The mental health impact of working from home

Head of our Accounts Department, Rachael Cobb says that working from home can be tough for many employees. As a business, it's your job to make sure that the negative impact is minimised.

We understand that the pandemic has posed significant obstacles and setbacks for the managers and owners of small-to-medium sized businesses. And among the issues that need to be addressed is the impact that homeworking might have on employees and their productivity.

Our working lives have been totally different from the start of lockdown. You may notice your staff have been working differently too. Some have excelled, while others have remained consistent or perhaps have not done so well.

It's important to consider the mental health of employees and the impact that working from home can have. Sometimes it can be good to make sure your staff have a structured routine, encouraging them to:

• Get dressed as if they were going into the office
• Have a workplace free of distractions
• Keep to the regular office hours as much as possible
• Exercise regularly

In terms of the social aspect of work, it's important to organise regular check-ins and follow up video calls with emails to make sure individuals are ok. And why not encourage lunchtime Skype or Zoom sessions, so that people can talk to each other as they might over a regular lunch at the office?

The coronavirus is almost sure to have some sort of impact on people's mental health, but some are at greater risk and it is important that you plan for how the situation affects your staff and adjust accordingly. It may be that you wait before bringing back those members of the team with health issues, but in doing so, it is important to consider the risk to their mental health too. They shouldn't feel they're struggling and need to be kept involved. That way, when they do come back to work, they'll feel ready.

If you want further advice on how your business adapts to the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, contact us here at Page Kirk on 0115 955 5500 or email at enquiries@pagekirk.co.uk.