4 ways remote working improves your employee happiness

4 ways remote working improves your employee happiness

Remote working has become more of a norm than a trend in recent years. In fact, globally, a remarkable 99% of those surveyed by Buffer revealed that they would like the option to work remotely at least some of the time or for the rest of their career.

There are a number of reasons why having remote workers benefits today’s companies. Among them:

• Reduced overhead costs
• Reduced employee turnover
• Environmental benefits
• Higher employee engagement
• Larger talent pool

So much has been written about the benefits to organisations of having a remote workforce but what kind of impact does it have?

1. Remote work and mental health

Work is a naturally stressful aspect of everyday life and as much as 80% of surveyed employees report feeling stress at work. Work-related stress can exacerbate existing mental health issues and increase risks to physical health. In the UK, nearly 13% of sick days taken from work were attributed to mental health, costing businesses billions of pounds.

Remote workers, however, experience less stress which results in improved mental health and greater well-being for a number of reasons.

2. Comfortable surroundings

Being able to work at home (or at the coffee shop, or even at the beach), means remote employees are able to relax in a familiar environment without worrying about office politics or workplace dress codes. Being able to work at home allows employees to take breaks when they want, warm up their leftovers and avoid office distractions.

3. No commute

Whether driving, taking the train or calling for a taxi, there is no shortage of research on how commuting affects our well-being. In fact, the World Economic Forum reports that commuting changes people in subtle ways, resulting in lower well-being.  In fact, the UK Office for National Statistics found that commuting results in negative effects on workers’ levels of happiness and anxiety.

In fact, today’s largest employee group – millennials – care more about the environment than any in the past. Cutting down on carbon emissions by reducing or eliminating the need to commute and promotes the environmental responsibility they are concerned about.

4. More family time

In more than half of two-parent families, both parents work, and balancing their careers with their families is a challenge. Furthermore, 14% of children live in single-parent households globally, with more than 80% of these being headed by women, making it difficult to manage childcare and career.

Some people even put off having children because of the cost of childcare. However, remote work removes this challenge by allowing parents to be with their children when needed. Having the freedom to work around their children’s schedules, means they lose the burden of coming up with the money to pay for childcare.

Exposure to dynamic teams

With the implementation of the right technologies, today’s workers can incorporate unified communications to work closely with team members from all over the world. Utilising technology that connects remote workers – wherever they are in the world – which promotes cohesion and collaboration among employees.

If you think that your company will benefit from unified communications solutions, contact us today to find out more about how Windsor Telecom’s services helps to keep your employees connected, satisfied, and productive, no matter where they are.

Fill in the form below or call us on 0800 160 1111 to find out more about how we can help you to boost your teams’ morale.