Working from home might have taken a bit of getting used to for some of Britain’s working population, but there’s no denying it has come with some positive benefits. Our post last week explained how remote working can boost productivity, rather than hinder it and this week we look at how it can reduce travel trauma.
What is Travel Trauma?
It might sound rather dramatic, but commuting can be stressful, and it often doesn’t go according to plan, making you feel tired, angry or anxious. Commuting can put a strain on our workforce and can drain vital resources needed by staff to carry out their jobs.
Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show 3.7 million workers travel for two hours or longer every weekday. That’s nearly 50 hours a month!
At the best of times, you might get a seat on a train and be able to listen to music or read your book, but peak travel time can render that challenging. Maybe we are worried about our music being too loud. Maybe someone else’s is. And loud music is not the only annoyance. Some of the top pet hates commuters have, include noisy eaters, people talking on their phones and overcrowding.
If you’re a London commuter, overcrowding is certainly a common issue. Watching tube after tube depart the station crammed full of people like see-through baked bean cans. A sea of people shuffling along to try and wedge themselves into the next train, eager to make their connection trains or get home to see families. Not exactly pandemic friendly, but not pleasant at any other time either.
There’s also the environmental impact of commuting. We will be looking more at that next week, but travel puts a huge strain on the health of our planet.
Many workforces incentivise their staff to cycle to work and this is a great way to keep fit and help reduce carbon emissions, but even that can be stressful. If you cycle to work, you are 15 times more likely than drivers to be killed on the road.
Driving in to work is a more comfortable method, but traffic jams and road rage are both causes of elevated stress. Unlike the train, you can’t just switch off and read. Fuel emissions are also one of the leading causes of pollution and we have to reduce that.
Working from Home Offers Solutions, not Problems.
Working remotely mitigates a lot of these risk factors, helping to reduce stress and anxiety. In fact, the following benefits make a pretty good case for why your employer could consider a more long-term working from home arrangement:
- It reduces the risk of accidents
- It lowers stress and anxiety levels
- It’s better for the environment
- It improves punctuality – no more being late for work/late home
- Employees are less exhausted
- It’s cheaper for staff. Money sometimes does buy happiness
Check back next week for more benefits of remote working, to help support your discussion with your employer.