Has working from home improved work life balance?

One of the unintended consequences of the pandemic is that millions of people have had the opportunity to try out working from home. The circumstances were far from ideal, but pre-lockdown employment surveys almost always showed a big demand for flexible home working. 

In last year’s blog on work/life balance in the legal profession, I reported on a survey showing that 40% of lawyers thought that flexible working would be the biggest benefit when choosing a law firm.

Now that we have all experienced home working, can we safely conclude that it improves our work/life balance?

A recent survey featured on Legal Cheek seems to confirm that working from home has been seen to be positive. It revealed that 52% of employees across the UK law sector said working from home improved their work-life balance. While just over a quarter (26%) feel more motivated working remotely.

So – it would appear a resounding ‘Yes’ is in order. 

But, on the other hand, the same survey uncovered some more worrying conclusions:

39% of legal professionals said working from home had a negative impact on their mental health. Almost half (46%) said they feel more isolated.

“Imposter syndrome and self-doubt are rife, with more than a quarter (27%) feeling these more so working from home than they did previously.”

The working-from-home contradiction

These findings are not unusual. This contradiction has been unearthed in several studies and surveys since the first lockdown. People, mostly, seem to prefer working from home but also believe that isolation presents a real risk to mental health.

Clearly, flexible working and working from home are certainly here to stay. 

In an interview with the Financial Times, Tom Shropshire, the Global Head of US Practice at Linklaters London/New York, concluded:

“We have proven that this works in a way that we probably didn’t expect.”

He personally appreciated being spared the gruelling schedule of flights and spending more time with his family.

If home working is the new normal, then it’s important that employers learn how to make it work for their employees. In fairness, employers were deprived of the opportunity to implement wellness policies because the lockdown happened so quickly.

Another survey found that 44% of workers in the legal profession felt their employer helped them to make adequate provisions to work from home in the long term.

The need for time to adapt

Almost overnight, the UK workforce had to adapt to a vastly different way of working, and though most welcomed the change, it was inevitable that it would throw up uncertainties and concerns. It’s no wonder that the surveys on home working are laden with contradictions.

With proper planning and the benefit of experience, the pitfalls of working from home can be effectively tackled.

And once the dust settles, legal professionals will be able to enjoy the upsides of a more balanced work/life relationship resulting from flexible working.

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