Working from home and productivity under the COVID-19 pandemic: Using survey data of four manufacturing firms

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted the world economy in various ways. In particular, the drastic shift to telework has dramatically changed how people work. Whether the new style of working from home (WFH) will remain in our society highly depends on its effects on workers’ productivity. However, to the best of our knowledge, the effects of WFH on productivity are still unclear. By leveraging unique surveys conducted at four manufacturing firms in Japan, we assess within-company productivity differences between those who work from home and those who do not, along with identifying possible factors of productivity changes due to WFH. Our main findings are as follows. First, after ruling out the time-invariant component of individual productivity and separate trends specific to employee attributes, we find that workers who worked from home experienced productivity declines more than those who did not. Second, our analysis shows that poor WFH setups and communication difficulties are the major reasons for productivity losses. Third, we find that the mental health of workers who work from home is better than that of workers who are unable to work from home. Our result suggests that if appropriate investments in upgrading WFH setups and facilitating communication can be made, WFH may improve productivity by improving employees’ health and well-being.

Working from Home, Telework, and Psychological Wellbeing? A Systematic Review

“…In onsite environments, there are consistent relationship development opportunities (e.g., adjacent offices, shared lunch areas), whereas telework environments require planning to establish contact. And quality communication opportunities were important [17][18]. Song and Gao [39] Heiden et al [40] Vander Elst et al [28] Wohrmann and Ebner [30] Wohrmann and Ebner [30] Erro-Garces et al [ In drawing on the proactive work design model, work design conditions were the most studied component regarding telework.…”

“…Song and Gao [39] Heiden et al [40] Vander Elst et al [28] Wohrmann and Ebner [30] Wohrmann and Ebner [30] Erro-Garces et al [ In drawing on the proactive work design model, work design conditions were the most studied component regarding telework. For example, working conditions [17], dedicated home office spaces [18,31], flexibility [31][32], and organizational support [17,34] were seen as important contributors to decent work for employees engaging in telework practices. This makes contextual sense given that many studies focused on understanding what drivers effected wellbeing in workplaces where telework was merely a reflection of the same work and work practices occurring offsite.…”

Work from Home during the COVID-19 Pandemic—The Impact on Employees’ Self-Assessed Job Performance

“…When the organization’s performance and productivity are under discussion in the WFH system, opinions are often contradictory. A study on WFH during the COVID-19 pandemic showed that WFH is associated with low employee productivity, and most workers experienced declines in productivity, probably due to their inadequate preparation for WFH under the sudden shock of the pandemic [ 9 ] (p. 21). Poor communication and lack of a well-developed setup for WFH were also mentioned among the factors that negatively influence employee productivity.…”

“…This study brings contributions in the field of remote working, a research field that receive a huge attention after the COVID-19 pandemic [ 8 , 9 , 21 , 24 ]. Our findings are bringing significant insights into the factors that influence the technical and social self-assessed performance of the employees working in remote systems.…”

The synergy between two threats: disinformation and Covid-19

“…In view of these broad repercussions, it is desirable that the mathematical and computational studies of the Covid-19 pandemic go beyond the transmission of the physical infection and consider its more nuanced effects in the distinct age and socioeconomic segments of the population, which requires a multiscale and multifaceted approach. [1,2] In addition, they should consider also the effects of the measures to curb the spread of coronavirus, such as social distancing and lockdowns, on the mental health of the population, [3][4][5] and on work productivity, [6][7][8] which can be thought of as a second-order effect of the virus infection. Interestingly, the surge of loneliness associated to those prevention measures may be related to the widespread rising of authoritarianism seen today since, as pointed out long ago by Hannah Arendt, "the chief characteristic of the mass man is not brutality and backwardness, but his isolation and lack of normal social relationships".…”