Drinking wine, playing video games and exercising – what workers are doing at home when they should be, er, working…

A new survey has revealed what people have been getting up to when they should have been working from home.

The research by Cartridge People has found that a shocking one in ten Brits have drunk alcohol during ‘office hours’ at home.

And a third of people surveyed have admitted to exercising when they should have been working. With many looking to try and keep fit without gyms being as accessible as they were before the pandemic, it appears many are looking to mix-up remote working and staying in shape. This rose to 35% when looking specifically at those aged 45-54 who are exercising instead of working while working from home.

This year is likely to have seen us all consume more box sets than ever before and so it’s not surprising to learn that a third of brits confess to bingeing their favourite Netflix series instead of working. This rises to almost half (44%) of those aged 18-24.

Over a quarter of those surveyed have slept instead of working from home (rising to two fifths (39%) of those aged 18-24).

Additionally, the survey uncovered that:

• Over 1 in 10 have confessed to playing video games when they should have been working. Over 1 in 7 (15%) of those aged 35-44 play video games instead of working from home during lockdown.
• 13% of Brits confessed to meeting up with a family member or friend when they should have been working at home. One in seven (14%) of Brits aged 35-44 met up with a friend or family member when they should have been working from home

As an aside, Cartridge People also asked what UK workers have done during a video conference call:

• 40% of those quizzed admitted to speaking whilst unknowingly on mute
• 28% confessed to getting out of bed just 5 minutes before the start
• A quarter said they had to apologise for an interruption from their child / pet
• Nearly a quarter consistently make excuses to hide their webcam
• Over 1 in 7 (16%) quite surprisingly have only been dressed from the waist up!!
• 12% drank alcohol whilst on a video conference call

Cartridge People Managing Director, John Flanagan said: “Working from home may have seemed like a momentary measure back in March (2020) but as time has gone on, it’s become clear that this may become a more permanent way of working for many. It’s understandable that, with the challenges we’ve faced this year, that one or two ‘bad habits’ may have crept in.”

So, is this a case of the long-overdue burnout due to excessive working from home and isolation, or are UK workers starting to take more liberties whilst becoming more easily distracted as homeworking continues?