Strategies to manage working from home during the pandemic: the employee experience

Many Australian workers were mandated to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a qualitative approach, this study aimed to identify optimal work from home management strategies, by analysing the experience of Australian employees working from home (WFH) during this time. A purposive sam...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Industrial Health 2022/05/11, Vol.60(4), pp.319-333
Main Authors: OAKMAN, Jodi, KINSMAN, Natasha, GRAHAM, Melissa, STUCKEY, Rwth, WEALE, Victoria
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Australian workforce
COVID-19
Epidemics
Health aspects
Management
Managers
Optimization
Original
Pandemics
Social aspects
Surveys
Telecommuting
Wellbeing
Work health and Safety
Working from home
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Summary:Many Australian workers were mandated to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a qualitative approach, this study aimed to identify optimal work from home management strategies, by analysing the experience of Australian employees working from home (WFH) during this time. A purposive sample, drawn from the Australian Employees Working from Home Study, of managers and non-managers from a range of sectors, was invited to participate in focus groups. Data were analysed using thematic analysis and mapped to the work-systems framework approach to determine strategies implemented to support WFH. Most participants’ experiences were more negative than positive, in part due to extreme lockdowns including curfews, with childcare and school closures compounding their WFH experiences. Effective workplace-initiated strategies to optimise WFH included: management support of flexible work hours; provision of necessary equipment with ICT support; regular online communication; performance management adjustments; and manager training.
ISSN:0019-8366
1880-8026
DOI:10.2486/indhealth.2022-0042