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In the post-pandemic age, employees expect some measure of freedom and autonomy, whether that’s working fully remote or a hybrid arrangement. Several studies have shown that remote workers tend to be less costly and no less productive than in-office staff.
But might virtual work have adverse health effects? In a recent New York Times op-ed, Jordan D. Metzl, an author and sports medicine physician, asserted that for telecommuters, “remote work is disadvantageous to their mental and physical well-being.”
The more humans move, Metzl pointed out, the healthier they tend to be, yet every tech advancement since the car has made us more sedentary. The pandemic-driven increase in remote seems to be the end point of this evolution.
Metzl cited a compilation of studies showing some remote workers becoming less active, gaining weight, and reporting feelings of isolation and depression. Yet he failed to mention that the studies took place in 2020 and 2021, when each and every one of those workers were dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.
This is not a minor detail. The lockdowns were both a major physical constraint — being largely unable to go outside, sharply reducing activity — and one of the most stressful periods most of us will ever experience. These days, few remote workers feel anxious about leaving home. In mid-2023 we’re perfectly comfortable walking our dogs, strolling down to the market, running a few errands, visiting a friend or the museum or the dentist.
And even if it’s true that remote work does mean less movement, companies could counteract this by providing staff with step-counting devices and holding weekly activity contests. Suddenly remote workers have health-related and work-related incentive to get moving.
I already do this sort of thing on my own — a couple months ago I spent what would have been my morning commute cross-country skiing. Many of my remote working friends and colleagues take a similar approach to their day.
Another key side benefit of virtual work is being elsewhere when the latest flu bug rolls through the office. And then there’s the healthier environment that results from the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and pollution due to fewer commuters clogging up roads.
On mental health, Meltz reminded us that humans are social animals and pointed to studies that found increased anxiety and depression among virtual workers. But again, his studies occurred during Covid-19, during which countless businesses were forced to transition to remote with near-zero preparation.
“The functionality of the technical equipment in the home office has a decisive influence on the health and job satisfaction of employees,” wrote the authors of a study Meltz cites. “Due to the mostly unplanned transformation process towards WFH, the technical equipment at many people’s homes was not sufficient to enable them to work effectively.”
No wonder these workers were anxious — they lacked reliable equipment, as well as the internal processes and practices that could enable optimal productivity. Some back and neck issues are likely to occur regardless of location, but as we advocate in our book, The Power of Remote, companies can sharply increase comfort and productivity, and reduce anxiety, by providing ergonomic and tech assessments of home workspaces and filling in any gaps.
What’s more, Metzl’s mental health argument ignores a crucial advantage of remote: working wherever one wants. If the weather’s lovely, you might work at the park or the beach or an outdoor cafe. If your child is ill, you could spend the day a few meters away. The mental and emotional benefits of this are hard to overstate.
Humans may be social animals, but this line of thinking is what prompted so many companies to mandate video camera use for online meetings in the early days of the pandemic. Many thought it would be comforting and a relief to see friendly faces. But a survey by my firm found that nearly half of all virtual workers (49%) were made anxious by video mandates. A policy widely seen as supportive of staff turned out to be potentially detrimental to mental health.
This is not to say Meltz is wholly wrong. Much like in-office work, working remotely can make some people feel isolated and anxious and lead to burnout and dissatisfaction — and managers and executives must be aware of the risks. Yet we need to approach these issues with a clear understanding that the problem is not remote work, but how we work remotely.
