Shift to working from home should be encouraged

OVER the past couple of years, employers have been adapting to the Covid-19 pandemic by allowing their employees to work from home.

Now that movement restrictions have been relaxed, many employers are compelling their workers to return to their workplaces even for jobs that can be done just as well from home. This is unfortunate because working from home can bring many benefits to employers, employees and Malaysian society in general.

The government should therefore encourage employers to make working from home a permanent policy for jobs that are suited for this arrangement.

Employees would benefit from working from home because it eliminates commuting time, making life easier for those with children and elderly members of the family to take care of.

In the long term, employers would also benefit because they can save on office rental and the costs of utilities by having fewer employees in the office.

Furthermore, working from home will make it easier for employers to hire and retain top talent. For example, a company in Kuala Lumpur would be able to hire someone from Sabah who has been identified as the best talent for the job but is unwilling to uproot to another location.

Increased adoption of working from home policies will ease traffic congestion in Malaysia’s major cities, relieving the stress on our roads and public transport infrastructure. This would benefit even those who cannot work from home by reducing their commuting time to and from the office.

It would also lead to reduced usage of motor vehicles, which will have positive impacts on the environment. This is especially significant because of the climate change crisis.

Working from home would revitalise rural areas and small towns as well since residents can compete for jobs in the big cities without having to uproot themselves.

For jobs that cannot completely be done from home, employees should be given the flexibility to come to the office once or twice a week.

Employers are reluctant to continue working from home policies post-pandemic partly due to concerns about team cohesion and fear that employees working from home would be more difficult to manage.

The government should step in by providing training on how to manage employees working from home. The Human Resources Development Corporation could conduct this training.

The government should also provide incentives to employers who let their employees work from home.

It must also set a positive example by implementing work-from-home policies for civil servants and government-linked companies.

Many Malaysians have been working from home during the pandemic and still maintained the quality of their work.

Making working from home a permanent feature of the employment landscape will require adjustments and out-of-the-box thinking from employers. The government has an important role to play to encourage this shift.

PROF DR DARREN ONG CHUNG LEE

Petaling Jaya