Over half of the UK remote workforce state that their mental health is better when working from home, a new nationwide survey reveals.  

The study, commissioned by free conference call providers, WHYPAY?, shows that employees are feeling happier and getting more work done as a result of working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The psychological benefits 

A striking find from WHYPAY?’s study is that one in five employees have become ‘all-round-happier’ people due to working from home, and 43% admit that they were actually unhappy about returning to work when advised to do so back in August.

‘The fact that there is so much scary stuff happening in the world that we have no control over, can make us feel overwhelmed and powerless. Being snuggled up at home in our little bubbles helps to make us feel safer. But, going back out into the world feels scarier than it did before,’ says Nadia, Founder of Shy and Mighty.

‘The constant sense of uncertainty and the feeling of being out of control has had an impact on our mental health. We’re living in a heightened state of anxiety, with every news update adding to our jitters,’ she added.  

Increased productivity levels

According to the dataset, 53% of UK employees say that working from home has enabled them to be more productive than ever. 

Referring to this statistic, Elliot Green, Chief Marketing Officer at WHYPAY?, said: ‘What we’re seeing is a shift in mindset as many employees realise they can work just as well, if not more effectively, from home. With the right communication technology, remote staff can connect and collaborate very successfully.’

Thoughts from across the UK 

WHYPAY?’s nationwide survey reveals that there does appear to be a demographic divide when it comes to opinions on working from home. 

It has been revealed that the region that seems to most favour remote working is Scotland (51%). Next to this, we have the West Midlands (50%), East of England (49%), and Greater London (47%). 

As well as this, 46% of men (compared to 40% of women) say that they prefer to work from home, and 50% of 16–24 year-olds agree on the same. 

The views of work have changed

The findings from WHYPAY?’s survey also highlight that: 

• Almost 50% of UK workers believe that the pandemic has altered their views of their current job.
• 40% believe that their role could be carried out entirely from home.
• 50% have admitted that they would like their employer to offer them at least some degree of remote working after the pandemic. 
• 25% of employees would even choose to take a significant pay cut if it meant they could work remotely long-term. 

It seems that companies are responding to these employee concerns.

Speaking about how the pandemic has shifted his company’s way of thinking, Managing Director of Sleeping Giant Media Anthony Klokkou said:

‘Remote working was on the cards pre-Covid, however, not to the extent we are now using it. We’re now implementing flexible working to address the changes in working expectations and to give our team the freedoms they deserve. We have seen that remote working can work well, for us at least, and have worked hard to keep communication high across the business while supporting the cultural development that is happening.’

Dennis Relojo-Howell, the founder of Psychreg, also commented: 

‘COVID-19 has changed the world. One of the biggest day-to-day changes is that thousands of businesses had to close their doors and learn how to work from home.

‘But now we’ve experienced this way of life, we might not ever go back to the traditional office as we know it. Some data has uncovered that many people prefer working at home, indicating that the future may be remote. To better support individuals, we also have to take into account what WHYPAY statistics has revealed.’