Nowadays, it is quite common for certain bosses to allow their employees to have flexible working hours, and this has been proven true in a recent survey. The results show that 90% of employees in Malaysia prefer to choose their own work schedule as they believe it will help them be more productive.
However, according to recruitment firm Randstad, their Workmonitor survey that was carried out between January and February 2018, revealed that 63% per cent of Malaysians felt this freedom would invade their personal lives because it made them feel like they had to be “always on”, according to FMT.
They said that this flexibility would make them uncertain about when to disconnect themselves from work.
Source: Malay Mail
Due to these issues, 76% of Malaysian employees still choose to be in the office during business hours as the office ambience provides the right environment for employees to stay focused and helps them clearly define the time they need to commit to work.
“Agile working is gaining popularity in Malaysia, as more and more employees want to have autonomy in the way they work,” Ryan Carroll, country manager of Randstad Malaysia said in a statement.
“However, as much as technology has helped made it possible to be more productive and creative at work, it can be quite frustrating and intrusive for those who feel that they need to respond to emails immediately, even during the weekends.”
“Flexible work arrangements can only improve work-life balance and boost productivity when ground rules are set and agreed upon between employers and their staff.”
Source: FMT
According to Malay Mail, the results also showed that this is true mostly for the younger generation. It was reported that 68% of millennials feel more pressured to be “always-on” as compared to the 39% of mature workers aged between 55 and 67.
Mature workers tend to choose agile working as they believe that it can improve their overall job satisfaction, and that flexible work arrangements are crucial to improving their work-life balance.
Randstad’s Workmonitor is a quarterly research on global employment trends which surveyed at least 400 respondents in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and China.
If you had a flexible job that allows you to work from home, do you think it would interfere with your personal life? Let us know in the comments below.
Also read: Malaysians Have Low Productivity Despite Long Working Hours, Survey Says
