Remote, Hybrid, and On-Site Work during the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic and the Consequences for Stress and Work Engagement.

Antoni Wontorczyk,Bohdan Rożnowski

doi:10.3390/ijerph19042400

Abstract

With the COVID-19 pandemic having disrupted economies, businesses, and individual activities, it is important to examine how different forms of work affect employee behaviour. This study applies work engagement (the key construct in organisational psychology) as the dependent variable and considers its determinants in the form of stress factors and attitudes toward remote work. A cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 544 (Female = 58.5%) workers were surveyed: remote (n = 144), hybrid (n = 142), and on-site (n = 258). The selection for the study was purposive. Standardised survey questionnaires were used in the study: UWES-9, Stress Management Standards, and Attitudes toward Remote Work. The obtained results indicate that there were no significant differences between groups in terms of the intensity of work engagement, but work engagement was explained by other variables that are different in each of the studied groups. Relationships and use of social media were the most important factors among remote workers. For on-site workers, the most important factors were control and role definition. For practitioners, the results indicate which aspects of work should be considered in order to maintain high levels of work engagement when employees are transferring to other forms of work.

Highlights

Over the last 2 years, the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has greatly affected many people’s lives
Labour Organisation (ILO) [2] identifies the main additional burdens in this respect, all of which are mainly associated with remote working, to which a large number of employees around the world have been assigned: isolation, blurring of work-home boundaries, and domestic conflicts
The research question of our project is whether the groups differ in terms of work engagement, stress, and the links between these variables

Summary

Introduction

Over the last 2 years, the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has greatly affected many people’s lives. Carnevale and Hatak [1] indicated the complexity of the changes caused by the pandemic concerning work itself and its environment. Labour Organisation (ILO) [2] identifies the main additional burdens in this respect, all of which are mainly associated with remote working, to which a large number of employees around the world have been assigned: isolation, blurring of work-home boundaries, and domestic conflicts. The analysis of remote work makes it possible to add several other factors to this list, in particular the inadequacy of equipment and organisation of the workplace. Unlike the employer’s workplace, the home does not have adequate equipment and resources. Home equipment is usually not as good as the employer’s, and the places where remote work is performed are mostly adaptations of home conditions and are not properly designed work spaces (ergonomics). A remote worker does not have the same access to all the necessary resources (documentation, databases, colleague support, etc.)

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion