Working from home has become increasingly common after Covid-19, and today over 50 percent of Norwegian employees can work from home. This has led to changes in how we work and have given many more freedom and flexibility in their daily lives.
A project from the Work Research Institute, called CROSSBOW, examines the consequences of increased use of remote and home office in Norwegian working life.
The project, which will continue until 2026, aims to shed light on how the increased use of home office affects the balance between work and leisure.
Trust and Flexibility
Researchers in the project have been in contact with both employees and employers to understand why people want to work from home and what consequences this has for employees, employers, and work organizations.
One of the project leaders, Cathrine Egeland, points out many benefits that employees experience from working from home, such as reduced travel time and increased flexibility. It provides more flexibility in everyday life and makes it easier to adapt the workday to one's own needs, she says.
Working from home can also be seen as a declaration of trust from the employer, showing that they trust employees to manage their own workday.
Being allowed to work from home is seen by quite a few as a declaration of trust. That you receive trust from your employer to manage your workday yourself and deliver even if you are not being monitored.– Cathrine Egeland, researcher at the Work Research Institute AFI, OsloMet.
Peace and Quiet
Open-plan offices are also becoming more common, and for many, working from home is a way to find peace and quiet. Cathrine Egeland points out that for some employees, it can even be more productive to work from home.
This flexibility is not only beneficial for those seeking peace and quiet, but also for families with young children, who often have a hectic daily life.
– Life with young children can be hectic. You have to drop off and pick up at daycare, so being able to have a day at home now and then and not having to physically go to work can help you manage everything you need to do, including having a proper workday.
Home Office and Illness
Although working from home can offer many benefits, it can also present challenges. One of these is that the boundary between work and leisure can become blurred. This also applies to the boundary between being sick and healthy.
– New technology makes it possible to participate in many activities from home, even when you're sick. But because the opportunity is there, you might feel pressured to contribute. So, when are you really too sick to join a Teams meeting? asks project leader Cathrine Egeland.
A similar challenge can also arise for parents who are home with sick children.
Even if you are home to take care of a sick child, you may end up having to work anyway. You join the Teams meeting, even though the result is that you simultaneously must take care of your child.– AFI-researcher Cathrine Egeland.
Working from home when you're slightly unwell can have its advantages. Getting up in the morning and participating in meetings can contribute to a sense of normality, even when you're not in top form, the researcher continues.
This phenomenon, which then becomes a form of “sykenærvær”, or being available for work despite being sick (opposed to “sykefravær” – sick leave), can be positive because it maintains routines and structure, which can make it easier to return to full time work, the researcher elaborates.
At the same time, working from home can make it unclear where the boundary lies between being healthy enough or too sick to work, whether it concerns oneself or sick children who need to be kept at home.
Trading Leisure for Flexibility
Flexibility is one of the most important benefits employees mention when explaining why they prefer working from home.
– It seems that some are willing to sacrifice some of their leisure time to have more flexibility. Many choose to work into the evening or be available outside normal working hours to simultaneously adapt the workday to their own needs.
This shift shows a new balance between work and leisure, where flexibility becomes a form of trade-off: employees give up parts of their private time to gain more control over their own workday.
Challenging Boundaries in Working Life
The increased flexibility with working from home can challenge boundaries that have been important in organized working life until now.
Although most employers do not expect employees to work from home when they are sick, Cathrine Egeland points out that some employees choosing to work from home even when sick can create challenges for unions that work for clear guidelines and defined rights.
CROSSBOW will further examine the following questions:
- How the work of union representatives is affected by increased home office use.
- Employees' health while working from home.
- Whether there are differences between men's and women's use of and experiences with home office.
- How women and men are affected by flexible work arrangements.
