New Research found Work from home workers to be less productive

[dothebeats]

I guess some companies are lacking workers because people are now working more at home? Can't help it but think this way.

Those who work in a office for a company have a target, their salaries is the first thing that's most important to them, and to make that comes easily they have to do their jobs right.

Now those who work at home also have the same dreams and goals, to make money and nothing else, what makes you think they are less productive? If they are, how are they going to make money?

It's always about the money, if you are making money it's means you are productive and you are doing it right.

This is a good argument. Will the work setting even matter if the drive to get money is there? People will push themselves to be productive at the end of the day to get the money they need to pay bills and pay their expenses for their lifestyle. At the end of the day it is still work and their primary source of income. So, does it matter?

[Gallar]

A study published by the American private nonprofit research organization the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the productivity of workers randomly assigned to work from home was 18% lower than that of those in the office.
https://africa.businessinsider.com/careers/new-research-finds-that-fully-remote-workers-are-less-productive-than-their-in-office/4vxn4sy

These researchers found that if you work from home you will be less efficient and productive than people who from their office.

In my opinion, such an opinion cannot be generalized to all jobs. Because we all know that work is not all in an office or in a factory building. But at home you can also do a job and of course it will be the same. Because the work has many branches and many types. From work that is specifically located in an office, to work that can be done at home.
So I think the research is not complex and not comprehensive in all fields of work.

Then not only that, sometimes there are typical people who are more comfortable working at home compared to working outside the home such as in a factory or office. So if you look at this factor, the research is clearly refuted. Maybe for people who are used to working in an office, it can indeed reduce their work performance a little, but maybe that will only happen in a few days, and if you have adapted your work performance will definitely be normal.

For example, when the Covid 19 outbreak hit a few years ago, at that time due to social distancing rules and those related to the Covid 19 outbreak, many companies made all of their employees work from home. And this went on for quite a while, but even though the workers/employees did their work at home, for the majority, I'm sure they did a very good job.

Because the logic is like this, these employees definitely need money, which they get from their jobs, so automatically these employees will do their best so they don't get fired from their company.

Home office work is not identical to office work, strictly speaking. There are distinctions, nuances, and, of course, advantages. Remember water cooler conversations? What about the vigilant eye of the boss?

Then, when discussing the Covid-19 situation, you stated that everyone worked well from home; however, was this true? How do we know that? Perhaps they worked, but their efficacy and productivity fell short of expectations?

Also, employees working diligently to avoid termination is perhaps a bit of an oversimplification. Existe-t-il d'autres motivations? And what about those who might exploit the absence of surveillance?

Working in an office and working at home, in terms of nuances and circumstances, will definitely be different, and it's true that working from home too, there really won't be the eyes of a boss who is always watching directly. But even so, the name of the job, it is a responsibility that must be done and completed as well as possible. So even though working at home, in my view the sense of responsibility for the job will continue and cannot be removed from the minds of these employees. Because even though working from home, every employee whose performance has decreased will definitely be seen by their boss or boss. Because as I know, when Covid 19 hit, many were doing work from home, but while making video calls via zoom. So people who are slow or people who don't participate will definitely be monitored in the end.

So in my view, there is no reason whatsoever to reduce work performance even if it's done from home.

And for the problem of workers who work because they are afraid of being fired, in my opinion this is one of the basic reasons that makes sense. Because the workers, surely the majority don't want to be kicked out of their workplace. Moreover, the job has made him comfortable in terms of work and co-workers in it. So in my opinion this reason is a quite reasonable reason, if it is owned by the workers.

[mirakal]

Well, working from home actually offers more convenience for workers. No need to wear formal attire and no need to travel and spend money and time. However, despite of its advantages, there are also some noted reasons why working from home become less efficient and less productive. There are these home life distractions that will lessen your focus on your job and as an outcome, your work becomes affected and compromised. Also, the fact that you are less monitored by your heads or supervisors, makes you more less motivated to your work and put your own job at a risk. Nonetheless, the things that I mentioned may not be applicable to all workers/employees since each of them has different working condition.

[Oneandpure]

Well, working from home actually offers more convenience for workers. No need to wear formal attire and no need to travel and spend money and time. However, despite of its advantages, there are also some noted reasons why working from home become less efficient and less productive. There are these home life distractions that will lessen your focus on your job and as an outcome, your work becomes affected and compromised. Also, the fact that you are less monitored by your heads or supervisors, makes you more less motivated to your work and put your own job at a risk. Nonetheless, the things that I mentioned may not be applicable to all workers/employees since each of them has different working condition.

Right now work from home or WFH most searching job around many people due easily controlling work without have spent more time with work from office or WFO. Since pandemic covid 19 last two years, my country companies have adopted with work from home and effective with many companies keep existing since pandemic more than two years. Not only benefit for worker but also company get beneficial without need spent much money for their worker transportation and build up luxury place. For the future, will have many companies priority with their worker have skill with work from home and use few days in week work from office because development progress from technology make us easy with controlling working without have to go to office.

[MarjorieZimmermanGinger]

These researchers found that if you work from home you will be less efficient and productive than people who from their office. Can we say the same about freelance workers?  Do you think that if workers are given the chance to "own" a task like freelancers they'll be more productive because it is just like being self-employed where you treat it as your business and not with the mindset of another man's business?

Maybe from interaction factors that make working from home inefficient and less productive. To carry out work in the field of self-employment or business using the work-at-home method is impossible because we have to deal directly with the audience. However, you also have to recognize in advance what kind of work is meant because not all work has to be done in the office or vice versa not all work can be done outside the office.

The current work method is very diverse, both the salary is calculated per hour, day or month. This is where we have to recognize work that can be done in the office or outside and when we choose one of them, the decision to work in the office or outside can be adjusted according to the previous work agreement.

[tjtonmoy]

It could vary from person to person. Some people do the work when they are pushed and some do it because they enjoy it. So if you put them in both scenarios, the result will be different. If you put a person in a cozy environment and no one is watching over him, he will most likely do the job slowly or skip for days or two. Same thing with a person who loves to do the job, he will do it no matter the situation. Lazy people will work when they are being watched or are in a strict environment.
But it all comes up to your ability to do the work. As long as you can do the job in any kind of environment, you are all good. Also, lazy people will invent the quickest way to do the work.

But what I think is, when you are in an office and doing the job from time to time, it will become a habit and keep you working. If you can maintain the same habit at home, then it won't matter where you work. As for freelancers, isn't it the reason why they choose to be a freelancer? To be free. You are your own boss and you make the rules. But not everyone can become successful doing freelancing. Those who are successful, have a strict routine that they follow. So I guess, it's on you how you take the job and how you do it.

[darkangel11]

Well, working from home actually offers more convenience for workers. No need to wear formal attire and no need to travel and spend money and time. However, despite of its advantages, there are also some noted reasons why working from home become less efficient and less productive. There are these home life distractions that will lessen your focus on your job and as an outcome, your work becomes affected and compromised. Also, the fact that you are less monitored by your heads or supervisors, makes you more less motivated to your work and put your own job at a risk. Nonetheless, the things that I mentioned may not be applicable to all workers/employees since each of them has different working condition.

I've been working from home for a while and I do agree with the research, but there's a catch. There's a huge difference between people who worked from home the whole time and people who were moved from office to their homes during the pandemic and stayed there because it was more convenient for the company. People who always worked online are used to it and they can focus on their tasks.
I have a friend who used to work from the office and he told me that the company offered them bonuses to stay home because they had saved so much on electricity that they could give everyone a raise and still make more money. If I were him I'd also take the raise and stay home.

[Uruhara]

I think work atmosphere is important, many people can be productive when the work environment is supportive, and conversely if we work from home then people think that home is a relaxed place so it won't be uplifting, in my opinion the best thing is if we want to increase high productivity is working in an office.

Well, for some people working in an office might indeed encourage them to be able to work to be more productive. But for people who don't like pressure from their boss, working at home can make them more focused and more productive.
The point is that everyone seems to have different thoughts about this. Depending on the type of work and also the type of personality of each person. For example, an introvert, they must be more productive when working alone. In contrast to extroverts who are actually more productive when working together like in an office with other employees.

So when it comes to being productive, everyone has their own thoughts about this. Some say at the office and some say at home. But I personally tend to think that the majority might be more productive if they work in an office.

[Japinat]

Maybe that could be true for some unmotivated workers who focus on their own rather than to focus on the productivity of their job. Especially that they are not closely monitored by their bosses, well expect that they will only work for few hours and kill the time with other self entertaining works.

[Quidat]

I think work atmosphere is important, many people can be productive when the work environment is supportive, and conversely if we work from home then people think that home is a relaxed place so it won't be uplifting, in my opinion the best thing is if we want to increase high productivity is working in an office.

Well, for some people working in an office might indeed encourage them to be able to work to be more productive. But for people who don't like pressure from their boss, working at home can make them more focused and more productive.
The point is that everyone seems to have different thoughts about this. Depending on the type of work and also the type of personality of each person. For example, an introvert, they must be more productive when working alone. In contrast to extroverts who are actually more productive when working together like in an office with other employees.

So when it comes to being productive, everyone has their own thoughts about this. Some say at the office and some say at home. But I personally tend to think that the majority might be more productive if they work in an office.

This is situational and it would really be just that impossible that there would be no tracking or tracing up about their performances specially to those who do work out from home.There's always a specific task or job that would be given, no matter how long they would be able to finish out that job as long it would really be done in a day then this is what matter the most. WFH wont really be that rampant if it doesnt really give out that good outcome but we are seeing the different thing which it does mean that it is really that still productive.It is really just that there are people who doesnt really prefer on working from home and there are ones who do love on staying up on the convenience of their own home. For me,if i were to choose then i would really be loving on making that work from home,
less hassle on commute although you would really be just working solo and not having those co-workers but if you do like that socialization then this isnt for you but if you are that kind of introvert
then it would really be not that not an issue.

[SatoPrincess]

A study published by the American private nonprofit research organization the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the productivity of workers randomly assigned to work from home was 18% lower than that of those in the office.
https://africa.businessinsider.com/careers/new-research-finds-that-fully-remote-workers-are-less-productive-than-their-in-office/4vxn4sy

These researchers found that if you work from home you will be less efficient and productive than people who from their office. Can we say the same about freelance workers?  Do you think that if workers are given the chance to "own" a task like freelancers they'll be more productive because it is just like being self-employed where you treat it as your business and not with the mindset of another man's business?

I disagree with the publication, I think it depends on the type of job and how the company pay salaries. If salaries are performance based then surely it wouldn’t matter if the workers come in to the office or work remotely, they would give 100% to their job because they know their paycheck depends on their productivity. There are two sides to the coin; there are people who need to be in that work space or atmosphere to be able to perform, but working from home eliminates the toxic work environment problem that workers complain about.

[xSkylarx]

A study published by the American private nonprofit research organization the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the productivity of workers randomly assigned to work from home was 18% lower than that of those in the office.
https://africa.businessinsider.com/careers/new-research-finds-that-fully-remote-workers-are-less-productive-than-their-in-office/4vxn4sy

These researchers found that if you work from home you will be less efficient and productive than people who from their office. Can we say the same about freelance workers?  Do you think that if workers are given the chance to "own" a task like freelancers they'll be more productive because it is just like being self-employed where you treat it as your business and not with the mindset of another man's business?

I disagree with the publication, I think it depends on the type of job and how the company pay salaries. If salaries are performance based then surely it wouldn’t matter if the workers come in to the office or work remotely, they would give 100% to their job because they know their paycheck depends on their productivity. There are two sides to the coin; there are people who need to be in that work space or atmosphere to be able to perform, but working from home eliminates the toxic work environment problem that workers complain about.

and mostly this is in remote jobs to be 100% productivity because a lot of those people are monitored by a time tracker to know what they are doing, and worse is that they are going to micromanage you, which for sure you can't rest in a bit. Also, having a less toxic environment is really good, as it can make you more motivated to go to work, and you'll be doing what you want without thinking that the eyes are on you.

[justdimin]

No I think this is the opposite, the corporate environment can create many distractions and interruptions, from commuting to time spent on social media. When you come to work, you may feel more tired and easily get lost in leisure activities instead of work.

You're ridiculous, how is it possible that in a work environment with clear and formal rules you're allowed to do things outside of duty? Unless you're a typical worker who likes to break rules that are not implemented too strictly.

To be fair, if you have a busy home, like a wife and a few kids, and you do not explain them well enough that you need to work and they do not respect your working space, then it's true that you are going to be able to be a lot more productive at work. But if you are single, or married with no kids, or married with kids but they all respect your working space, those are all things that can make you even more productive.

As someone who has worked at home for god knows how long, I can tell you that it's definitely better to work at home. I am a lot more productive at home because nobody bothers me here, and I am in my own room and working for hours and hours a day every single day and that makes it a lot better without a doubt.

[dothebeats]

No I think this is the opposite, the corporate environment can create many distractions and interruptions, from commuting to time spent on social media. When you come to work, you may feel more tired and easily get lost in leisure activities instead of work.

You're ridiculous, how is it possible that in a work environment with clear and formal rules you're allowed to do things outside of duty? Unless you're a typical worker who likes to break rules that are not implemented too strictly.

To be fair, if you have a busy home, like a wife and a few kids, and you do not explain them well enough that you need to work and they do not respect your working space, then it's true that you are going to be able to be a lot more productive at work. But if you are single, or married with no kids, or married with kids but they all respect your working space, those are all things that can make you even more productive.

As someone who has worked at home for god knows how long, I can tell you that it's definitely better to work at home. I am a lot more productive at home because nobody bothers me here, and I am in my own room and working for hours and hours a day every single day and that makes it a lot better without a doubt.

This is true, it really depends on the situation you have at home and how your household is being handled. It depends on the attitude and environment you have to ensure that you will be productive or not. I know a lot of people who work from home and are really doing well with their job despite being married and having kids. While I also know people who work on-site and are doing just as well.

[hyudien]

A study published by the American private nonprofit research organization the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the productivity of workers randomly assigned to work from home was 18% lower than that of those in the office.
https://africa.businessinsider.com/careers/new-research-finds-that-fully-remote-workers-are-less-productive-than-their-in-office/4vxn4sy

These researchers found that if you work from home you will be less efficient and productive than people who from their office. Can we say the same about freelance workers?  Do you think that if workers are given the chance to "own" a task like freelancers they'll be more productive because it is just like being self-employed where you treat it as your business and not with the mindset of another man's business?

To be honest, this all just depends on one's mood, whether working at the office or at home when the mood is bad everything will get messy. As for efficiency, in my opinion, it makes sense if this research certainly refers to the context of social interaction that occurs in the workplace environment which drives it in a positive direction, but for someone who is a loner, this situation will greatly interfere with his work productivity. So 2 different conditions will create different environments, all have levels of mutual influence on each other. Working at home, we have control over time, managing who can enter the workspace, while in the office we are involved in a lot of interactions that can occasionally be annoying. It all comes back to one's mood and cannot be generalized evenly.

[coin-investor]

It's not the case here in our country in fact our government encourages working from home because it will save time from commuting an average worker here in our country spend 3 to 5 hours of commuting because we have one of the worse traffic here in our country and by working from home the worker will be more productive because they can spend more quality works because they don't have to dress up and commute saving money and time.
Besides companies here have grading systems you need to be productive and efficient to stay on the job or be promoted so I could say it's a country-to-country situation or scenario.

[flyingcarpet]

A study published by the American private nonprofit research organization the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the productivity of workers randomly assigned to work from home was 18% lower than that of those in the office.
https://africa.businessinsider.com/careers/new-research-finds-that-fully-remote-workers-are-less-productive-than-their-in-office/4vxn4sy

These researchers found that if you work from home you will be less efficient and productive than people who from their office. Can we say the same about freelance workers?  Do you think that if workers are given the chance to "own" a task like freelancers they'll be more productive because it is just like being self-employed where you treat it as your business and not with the mindset of another man's business?

The important thing is to finish the work on time. There are companies that are not interested in what you do at home or in the office, but only in the result you produce. The cost of opening an office can be very high. Now it is often preferred to eliminate this cost and use the work-from-home method.

I think the main thing to do is to reduce the working hours in the office. Because in this way, one can work more efficiently in less time. He can also spare the remaining time for himself. If a person who has the chance to finish a job in 3 hours spends all the remaining time at the workplace, this person's productivity may decrease. A lot of changes need to be made in this regard. Many companies have started to make such changes.

[SmartGold01]

For me there is no sign of truth or evidence of reality to which the body of the content is directly explaining, why because there are some individual who made their home a personal office does it mean that these sets of people aren't making great inputs to their lives?

No! Because lots of people do love working from home as a matter of fact there could be more productivity and improvement while at their basic entities because there is nothing to worry about.
Lemme draw a little attention to those who worked at office, most times they aren't that open due to some personal issues or wanting to be free some kinds of worries even though they are in their place of work their minds and thinking are still channelled to their problems making it too difficulty to be productive and to get a meaningful results.

But that notwithstanding, most times it all depends on individual mindset and orientation, anyone who is determined to progress in life would definitely make it without any barrier or having to choose the best place to seat and work from. Lets say, in a family of 4 why is it that either 1 or 2 persons are making progress whereby almost all are graduates does it mean that the persons aren't determined to make success? No it's just a matter of heart "Dearing to succeed", therefore productiveness comes from heart orientation personal desireness [ permit me to use this word "Desireness' if there's a word like that] hence I would say working from home or having an office from doesn't determined how resourceful a woman should be or maybe how resourceful a man should be.

Apparently, there are sets of lazy bunch of banana's who doesn't like to work and knees to successful in life, and these sets of people fall under the category of "lemme manage the work at hand while my dream job come fort" are the people who may make the job looks very stressful and not yield any meaningful results to the entire organization and company, and if I am the CEO of such organization the only options I had is to get them fired off and to get them replaced by people who are knees to make progress in the company and, or the organization.

[isaac_clarke22]

Well, working from home actually offers more convenience for workers. No need to wear formal attire and no need to travel and spend money and time. However, despite of its advantages, there are also some noted reasons why working from home become less efficient and less productive. There are these home life distractions that will lessen your focus on your job and as an outcome, your work becomes affected and compromised. Also, the fact that you are less monitored by your heads or supervisors, makes you more less motivated to your work and put your own job at a risk. Nonetheless, the things that I mentioned may not be applicable to all workers/employees since each of them has different working condition.

I've been working from home for a while and I do agree with the research, but there's a catch. There's a huge difference between people who worked from home the whole time and people who were moved from office to their homes during the pandemic and stayed there because it was more convenient for the company. People who always worked online are used to it and they can focus on their tasks.
I have a friend who used to work from the office and he told me that the company offered them bonuses to stay home because they had saved so much on electricity that they could give everyone a raise and still make more money. If I were him I'd also take the raise and stay home.

I guess the interaction with coworker is what people wanted leading them to be RTO. I don't really like to do RTO considering that the corporate building I work at is kinda time-consuming, but good thing they offer good rate as well as flexibility in time.

Kinda just pain in the ass to pain in the wallet to deal with transportation. It might be fulfilling for some people to travel, but it kinda gets into you slowly. Going home tired, budgeting your expenses and also the distance of the travel as well.

The important thing is to finish the work on time. There are companies that are not interested in what you do at home or in the office, but only in the result you produce. The cost of opening an office can be very high. Now it is often preferred to eliminate this cost and use the work-from-home method.

I think the main thing to do is to reduce the working hours in the office. Because in this way, one can work more efficiently in less time. He can also spare the remaining time for himself. If a person who has the chance to finish a job in 3 hours spends all the remaining time at the workplace, this person's productivity may decrease. A lot of changes need to be made in this regard. Many companies have started to make such changes.

Some company do offer that kind reduction in the office. Not sure why don't company just go for full-time work from home so that their corporate building would consume less resources to keep their employees sated in their needs. The electricity, coffee, and the office equipments as well, kinda saves them a ton.

[coolcoinz]

I know something about that since I have a little kid at home and my wife takes care of her. When I work from home they treat me like I'm still there to help.

I used to work downstairs but it was unbearable. For instance my wife would ask me things, talk to me, share thoughts, treat me like I was there watching TV, not working and focusing on my task. I moved upstairs, but it's still the same, just that she screams to me from downstairs asking me if I can come down because of whatever, like there's a spider, or the cart brought in a lizard, or a million other things of similar importance.