How To Reduce Work-From-Home Burnout | 9 Signs Of A Toxic Remote Team | Why Telecommuters Deserve A Raise

Plus: How Bank Of America reinvented its internships virtually

Since joining the remote workforce, have you found yourself logging longer hours than ever before? You’re not alone. According to a study by identity management platform Okta, recent months have seen a 26% increase in employees signing into work devices at 4 a.m. and, perhaps more disconcerting, a 34% increase at 2 a.m. While some employees may keep odd hours by choice (here’s looking at you, early birds and night owls), others may feel as though they’re expected to do so. After all, when work and home are one and the same, what excuse do you have not to respond to an email from your boss at 10 p.m. on a Saturday night? And that is the problem.

Whether your return to the office is imminent or your tenure as a telecommuter is indefinite, why spend another day without work-life balance? Employees, the next time you log onto your laptop outside of what you once considered to be normal hours, ask yourself: Am I working right now because it’s my preference, or because I feel pressure? If the latter, a conversation with your manager may be in order. And if you’re a manager, consider when and how you reach out to your employees. There’s nothing wrong with working well into the evening, but if you often find yourself sending flurries of emails around the midnight hour, take care to ensure your employees understand that you don’t require a response right away.

And here’s more on everything you need to know about working from home during the coronavirus pandemic.

For more on working and leading from home, check out our guide, updated daily.

The Telecommuter's Toolkit

Nearly six months have passed since millions of Americans joined the ranks of the indefinitely remote workforce, and many are still woefully unprepared to do their jobs from home. When 72% of telecommuters are without a dedicated workspace and 56% have been unable to bring office equipment home, employers would do well to invest in the tools their employees need to succeed.

Is your boss a micromanager? Does your corporate culture value working harder over working smarter? If you answered “yes” to either of those questions, you may be part of a toxic team of telecommuters. Here’s how to know for certain.

As employers have extended their telecommuting policies, employees have found themselves paying the price, footing energy and equipment bills once covered by companies. If remote work is in fact the new normal, should employees get a raise?

The Break Room

Movie theaters may be closed for the foreseeable future, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take in a blockbuster on the big screen. From projectors to popcorn machines, this is your guide to transforming your backyard into an open-air cinema.

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