SINCE the pandemic began in 2020, most workers have been forced to either leave their work or to work from home to continue completing their duties. 

One of them is Andrea Bennet, who has been working from home in Manila for more than a year after leaving the 9-5 corporate shift to balance her work and life setup.

Bennet said that since she started her remote work journey, she began “having a life” that she rarely experienced in her previous job.

Work-life balance

Bennet works for a US-based corporate company, and she is not required to follow Eastern Standard Time in fulfilling her duties. She just has to ensure that she’s submitting all the deliverables to her supervisors.

“I would say that since I chose the work-from-home setup from on-site work, I was able to save more time, money, and of course, have time for myself,” she told republicasia.

She likewise said that aside from sparing her from the “poor transportation system” in the metro, remote work allows her to become more hands-on in taking care of her family and to spend more time with them, too.

Following her experience working on-site and remotely, Bennet said the future of the workplace is at home and that all companies who can provide work from home should “allow their employees to enjoy this setup in order to make their lives easier.”

Her view is actually backed by research.

According to a recent study by the US-based private organization National Bureau of Economic Research, workers in 27 countries that participated in its survey were able to save an average of 72 minutes a day by working from home. 

“More work from home also means lighter loads on transport systems and, in particular, less congestion at peak travel times,” the study said.

Better time management

It also noted that employees who are currently working from home are more productive than those who are working on-site since they tend to delegate multiple work and house tasks efficiently. With the time saved from not having to commute, other workers are able to allot time for activities that office workers cannot do because of their 9-5 duty.

Workers spend around 40 percent of their time savings on primary and secondary work, while about 11 percent of their time savings are allocated to caregiving-related activities. People who have children tend to devote a more significant portion of their spare time to caring for their children or doing house improvements and shopping, it said.

Some of the respondents said they allotted 34 percent of their time saved for leisure to balance the demands of their job.

These leisure activities include exercise, watching television and movies, and reading.

The research likewise said that even when the pandemic ends, remote work will save more than two hours a week, even if it’s mixed with on-site work.

No turning back

Despite missing the office grind, Bennet said she would never return to work on-site jobs for her emotional health.

“As an introvert, working for a job that is meant for extroverts truly drains me, and even though I love that job, I have to choose my sanity over that type of work,” she said.