'The mental health impact of pandemic disruption will be with us for quite some time'
More than one-quarter (28 per cent) of Canadians have trouble disconnecting after regular work hours.
Why? One half (51 per cent) have too much work to do during their workday. A further 25 per cent say that their manager contacts them after work hours while 23 per cent say their co-workers contact them after work hours.
And more than two in five (42 per cent) finish their workday feeling mentally or physically exhausted, according to survey by LifeWorks.
“Concerns regarding disconnecting from work are not new, however, work from home and hybrid work have brought the concern to a new level. Employers are starting to realize that the mental health impact of pandemic disruption will be with us for quite some time,” says CEO Stephen Liptrap.
“As the worksite is now overlapped with home, the benefits of flexibility can easily be countered by lack of separation from work.”
Ontario recently passed a “right-to-disconnect” law requiring employers to outline a related policy for employees.
However, Canadian HR Reporter spoke with legal experts who questioned the reasoning behind Ontario's right-to-disconnect proposal, citing employee preferences for flexibility and the challenges of enforcement.
Burnout concerns
A further 27 per cent find it increasingly difficult to concentrate on their work while 35 per cent find it increasingly difficult to be motivated to do their work, finds the survey of 3,000 people in March.
The indications of burnout could not be any clearer, says Paula Allen, global leader and senior vice president of research and total wellbeing at LifeWorks.
“This is an issue for health, productivity, engagement and retention. Motivation decreases with burnout, not because people no longer care about their work, but because they lack the energy to engage fully. In many cases we are also seeing another indicator of burnout, which is increased cynicism and conflict. This is a significant risk for organizational culture and productivity.”
Nearly half of Canadians (48 per cent) said they were more stressed to start 2022 than during the first lockdowns in 2020, according to another report.
