The conundrum as to whether the efficiency of employees is better maintained when they work in the office as compared to when they work at home has been in question for many years. The question of the rights of proletariats often contradicts corporate duties and ethics, which this essay aims to deliberate upon, before drawing a conclusion.
European countries like Hungary, Moldova and Liechtenstein have already implemented the policy of allowing their labour force to operate from the sanctity of their homes while sympathising with them. The primary advantage includes allowing ample leisure opportunities for workers by cutting the time involved in travel as well as preventing them from staying back and working extra hours. This provides multiple chances for individuals to connect with family or even pursue hobbies on the weekends. The whole notion revolves around minimising the stress for better output to be delivered.
On the flip side, in countries like India, Bangladesh, and Japan, labour laws are extremely poor and the salaried work as long as twelve hours a day. However, this does have its benefits. Firstly, the focus and concentration that an individual gets in a workspace, cannot compare to that of his house. The entire essence of a corporate environment is to instil a community sentiment among its employees as well as infuse a commercial spirit within them, which is impossible in a virtual set-up. Furthermore, the biggest testament to this notion is the COVID-19 pandemic; the epitome of professional mishaps. Filled with internet issues and “microphone problems”, we realized how easily miscommunication takes place online, underlining the imperativeness of physical contact and face-to-face interactions.
Thus, although a “work from home” situation may seem ideal, especially for the younger generation, it can practically operate only in a hypothetical utopia and not the real world. What governments should strive to pursue, is the “hybrid model”, to not only provide enough benefits to its labourers but simultaneously also ensure that there is no slacking, in terms of working of its employees, to produce profitable results.
