The lines have become blurred between work and home for nearly half of working Kiwis

Kiwis are burning themselves out while working from home as the lines between home and work have become blurred.

Seek NZ data showed 39% of 1500 Kiwis surveyed consider working from home as a must following the Covid-19 pandemic, and have found the flexibility and autonomy appealing.

However, Seek resident psychologist Sabina Read said employees had developed an ‘always on’ mentality when it came to work.

“The human brain and body were never designed to remain switched on 24/7,” Read said.

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Since the Covid-19 pandemic shut down the country in March 2020, we had learnt new ways of doing things which bring both pros and cons to our personal and professional lives, she said.

And while employees may feel like they were being helpful, impactful and productive by being available and switched on around the clock, they were ignoring the universal need for rest, relaxation, breaks, and play.

“With the lines between work and home now more blurred than ever, many of us are often ignoring even our most basic needs and pushing boundaries in search of productivity, validation, more dollars and an endless chasing of achievement and reward, often to the detriment of the individual and the organisation,” Read said.

Seek found in recent years, 47% of those surveyed had found the lines between home and work life had been blurred, as 72% admitted to checking their work emails/messages after hours.

Nearly a fifth of us (18%) read and reply to most emails and messages that come through outside work hours.

“It’s a slippery slope when we feel we have to work ourselves to the bone before we ‘deserve’ to stop and put our tools down.”

Always ‘being on’ had resulted in digital toxicity, something 66% people had not heard about, despite 65% admitting to keeping their work emails on their personal devices and 80% of that group being junior or entry-level workers.

Digital toxicity is where a person spends so much time online or tapped into technology that they encompass behavioural issues including hostility, secrets, gossip, harassment, low trust, bullying, racism or sexism in often private or small groups connected by online channels.

“Alongside these behavioural issues, digital toxicity can also show itself in procedural ways such as micromanagement due to a lack of trust, unclear role definitions, low boundaries or no boundaries, or boundaries that are not honoured,” Read said.

Seek found 17% of Kiwis agree or strongly agree that digital toxicity has affected their mental health.

Only 1% of employees never check their work communications after hours.

So what can employees and employers do to keep digital toxicity at bay?

Read said instead of demonising working from home, it was important to prioritise conversations – ideally in person and in writing – that outlined expectations and normalised boundaries around the value of breaks, relaxation, rest and play.

Boundaries could include having no work apps on your personal phone, limiting notifications and screen time.

“Be proactive in having conversations with peers, leaders, HR and others about healthy boundaries,” Read said.