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November 29, 2011

More Workers Staying Connected Off the Job

By Lance Whitney, Journalist, IT Consultant, Web Developer

Today’s mobile workers are increasingly staying on the job via their smartphones and tablets, even during their off hours, according to a new report by disaster recovery firm Neverfail.



Conducted by Osterman Research on behalf of Neverfail, the third annual Osterman Research Survey found that workers feel the need to constantly check both their work and personal e-mail, even in the middle of meals and other daily tasks.

The study was based on a survey that reached around 213 workers, half of whom were IT professionals.

Specifically, 83 percent of those polled admitted that they use a smartphone or other mobile device to check work e-mail after hours. Futher, 31 percent said they use their mobile devices almost solely for work, specifically reading and replying to e-mail messages.

Many also seem to be the job wherever they go. A full 66 percent said they carry their mobile devices with them on vacation, while 68 percent are willing to travel more than 10 miles to a spot where they can retrieve their e-mail.

Among those polled, 42 percent did say they’d be able to get through their daily routine even if they left their mobile device at home. However, 25 percent they’d head back home if they forgot their device, a gain of 19 percent from 2009’s survey.

Other findings indicated the extent to which people will go to stay connected.

More than 50 percent of the workers surveyed find dinner with family or friends an ideal time to check e-mail. A full 65 percent said they check e-mail while shopping or waiting on line at the supermarket.

Thankfully, some tasks are still off limits. The number of people checking their e-mail in the middle of a romantic moment dropped to 2 percent from 11 percent in 2009. And only 1 percent said that asking for a divorce or breaking up with some via e-mail was appropriate, down from 6 percent in 2009.

Also, on the plus side, the survey found that driving while texting is on a sharp decrease, most likely thanks to greater legislation in this area. Only 49 percent of those polled admitted to driving while texting, down from 76 percent in 2009.

Looking at specific types of devices, Android and the iPhone (News - Alert) have increased in use among mobile workers, rising to 20 percent and 21 percent, respectively. At the same time, use of the BlackBerry dropped to 36 percent this year from 53 percent in 2009, according to the poll. More people are also naturally using tablets to access their work and personal e-mail.

But no matter which devices they use, workers increasingly feel an overwhelming need to stay in touch by checking their e-mail.

“Our survey found that mobile messaging is continuing to evolve – and users are continually defining and redefining the lines along which it is appropriate to be ‘connected’ or ‘disconnected,’” said Osterman Research founder Michael Osterman. “No matter how or where people access email, though, the results clearly indicate that for most people there is a pressing need to remain connected even after the work day is done.”

So, as the study asks, is this need to stay connected prompted by companies that want their workers to be constantly productive, or is it caused by more of an addiction to e-mail and multitasking?

There’s no question that companies now expect more from their employees. In the midst of smaller staffs, greater workloads, and more ways to stay connected, businesses often want their workers to be available even during off hours.

But I think the constant need to check e-mail and be online is more of an addiction or obsession among many of us today.

We live in an always-on society where our brains have become tuned to staying connected and to multitasking, whether for personal reasons, business reasons, or a combination of both. There’s no longer a concept of downtime where people seem able to just relax and not think about work or e-mail or what’s happening in the online world or at their companies.

We also seem to have trouble focusing on one task at a time, so checking e-mail while watching TV or surfing the Web in the middle of dinner have become increasingly common. And we’re all caught up in it. Last week I was checking e-mail during a family Thanksgiving celebration, and my wife had to remind me to put my iPhone away.

Although there are legitimate reasons and times when we need to check e-mail and stay in touch with our jobs, even during off hours, that inclination often comes from our own needs and addictions. And it’s something we need to learn to control. For example, I try to spend some time during a typical day getting away from work and other activities. I’ll go for a walk or exercise or meditate. I find meditation especially helpful in learning to coax my brain away from work and focus on the moment.

So I think people have to learn how to better balance their work and home lives and their desire to stay connected with their need for downtime.



Lance Whitney is a journalist, IT consultant, and Web Developer with almost 20 years of experience in the IT world. To read more of Lance's articles, please visit his columnist page

Edited by Jennifer Russell
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