Working from home productively: help your employees create the ideal home office

Your employees have an adapted workstation in the office. This helps to keep them productive and healthy. The only condition is that they also supervise this themselves. It’s no different with telecommuting. However, as an employer, you can encourage them to make their home environment a pleasant place to work in order to reduce health risks. Three handy tips will help them here:

Your home environment may be a pleasant place to live, but is it also the ideal working environment? Five factors play a role here:

Provide enough space

A workstation that is too small quickly creates a cramped feeling and distracts you more. Space is stimulating and inspiring. So make sure you have enough room. The ideal workspace is at least 10 m² wide and 2.5 m high.

Let in the light

Working in a poorly lit room stresses your eyes, thus reducing your performance. Therefore, put your desk as close to the window as possible. If there is no or too little natural light, install high-quality lighting that is as close as possible to daylight.

Keep the air clean

Contaminated air leads to irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract, headaches, or feeling unwell. Therefore, always let in enough fresh air. If you use a ventilation system or air filters, you should maintain these properly. Dust and waste also have a negative impact on air quality, so you should clean these or have them cleaned regularly. 

Ensure a pleasant temperature

If you’re too cold or too hot, your performance will suffer. So, good climate control is essential. Air conditioning works wonders on hot summer days, but solid shading is usually enough to keep out the heat. A well-functioning heating system is a must during the winter. What’s the ideal temperature? That varies from person to person, but between 21 and 23 degrees is a good gauge!  

Get rid of ambient noise

Noise can be a major nuisance. For optimal concentration, it is best to work in a place far away from things like street work, noisy neighbours, or children playing. It’s also ideal for getting the drop on eavesdroppers.

Avoid obstacles

Nobody likes to work in a messy environment. It also increases the risk of injury through inattention. If you have an accident, you may be incapacitated for a period of time. So clean up well, keep every passage free, and mount your computer and electronics cables on the wall wherever possible. This reduces the risk of tripping.  

Think of fire safety

You can reduce the risk of fire in your workspace by implementing a few simple measures. Regularly check the condition of electrical equipment (wires, cables, extension cords, etc.) and appliances (lighting, electric heater, coffeemaker, etc.). Where possible, avoid flammable products in your workspace. Be on the safe side and set up your home office in a place where you can easily evacuate through a door, window, or emergency exit. A fire extinguisher and fire-resistant blanket are also essential.

Overexertion due to an inappropriate working environment is one of the most common occupational ailments. A good setup for your workstation does wonders for your desire to work and your performance. But how do you do that? 

• Preferably, choose an ergonomic chair and set it up optimally.
• Set up your display so that everything is easy to read.
• Pay attention to your working posture so there is less strain on your neck, shoulders, and lower back.
• Stretch at your desk throughout the day.
• Use the right tools if you work with a laptop.