Flexible workplaces are better for employee health
Employees who are judged on output rather than the time spent in the office tend to be healthier, according to University of Minnesota sociology professors Erin Kelly and Phyllis Moen.
The professors found that a flexible workplace improved employees’ health behaviour and their overall well-being, including increasing the amount and quality of their sleep.
“Our study shows that moving from viewing time at the office as a sign of productivity to emphasizing actual results can create a work environment that fosters healthy behavior and well-being,” said Moen. “This has important policy implications, suggesting that initiatives creating broad access to time flexibility encourage employees to take better care of themselves.”
The pair worked with workers at Best Buy’s head office in Richfield, Minnesota and established a flexible workplace initiative among 608 white-collar employees. The study examined changes in health-promoting behaviors and health outcomes among the employees participating in the initiative compared to those who did not participate. The workplace initiative—dubbed the Results Only Work Environment (ROWE)—redirected the focus of employees and managers toward measurable results and away from when and where work was completed. Under ROWE, employees were allowed to routinely change when and where they worked based on their individual needs and job responsibilities without seeking permission from a manager or even notifying one.
Workers in ROWE slept more than those who didn’t participate, reporting an average of 52 extra minutes of sleep on nights before work. Employees participating in the initiative also managed their health differently: They were less likely to feel obligated to work when sick and more likely to go to a doctor when necessary, even when busy. The flexible workplace initiative increased employees’ sense of schedule control and reduced their work-family conflict. This improved their sleep quality, energy levels, self-reported health, and sense of personal mastery while decreasing their emotional exhaustion and psychological distress.
“Narrower flexibility policies allow some ‘accommodations’ for family needs, but are less likely to promote employee health and well-being or to be available to all employees,” says Kelly.
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