Managing Communications During WFH to Prevent an Always-On Culture

KOMPAS.com - The policy of working from home, or work from home (WFH), on Fridays is nationally established for Civil Servants (ASN). This system of work prompts new expectations in the dynamics of communication. Because staff are not physically in the office, many are inclined to constantly monitor their phones or laptops to ensure they do not miss their superiors’ instructions. This gradually gives rise to the phenomenon of an always-on culture, where the boundary between working time and rest time becomes blurring. Being continually connected to office matters without breaks is one of the main triggers of mental fatigue. Clinical Psychologist Clement Eko Prasetio, M.Psi., a psychologist at Indopsycare, stresses that taking distance from work notifications outside working hours is a crucial step for workers’ mental recovery. Although turning off notifications is strongly advised, this should not be done unilaterally without informing others. “My advice is to tell your colleagues. Let them know not to disturb you from this time to that time,” Clement notes. Inform your team schedule to your colleagues, for example by setting a special status or changing your profile photo in messaging apps, in addition to directly notifying them. One of the most common mistakes workers make when WFH is continuing to respond to work messages at night because they feel guilty. In fact, replying to messages outside the schedule trains colleagues to contact at any time without constraint. “The more we keep answering questions outside the hours we’ve set, the more it signals to others that we actually do not have fixed working hours,” Clement states. Flexibility in WFH on Fridays remains allowed, provided you set specific conditions, such as a maximum time to be contacted or particular topics that are genuinely urgent.