Home office: curse or blessing
Even after the pandemic, more employees in Switzerland are working from home. Depending on resources and stresses, more home office work can prove to be an advantage, but also a disadvantage, as a long-term study commissioned by Health Promotion Switzerland has now shown.
Immediately before the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic, the Swiss Health Promotion Foundation commissioned a study on the effects of home office on well-being and productivity. The long-term study, which was conducted in collaboration with the University of Bern and the ZHAW was carried out, shows that the Covid 19 pandemic has significantly increased home office work.
Strengthening employees' resources is becoming increasingly important
According to the study, respondents worked an average of 0.54 days per week in a home office; in 2021, it was 1.47 days, and in 2022, it is still 1.36 days. However, the new way of working can be a curse or a blessing for some individuals. In general, the survey of 926 people shows that a sudden change from 0 to 100 percent can be an added stressor for people with many pressures.
For people with many resources, on the other hand, the way they work strengthens productivity. In a press release, the foundation emphasizes that it is therefore becoming increasingly important to strengthen employees' resources. An improved relationship between stress and resources has a positive effect on the health of employees. Even small improvements can usually have a positive effect on health.
It is also interesting to note that, according to the study, people who work from home save around 3.5 hours of commuting time per week. While home offices allow for quieter work, at the same time, many employees experienced increased isolation during the pandemic period in 2021. This affected over 46 percent of all employees and 52 percent of people who worked in a home office. In 2022, these numbers decreased again as measures were relaxed. Overall, according to the study, the people surveyed felt less socially isolated in 2022 than in 2021.
Source: Health Promotion Switzerland/Editorial Office
