Commuting impairs productivity

According to a new study by Regus, a provider of flexible workspace solutions, employees around the world consider their daily commute to and from the office a drag on their productivity. For a large number of respondents, the commute is neither effective work nor enjoyable leisure time, but rather an obstacle to doing more useful or entertaining things.

Of the approximately 40,000 participants in the survey, 37 percent say they consider commuting useless and superfluous. 27 percent even harbor a deep aversion and describe commuting as a pure waste of their valuable time. This means that for more than half of all respondents worldwide, a longer commute could be replaced by more productive working hours or a little more sleep in the morning.

Key findings of the study

• Only a minority (17 percent) of global respondents consider commuting useful work time, while the majority see it as a burden on work or leisure time.
• Therefore, companies should discourage unnecessary commuting and help their employees spend the time they save on something more productive or relaxing.
• A small minority (19 percent) consider their commute to work as personal time to read or catch up on the latest news on their smartphone.

Garry Gürtler, Country Manager of Switzerland at Regus: "Commuting to work is taking up more and more time. It's all the more distressing that for the vast majority, the daily commute to the office and back home represents a massive impairment to their productivity and that they can't use the time it takes for either personal matters or leisure activities."

"Employees everywhere in the world today are expected to be always available and connected. But in reality, there is something that affects their productivity quite severely and subtly - and that is their daily commute. Successful companies that want to boost their employees' productivity and give them more free time or a little more sleep would do well to let them work closer to home, at least occasionally."

Source: Regus