Work, life and COVID‐19: a rapid review and practical recommendations for the post‐pandemic workplace

Abstract

Remote working because of the COVID‐19 pandemic has eroded boundaries between work and home, necessitating the need to evaluate the long‐term impacts of these changes and mitigate any negative effects on workers' work‐life experiences. To do so, we reviewed and examined work‐life research published since the start of the pandemic. The review yielded a sample of 303 work‐life scholarly articles, with three common themes: 1) work‐life boundaries have become more permeable, with behavior‐based and time‐based work‐life conflict emerging as the more salient forms of work‐life conflict; 2) technical work demands have increased, as employees grapple with techno‐invasion, techno‐overload and techno‐complexity; and 3) psychological and emotional work demands have intensified. Based on these key findings, we call for multi‐level and multi‐agency responses to deal with the complex, diverse nature of work‐life demands. Specifically, we offer recommendations at the individual‐, team/organizational‐ and societal/governmental‐levels to enhance employees' work and non‐work lives after the pandemic.

Experiences of nicotine users motivated to quit during the COVID-19 pandemic: a secondary qualitative analysis

“…Indeed, the pandemic introduced a myriad of sources of job-related stress, including layoffs, reduced income, reduced job security and, for remote workers, a diminished ability to ‘leave work at work’ 30. For in-person and essential workers, the pandemic led to lengthy work schedules, minimal time off, diminished time to engage in coping and stress-relieving strategies that had not yet been impacted by the pandemic, increased burnout, and increased susceptibility to the COVID-19 virus 31. Previous literature has found that increased stress and anxiety about employment and finances is associated with greater nicotine consumption 32.…”

Improving employee outcomes in the remote working context: a time‐lagged study on digital‐oriented training, work‐to‐family conflict and empowering leadership

“…HRM practices are important to employees' work-family outcomes (Batt and Valcour 2003;Wattoo, Zhao and Xi 2020). Various empirical studies have explored the role of work-to-family conflict (Chan et al 2022). These research findings indicate that support at work and home (Nasurdin and Hsia 2008), job schedule demands (Lingard and Francis 2005), work overload and parenting stress (Hong, Liu and Zhang 2021), after-hours work-related technology use, role overload, and job autonomy (Andrade and Petiz Lousã 2021) can be used to predict work-to-family conflict.…”

“…Work-to-family conflict can be caused by employees' work and family role incompatibility, such as work issues taking precedence over family issues or vice versa (Frone 2000;Dousin, Collins and Kler 2022). Prior studies have explored the negative impact of work-to-family conflict on employees (Chan et al 2022). HRM policies aimed to ease work-to-family conflict could help employees avoid adverse health outcomes (e.g.…”

“…Prior studies have explored the negative impact of work‐to‐family conflict on employees (Chan et al. 2022). HRM policies aimed to ease work‐to‐family conflict could help employees avoid adverse health outcomes (e.g.…”

Natural environments, psychosocial health, and health behaviors in a crisis – A scoping review of the literature in the COVID-19 context

“…This is evidenced by lower scores on tests of language and motor skills ( Wenner Moyer, 2022 ), while the consequences of school closures may lead to lifetime welfare losses of children ( Fuchs-Schündeln, Krueger, Ludwig, & Popova, 2022 ). Additionally, the shift to remote working came with both opportunities, such as enhanced productivity and flexibility, and less commuting time ( Oakman, Kinsman, Stuckey, Graham, & Weale, 2020 ), as well as challenges, such as intensified technical, psychological, and emotional work demands ( Chan, Shang, Brough, Wilkinson, & Lu, 2022 ). It is expected that this shift to remote and hybrid working will continue in the future, challenging health behaviors such as movement and dietary behaviors ( Peters, Dennerlein, Wagner, & Sorensen, 2022 ), which are typically embedded into structures related to work or school ( Brazendale et al, 2017 ).…”