Remote workers face new and emerging risks
Nearly 7 in 10 Americans said they were concerned about the financial well–being of themselves and their families.
After several months of remote work and no tangible end in sight, how are employees feeling about their new work environment and conditions through the COVID-19 pandemic?
According to a new survey from Chubb, American workers are managing remote work just fine. In fact, when the pandemic eventually ends, nearly three-quarters of workers (74%) say they want to continue working from home more frequently than before the shutdown.
In an effort to examine new and emerging levels of risk in the remote work environment, a new national survey from Chubb outlines how working from home is impacting vulnerabilities to risk, consumer attitudes about risk, as well as consumer productivity, work/life balance, and emotional and physical wellbeing.
The survey found that Americans working from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic are remaining productive, working the same or more hours, and are staying connected with family and friends.
Resilient, Committed, Engaged and Worried: The Experiences and Risks of Americans Working from Home During COVID–19 was conducted by Dynata. It included 1,200 people and has a margin of error of +/- 3 percent.
Key findings of the survey
High-Level concerns about financial well-being: Nearly 7 in 10 Americans (68%) said they were concerned about the financial well–being of themselves and their families. This level of concern was common among both genders and all income groups and ages.
Productivity and hours worked are up for many: More than one–third of Americans working from home (37%) report being more productive, and another third say their productivity is equal to what they achieve outside the home. Americans are also keeping focused on their jobs. An overwhelming majority — 83% — are working the same or more hours at home compared to the office. More than one–third (37%) are working longer hours, including 17% who are working more than 10 extra hours per week.
Maintaining work/life balance while working from home isn’t easy: Two thirds (65%) say they are maintaining regular working hours, and half are scheduling breaks from work. At the same time, nearly 60% report that distractions from family, housemates or pets sometimes make it difficult to work from home. Just 38% of respondents say they are setting aside time for family. A minority of workers (43%) say they are successful in keeping a separation between work and family activities.
Working from home and social distancing hasn’t prevented Americans from staying connected: Among the most interesting and arguably surprising findings from the survey is the degree to which Americans working from home are staying connected and socializing with friends, coworkers and family. Four out of five (79%) report having the same or more contact with friends. That includes 25% who say they are talking with friends more while working from home.
Working from home greatly increases the risk of cyber-attacks — and most workers aren’t concerned about it: As Americans shifted to working from home in vast numbers, cybersecurity experts, including those at Chubb, have warned of elevated risks of cyber attacks in a work from home environment. Yet less than half of consumers (46%) said they were concerned about cybersecurity while using tools to work remotely. Nearly half (49%) say they regularly or sometimes conduct business on personal devices or their personal email account.
About 1 in 10 wealthy respondents have been the victim of a cyber attack while working remotely: The number of wealthy survey respondents who have been the victim of a cyber attack while working from home is notable: about one in ten. Among all respondents, 3% have experienced a cyber attack while working remotely.
Workers are feeling the pain of working at home: More than two out of five Americans working from home report feeling new or increased pain in their shoulders, back or wrists since they started working from home. Younger workers were much more likely than older workers to experience this pain and discomfort. Half of those aged 20–35 reported such pain. Among those aged 56 to 65, it was 28%.
Lifestyle changes: Working from home hasn’t stopped Americans from doing things they enjoy, including watching TV (56% are watching more); exercising (82% are exercising the same or more while working from home); reading (34% are reading more); and playing video games (56% kept up their level of video game playing with another 23% playing more).
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