Absence of the travel commute making British workers LESS motivated and MORE stressed

• Hunts Office revealed the results of their commuter survey to find out just what people are missing about travelling to work.

• The results indicate that more women than men are feeling stressed by working from home and a third of people are working longer hours.

• Experts provide insights on ways to increase productivity by using the commute time absence to upskill and unwind.

69 per cent of UK workers are missing the commute as a result of working from home under the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, Hunt’s Office has revealed.

The office furniture experts surveyed 800 UK workers to find out just how much the absence of a commute is affecting working habits, mood and motivation.

The survey revealed that the lack of commuting has had a negative impact on people’s general wellbeing, with almost 19 per cent of workers feeling more stressed, 42 per cent feeling less motivated to wake up in the morning and 13 per cent finding it difficult to wind down at the end of a hard day.

46.63% of respondents spend more time in bed now they do not have to commute, of that 50.54% are women compared to 41.25% to that of men.

David Price, CEO of Health Assured said ‘For many, the morning and evening commutes are a time to be alone with their thoughts where the mind can reset and focus on processing the day ahead or the events just passed. Finding a seat on an empty train, pulling out an e-book and spending some time just being mindful and calm is something that many people have missed since the pandemic.’

Price suggests that people should continue to wake up as if they still have a commute and use this time to take a long walk or run before heading home for a refreshing shower, getting into work clothes and logging in for the day ahead. He says that, when combined with a tea or coffee, this activity can help workers to ‘get their head in gear and ready for the day ahead’. He notes that getting out and moving more can also reduce the risk of musculoskeletal disorders developing.

There are many reasons why people are missing the commute, with more women missing the daily commute than men at 69.98% and almost a quarter of women miss chatting to someone (24.19%) on the way to work compared to only 18.40% of men.

62.51% of respondents are missing out on having a takeout breakfast or coffee on their commute, a quarter of workers miss the ‘me time’ travelling afforded them, 10 per cent miss and 45 per cent miss listening to music on their journey to work.

According to the survey, nine per cent of workers use the daily commute to learn something new. However, with more time than ever, many business experts are urging their people to use this time to upskill.

Darren Hockley, Managing Director of eLearning provider, DeltaNet International, said: ‘The commute is a great time to learn a new skill or brush up on some work-related training. After all, employees who are willing to develop new skills and/or improve their existing skill set are more likely to be highly valued by employers, giving you a competitive edge when it comes to securing jobs or promotions.’

He suggests using mobile learning apps, listening to podcasts or audiobooks, or taking an online training course to ensure that people don’t fall behind during this period of home working. He points out that making this effort could ensure many are better equipped to keep up with the fast pace of changes organisations can expect in 2021 and could also improve personal wellbeing by giving an increased self-esteem, feelings of hope and purpose.

Working from home, many workers have also revealed that they have developed new physical conditions with almost half of respondents saying they have felt a sore back since working from home (47%). 30% of respondents have felt their eyesight worsening, other respondents reported on having felt migraines and tiredness, where 32.13% of respondents have felt a sore neck.

As the work from home orders are expected to continue for several more months, and with many businesses opting to continue to implement flexible working, it is encouraged that people invest in their home working. Hunts Office provides affordable, professional office furniture that can be repositioned at home to create a motivational workplace.

As the surveyed showed the future of working has been changed with 37.13% of respondents would prefer to work split hours between work and home.

You can see the full breakdown of the survey here: https://www.huntsoffice.co.uk/insights/how-a-lack-of-commuting-is-affecting-uk-workers