Work-From-Home: Safety and Productivity

The lawpilots Home Office E-Learning course prepares your employees for working from home and course covers the following topics:

• Self-organization
• Workstation setup
• Working efficiently
• Team organization
• Data protection
• IT security
• The psychological challenges of working from home

“Home office” simply means working from home where an employee’s residence becomes the equivalent of a full-time workplace. An employee’s option to work from home must generally be discussed in advance with the employer.

It’s important for employers to understand the labor law regulations and requirements relating to home office and implement them fully. This helps ensure that important regulations on data protection, occupational health and safety, and working hours are observed correctly. Failure to comply with these regulations can lead to fines.

This question is not so easy to answer as everyone reacts differently to working from home.  For some people it’s easy – particularly if they are used to having a fixed routine and quiet working conditions.

For many people, however, working from home can be difficult. Employees often feel that they’ve been thrown out of their usual routine and are suddenly forced to work from a place previously associated exclusively with their private life. Possible issues (for both employer and employee) include the constant danger of distraction from personal tasks, the risk of loneliness, and difficulty in separating personal data from work-related data.  That’s why it’s so important to prepare and train employees as thoroughly as possible for working from home.

Put simply, the daily work routine for home office employees should not differ much from working in an office. Employees should make sure they have a tidy desk where it’s easy to work. A strong, stable internet and telephone connection are also crucial.

Additional communication tools are often also important as many modern work processes rely on close consultation with colleagues via other means. Employees should be made aware of which communication tools they are allowed to use in advance. Also note that the protection of data and confidential business information must also be maintained when working from home.