Labor Day mental health check: Work from home leaves Americans feeling lonely and isolated

Americans' collective mental health is near an "all-time low," according to a recent study of U.S. workers. This was surely accelerated by the pandemic. Globally, the prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by a whopping 25% in 2020.

Last year, as part of what has been called The Great Resignation, an estimated 47 million American workers quit their jobs. Many, especially younger workers, switched to companies that were more "lifestyle" sensitive, offering flexible hours and work from home arrangements.

Ironically, these perks – designed to attract employees and improve morale – may now be exacerbating their anxiety, depression and feelings of loneliness.

Attract workers but also protect them

Companies need new strategies to attract workers but also to protect them, sometimes from themselves – while guarding their own bottom lines. It's a conflict that needs to be acknowledged and addressed. Companies need to support workers, rather than just pay them, but firms also need to survive in a difficult economic climate.

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In addressing mental health, many employers, especially Big Tech companies like Meta and Twitter, initially implemented a permanent remote policy, allowing employees to work from anywhere. Other firms have adopted hybrid schedules that require employees to visit the office only sporadically.

The executives who implemented these shifts undoubtedly have good intentions. They figure the increased flexibility will improve employees' morale by eliminating commutes and giving people more time to deal with personal and household tasks.

C-suites across America seem to view remote work as a cure-all for whatever ails their employees. And many workers have grown attached to the conveniences of remote and flexible schedules – and even started to demand remote privileges as an entitlement.

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Remote work comes with consequences

But as time goes on, the rapid, widespread embrace of remote work looks a bit like employers were embracing the "shiny new thing" to signal their hipness to employees – without much regard for the costs and consequences.

Remote work, by its nature, is socially isolating. Zoom calls are a poor replacement for normal office banter. About 2 in 3 remote workers feel isolated or lonely at least some of the time, according to a 2021 survey from the American Psychiatric Association.

A poll of American and British workers, also from 2021, found that 67% of workers under 35 years old found it more difficult to make and maintain friendships with colleagues since switching to remote work.

That obviously affects workers' mental health. But depending on the type of work, it can also hurt their productivity – and thus their companies' profitability.

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A Microsoft study, published in Nature Human Behavior, warns that "firm-wide remote work caused the collaboration network of workers to become more static and siloed, with fewer bridges between disparate parts," and that this siloing could make it "harder for employees to acquire and share new information."

Many people working at home also have trouble "clocking out." They schedule calls into the evening. They receive and answer texts and emails whenever they come in. In general, their work/life balance skews in favor of work. They're always on call – and it takes a toll on their mental well-being.

Job stress has moved into our homes

Jobs often involve stress and pressure, and many workers have reported "bringing that into the home." It has changed the home dynamic and made them actually avoid parts of the house they previously enjoyed.

And of course, in whole swaths of the economy, remote work isn't just unhealthy in the long run – it's impractical. Telehealth is great and long overdue, but if you have chest pain, you need to see the doctor ASAP. And good luck finding a plumber who can fix a leaky toilet over Zoom.

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Telling people to toil away at home and hoping they sort out their own problems isn't a viable strategy. And it creates two types of work industry – those who stay at home and those who don't, perhaps exacerbating disparities. It can't be a one-solution approach to mental health.

Employers can improve workers' mental health in plenty of other ways, while preserving economic success – for both the employer and employee.

America's workers are fed up. And bad bosses like Mark Zuckerberg will face a backlash.

Executives can start by respecting employees' time away from the office and making it known that – aside from rare, emergency occasions – people aren't expected to work outside of normal business hours.

They can set a personal example by not emailing folks late at night or on the weekends. Of course, C-suite executives will inevitably work irregular hours themselves, but they can schedule those late-night drafts to send the next morning. Email systems can even be automated to require additional hoops to jump to send that late night or weekend email.

Respect need for time off

They can also require employees to take all their vacation days and instill a workplace culture that respects peoples' time off to rest and recharge. Too many executives praise workaholics who never take sick leave or vacations, inadvertently holding them up as a model. Managers should be held accountable for ensuring their direct reports use their paid time off, including for mental health days.

Employers can also make sure their benefits packages include up-to-date mental health services. Numerous companies offer mental telehealth programs popular with younger workers, which typically cost less than traditional, in-office visits. Firms could purchase subscriptions to mental wellness apps for a few dollars per month per employee.

Two years of remote work have left many workers feeling frazzled at best – and burned out and depressed at worst. For everyone's sake, it's time to support the mental health of workers and the profitability of companies. We can't simply change the location of the office and think that's enough.

Phil McGraw, PhD, is the host of "Dr. Phil." Dr. John Whyte is chief medical officer of WebMD.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is remote work bad for our mental health? Dr Phil says yes