A company mobile phone, laptop, maybe even a tablet or other electronic devices – these days they are almost obligatory. This gives us flexibility, the opportunity to work remotely and freedom to organise our everyday working lives. It all sounds great, but what is the catch…?
The boundaries between work and private life are becoming increasingly blurred. Flexibility goes hand in hand with availability. There is an unspoken availability almost around the clock. Responding quickly to emails, calling back or just quickly finishing something when the children are in bed – even at weekends and on holiday.
To do something about this, we need to understand where this pressure comes from.
It’s not always the company’s expectations, we also put the pressure on ourselves and forget the desire for a work-life balance that seemed so important to us in the job Interview.
We are constantly looking at our mobile phones, we worked on our projects until late at night just to be ready the next morning, we even came to work sick and were available even when we were on holiday. We don’t want to be seen as unreliable, and when working from home we don’t want anyone to think we’re not working. At the end of the day, we expect this to be valued or even remunerated.
But how much of this is really required? Has the service equipment provided been the unspoken request or is it ultimately us who turn flexibility, simple service equipment for our work, into self-imposed 24/7 availability?
Our employment contracts stipulate working hours and statutory rest periods but outside of these times there are no obligations. The pressure arises from self-imposed demands, from our sense of responsibility and from the constant availability of the service equipment provided. Companies should therefore create clear rules regarding the availability of their employees. A fixed time window from when the use of equipment is prohibited. This promotes relaxation and separation from work. Perhaps we need these predefined limits to protect ourselves. At the same time, E-Mail filters can be set so that we are not notified outside of working hours. Managers also need to be sensitised to this issue. They should not send out the signal that round-the-clock availability is the norm but should set an example and encourage the opposite.
Work equipment is important and is part of our everyday working life these days, but a work-life balance can only be protected together. Is your work mobile phone still on?