Making homeworking work: preferences and experiences of homeworkers during COVID-19

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced a large section of the global labour force who were working in centralised locations to suddenly switch to homeworking. This report uses primary longitudinal data from two surveys of 808 full-time workers in the UK which were conducted before (Nov 2019-Feb 2020) and during (May-June 2020) the period of COVID- 19 restrictions in order to examine the impact of COVID-19 and homeworking on workers’ homeworking preferences and on their self-rated levels of stress, well-being and productivity. Just under three-quarters of the workers in our sample who are still engaged in paid work are now working from home full-time, compared to 3% of workers prior to COVID-19. The lack of a commute is the most cited benefit of homeworking (72% of respondents), while missing socialising with co-workers is the most cited disadvantage (56%). While 84% of current homeworkers wish to continue working from home, 58% favour a ‘hybrid’ homeworking option over full-time homeworking. Just under half of all workers report diminished productivity due to COVID-19, with workers who have poor self-rated mental health or low self-control particularly badly affected. The effects of homeworking during COVID-19 on the productivity of homeworkers is mixed, with 39% of homeworkers reporting producing less work when homeworking and 35% reporting producing more work. While there is variation around preferences for homeworking supports, the most frequently requested support (55% of current homeworkers) is a better physical work set- up at home. COVID-19 has had a relatively minor effect on average work-related affective well-being or job satisfaction across the entire sample. This may reflect the nature of the sample which is comprised of workers in full-time employment prior to COVID-19, who report relatively low levels of physical exposure to COVID-19. Alternatively, workers may have already adjusted to the ‘new normal’. There is, however, evidence of heterogeneity. Homeworkers have experienced a significant increase in job satisfaction during COVID-19 and report significantly higher job satisfaction than non-homeworkers, in particular homeworkers who are non-parents, single, who have poor self-rated mental health or who score highly on Big-5 neuroticism. Our results have important implications for public bodies and organisations seeking to utilise homeworking longer term. They reveal considerably heterogeneity around homeworking preferences and experiences and highlight the need to capture workers’ real-life experiences of homeworking to ensure that labour deployment plans and homeworking supports maximise worker well-being, while preserving productivity and profitability.