The call for hybrid work arrangement post-pandemic

  • Amani Fadzlina Abdul Aziz Naluri Hidup Sdn Bhd, Kuala Lumpur 59000, Malaysia
  • Tiffanie Ong Naluri Hidup Sdn Bhd, Kuala Lumpur 59000, Malaysia
Ariticle ID: 3417
299 Views, 186 PDF Downloads
Keywords: remote work; hybrid work

Abstract

COVID-19 has led to abrupt changes in work norms and practices. Despite receding pandemic restrictions, the popularity of remote or hybrid work has not subsided. As employees around the world continue to call for more flexibility and autonomy in the way they work, human resource leaders must continuously consider and evaluate decisions based on ever-changing sentiment, balancing the interests of employees and employers alike. In this perspective article, we review the current state of work in the Southeast Asian region, focusing on Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, and present preliminary results from a region-wide mental health assessment that was conducted in late 2022. We argue for the continuation of hybrid work in the region and elaborate on the mental health risks that come with remote working.

Author Biography

Tiffanie Ong, Naluri Hidup Sdn Bhd, Kuala Lumpur 59000, Malaysia

Chief Product Officer

References

Afonso, P., Fonseca, M., & Teodoro, T. (2022). Evaluation of anxiety, depression and sleep quality in full-time teleworkers. Journal of Public Health, 44(4), 797–804. https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdab164

Bareket-Bojmel, L., Chernyak-Hai, L., & Margalit, M. (2023). Out of sight but not out of mind: The role of loneliness and hope in remote work and in job engagement. Personality and Individual Differences, 202, 111955. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2022.111955

Białek-Dratwa, A., Szczepańska, E., Grajek, M., et al. (2022). Health Behaviors and Associated Feelings of Remote Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic—Silesia (Poland). Frontiers in Public Health, 10, 774509. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.774509

Buffer. (2022). 2022 State of remote work. Available online: https://buffer.com/state-of-remote-work/2022 (accessed on 18 February 2024).

CBRE. (2022). Asia Pacific companies expect employees to spend more time in office even as majority warm to hybrid work: CBRE. Available online: https://www.cbre.com/press-releases/asia-pacific-companies-expect-employees-to-spend-more-time-in-office (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Charalampous, M., Grant, C. A., Tramontano, C., & Michailidis, E. (2019). Systematically reviewing remote e-workers’ well-being at work: A multidimensional approach. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 28(1), 51–73. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2018.1541886

Chatterjee, A., Prinz, A., Gerdes, M., & Martinez, S. (2021). Digital Interventions on Healthy Lifestyle Management: Systematic Review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(11), e26931. https://doi.org/10.2196/26931

Chen, X., Ran, L., Zhang, Y., et al. (2019). Moderating role of job satisfaction on turnover intention and burnout among workers in primary care institutions: A cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health, 19(1), 1526. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-7894-7

Chi, O. H., Saldamli, A., & Gursoy, D. (2021). Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on management-level hotel employees’ work behaviors: Moderating effects of working-from-home. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 98, 103020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2021.103020

CISCO. (2022). Employees are ready for hybrid work, are you? Cisco global hybrid work study 2022. Available online: https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/m/en_us/solutions/global-hybrid-work-study/reports/cisco-global-hybrid-work-study-2022.pdf (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Deutrom, J., Katos, V., Al-Mourad, M. B., & Ali, R. (2022). The Relationships between Gender, Life Satisfaction, Loneliness and Problematic Internet Use during COVID-19: Does the Lockdown Matter? International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(3), 1325. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031325

Dolbier, C. L., Webster, J. A., McCalister, K. T., et al. (2005). Reliability and Validity of a Single-Item Measure of Job Satisfaction. American Journal of Health Promotion, 19(3), 194–198. https://doi.org/10.4278/0890-1171-19.3.194

Edú-Valsania, S., Laguía, A., & Moriano, J. A. (2022). Burnout: A Review of Theory and Measurement. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(3), 1780. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031780

EY. (2021). Majority of surveyed Southeast Asia (SEA) employees prefer not to return to pre-COVID-19 ways of working. Available online: https://www.ey.com/en_id/news/2021/07/majority-of-surveyed-southeast-asia-sea-employees-prefer-not-to-return1 (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Fajri, A., & Haerudin, H. (2022). The Effect of Work-From Home on Burnout during COVID-19 Disease: The Mediating Effect of Organizational and Family Support. Budapest International Research and Critics Institute-Journal (BIRCI-Journal), 5(1), 1846–1855. https://doi.org/10.33258/birci.v5i1.3785

Farmania, A., Elsyah, R. D., & Fortunisa, A. (2022). The Phenomenon of Technostress during the COVID-19 Pandemic Due to Work from Home in Indonesia. Sustainability, 14(14), 8669. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14148669

Ferreira, P., & Gomes, S. (2021). The Role of Resilience in Reducing Burnout: A Study with Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Social Sciences, 10(9), 317. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10090317

Franken, E., Plimmer, G., Malinen, S., & Bryson, J. (2022). Growing and adapting during continuous change: Building employee resilience in the public sector. In: Pinheiro, R., Frigotto, M. L., Young, M. (editors). Towards Resilient Organizations and Societies: A Cross-Sectoral and Multi-Disciplinary Perspective. Palgrave Macmillan; 2022. pp. 143–170. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-82072-5_6

Fukumura, Y. E., Schott, J. M., Lucas, G. M., et al. (2021). Negotiating Time and Space When Working From Home: Experiences During COVID-19. OTJR: Occupation, Participation and Health, 41(4), 223–231. https://doi.org/10.1177/15394492211033830

Fukushima, N., Machida, M., Kikuchi, H., et al. (2021). Associations of working from home with occupational physical activity and sedentary behavior under the COVID‐19 pandemic. Journal of Occupational Health, 63(1), e12212. https://doi.org/10.1002/1348-9585.12212

Gabriel, K. P., & Aguinis, H. (2022). How to prevent and combat employee burnout and create healthier workplaces during crises and beyond. Business Horizons, 65(2), 183–192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2021.02.037

Gentry, W. A., Weber, T. J., & Golnaz, S. (2016). Empathy in the workplace: A tool for effective leadership. Available online: https://cclinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/empathyintheworkplace.pdf (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Ghislieri, C., Dolce, V., Sanseverino, D., et al. (2022). Might insecurity and use of ICT enhance internet addiction and exhaust people? A study in two European countries during emergency remote working. Computers in Human Behavior, 126, 107010. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2021.107010

Hernandez, T., & Abigail, Y. (2020). Remote Workers During the COVID-19 Lockdown. What Are We Missing and Why Is Important. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 62(11), e669. https://doi.org/10.1097/JOM.0000000000002018

Hill, N. S., Axtell, C., Raghuram, S., & Nurmi, N. (2022). Unpacking Virtual Work’s Dual Effects on Employee Well-Being: An Integrative Review and Future Research Agenda. Journal of Management. https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063221131535

Ingusci, E., Signore, F., Giancaspro, M. L., et al. (2021). Workload, Techno Overload, and Behavioral Stress During COVID-19 Emergency: The Role of Job Crafting in Remote Workers. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.655148

Ipsen, C., van Veldhoven, M., Kirchner, K., & Hansen, J. P. (2021). Six Key Advantages and Disadvantages of Working from Home in Europe during COVID-19. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(4), 1826. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18041826

Jämsen, R., Sivunen, A., & Blomqvist, K. (2022). Employees’ perceptions of relational communication in full-time remote work in the public sector. Computers in Human Behavior, 132, 107240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107240

Kutoane, M., Brysiewicz, P., & Scott, T. (2021). Interventions for managing professional isolation among health professionals in low resource environments: A scoping review. Health Science Reports, 4(3), e361. https://doi.org/10.1002/hsr2.361

Lazauskaitė-Zabielskė, J., Urbanavičiūtė, I., & Žiedelis, A. (2022). Pressed to overwork to exhaustion? The role of psychological detachment and exhaustion in the context of teleworking. Economic and Industrial Democracy, 44(3), 875–892. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143831X221095111

Lee, C. (2022). Remote employees in Japan less likely to be depressed. Available online: http://hrmasia.com/remote-employees-in-japan-less-likely-to-be-depressed/ (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Lovibond, S. H., & Lovibond, P. F. (1995). Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales, 2nd ed. Psychology Foundation of Australia.

Owl Labs. (2022). State of remote work 2022. Available online: https://owllabs.com/state-of-remote-work/2022 (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Perry, S. J., Rubino, C., & Hunter, E. M. (2018). Stress in remote work: Two studies testing the Demand-Control-Person model. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 27(5), 577–593. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2018.1487402

Quan-Haase, A., & Wellman, B. (2005). Local virtuality in an organization: implications for community of practice. In: Van Den Besselaar, P., De Michelis, G., Preece, J., Simone, C. (editors). Communities and Technologies 2005. Springer. pp. 215–238. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-3591-8_12

Sato, K., Kobayashi, S., Yamaguchi, M., et al. (2021). Working from home and dietary changes during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal study of health app (CALO mama) users. Appetite, 165, 105323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2021.105323

Schaufeli, W. B., De Witte, H., & Desart, S. (2020). Manual Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT) – Version 2.0. Available online: https://burnoutassessmenttool.be/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Test-Manual-BAT-English-version-2.0-1.pdf (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Shimura, A., Yokoi, K., Ishibashi, Y., et al. (2021). Remote Work Decreases Psychological and Physical Stress Responses, but Full-Remote Work Increases Presenteeism. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 730969. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.730969

Singh, P., Bala, H., Dey, B. L., & Filieri, R. (2022). Enforced remote working: The impact of digital platform-induced stress and remote working experience on technology exhaustion and subjective wellbeing. Journal of Business Research, 151, 269–286. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.07.002

Šmite, D., Moe, N. B., Klotins, E., & Gonzalez-Huerta, J. (2023). From forced Working-From-Home to voluntary working-from-anywhere: Two revolutions in telework. Journal of Systems and Software, 195, 111509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2022.111509

Streeter, J., Roche, M., & Friedlander, A. (2021). From bad to worse: The impact of work-from-home on sedentary behaviors and exercising. Available online: https://longevity.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Sedentary-Brief.pdf (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Sygit-Kowalkowska, E., Piotrowski, A., Boe, O., et al. (2022). Evaluation of Work Mode and Its Importance for Home–Work and Work–Home Relationships: The Role of Resilience, Coping with Stress, and Passion for Work. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(21), 14491. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192114491

Vander Elst, T., Verhoogen, R., Sercu, M., et al. (2017). Not Extent of Telecommuting, But Job Characteristics as Proximal Predictors of Work-Related Well-Being. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 59(10), e180–e186. https://doi.org/10.1097/JOM.0000000000001132

Von Bommel, T. (2021). Remote-Work Options Can Boost Productivity and Curb Burnout (Report). Available online: https://www.catalyst.org/reports/remote-work-burnout-productivity/ (accessed on 18 February 2024).

Zivkovic, S. (2022). Empathy in leadership: How it enhances effectiveness. In: Proceedings of the 80th International Scientific Conference on Economic and Social Development and 10th International OFEL Conference “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: The Essence of Organisational Well-Being”; 1–2 April 2022; Dubrovnik, Croatia. pp. 454–467.

Published
2024-09-20
How to Cite
Abdul Aziz, A. F., & Ong, T. (2024). The call for hybrid work arrangement post-pandemic. Human Resources Management and Services, 6(3), 3417. https://doi.org/10.18282/hrms.v6i3.3417
Section
Perspective