What if there was a medical procedure to separate our work and home lives?

This is exactly what is explored in the new Apple TV+ show, Severance, directed by Ben Stiller. While such a procedure resides only in the world of sci-fi, the pandemic and the impact it has had on our working lives, has led to an increased focus on the ever elusive, work/life balance. Many people report finding it more difficult to separate their work and home lives while working from home during the pandemic. At the same time, many people do not want to return to working in the office full-time because of the benefits of home working such as increased flexibility. 

Some organisations are considering introducing, or have introduced, a four-day week in part to increase employee well-being which, in turn, should have a positive impact on the business. One such organisation is Advice Direct Scotland which introduced a four-day working week in 2018 and has this month reported an increase in productivity as well as a 71% drop in employee absences since 2017. The Scottish Government has announced a £10 million fund for four-day week pilots and the concept is supported by the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC).

Introducing a four-day working week will not be right for every organisation but taking steps as employers to support employee well-being and helping employees to have some separation between their work and home life, will likely be worthwhile. There are potential benefits to that separation including increased productivity, decreased absences due to stress or burn-out and a positive impact on the employer’s reputation allowing them to attract the best talent.  

A “right to disconnect” is one such step which has been introduced in other European countries and which the Scottish Government has indicated it wants to introduce for public sector employees. It is something which private sector employers could also choose to introduce and which in particular could help to address the problem for home workers of their work life consistently bleeding into their home life. 

As all parts of the UK are easing Covid-19 restrictions, it will be interesting to see what lasting impact the pandemic will have on our working practices.