Less family time, commuting & Covid – The mental health fears for those returning to work

Research from Ezra, the leading provider of digital coaching, has revealed that a quarter of UK office workers believe a return to the physical workplace may impact their mental health negatively.

As lockdown restrictions start to lift, it remains unclear as to what extent remote working will remain as part of daily life. However, it certainly looks as though it’s here to stay, with Google becoming the latest to announce their intentions of creating a hybrid workplace.

The good news is that for the vast majority, 88%, the impact of the pandemic and the requirement to work from home hasn’t impacted their mental health negatively. In fact, 59% have seen no difference, while 28% believe that remote working has actually been good for their mental health.

With many now starting to return to the workplace, Ezra also asked if this return would have an impact on our mental health.

Again, over half (56%) of workers believed they would remain unphased. However, a quarter (24%) stated that they believed it would impact their mental health negatively, although interestingly, a similar number (21%) thought it would have a positive impact.

The biggest worries?

25% of those surveyed said that less time with their family and the impact on family life caused by a return to the workplace would be the biggest factors that might impact their mental health.

For 22%, the thought of having to once again tackle the dreaded commute was the biggest worry.

Of course, Covid remains a concern and the ongoing threat was the biggest worry for 14% with regard to their mental health.

Workplace pressures such as maintaining appearance (13%), time management (11%) and returning to a social environment (11%) were less of a concern.

Founder of Ezra, Nick Goldberg, commented:

“Despite lockdown forcing a drastically different way of life upon us, the silver lining for many has been more time spent at home with loved ones and a far better work-life balance.

For some, this means that working from home has actually been beneficial for our mental health and it comes as no surprise that replacing this family time with commuting and the pressures of the workplace are the biggest concerns about returning to the physical workplace.

However, we’re all dealing with the current landscape differently and it’s clear that remote working doesn’t work for everyone. While it certainly feels like we’ve been under some form of lockdown restrictions forever, there’s also no real indication as to how remote working could impact us on an ongoing, long-term basis.

As we move forward, it’s important that businesses consider how they adapt to meet the needs of all their employees and this will no doubt take the form of a hybrid workplace, allowing for some flexibility on working from home, but also maintaining the physical workplace on a full-time basis for those that need it.”

Survey of 1,156 UK office workers carried out by Ezra (13th May 2021).