Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic made working from home (WFH) the new way of working. This study investigates the impact that family-work conflict, social isolation, distracting environment, job autonomy, and self-leadership have on employees’ productivity, work engagement, and stress experienced when WFH during the pandemic. Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data collected through an online questionnaire completed by 209 employees WFH during the pandemic. The assumptions were tested using hierarchical linear regression. Results: Employees’ family-work conflict and social isolation were negatively related, while self-leadership and autonomy were positively related, to WFH productivity and WFH engagement. Family-work conflict and social isolation were negatively related to WFH stress, which was not affected by autonomy and self-leadership. Conclusion: Individual- and work-related aspects both hinder and facilitate WFH during the COVID-19 outbreak.

From mid-March to the end of May 2020, millions of Italians were forced to work from home because of the lockdown provisions imposed by the Italian government to contain the COVID-19 epidemic. As a result, many employees had to suddenly switch to remote work, experiencing both troubles and opportunities. Social isolation from colleagues and the workplace represents a typical aspect of remote work which increased significantly during the social confinement imposed by the government. This study investigates the correlates of social isolation in terms of stress, perceived remote work productivity and remote work satisfaction, proposing the sequential mediation of stress and perceived remote work productivity, and the moderating role of concern about the new coronavirus. An online survey was conducted, and the responses of 265 employees showed the deleterious role of social isolation in stress, which leads to decreased perceived remote work productivity that, in turn, is related to remote work satisfaction. Furthermore, the results suggest that concern about the virus moderates the relationships between social isolation and remote work satisfaction, from one side, and remote work perceived productivity and remote work satisfaction from the other. This latter result suggests that the indirect sequential effect of social isolation on remote work satisfaction is conditional on concern about the virus. Some conclusions are drawn to support managers and HR officers in the choices to better manage employees’ work during the health emergency.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has strained hospitals and healthcare workers engaged in combating the virus with limited knowledge and resources. Intensive care unit (ICU) nurses are among the healthcare workers most affected by the pandemic and are at risk for developing burnout syndrome. Objective: The present study aims to explore burnout symptoms prevalence among ICU nurses and to identify the individual, organizational, and contextual risk, and protective factors of burnout in ICU nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A scoping review was conducted by searching PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Only papers with empirical data and referred to ICU nurses were included. A total of 350 initial results were yielded, and 40 full texts were screened. Twelve papers constituted the final sample in the analysis. Results: High levels of symptoms of burnout (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment) were registered among ICU nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Increased workload, lack of equipment, social stigma, and fear of contagion emerged as key risk factors. Social support from leaders and colleagues, professional recognition, use of personal protective tools, and witnessing patients’ successful recovery emerged as major protective factors. Conclusions: The results may inform the development of timely actions to counter burnout in ICU nurses during this COVID-19 pandemic and in a post-COVID-19 scenario.

Although a large part of the world’s workforce engaged in mandatory Work from Home during the COVID-19 pandemic, the experience was not the same for everyone. This study explores whether different groups of employees, based on their work and organizational characteristics (i.e., organizational size, number of days per week working from home, working in team) and personal characteristics (i.e., remote work experience, having children at home), express different beliefs about working remotely, acceptance of the technology necessary to Work from Home, and well-being. A study was conducted with 163 Italian workers who answered an online questionnaire from November 2020 to January 2021. A cluster analysis revealed that work, organizational, and personal variables distinguish five different types of workers. ANOVA statistics showed that remote workers from big companies who worked remotely several days a week, had experience (because they worked remotely before the national lockdowns), and worked in a team, had more positive beliefs about working remotely, higher technology acceptance, and better coping strategies, compared to the other groups of workers. Practical implications to support institutional and organizational decision-makers and HR managers to promote remote work and employee well-being are presented.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a significant and rapid shift from work in presence to remote work (RW). This rapid change represented a challenge for employees, who had to deal with new work procedures in houses often crowded with their children. This study investigated whether the engagement toward this work arrangement mediates the relationship between perceived overall job performance and employees’ remote work productivity. Furthermore, it tested whether the relationships between perceived overall job performance and RW productivity as well as between RW engagement and RW productivity are moderated by living with children under 18. This quantitative, cross-sectional, study was conducted in an Italian municipality and involved a sample of employees who started to work remotely after the spread of the pandemic. A total of 171 public servants answered an online questionnaire. Regression analysis showed a significant relationship between perceived overall job performance and RW productivity and the mediation of this relationship by RW engagement. The moderation role of living with minor children was confirmed, although this modulation mechanism had two opposite effects on the tested relationships. On the whole, the results suggest that HR professionals and organizations need to develop support policies that take into account employees’ specific characteristics.

Working from home (WFH) has become increasingly common, and its impact on job performance is particularly interesting to researchers. Prior research has established a positive correlation between remote work and job performance, but the underlying mechanisms still need to be fully understood. This diary study addresses this issue by applying the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) theory and developing a mediation model that identifies two processes responsible for the positive and negative relationships of WFH (compared to working at the office or WATO) with job performance. The study was conducted in a public organization, and 203 employees engaged in hybrid work arrangements answered an online survey for eight consecutive workdays. Results showed that working from home (WFH) had an indirect positive relationship with job performance through daily concentration and work engagement. Instead, no significant indirect relationship of WFH with daily job performance through daily social isolation and tension was observed. However, a disengagement “effect” was found, as the indirect relationship of WFH with daily job performance via daily social isolation and work engagement was negative and statistically significant. Theoretically, this study supports a motivational mechanism linking WFH to job performance, does not support the health-impairment process triggered by WFH, and emphasizes the importance of considering the complex interplay between job demands and motivational states. From a practical standpoint, the study suggests that organizations implementing hybrid work should enhance employee motivation, for instance, by providing tools to improve employee concentration and addressing potential feelings of social isolation when working from home.