How to support well-being for remote workers

Remote workers may work from home full-time or take a hybrid approach to divide their working hours between home and the office. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, only 4.7% of employees worked from home. However, the pandemic changed the remote working landscape, when 86% of remote workers only worked from home due to the lockdown. More recently, 28% of UK employees were hybrid workers, with 13% solely working from home.

The number of employees seeking remote or hybrid working has increased, meaning employers must consider the impact on their well-being as part of their overall duty of care.

Remote workers benefit from various advantages, including creating a better balance between their work and personal lives and avoiding a stressful and expensive commute to the office. Remote working can also boost productivity as employees can avoid being distracted by noisy colleagues or phone calls, which is great news for employers.

However, working at home can cause isolation and loneliness, impact employees' ability to collaborate with their colleagues and provide support and training to new team members. 

Remote working can affect your team's physical and mental health. Let's consider the main concerns remote workers face when working from home.

Reduced physical activity

Remote employees can avoid commuting to the office, but this could reduce their physical activity levels. They may feel obliged to work longer hours to prove they're productive, meaning they're less likely to take a break and go for a lunchtime walk. Getting out for some fresh air and exercise in nature has proven mental health benefits and lets remote workers return to their desks refreshed.

A sedentary lifestyle can lead to musculoskeletal issues, obesity and heart disease. Building exercise into the working day can be challenging when working from home, but it can help employees create boundaries and maintain their physical health.

Mental health

Office-based working may have its distractions, but it provides opportunities for informal conversations with colleagues. By contrast, remote working can cause employees to feel isolated and lonely, particularly if they live alone. Loneliness and isolation can trigger mental health issues such as depression and lead to alcohol abuse and sleep problems. Remote employees may also find it more challenging to ask for support from their managers and colleagues when struggling with their mental health.

Remote working can support a shift in employees' working hours so they can shift their schedule to suit their personal commitments. However, it's a good idea to maintain a regular schedule, as this helps to reduce stress levels and supports good mental health.

Work-life balance

Remote working arrangements can have positive and negative effects on work-life balance. In 2022, 78% of remote employees said working at home improved the balance between work and home life. However, others found that the boundaries between work and personal time blurred. They felt that the technology that allows remote working created an expectation that they'd be available to work longer hours, or to respond to messages in the evening.

Working late into the evening can adversely affect employees' home lives and make it difficult to get good quality sleep, especially when coupled with a lack of routine and limited exposure to natural light.

Fewer career development and training opportunities

Before the pandemic, remote employees were less likely to be promoted or offered training to support their career progression. It's unclear whether this bias persists, but it's worth keeping in mind when managing remote employees and considering who to invite to apply for promotion.

'Flexibility stigma' creates disadvantages for remote workers, as they're perceived as less dedicated or less productive, despite evidence. These biases can prevent career progression and impact long-term earning potential, leading to financial troubles and stress.

Poor workstation set-up

When your employees work in an office, you can control the workplace environment, including setting up their workstations. Adequate lighting and an ergonomic work station prevent physical health issues, including eye strain and musculoskeletal problems.

You have a legal duty to carry out a workstation assessment, which is likely impractical if your team spends significant time working at home. However, if an employee's desk set up doesn't support good posture, they may develop musculoskeletal issues such as neck, back and shoulder pain. These disorders are a major cause of workplace absence, with an estimated 7.8 million working days lost in 2023/24. Keyboard use is also linked to repetitive strain injury affecting the hands and wrists.

Ensuring employees set up workstations correctly and take regular breaks can avoid pain and discomfort for them and minimise the impact on your business.

We've outlined the issues that remote teams can face. How can your business help remote staff work safely and avoid the potential pitfalls?

Here are some practical strategies to help you find solutions to common home-working challenges.

Clear communication

Keeping in regular contact with remote teams helps reduce stress and social isolation. It also lets managers create clear expectations regarding work performance and productivity. Online communication tools such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom can facilitate video calls and messaging for meetings and informal discussions throughout the working day. It's a good idea to agree on when and how you will make contact to avoid disruption. Creating agreement within the team also lets you design a system that works with individual preferences and needs.

Informal calls can help to reduce feelings of loneliness by providing face-to-face contact. When managers speak to employees, they can check their tone of voice or body language for signs of stress or mental health problems. They can also ask how they feel, encouraging them to share problems.

Staff training

Training can cover a variety of subjects and deal with many issues related to remote working. Training on maintaining good physical health when working at a desk or positive communication skills can benefit many employees, while other topics are more relevant when working at home. Train managers on managing a remote team and offer employees sessions on creating clear boundaries to avoid increased stress levels and burnout.

We've mentioned the difficulties associated with workstation assessments for home-working arrangements. Training staff to conduct assessments and discuss their findings with a trained assessor offers a practical solution. Sessions can include information on the importance of breaks and good posture. The Health and Safety Executive has a workstation checklist, a helpful starting point.

Create a positive workplace culture

Companies ask their teams to return to the office for many reasons, including a desire to increase collaboration and build a strong workplace culture. However, a positive culture is still possible when working remotely.

Ensuring managers set clear expectations around standards, goals, and contact can help reduce employee stress levels. Your communication strategy is a central part of building a positive culture. When staff work at home, they often feel pressured to start earlier or finish work later to demonstrate their commitment, which can negatively affect their well-being. A culture that empowers staff to work independently and trusts them to make good decisions can boost performance and support employees' mental health.

Induction and onboarding

The induction process may differ depending on whether employees are fully remote or adopting hybrid working. For example, you may carry out training and share relevant information when an employee is in the office to prepare them for working at home on other days. Alternatively, send remote staff a welcome pack with essential documents, training materials and personal touches such as a branded mug and stationery.

Follow up with video calls with their colleagues for training and goal setting, and to let them meet their colleagues. You can also provide a schedule for their first week to help them get into a routine.

Employee health insurance

Health insurance provides access to private medical care and resources to support employee well-being. Policies typically include virtual GP appointments, access to telephone helplines, counselling and online articles on health and well-being subjects. You can also add an Employee Assistance Programme, which offers counselling and guidance on legal and financial matters.

Most insurers have member reward schemes offering discounted gym memberships, fitness trackers and other services to help employees improve their mental and physical health.

Relationship building

Supportive workplace relationships help your team members seek help from their colleagues if they experience mental health struggles or personal issues. Good communication is vital, so encourage employees to chat informally, for example by building virtual coffee breaks into their daily schedule.

Business health insurance typically offers health assessments, which can provide anonymised data on workplace well-being trends. The information can help you create workplace well-being programmes and challenges, whether virtual or in-person.

In-person training days, away days, and social events offer valuable training opportunities and allow staff to meet face to face.

Well-being resources

Self-help resources let staff explore well-being topics according to their interests and can also form part of your communication and training strategies. Share links to good quality resources during training, on your company intranet and via email. Health insurance providers, the NHS, and charities offer reliable and informative information.

Mental health charity Mind has resources for remote workers, helping them create a routine, separate home and work, and manage stress.

With the proper support, remote workers can create a positive work-life balance and improve their well-being. If you'd like to learn more about how business health insurance can help you support your team, contact Globacare for tailored advice.