For some, being in an office and seeing colleagues is their only social interaction and working from home can remove that much needed human contact. Employee loneliness isn’t just a potential challenge for those who work from home – some employees may struggle to fit in with office culture and may feel excluded by their colleagues.

It’s important to recognise that loneliness can have long lasting effects on us and on the businesses we work for. Loneliness is often categorised as a social problem but can also be classed as a health problem which is “associated with a reduction in lifespan similar to that caused by smoking 15 cigarettes a day and even greater than that associated with obesity.”[1] As many of us spend a large proportion of our week working, the workplace is an obvious area which can make a vast difference to how lonely we feel.

There are clear benefits for employers who strive to reduce loneliness in the workplace. According to a 2017 Co-op and New Economic Foundations report, the cost of loneliness to UK employers was estimated to be £2.5bn each year as it can have such an impact on productivity, staff turnover and employee commitment [2].

To make a difference to loneliness in the workplace, there are steps that individuals and employers can take.

What can individuals do?

Try to be yourself. We may feel like we need to conform to a corporate ideal when we enter the workplace but being ourselves allows others to get to know us. If you spot areas where you feel you need to understand yourself more, take the time to think about your strengths and weaknesses and how you may want to develop your interpersonal skills.

If you are in an office environment, take the time to talk to others. Think about whether you’ve had any social interactions that day – it may be that you’ve had your head down and you’ve been getting on with work but it’s important to take time out every so often to speak to others.

Look after others. If you put in the effort to look out for colleagues, and try to do something nice for others, you’re likely to foster good feeling and build stronger relationships.

There’s more about these tips in this People Management article: https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/article/1743767/prevent-loneliness-workplace.

How can employers help?

An article in People Management [3]identified five themes which businesses can use to address loneliness. They were:

1. Culture and Infrastructure: Identifying what really matters to employees and aligning it with corporate values and embedding loneliness into other wellbeing and welfare activities.
2. Management: The different kinds of support, training and guidance that can aid managers in identifying and helping employees who are experiencing loneliness.
3. People and Networks: How people have used networks to address loneliness, including while working remotely.
4. Work and Workplace Design: How employers have tackled a dispersed workforce and the tools and systems that can promote visibility and connections. Even when employees are working remotely, video conferencing facilities, instant messaging services, and other team based working platforms can help in alleviating loneliness.
5. Wider role in the Community: How some employers have sought to tackle loneliness beyond our immediate workforce. This could include involving the business in helping in local community projects or supporting local charities or schools.

If this is something you feel would benefit your company, speak to your HR Team or your line manager. View HR would be happy to discuss how we could support your business in achieving this aim.

[1] Coworking Is Not About Workspace — It’s About Feeling Less Lonely (hbr.org)

[2] How HR can tackle loneliness at work (peoplemanagement.co.uk)

[3] How HR can tackle loneliness at work (peoplemanagement.co.uk) 

Our Guest Blogger: 

Huge thanks to Managing Director, Gemma Murphy from View HR for sharing her insights into loneliness in the work place.

Further Support:

Loneliness affects more and more of us in the UK. It’s had a huge impact on our physical and mental health during the pandemic. Connection to other people and our community is fundamental to protecting our mental health.  We must find better ways of tackling this epidemic of loneliness. We can all play a part in this.     

Reducing loneliness is a major step towards a mentally healthy society. 

If you’re struggling to cope with your mental health in general, please talk to your GP. If you’re in a crisis, treat it as an emergency. Call 999 immediately or The Samaritans, FREE on 116 123. 

Dorset Mind offers group support that can also help with your wellbeing. Our groups offer peer support and helps reduce stigma by normalizing conversations about mental health. You can also check out further support for stress and mental health here.