It’s official, even if we don’t think we are lonely, working from home has more detrimental effects on our mental health then working outside the home. Find out what employers can do to encourage their workforce towards healthy working-from-home habits.
We went into lockdown!
In March 2020, people in the UK were advised to work from home. About a month later, around half of the UK workforce were working, at least some of the time, from home.
A study about the effects of working from home
This was a drastic change in working practices for many people, and as government started to manage policy changes around returning to the office in the future post-lockdown, a study was commissioned by the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) in which 8,675 people were interviewed and asked about their mental health and working habits at home.
Increase in loneliness and mental distress
The study found what you might expect, that there was a significant increase in mental health issues, namely loneliness, among those working from home, compared to those who didn’t work at home. But there were some surprising findings too, notably that mental distress was experienced by those who did not particularly describe themselves as lonely, and who also lived with other people.
What the study found was that homeworkers miss the face-to-face interactions and new experiences that being in the workplace brings. And although technology can stand in for many of the work processes we need to accomplish, it cannot replicate everything that we need as people.
Lack of division between home and work
The merging of home and work, with the effect workers don’t properly switch off, has been a lot to blame but there are things employees can do to lessen the impact of homeworking on their mental health.
Healthy things employees can do if working from home
Be proactive in contacting colleagues
If you’re feeling disconnected it can be hard to reach out to others. But it might help to know that your colleagues want you to. For your sake and for theirs. Use Zoom, Teams or Google Meet to put in a few scattered catch-ups throughout the week so that you can check in with each other, shoot the breeze about work or shared interests. Face-to-face interaction will boost your mood and your level of communication with your team, combating feelings of isolation and the misunderstandings that can arise from endless emails.
Work away from home once a week
Providing your business protocols support this, suggest employees work away from their home at least once a week. This could be in a café or library. Even being surrounded by people we don’t necessarily know can help us feel more connected to society.
Set goals and accomplishments
Knowing what you want to achieve is half the battle. Ask employees to set their personal and work goals, short and long-term, including easy things they can achieve every day. Boosting mood and productivity, the feeling of accomplishment in achieving goals small and large is significant, and achievable if your working culture promotes it.
Take outdoor breaks
Breaks and lunchtimes if taken outside, perhaps including a walk or outdoor exercise and extremely beneficial for homeworkers. Maybe you could suggest lunchtime walks, and potentially colleagues could meet up if they live close by. Anything that gets people outside and away from the laptops for even a short time is renowned for boosting productivity.
Plan enjoyment for after work
Encourage employees to make post-work plans in their personal and work-social lives. If we know we are doing something social or fun after work it gives us a positive focus and stops us from feeling lonely. This will also help to enforce the divide between work and personal time, where the laptop can go off and out of sight, and hopefully out of mind.
When employers are aware of how working practices can positively affect employers, instead of being focused only on productivity, conversely, productivity can actually improve, showing that investing in your workforce pays dividends.
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