Experiences of Work from Home in Pakistan during COVID-19

Abstract

COVID-19 has restricted a large population of the workforce to conventional work owing to mitigate the spread of the virus. This restriction resulted in the adaptation of remote work setting all around the globe. Work from home presents unique challenges especially to Pakistan being a developing country where online work requisites are not yet established, this new work arrangement needs to be explained and explored. Most of the workers in the country are experiencing work from home shift. This study utilized both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The findings of the study show that employees perceive work from home as challenging as they do otherwise with a lower risk of getting infected. Set of challenges of remote working include a lack of coordination, rapport building, communication, and a clear understanding of expectations related to each task completed. For coordination among employees, a frequently used tool is messaging applications such as WhatsApp rather than professional video applications.