3 ways to beat WFH habits

Since ‘freedom day’ last month, guidance to work from home has now been scrapped and employees are free to once again return to their place of work.

This means that coping mechanisms during the pandemic such as lie-ins before employees kicked off their days or the glass of wine for a mid-week treat are now no longer a possibility.

With this in mind, mattress brand OTTY Sleep has shared some ways in which employers can help their staff overcome these habits, to help ease the transition of returning to work.

1. Limit boozing

Throughout lockdown, sales of alcoholic drinks rose dramatically and a Public Health England report shared that half a million adults increased their drinking during the period. Therefore, it might be worth limiting alcohol use or offering low-alcohol alternatives when company socials take place again to help staff get out of any habits of binge drinking that may have occurred in lockdown.

OTTY Sleep shared: “Choosing alternative low-and-no drinking options is a great way to experiment with new flavours and enjoy alcohol without having to worry about what it may do to our health. Not only does it reduce the symptoms of binge drinking, but the industry is growing at a rapid rate, and there are various (and delicious) options to choose from.”

2. Tackle screen usage

If a business is office-based, screen time is going to be high, but throughout lockdown this ramped up even more as staff were unable to get out the house and turned to mobiles, TVs and laptops as forms of entertainment and a means to keep connected.

However usage like this has its issues as OTTY Sleep warned: “Mindless scrolling on these devices increases our exposure to blue light, which in turn can interfere with sleep patterns and sight deterioration.”

With this in mind, encourage staff to switch off after hours and regularly communicate that logging on after the working day is not necessary. Informing staff that it is okay to turn off their devices and focus on their own time outside of working hours will help to limit their screen usage.

In addition, introducing clubs such as yoga or running will also help to limit staff scrolling for social media at lunch time and after work, which will also help to reduce screen time.

3. Coping with comfort eating

A YouGov survey revealed that during lockdown boredom was the main trigger for comfort eating, as 63% of Brits admitted it encouraged them to eat worse. But there are initiatives that employers can put in place to improve healthy eating.

Now that staff are back in the office, introducing healthy food such as fruit baskets or lunch vouchers at healthy food chains could make all the difference to employees who want to tackle their comfort eating.

OTTY Sleep concluded: “It’s fine to indulge now and then, especially if it brings a slight moment of joy, but ensure you keep a balanced diet moving forward so that it doesn’t impact your health in the long term.”

To network with members of the industry on returning to the workplace, why not bookmark the Payroll & Reward Summit on 7 December this year? Find out more details here.