Communications of the ACM
Checking Email Over Christmas? Uh-Oh
Workers who let the job creep into their holiday downtime may be putting their health at risk, according to research from the University of South Australia.
A survey of more than 2,200 academics and professional staff across 40 Australian universities found that employees who responded to digital work communications out of hours were more likely to suffer from burnout, psychological distress, and poor physical health.
Researchers found that in 2021, 57 percent of employees said that they'd sent work-related digital communications to other colleagues in the evenings. And 50 percent reported that they often receive work-related texts, calls, and emails from colleagues on the weekend.
UniSA researcher Amy Zadow says that the expectations for employees to be available 24/7 "limits the opportunity for people to recover — doing things such as exercise and catching up with friends and family. When there is no recovery period you can start to burn out."
Workers who kept their work boundaries in check experienced less stress and pressure, she says.
From University of South Australia
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