CPD: Exploring the experiences of working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic

The sudden shift to working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic was a profound and destablising experience for many. PhD student Charlotte E Hall analyses some of the health and wellbeing lessons we can learn for future practice.

In January 2020, as most of us will no doubt recall only too well, the World Health Organization declared “a public health emergency of international concern” over a novel coronavirus outbreak (later named as Covid-19), and a global pandemic was declared on 11 March, 2020 (De Sio et al).

This article highlights the findings of a study funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in emergency preparedness and response, a partnership between the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), King’s College London, and the University of East Anglia.

Within the UK, the government put in place several behavioural interventions to reduce transmission of the Covid-19 virus. These methods forced the public to restrict their contact with others and impacted routine day-to-day life.

For example, the prime minster announced that people could only leave their homes in certain circumstances (for example, for shopping, exercise or caring for others). As of 16 March 2020, the public were instructed to “start working from home where possible” (Johnson).

The change to the usual routine of work came rapidly. As a result, many of the preparatory steps recommended for effective remote working, such as providing suitable equipment, were not carried out in time (Schuster et al). Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there were also additional challenges to consider when working from home.

For example, homes became both workplaces and learning environments (for those with children in the household), many in employment were furloughed so they were spending more time at home, and the need for self-isolation or quarantine may have impacted potential working spaces.

Alongside these logistical challenges, the impact of working from home has the potential to affect the mental health and wellbeing of employees. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, only around 5% of workers were reported to work from home in the UK (Reuschke and Felstead) – a much smaller proportion than experienced in the Covid-19 pandemic, which was reported to be 50% in April of 2020 (Cameron).

For those who could work from home, it was often considered an advantage. Benefits associated with homeworking were reported as early as 1984 and included increased autonomy, a lack of distractions, and elimination of commuting time (Kelliher and Anderson; DeSanctis; Bailey and Kurland).

However, homeworking sometimes also had negative connotations, for example, blurred boundaries between work and home life due to a sense of constant connectivity to the workplace (Matusik and Michael; Hill et al).

So far, research has mapped the impact and associations with working from home in terms of mental health, productivity, and well-being; consistently mixed findings are apparent, with many reports establishing an equivocal or negative impact at best (Elbaz et al; Lunde et al; Oakman et al; Hall and Davidson et al). Consistently mixed findings raise the following questions:

1. What factors impact employee experience when working from home?
2. How can employers maximise working from home practice for employees in the future?

To answer these questions, an umbrella review was carried out (Hall and Brooks et al). The umbrella review methodology was used to efficiently collate and summarise findings from a broad range of review articles, encompassing all of the articles included in each review. In total, 1,930 records were screened for inclusion in the review, with six meeting the inclusion criteria and being retained for analysis (Hall and Brooks et al).

All six retained reviews were published between 2020 and 2022, demonstrating ‘working from home’ as a topical area since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the reviews’ inclusion criteria for data differed, so had the potential to include studies from 1990 – 2020. More methodological information can be found at https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-020-09875-z

Factors impacting employee experience when working from home

A total of 19 different topics related to the working from home experience were derived from the six review articles (Hall and Brooks et al) (15). For ease, these will be discussed in the following sections in relation to the physical working environment, personal impacts, and employee health.

1) Working environment. Research indicated that homeworkers often received little to no training on how to work from home (for example, task-specific skills-related lifestyle changes). Often, those working from home faced issues with uncomfortable furniture, poor lighting, improper screen positioning, small workspace areas, and insufficient ergonomic furniture.

Additionally, many of those working from home had to carry out work from non-dedicated spaces (for example, living rooms or bedrooms) due to lack of space and were often thought to choose the smallest or least disruptive areas in their homes to avoid inconveniencing others in the household. Experiencing background noise and distractions were commonly noted as issues with working from home.

Working from home also impacted break-taking behaviour, with those home-working tending to work longer without breaks, including weekend and evening working, compared to those working in offices. In terms of autonomy, while reduced supervision led to greater autonomy and responsibility, it also increased work for some.

2) Personal impacts. Working from home was found to have a mixed impact on productivity, satisfaction, career prospects and work-life balance – demonstrating variability in experience.

Productivity was thought to increase, particularly for those with suitable workspaces generally. However, productivity can also decline if workers have non-work commitments (for example, caring responsibilities).

Satisfaction increased for some, whereas for others no difference was found between usual office working compared to home working. Career progression was thought to provide opportunities for younger employees to demonstrate professionalism and self-motivation.

However, many thought homeworking would hinder career progression due to perceptions of reduced dedication and lack of opportunities. Work-life balance was also mixed and considered to be impacted by various factors (for example, demographics, boundary management).

Working from home was thought to lead to social isolation and reduced social interactions with colleagues, resulting in loneliness, disconnection and weaker connections with colleagues. Again, this relationship was thought to be influenced by many different factors (for example, social preferences and computer literacy). Working part-time from home was thought to alleviate these negative effects.

3) Physical and mental health. In relation to health and healthy behaviours, findings were mixed. Some studies suggest homeworking may reduce health-related risks and improve fitness, while others find no significant impact on general health.

To demonstrate mixed impact, working from home has been associated with healthier eating but also with weight gain – the impact on physical health seems to vary by individual and context.

Conversely, experiences of pain and discomfort whilst working from home were deemed extremely common (in other words, in reference to the back, neck, shoulders, and eyes) due to poor home office ergonomics.

The impact of home-working on mental health, well-being, stress, and exhaustion was consistently mixed across the literature. Some studies report improvements in wellbeing, particularly among specific groups like early mothers, while others find no significant impact.

Wellbeing may be influenced by communication and support from colleagues, with some employees preferring hybrid working for better connection with co-workers. Some studies link homeworking to increased depression, particularly among those with poor sleep, lower physical activity, or long working hours.

However, limited homeworking (for example, less than eight hours per month) is associated with lower depression levels. Some studies report reduced stress levels, especially for part-time teleworkers or those working in less stressful home environments.

However, stress can increase due to factors like family conflict, social isolation, or work/family conflict, especially during the pandemic. The impact of home-working on exhaustion and burnout is mixed. Some studies suggest that working from home reduces exhaustion, particularly for part-time workers, but other findings report no significant impact.

Research conclusions

The results of this research indicate that working from home produces a varied set of outcomes. In fact, out of 19 factors extracted from the data, none were found to be wholly positive, six were found to have a negative impact on experience, and the rest (in other words, 13 factors) had a mixed impact on experience.

Demonstrating how the homeworking experience depends on a range of personal factors (for example, housing situation, available workspace, caring responsibilities) that make it unlikely for employees to have the same perceptions of, or experiences of, working from home.

In terms of improving experience, this research suggests that a one-size-fits-all approach to supporting employees to work from home is not fit for practice. Despite many mixed findings, this work has highlighted key areas for improvement which are discussed below.

How to optimise working-from-home practices

1) Provision of equipment. A common issue highlighted was a lack of suitable working equipment and training for employees working from home. Employers must provide their staff with the appropriate equipment and training to ensure they can work safely and comfortably from home.

This also can impact the high levels of pain and discomfort identified in those working from home. It is therefore suggested that the use of online assessments of home office ergonomics be used to identify potential problems. Where problems are identified, troubleshooting advice should be provided, alongside the potential provision of equipment from employers when it is financially viable to do so.

However, the remote work environment poses unique challenges for managers more accustomed to overseeing teams in an office setting. This shift necessitates additional training and a period of adjustment to new working practices. Employers who succeed in this new landscape will be those who ensure that managers actively engage with their staff, understand their individual circumstances, and tailor their support accordingly.

2) Working relationships. Working from home is thought to impact social interactions between colleagues and this review highlighted potential issues for employees to feel isolated and lonely when homeworking. Despite working disparately, there are a number of methods employers or managers could take to maximise interaction between employees.

For example, arranging informal weekly debriefs, team catch-up sessions, or creating opportunities for team and organisational online social activities (for instance, quizzes, coffee roulette). However, not all employees would wish to attend such events, and pressure to take part may result in more negative outcomes – therefore, all social activities should be optional.

For new employees joining a workplace when employees are working from home (in other words, such as during the Covid-19 pandemic), managers must seek to aid their integration into their new role and team.

For example, this might include arranging online social events, such as one-on-one introductory meetings with team members or group activities to build rapport.

3) Break-taking behaviour. Working from home adjusts usual day-to-day working practices. Ensuring employees are abiding by organisational policies surrounding break-taking behaviour is essential.

Results showcased that employees were less likely to be taking adequate breaks whilst working from home, and this has implications for the health and wellbeing of employees (in other words, increased sedentary behaviour, eye strain).

Employers and managers should seek to assure employees that they should be taking breaks in line with organisational policy whilst working from home; for ease this could be communicated through emails, newsletters, or during team meetings or catch-ups.

4) Career progression. Working from home was thought to hinder career progression and work opportunities potentially. When employees are working from home, particularly full-time, there should be dedicated time to discuss career progression, future goals, and opportunities with managers to alleviate any concerns.

Supporting employees on a case-by-case basis

The experience of working from home varies between individuals. For some, homeworking is beneficial and results in positive outcomes, whereas for others, outcomes are more negative.

Where possible, employers and managers should seek to converse with home-working employees on a case-by-case basis to allow them to express concerns with their working arrangement or if they are facing any challenges that may hinder their work.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the change to working from home was rapid and left many feeling unprepared to work in this way – providing the opportunity for employees to communicate openly and honestly about issues (for example, childcare, others working in the same household) provides the opportunity for managers to understand employee circumstances.

Directions for future research

The consistent mixed nature of the findings in this review suggests that more research is warranted into the experience of homeworking.

Varied results could suggest that the findings are context-specific and so understanding the way the factors manifest in different contexts or with different workforces provides an avenue for future research.

In line with this, qualitative data providing rich insight into the experience of homeworking in specific groups or occupations may result in more rigorous and supported findings. The latter is currently underway by the author, examining the experiences of UK response-focused civil servants asked to work from home during the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Acknowledgments
  The views expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NIHR, UKHSA, or the Department of Health and Social Care.

References
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