To start the workday without getting out of your pajamas is becoming the norm for US citizens. More individuals are looking for jobs that have flexible work-life balance, which gives them the opportunity to telecommute. To better understand both the pitfalls and benefits of telecommuting for employees and businesses, researchers surveyed those working from home to learn more about how it compares to working in an traditional office setting.
The study by Airtasker surveyed 1,004 full-time workers throughout America about their commutes, productivity, and various aspects of their lives. Just over 500 individuals among the group were remote workers.
The survey was released by the outsourcing company Airtasker earlier this year, and its findings have revealed startling things. If you are the sort of person who feels that working from home is always a fairytale arrangement, then think again. Not everything is what you think it is in this work environment, nor can you argue that it’s better over the traditional setting.
Researchers discovered that home-based work eliminates everyday commutes, boosts productivity and results in healthier lifestyles to help benefit employees. People relish telecommuting for the flexibility it offers them, but usually it gets in the way of their personal activities. That interference is expected in this work arrangement, but what is startling is how it compares to full-time work productivity.
Being Productive In a Home-Based Work Environment
With all the material pleasures that beckon for your attention, there is a dip in productivity when it comes to remote employees. However, the opposite can also be true. As per the above-mentioned survey, telecommuters had “worked 1.4 more days each month, or 16.8 more days per year” compared to employees working in the office.
Researchers found that, in addition to being focused on your work, remote workers lose about 27 minutes a day on distractions, versus the 37 minutes that distracted office employees lose. This survey also discovered that only 6% of all the office-goers and 8% of the remote workers find it tough to concentrate on their tasks. It also revealed that office-goers took shorter breaks compared to remote employees, although longer ones have been thought to enhance productivity.
As per the survey, taking breaks, having set work hours and keeping a list of to-do tasks were the most efficient ways to ensure productivity for remote workers.
It is perhaps tempting for small business owners to implement mouse or screen tracking software to ensure their employees stay focused at work. However, researchers have found that sort of micromanagement brought about 56% of the office-goers and 39% of participants who work from home remotely, looking for ways to skip work. Out of those who said that they actively tried avoiding work, were 51% remote employees and 44% office workers that were caught.
Cost Savings and Better Health through Telecommuting
When employees choose to telecommute, they do not need to travel to work any longer. Traveling has caused at least one in four survey participants to resign. Many said that they would be ready to give up plenty of pleasures to end their travel to and from work.
The average American commutes around thirty minutes each day. Traveling that much time means employees are spending more on fuel, repair and maintenance. As per the researchers, the average American who worked from home saved over $4,500 on their yearly fuel expenses. The absence of an everyday commute also caused a slight drop in maintenance expenses, with remote employees spending $55 a month as opposed to the $59 which office-goers spent.
Besides the costs savings, the survey respondents who reported to have more free time when their travels to and from work were ended. Consequently, workers said that they had a free time worth of an additional 17 days on average.
Some amount of that regained period of time went into healthier habits such as exercise. As per researchers, remote workers took 2 hours and 44 minutes for physical exercise weekly, which marks an increase of 25 minutes over office-goers.
In spite of the health benefits, they found that telecommuting can be relatively more stressful than doing work at the office. Around 29% of telecommuter respondents said that they had a tough time keeping a healthy balance between work and life. Just 23% of the office-goers reported experiencing the same problem.
Besides, the respondents in the survey reported having experienced the following in their respective work environments.
- Too stressed in the workday for 49% of office-goers and 54% of the employees working remotely.
- High anxiety levels during the work hours among 42% of office-goers and 45% of the employees working remotely.
- Ended up delaying a job until the deadline among 35% of office-goers and 37% of employees working from home.
The main disadvantage of telecommuting is that connecting with your colleagues can be trickier. As per the recent study, 70% of participants said that maintaining good relationships with their co-workers was equally as important for them as their jobs. Just 19% said that they prioritized their work over office relationships, whereas the rest 11% stated that relationships with coworkers have more priority.
Being friends with fellow workers is nice, but researchers discovered that this type of relationship can also be an interruption or distraction. Office-goers spent around 66 minutes each day talking about matters not relating to their work, but remote workers only spent about 30 minutes on the same task. What was found to be very distracting for workers were managers. Managers spent around 70 minutes discussing matters not relating to their work versus the roughly 38 minutes spent by others.
Remote workers were less affected by managerial distractions compared to their office-going colleagues.
