REWARDS AND RECOGNITION

I. PROS AND CONS OF FLEXI-WORK

SYSTEM / ALTERNATIVE WORK
ARRANGEMENT

The pandemic has challenged society in ways once considered unimaginable,

it changed the way people work and change the way of life where everyone is expected
to adapt to overcome the effect of this pandemic. Many companies have opted for
flexible work practices, such as working from home to reduce the spread of disease
and losses. As per government agencies is concerned, the Civil Service Commission
implemented the alternative work arrangement where a percentile number of total
employees will be required to physically report in their respective offices for a reduced
number of days per week whereas the remaining employees are on a work-from-home
setup.

However, it is important to consider all aspects of what’s involved. This means

taking consideration on what are the advantages and disadvantages may be and how
they may affect us.

Many of us, especially women, find it very difficult to maintain a balance

between work and home. Working mothers have always had to balance the ‘double
shift’: going to work followed by looking after children. With flexi-work system/
alternative work arrangement many people who regularly work in an office-based job
are now remotely working, blurring the line between work and home.

Since you do not have to differentiate between the family time and the office
time, you are less stressful. You can work whenever your house chores are done.

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 As such you can spend more time with the family, you are working at the ease
of your home, so you need not to worry doing your work just then. You can work
whenever you are free. Thus, giving you more family time.

Flexible scheduling includes the ability to adjust the days and hours of being in
the office and also allows workers to work remotely. Of course, with the commute to a
home workspace, employees avoid the traffic and the stresses of commuting during
rush hours. You might be amazed at how much faster a commute can be if you can
drive to the office at 10 a.m. instead of at 8 a.m. during rush hour

As to the downside of alternative work arrangement, while working alone from

home may mean you can be at your desk by 7am, distraction free and still in your
pajamas if you want to, you also lose out on the energy and creativity of working with
others. Missing out on the encouragement, camaraderie and general buzz of working
as part of a team can leave you feeling both uninspired and isolated. That in turn can
have a knock-on effect on your motivation and even the quality of your work. Lack of
motivation can make an employee's life difficult and can adversely affect their
productivity. Though self-motivation works to a certain extent, it is not always enough
to keep a man going. That's where the use of external motivation comes into play.

Technological difficulties shouldn’t be underestimated. You may find it

unexpectedly difficult to work with colleagues who are working differently to you or at
different times and you may find you have to be highly organized to co-ordinate
communications, collaboration, planning and delivery.

Working alone can be a tough job. The role requires employees to keep a check
on their performance at work themselves. Self-regulation is a tough job, and work rests
on the discretion of the employees.

Employees might often laze around and take frequent breaks, resulting in
longer and less work time when the breaks and work go unmonitored. Whereas, in the
workplace, one is constantly reminded to be on the right track and perform efficiently
and effectively, which is impossible with remote work.

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 The disadvantages that have been pointed out, are reasons why some
organizations are still not on-board with the idea of remote work, and the concern is
real. But there are various ways of employee engagement, which can help
organizations get past these disadvantages. As the saying goes, grass is always
greener on the other side. No system in this world is perfect. Everything has its own
benefits and drawbacks, and we have to make the best out of everything. Some
employees are comfortable working from home, and some are waiting to go back to
their workplace, sit on their beloved office chair and meet their co-workers.

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