Riassunto analitico
Today, working away from a traditional office is becoming increasingly more popular, as the recent experiences and the rapid evolution of telecommunicating devices lead to the spread of this working venue. In the following, we will examine the main aspects of the home office.
This thesis studies the effect of working from home (WFH) on the perceived job satisfaction of workers, also considering the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic that has radically changed the basic structure of how work is organized in companies. In fact, many workers -those more fortunate who could continue their job- were forced to create a situation of home working, which was considered very rare and stigmatized. According to Nicholas Bloom’s TEDX Talk in 2017, “working from home” had a quite negative image back in the day. This comes as no surprise, however, as only 15% of total U.S. workers have ever had a full day working from home (Bloom, How working from home works out, 2020). Everything changed as the pandemic hit. It made WFH extremely common but under difficult conditions. As for satisfaction and efficiency, there are differing findings in the literature available today. Surely, as we’ve lived through the recent global situation, we all perceive how our motivation and efficiency when working have changed in the last two and a half years but is it the same for all of us? Could it be the product of some personal and professional factors that have not yet been taken into consideration together? What about work-life balance? Finally, if working from home is here to stay in the coming years, what are the consequences for policymakers and the implications for the workforce that is based at home? These are the main questions that the thesis aims to tackle.
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Abstract
Today, working away from a traditional office is becoming increasingly more popular, as the recent experiences and the rapid evolution of telecommunicating devices lead to the spread of this working venue. In the following, we will examine the main aspects of the home office.
This thesis studies the effect of working from home (WFH) on the perceived job satisfaction of workers, also considering the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic that has radically changed the basic structure of how work is organized in companies. In fact, many workers -those more fortunate who could continue their job- were forced to create a situation of home working, which was considered very rare and stigmatized. According to Nicholas Bloom’s TEDX Talk in 2017, “working from home” had a quite negative image back in the day. This comes as no surprise, however, as only 15% of total U.S. workers have ever had a full day working from home (Bloom, How working from home works out, 2020). Everything changed as the pandemic hit. It made WFH extremely common but under difficult conditions. As for satisfaction and efficiency, there are differing findings in the literature available today. Surely, as we’ve lived through the recent global situation, we all perceive how our motivation and efficiency when working have changed in the last two and a half years but is it the same for all of us? Could it be the product of some personal and professional factors that have not yet been taken into consideration together? What about work-life balance? Finally, if working from home is here to stay in the coming years, what are the consequences for policymakers and the implications for the workforce that is based at home? These are the main questions that the thesis aims to tackle.
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