Managers are skeptical of workers' habits when they don't have the oversight of an office. A recent survey has quantified just how much workers engage in nonwork activities both in and out of the workplace.
The report comes from WFH Research, a project out of Stanford (Calif.) University, the University of Chicago, Cambridge-based Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México in Mexico City. Researchers analyze data from the Survey of Working Arrangements and Attitudes, a monthly survey of 2,500 to 10,000 U.S. residents between ages 20 and 64 who earned more than $10,000 the year prior.
In many cases, what workers do with their free time on work-from-home days does not drastically differ from in-office habits; for example, more workers report playing computer or phone games from the office than at home.
This table breaks down what workers do during the workday — often on mandated meal breaks — when on-premises and remotely.
|
In-office |
Remote |
|
|
% of workers who report exercising during the workday |
30.8 |
42.3 |
|
% who run personal errands (including medical appointments) |
37.6 |
34.9 |
|
% who do chores other than childcare |
24.2 |
45.8 |
|
% who care for children |
13.3 |
18.9 |
|
% who play a phone or computer game |
45.7 |
43.4 |
|
% who read for leisure |
28 |
27 |