Productivity of Working at Home and Time Allocation Between Paid Work, Unpaid Work and Leisure Activities During a Pandemic

Abstract

Background and Objective The COVID-19 pandemic and the measures taken by governments to contain it have affected many aspects of the daily lives of citizens. This study aimed to describe changes in the productivity of paid work and time allocation to paid and unpaid work and leisure resulting from working at home during the pandemic. Methods A sample of 851 people from the Netherlands who had paid work (≥ 24 h/week) and worked at least 4 hours per week extra at home because of lockdown measures completed a questionnaire during the first COVID-19 lockdown (April 2020). Respondents reported time spent on paid and unpaid work and leisure before and during the lockdown. Productivity was measured in terms of quantity and quality of paid work. Results On average, respondents spent less time (14%) on paid work and productivity decreased 5.5%. Changes in productivity were associated with the age of children, net income and having a separate home office. Respondents spent more time on unpaid work (27%) and leisure (11%). Women spent more time on unpaid work in absolute but not in relative terms. People with a partner and with children spent more time on unpaid work and less time on leisure. Conclusions Productivity of paid work decreased, and people reallocated time between paid and unpaid work and leisure during the first COVID-19 lockdown. Changes in time allocation and productivity differed across subgroups. If working at home becomes more common, future research should focus on the long-term impact on productivity and mental and physical health.

Remote working in Italian SMEs during COVID-19. Learning challenges of a new work organization

“…Multidisciplinary literature has revealed that job productivity, well-being and work-life balance are key factors when exploring the impact of remote technology on employees, managers and firms, especially if the work is managed by objectives and performance-based (Sharafutdinova et al , 2022; Leonardi, 2020; Mingardo et al , 2020). Following literature and data collected by Eurofound (2020) the positive aspects of remote working can be summarized as follows: increased productivity (Abdellatif, 2021; Abujarour, 2021; Awada et al , 2021; Guler et al , 2021; Huls et al , 2021; Nuur et al , 2021); greater autonomy (Wong et al , 2021); and improvement in flexibility (intended as the possibility to work from different locations without the limitations due to office-based hours and risks related to displacement and crowding) (Kniffin et al , 2021; Troll et al , 2021). …”

“…increased productivity (Abdellatif, 2021; Abujarour, 2021; Awada et al , 2021; Guler et al , 2021; Huls et al , 2021; Nuur et al , 2021);…”

“…increased productivity (Abdellatif, 2021;Abujarour, 2021;Awada et al, 2021;Guler et al, 2021;Huls et al, 2021;Nuur et al, 2021); greater autonomy (Wong et al, 2021); and improvement in flexibility (intended as the possibility to work from different locations without the limitations due to office-based hours and risks related to displacement and crowding) (Kniffin et al, 2021;Troll et al, 2021).…”

In Absence of Absenteeism: Some Thoughts on Productivity Costs in Economic Evaluations in a Post-corona Era

“…Validating such measures for this purpose is, of course, important, as is a better understanding of compensation mechanisms and multiplier effects in the context of working from home more often. Moreover, it will be interesting to investigate, like in Huls et al [ 2 ], the determinants of productivity at home, including family composition, working space, type of work, etc. Finally, if in the post-corona era presenteeism becomes more and absenteeism less prominent, this may also have consequences for valuation methods, for instance, whether and how replacement, as assumed in the friction cost method (e.g.…”

“…This change was facilitated by digital communication tools that rapidly became part of everyday life (also for academics, like it or not) and meant adaptation to a new way of working for many involved. The productivity of people working from home, relative to that in a formal workplace, especially during lockdowns and with little time to adjust, is a relevant and interesting issue to study in its own right, as highlighted in, for instance, Huls et al [ 2 ]. Such studies can also be relevant in investigating the costs and benefits of different policy interventions related to reducing infection rates during a pandemic.…”