The pandemic suddenly created new conditions for working from home. Employees did not need to commute to their workplace and meetings were held digitally.
Soon five years after the outbreak of the pandemic, the freedom is over. Many employers want their staff on site again.
The arguments for working from home have been advantages such as a less stressful daily life and the opportunity to combine family life with professional life. But in a new study, this image is contradicted.
Almost 38 percent of those surveyed who work at least half-time from home report that they experience either "some stress" or "high stress". Among those who do not work from home at all, the same figure is just over 29 percent.
I think we may have a slightly glamorized image of working from home and that it should be wonderful and pleasant, says Åsa Miemois, health strategist in work environment issues at Falck health and work life (formerly the corporate health care company Previa) who conducted the study.
Clear difference
She emphasizes that there can also be a clear difference between those who work a few days a week and those who in this case work most of their time remotely.
Many have agreed that you should be most of your time in the office. There, I think there may be a larger proportion of individuals who think it's positive, she says.
On the other hand, those who work maybe entirely from home are faced with other conditions that can generate stress:
If you sit at home, you have to book meetings for every little question that needs to be addressed. You are expected to be available in a different way, at work you also end up in a different social context. You also automatically get daylight and exercise when you go to work.
Worst for younger employees
The youngest employees, i.e. those under 30, experience the situation worst of all. This is also something that the employer should take into account, Åsa Miemois points out.
We know that young people report a higher degree of stress-related illness and mental illness in general. It's a group that maybe shouldn't be sitting alone at home with high demands and their own poor health, but need to be in a context.
Tobias Österberg/TT
Facts: Details from the study
TT
A third of those surveyed have responded that they experience stress at risk level in connection with work.
The highest stress levels are found among women under 30. A total of 45.5 percent of women under 30 report stress at risk level, while 17 percent report stress levels at high risk level.
The lowest figures are found in the category of men over 50.
The report is based on over 25,000 health and work environment profiles as well as sick leave statistics from 150,000 employees.
