Editorial | Working from home proving to be viable
- The pandemic has put the spotlight on working from home, and while it is not possible for many jobs, the experience may prompt an examination of more flexible work arrangements in the future
Working from home is an effective way to curb Covid 19 infections amid a global pandemic. With proper technology and support, it could also be the way forward for some industries, as weeks of lockdown around the world have proved. As long as productivity and efficiency are not compromised, there is no reason why it should not be further promoted.
Whether office workers can soon return to their workplaces remains to be seen. But few could have imagined bosses allowing working from home for so many weeks. What once seemed unthinkable is, after all, feasible. And the world by and large gets by, albeit with much suffering for many.
But until productivity and efficiency are proved to be unaffected, reservations and resistance from businesses are to be expected. There is still a perception that working from home is prone to abuse. While the arrangement helps save commuting time, it also gives employees the luxury to do their errands during “office hours”. There was even an incident when banking workers were found to have gone hiking when they were supposed to be working from home.
Admittedly, working from home is not possible for some jobs. The ongoing suspension of public services has caused much inconvenience, after civil servants were again told to stay home to help contain the second wave of imported and local infections. But many jobs in the public and private sectors can be handled remotely. The experience over the past weeks has provided good basis for wider implementation.
With the world still struggling to get the pandemic under control, changing office culture is not the priority. But this does not stop advocates from using the crisis to promote wider acceptance of working from home. There are those who believe that office towers may eventually no longer be an integral part of the urban landscape.
The culture of working from home may not be established overnight. Some argue that face-to-face communication can never be replaced by online interaction. Be that as it may, the pandemic is showing that working from home is a viable option. Hopefully, it can prompt more flexibility in global work arrangements in the future.