When we think about the aspects that affect job satisfaction and performance the same themes usually come up: wages, the availability of training and management support. However, one often overlooked factor which can be crucial to how you engage with your job is the commute. People in the same position may have very different experiences if one has a daily commute of less than 30 minutes while the other has one in excess of 2 hours. We spoke to an Occupational Psychologist, a GP and an HR officer to find out their perspective on how this affects workers and their jobs in Scotland.
A commuter’s experience
GP Craig Masson typically spends around 80 minutes a day commuting from his home in Bearsden to his practice in Clarkston. We asked him to give us an insight into the potential implications of commuting, both from his own personal experiences and from his experience of seeing patients over the years.
“To beat the traffic and reduce the duration of the journey, I leave the house at 7.15am to get to work by around 7.50am. I typically finish by about 6.15pm, getting home around 7.00pm. The journey home at the end of the day is particularly frustrating, due to a combination of factors; tiredness at the end of the work day, a desire to be home ASAP and a less direct route to travel. The morning is not so bad as the journey is less busy and I catch up on the news on radio. The commuting is getting very tiresome and I hope to move much closer to work so I can leave the house around 8.15am and be home by 6.30pm.”
As well as this general frustration though, we wondered what impact the commuting had on Craig’s actual health.
“In the morning, the effect tends to be skipping breakfast, which is not recommended. In the evening, often I am too tired to contemplate any exercise or activities and end up just sitting watching TV. As a result, my fitness levels are pretty poor.”
Tiredness and lower fitness levels are obviously something that should concern both staff and employers alike. Particularly when Craig expands upon the wider potential health implications.
“Chronic tiredness frequently leads to frustration, irritability and even depression. People spending a lot of time commuting spend less time with loved ones, less time exercising, and are more likely to frequently eat junk food/microwave meals. The lack of exercise and poor diet increases obesity and diabetes rates. Chronic tiredness tends to affect work performance also. As well as this, people commuting by driving often get bad backs from prolonged time in the car and those with knee arthritis tend to find it gets worse if commuting by driving.”
The mental impact of commuting
Occupational Psychologist Anna Weglarz backs up Craig’s words.
“Long commutes (and particularly, as a part of it, driving to work) are associated with numerous health and safety problems amongst workforce, mainly mental health problems and cardiovascular diseases. However, it also has other potential effects usually associated with stress – such as musculoskeletal disorders, gastrointestinal disorders and, importantly, depression (which weakens the immune system and makes people more prone to conditions such as flu). Commuting has an effect on performance as it increases anger and resentment at work, increases absenteeism, and has a negative impact on punctuality and the ability to focus and perform at the same level as other colleagues who live nearer to the place of work.”
One thing that may help to offset some of the damage caused by a long commute is the concept of ‘active commuting’, which Anna told us more about.
“The concept of active commuting (walking or cycling to work) has an effect on controlling the obesity epidemic and cardiovascular health problems. It has proven to enhance the population’s health and wellbeing in countries where it’s popular, such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden. However, in most westernised countries there is a lack of infrastructure and issues of safety, cycle storage and work dress code. In Scotland, there are the issues of urban design (lack of dedicated cycle paths) and unfavourable weather conditions.”
If active commuting may not be the answer for people in Scotland, perhaps telecommuting – or remote working – could be? Anna gave us her view on these flexible working options.
“It’s an attractive option for applicants and has beneficial effects on work-family balance and perceived autonomy at work. It increases job satisfaction and work performance, while decreasing turnover intent and role stress. However, it has a negative effect on relationships with co-workers due to limited contact, meaning limited social interactions. It is good for businesses though, as the employee is capable of working longer hours. Many companies have now become more open to this way of working – flexible working patterns and allowing staff to work from home every now and then – because it has good potential to minimise the negative impact of the daily, tiring routine of getting to and from work. Mobile technologies also help here as people can make us of mobile technologies, teleconferencing and VPN.”
The HR angle
Of course, to introduce the kind of working patterns that Anna refers to, employers – and HR departments – need to be aware of the potential issues created by a long commute and be willing to tackle them. Gaelle Ciriego is the Managing Director of Ipso Facto, a company specialising in providing strategic HR services and executive coaching to small and medium-sized organisations. She believes that a candidate’s commute is something that should be taken into account.
“If candidates live quite far from the recruiting office, I will bring this matter into the recruitment process. There are differences between commutes: the candidate who doesn’t live far enough to be granted a “hotel or flat allowance” and therefore needs to commute daily or the one who, for example live outside Scotland and, needs to commute weekly, with overnight expenses paid for. I will always address the commuting issue upfront as it is essential for their future success and job fulfilment.”
Commuting may not solely be an issue for employment candidates or new employees though, existing staff members can also have difficulties with their commute. How many times has Gaelle encountered commuting as an issue with staff?
“Quite frequently. People move house for family reasons or affordability, or simply thought they could cope with a 3 hours daily commute but got tired along the way. Luckily, technology helps removing commute; unless a job requires physical presence, most of today’s job could be done via virtual presence.”
Of course, companies will try to deal with a situation if an employee raises the matter but are the effects of commuting also something that Gaelle would be proactive in raising with a member of staff she thinks is being negatively impacted?
“Everyone is different and has a different tolerance; however I will address the commuting issue if I feel that it is impacting an individual’s health and has repercussions on the quality of their work. Running an HR consultancy, this is a recurring issue that my clients are facing: skills shortage means that businesses have to hire further away from the place of work, creating potential issues due to commuting.”
What many employees crave in their treatment is a sense of empathy. This is certainly something that Gaelle is able to offer any who seek to discuss a problem commute with her, as we discovered.
“My commute between my home and my work used to amount to 3 to 5 hours. I had no other choice than to drive to work and during this time major roadworks took place on the M74. I tried to minimise my time behind the wheel by leaving home at 6am and the office after 19.00. I did this commute three times a week for just over 2 years. It had a significant impact on my social life, I felt tired, I started to develop road rage and refused to be in a car during the weekend! That is maybe why I sympathise with commuters and, when needed, will discuss this matter at the recruitment stage.”
Thank you to Craig, Anna and Gaelle for speaking to us. From their insights, we can be fairly conclusive in stating that the length of an employee’s commute can and does have an impact on their health, morale and work performance. As such, it’s a subject that neither staff nor employers can afford to ignore.
If your daily commute is having a negative effect on your life and work, maybe it’s time to consider a change? If so, we can help.
As our Brand Manager, Kayleigh Lockhart, says: “There are a number of factors that can affect overall job satisfaction and we at s1jobs are very aware that commuting is a significant one. Our selection of jobs crosses Scotland, offers full-time and part-time options and has a range of opportunities that support flexible working. We believe that we can offer solutions for people who may be struggling with their current work/life balance due to travel issues.”