2014-14435-001">study</a>, walking was shown to increase creativity by 81%.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/masks-are-strongly-suggested-by-health-authorities-as-the-winter-covid-wave-hits-heres-how-effective-they-are-187006">Masks are 'strongly suggested' by health authorities as the winter COVID wave hits. Here's how effective they are</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>2. Tidy up regularly</h2>
<p>While a <a href="https://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/a-messy-desk-is-a-sign-of-genius-according-to-scie.html">messy desk</a> has helped win a Nobel prize and may be helpful for creativity, removing clutter is <a href="https://hbr.org/2019/03/the-case-for-finally-cleaning-your-desk">recommended</a> for a lot of the other types of tasks we undertake in an average workday. A clutter-free desk may <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0360132318307157">reduce the cognitive load</a> on our brains, making us more productive. </p>
<p><a href="https://hbr.org/2019/03/the-case-for-finally-cleaning-your-desk">Researchers</a> have found clutter influences employees’ thinking, emotions and behaviours. These factors affect decision-making, relationships, stress, eating choices and even sleep.</p>
<h2>3. Limit Zoom meetings and reduce ‘pings’</h2>
<p>As technology platforms proliferate, so does the <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-reasons-why-zoom-meetings-are-so-exhausting-137404">overload and distraction for our brains</a>. After more than two years of WFH, the prospect of yet another Zoom meeting may well be uninspiring. </p>
<p>There are a few things we can do. Switch off notifications if possible, and ask whether each meeting really needs to happen. Using document sharing and email can sometimes replace meetings. A good old-fashioned telephone call may also be a good alternative. During a phone call, we only have to concentrate on one voice and can walk around, which can help <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2014-14435-001">thinking</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="laptop shows zoom participants, plus a coffee cup" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475804/original/file-20220725-69862-u5n9jn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Talking to one person on the phone might be more efficient than another zoom.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1588196749597-9ff075ee6b5b?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&auto=format&fit=crop&w=1674&q=80">Unsplash/Chris Montgomery</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/5-reasons-why-zoom-meetings-are-so-exhausting-137404">5 reasons why Zoom meetings are so exhausting</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>4. Ask for feedback</h2>
<p>Wondering how we are doing on the job undermines one of the key psychological drivers of our work, a sense of competence. It might be harder to gauge how your manager thinks you’re tracking with expectations, if you’re socially distant.</p>
<p>Obtaining feedback is <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0022-0663.78.3.210">vital</a> for employees to develop this sense of competence, so make sure you ask for regular feedback.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-its-more-important-than-ever-for-workplaces-to-have-staff-well-being-plans-186807">Why it's more important than ever for workplaces to have staff well-being plans</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>5. Create a WFH space</h2>
<p><a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1350508411405376?casa_token=yBVcdHfEPZ0AAAAA%3ADOO9-Och7dKAQz_AqwnGnKG9LR1NyPV___s9mAbIzpjg7rwawvBcoN0Zoa39DKzdm_aO81igoqQ2">Research</a> suggests replicating what you might have in the office can be a good way to control or mark out a work space at home. Having a proper desk does actually matter. </p>
<p>While few of us will have something as incredible as a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iI_sipn76wI">musical puzzle desk</a>, we can start with a desk that is both functional and attractive. </p>
<p>A flat surface, ergonomic chair, and suitable lighting can <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1518/155723408x342871">reduce problems</a> such as eye strain, muscular pain or stiffness and back injuries, as well as decreasing fatigue.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/get-a-proper-chair-dont-eat-at-your-desk-and-no-phones-in-the-loo-how-to-keep-your-home-workspace-safe-and-hygienic-143535">Get a proper chair, don't eat at your desk, and no phones in the loo – how to keep your home workspace safe and hygienic</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>6. Identify restorative spaces</h2>
<p>Spaces that promote psychological and emotional detachment from work are also important. Restorative spaces, such as lounge areas, cafes, nature rooms and meditations spaces have begun to
<a href="https://www.inc.com/jeff-pochepan/recharge-rooms-are-next-trend-your-employees-need-in-office.html">emerge</a> in office settings in recent years. </p>
<p>Such spaces have been <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=hoRooqUJwVsC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=sally+augustin&ots=uDaGqQl1RF&sig=ah1vogGgrH8B7DTYh2JOLs4j5-M#v=onepage&q=sally%20augustin&f=false">shown</a> to support mental and physical replenishment. </p>
<p>Taking a break on your favourite couch or in a sunny spot during the workday is an important part of maintaining wellbeing and productivity – not something to feel guilty about.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1550614757350473729"}"></div></p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/great-time-to-try-travel-writing-from-the-home-134664">Great time to try: travel writing from the home</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>7. Find ways to disconnect</h2>
<p>It can be <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/14754390910937530/full/html?queryID=22%2F5406560">hard</a> for employees who are working from home to switch off, particularly if we don’t have a dedicated home office space.</p>
<p>Around <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1468-005X.00063?casa_token=foU1gURv0sMAAAAA:ibKr_TNfW-8H9xPMgc4wlfiYYK6cU8oyU29PgiUuKCDT0YDY3rZCOUZFlnZdZ9zg0_kAdm-qybDzwA">half</a> of employees increase their work hours when WFH. Not being able to switch off can have implications beyond the work day. </p>
<p>A <a href="https://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/report/2017/working-anytime-anywhere-the-effects-on-the-world-of-work">study</a> from 15 countries found 42% of individuals who worked from home had trouble sleeping and woke up repeatedly in the night, compared to only 29% of individuals who always worked in the office.</p>
<p>Many workers enjoy not having to commute to the office, but there is a potential <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0090261600800169">downside</a> to losing the “transition time” involved in travelling from home. We might use this time to separate private issues from work ones, to prepare for the day ahead or process the one just passed. </p>
<p>In addition to practical considerations such as shutting down software and finalising tasks, <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2010-16971-001">research</a> shows using defined end-of-day rituals can help achieve psychological detachment, emotional regulation of the nervous system and reduce physiological stress. </p>
<p>Instead of commuting, meditation, journaling, listening to music,
engaging in hobbies or pleasurable activities, or undertaking exercise can <a href="https://store.hbr.org/product/how-to-stop-thinking-about-work-at-3am/H05C3W">give us</a> a mental break, so we aren’t still thinking about work hours later. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/as-boundaries-between-work-and-home-vanish-employees-need-a-right-to-disconnect-158897">As boundaries between work and home vanish, employees need a 'right to disconnect'</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>More than two years into a forced global experiment, we now know a lot more about the benefits and challenges of working from home. Implementing these simple, evidence-backed strategies can make a big difference to our wellbeing.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187427/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Libby (Elizabeth) Sander does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Stay connected but switch off too. Working from home requires a delicate balance to protect your wellbeing and get the job done. Here are some tips.Libby (Elizabeth) Sander, MBA Director & Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour, Bond Business School, Bond UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1868072022-07-20T03:27:37Z2022-07-20T03:27:37ZWhy it’s more important than ever for workplaces to have staff well-being plans<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474738/original/file-20220718-24-et4tfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=17%2C8%2C5965%2C3444&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/thanun vongsuravanich</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>A recent survey of New Zealand workplaces revealed more than a third have <a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/470496/employers-put-on-notice-over-worker-wellbeing">no workplace well-being plan</a> in place. Yet it is necessary, now more than ever, for organisations to understand what a healthy work environment looks like and to provide it for their employees. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2015/0070/latest/DLM5976660.html">2015 Health and Safety at Work Act</a> requires workplaces to look after the physical and mental health and well-being of their staff. This means looking at work through a health and safety lens and understanding the risks that affect people’s well-being at work.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1544776258814627840"}"></div></p>
<p>For many organisations, the legislation took them into new and unknown territory. Our experience working with organisations was that, understandably, many efforts initially focused on managing stress and mental illness only after they occurred. </p>
<p>However, <a href="https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-244X-14-131">evidence</a> clearly points to the importance of having a proactive strategy to prevent psychological harm occurring in the first place – having the fence at the top of the cliff as well as the ambulance at the bottom. </p>
<p>The issue of <a href="https://theconversation.com/languishing-burnout-and-stigma-are-all-among-the-possible-psychological-impacts-as-delta-lingers-in-the-community-167103">workplace burnout</a> has received lots of attention of late, particularly in relation to people working in the health sector. But, even beyond this, there is <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35244087/">clear evidence</a> aspects of work design, organisation and management as well as employees’ social and environmental context play a major role in workers’ psychological and physical health. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-burnt-out-health-workforce-impacts-patient-care-180021">A burnt-out health workforce impacts patient care</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>These psychosocial factors should be the focus of workplace well-being plans. Failure to address them can directly contribute to mental health problems in employees, including <a href="https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/11/6/e044133">depression</a>.</p>
<h2>Recommendations for a well-being plan</h2>
<p>A recent World Health Organization (<a href="https://www.who.int/">WHO</a>) <a href="https://www.who.int/teams/mental-health-and-substance-use/world-mental-health-report">report on mental health</a> listed three key recommendations to prevent mental ill health at work:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>organisational interventions to identify, remove or mitigate psychosocial risks </p></li>
<li><p>mental health training for managers to identify and support healthy work practices and healthy workers</p></li>
<li><p>interventions for employees to increase their personal coping capacity.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Historically, many workplaces have focused on the last recommendation. But to focus solely on boosting individuals’ coping abilities can <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-83745-7_6">place the blame on the person</a> and mask the impact of broader environmental factors. </p>
<p>Our experience working with organisations suggests interventions that only target individuals and not the broader organisation implicitly give the message that employees are to blame if they’re not “resilient enough” to cope with overwhelming workloads and unmanageable deadlines. </p>
<p>Individually focused interventions can also be met with cynicism and lack of buy-in from employees. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A workers' hands sorting apples" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474740/original/file-20220718-77003-mniq0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474740/original/file-20220718-77003-mniq0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474740/original/file-20220718-77003-mniq0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474740/original/file-20220718-77003-mniq0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474740/original/file-20220718-77003-mniq0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474740/original/file-20220718-77003-mniq0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474740/original/file-20220718-77003-mniq0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Boosting individual workers’ coping abilities is not enough and risks making them feel they are to blame.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/industryviews</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Feedback from managers and staff leaders indicates many have monitored employee well-being implicitly and spontaneously in the past (for example, noting when a team member is looking down or feeling upset). But with many workplaces moving to hybrid models of staff working partly from home, these strategies may no longer be effective. </p>
<p>Training managers to spot signs of languishing in people working remotely is a new but much-needed component of many well-being plans.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/languishing-what-to-do-if-youre-feeling-restless-apathetic-or-empty-174994">Languishing: what to do if you're feeling restless, apathetic or empty</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Considering employees’ personal circumstances</h2>
<p>There are a few tips organisations should keep in mind when implementing these recommendations. </p>
<p>Firstly, it’s crucial to ask employees about <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053482217300013">what is stressing them</a>. Use this information as a basis for your plan. It is vital to use a form of survey or assessment developed specifically for this purpose, rather than just guessing or assuming you know what your people think. This means you can track changes in well-being over time. </p>
<p>Secondly, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02678373.2021.1969476">involving employees in the design</a> of any well-being plan will likely increase buy-in and improve uptake of any interventions. </p>
<p>Thirdly, employers need to consider both work and non-work factors. Some <a href="https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-244X-14-131">work factors</a> may be obvious (such as bullying, high workload, exposure to traumatic material), while others may be less so (level of autonomy at work, being consulted about change) yet still critical. <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29608542/">Non-work factors</a> may include financial stress and parenting or relationship difficulties. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="vv" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474742/original/file-20220719-68548-i25wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474742/original/file-20220719-68548-i25wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474742/original/file-20220719-68548-i25wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474742/original/file-20220719-68548-i25wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474742/original/file-20220719-68548-i25wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474742/original/file-20220719-68548-i25wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474742/original/file-20220719-68548-i25wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">With many workplaces moving to hybrid models of staff working partly from home, other factors affect people’s well-being.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Some organisations may blanch at the thought of a workplace helping with aspects of employees’ private lives. But to do so may be a crucial component in contributing towards their well-being. </p>
<p>In addition to reducing risks, a good well-being plan <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21680918/">promotes positive aspects</a> of a workplace. These are the things that make employees want to be there, such as a great office environment, a culture of appreciation, and “fringe benefits” that come with the job. </p>
<p>Psychological well-being in the workplace may still be relatively new territory for many organisations and it’s tempting to pluck the low-hanging fruit by simply providing some extra tools to workers. A comprehensive well-being plan that addresses psychosocial factors will help expand interventions and prove the old adage that prevention is better than cure.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Amanda Wallis and Erika Clarry, at Umbrella Wellbeing, have contributed to this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/186807/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dougal Sutherland works for Victoria University of Wellington and Umbrella Wellbeing. </span></em></p>Many workplaces focus on interventions to increase employees’ coping capacity, but they should be more proactive about creating better conditions at work and considering people’s home situations.Dougal Sutherland, Clinical Psychologist, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of WellingtonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.