7 Dangers Of Work From Home
Work from home is the most preferred mode of working among the Gen Y and Gen Z generations. While distance work offers flexibility and convenience, it is important to look into the drawbacks that can impact employee well-being, team productivity, and the overall health of a business.
This article sheds light on aspects of work from home that can harmfully impact employees.
Isolation and Loneliness
- While working from the office, you will see new faces, make friendships (obviously enemies), and crack jokes over a cup of coffee, which can positively impact your mental health. Human beings are social creatures, and living without socializing is like forgetting the core meaning of our lives as humans.
- Work from home feels the same every day, and you will feel that your life is just mechanized. This can inadvertently lead to deep feelings of isolation and loneliness.
Domestic Violence
- In July 2020, after 6 months of the pandemic outbreak, it was reported that domestic violence rates increased by 170% in India alone. Women are not safe even in their own houses, considering the pressure they have for household chores and obligations as a mother and daughter-in-law.
- Workplace routine can be an escape route for women to avoid close contact with toxic relatives and to make more contact with someone they love to hang around with.
Work-Life Imbalances
- When it comes to working from home, everyone looks at one side of the coin, the brighter one. But there is a flip side too. While remote working provides flexibility, it often blurs the lines between work and personal life.
- You can get a Zoom call or Google meeting even after your daily work schedule. There is no way out other than attending it. So, it results in an inability to fully disconnect from work. This lack of separation can erode one’s work-life balance and damage mental and emotional health over time.
Promotion Delay
- Nothing comes from the comfort zone. Remote workers can experience reduced visibility within an organization. It will be challenging for them to build relationships, seek mentorship, and access career advancement opportunities.
- It is predicted that employees who hesitate to work from the office will not climb up the corporate ladder to top-tier positions like CEOs and COOs.
Economic disparity
- Not all employees have access to the same resources at home. Some may lack a dedicated workspace or high-speed internet to cope with a fast-evolving world.
Communication Challenge
- As per a study, employees cannot convey effectively while in Zoom meetings. There are additional layers of complexity added to any discussion compared to face-to-face discussions.
- As effective and efficient communication is a crucial part of any successful business. So, relying solely on email and video conferencing can lead to misinterpretations and misunderstandings. This can result in confusion and information delays.
Lack of collaboration
- Companies work through the chain of command, starting from top management to low-level employees. In an office setting, collaboration is fostered through spontaneous interactions, frequent check-ins, and active participation that sparks creativity and innovation.
In a nutshell
These instances do not mean working from home is all bad and there are no benefits to it. But it is a gentle reminder against those arguing for working from home indefinitely. Life cannot be the same for everyone, and organizations must tweak their policies to balance corporate policies with those that support employee rights and wellbeing.
