Is Work from Home the new norm?

Mayuri Ghavate
S.Y. M.Pharmacy- Pharmaceutics

Life changed dramatically when the world was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. It was at this time that the world had suddenly come to a pause, and it was the worst health crisis in a country.
We witnessed lockdowns, economic meltdowns and more. Many new things were introduced to us during this time such as online education came into the limelight and work from home became widely popular.
The concept of work from home was not so popular in the pre-pandemic era. It was during lockdown that we got introduced to it. ‘Work from home’ the word itself suggests its meaning. It allows the employee to work from their houses. It is a modern work approach, but it also has its pros and cons.
Nowadays most employees prefer working from home as it gives them comfort. But is it beneficial? That’s the question to be asked. Many statistics have shown that stress-induced conditions such as working from home can harm your mental health. It may not suit every employee as it can be easily distracting and bonding with colleagues doesn’t happen. Not every employee will have a separate work environment at home which would be suitable for meetings.
It does have its pros though. Work from home provides more agility and flexibility. One may also have increased productivity when working in their comfort. It also saves the cost of transport.
India still being a developing country and has a high level of poverty, not every employee has the resources to work from home, so they must opt to work from the office. With many companies adopting the work-from-home culture, we will see how our developing nation copes with it.