A new study of people working from home during the pandemic shows 73 percent were at least as productive as when they were in the office and 89 percent would like to continue doing so, at least some of the time.
(File image). Photo: Matej Kastelic/123RF
The research from the University of Otago is based on an online survey of 2595 people, mostly during alert level 3.
The study shows most people enjoyed the flexibility of working from home, saying they liked saving time and money by avoiding the daily commute.
However, many found it hard to switch off from work and were frustrated by having to have more meetings - using video conference - than they would face-to-face in the office.
Collaboration and communication with co-workers was also harder at home and parents struggled to juggle work with home schooling and child care.
Only 17 percent said they had all the right resources from their employer to properly do their job.
The survey also pointed out health and safety concerns, with the quick move to working from home meaning workspaces were not ergonomically set up.
Other findings include that 38 percent of people had never worked from home before and two-thirds found it easy to do so.