Whether you are a remote worker or one who works from a traditional office, there are a number of ways in which the impact of COVID-19 on your everyday work life can become quite apparent. These include, but aren’t limited to, the cost of lost productivity, the blurring of the lines between work and personal life, and crisis management for boundary management.
Work-life boundary blurring
During the coronavirus pandemic, many people experienced blurring work-life boundaries. This may have resulted in work-from-home arrangements and a shift to remote work. It also may have increased the number of people who faced additional stress, as well as decreased work-family balance. Ultimately, these effects can have negative impacts on employees and organizations.
The Conference Board survey found that during the pandemic, workers were more likely to say they had to work more hours, take care of more people, have worse mental health, feel more burned out, and be less interested in their jobs. This was accompanied by a reduction in sick days.
The authors of the study surveyed 396 individuals from March 2020 through June 2020. About a third of the people who responded said they were worried that the pandemic would make it harder for them to balance their work and personal lives. They listed a number of things that could have caused this effect, such as a possible loss of a job, more responsibilities at home, and higher health risks.
Work intensification
During the COVID-19 pandemic, a major shift in work practices occurred. This was a result of increased demand for workers. This increased demand had an impact on both the work environment and the personal lives of employees.
Work intensification is a term commonly associated with telework, where workers work from home. Telework lets people work longer hours and can make it easier for them to take on more tasks. This can lead to work overload, especially if the employee feels excessive pressure to perform. In addition, it can reinforce traditional gender roles and increase job insecurity. Also, it may make the employee more likely to get burned out, especially if they don’t have enough freedom.
One study found that telework increased the number of tasks an employee had to complete but did not improve performance. Another study found that employees who had high job control experienced less emotional exhaustion than employees who did not.
Boundary management crisis tactics
The establishment of a new workplace was one of the many events that took place during the COVID-19 lockdown, and it was also the most intriguing. In other words, the home became the new office. Despite the novelty of the new working arrangement, the house was not the only workhorse in the household. While the office was a snoozer, the household’s work demands were far less taxing when other members of the household were working outside the house.
The new working arrangement prompted a flurry of productivity-enhancing innovations. For instance, the study found that the most important task was not completing a paper or making a phone call but rather organizing a meeting with a colleague. Several participants even created micro-borders between work and family activities in the home. Among the most notable was the use of technology to facilitate remote collaboration.
COVID-19 cost of lost productivity
During the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses in different industries acted differently. Some industries saw a large drop in real GDP, whereas others saw a larger rebound. Lockdowns or reopening policies were more likely to be put in place in industries with big drops in real GDP.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a significant increase in the number of work hours lost. It has affected individuals, populations, and wider macroeconomics.
The study uses nationally representative micro-level data to assess the economic burden of COVID-19. It breaks down costs by economic factors and includes a number of different metrics to help policymakers make decisions.
The study estimates the total cost of lost productivity due to COVID-19. This can be calculated by multiplying the monetary value of a worker’s present salary by the number of work hours lost.
Remote work
During the first two weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic, 72% of full-time and part-time workers reported job changes. Workers also said they were working from home. During the lockdown, many academics were unable to work on campus. Along with these changes in where people work and how they do their jobs, the lines between work and non-work were redrawn. This study explores the implications of these changes on workers’ work-life balance.
Workers who established micro-borders between their work and home lives developed new skills and protected their leisure activities and family lives from interruptions. These workers could continue to work from home during non-pandemic circumstances.
Global labor markets were thrown off balance by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many businesses decided to adopt work-from-home policies. This sparked a mass migration of workers to remote work. Many essential workers continued to work in warehouses, grocery stores, and garbage trucks.