A growing number of us are working from home. It was already starting to become trendy in the 2010s, but since lockdown it has become increasingly commonplace – with one Finder study discovering that 44% of Brits now claim to work from home some of the time.
Working from home has its many benefits including no commute and fewer workplace distractions. There are even studies that claim people are happier and more productive working from home. However, a study has revealed that working from home exclusively may not actually be the healthiest mode of working – and that hybrid working may actually be better.
What hybrid working?
Hybrid working involves spending some days working from home and some days working in an office.
It has become a popular model offered by many new companies that has benefits for both the employee and the business. The employee still gets to experience working in an office, while not having to spend time and money commuting every day. The company meanwhile can save money on a smaller office space by only having half of its workers in the office at one time, allowing desks to be shared among employees.
Freelancers and entrepreneurs running home businesses can meanwhile take advantage of hybrid working by looking into co-working spaces as found at sites like The Brew. These are office spaces shared by multiple businesses where you can rent out rooms or individual desks. This is cheaper and less of a commitment than renting out a private office.
How is hybrid working healthier?
As this research conducted by Vitality has found, full-time home workers are likely to take more absence than hybrid workers. In fact, full-time workers on average took 50 days of absence each year, while hybrid workers took 47.8 days off.
The research also shows that full-time home workers are more likely to be obese than hybrid workers. 25.2% of home workers surveyed were obese. Meanwhile, only 20% of hybrid workers were found to be obese.
Could this obesity be due to less activity, or a worse diet? The same study found that 46% of hybrid workers were able to get their five a day of fruit and vegetables. Only 37.5% of full-time home workers did the same.
Mental wellbeing may also be affected by working from home. 8.1% of hybrid workers reported having depression. Meanwhile, 12.1% of full-time home workers were found to be depressed. Even full-time office workers were found to be happier (10.4% were found to have depression).
Is hybrid working better for you?
The data suggest that hybrid workers take less time off work, are less likely to be obese, eat more fruit and vegetables and are less likely to struggle with depression.
This suggests that switching to a hybrid working role could improve one’s health. However, clearly not every person who works from home is going to live a more unhealthy life, just as not every hybrid worker is more healthy. Hybrid working may inspire people to be more healthy by forcing them to go outside, be more active and socialise more – however you can still work from and do all this by maximising your evenings, lunch breaks and weekends.
