The Centre of Excellence for the Future of Human Communication at the University of Southampton has organised a (virtual) Roundtable Discussion on the radical changes of communication practices we have witnessed since the lockdown and restrictions on mobility, workplace and socialising. Darja Reuschke was invited as an expert on homeworking to this group.
Some of these changes in how we work and organise communication might be temporary, but it is likely that there will be a longer-term impact on work and communication practices. There may also be new tools emerging to facilitate online communication and homeworking. It will be important to investigate whether more people will take up homeworking after social distancing measures are relaxed. In particular, some employers have been reluctant to implement homeworking as flexible work arrangement (before Covid-19) that enables workers to combine work and family life through reducing number of commutes. The social gradient in homeworking has been striking and we might see a change in the future to facilitate resilient workplaces.
Please listen to the discussion on YouTube: