Loneliness at Work

Recently there’s been a lot of media focus on loneliness and work. In our fast-paced world, the attention on loneliness may not last, so let’s understand why this is extremely important at this time and beyond.

Cigna recently shared their research in the 2020 Report on America’s Loneliness Epidemic. It found that 61% of those surveyed were lonely at work. Surprisingly, 80% of Gen Z and 70% of Millennials said they are lonely.

Why should business leaders be concerned about a lot of lonely people out there? Because there are costs associated with it. The study found that lonely employees are five times more likely to take a day off work due to stress and are twice as likely to take sick days or consider quitting. 

Take a look at the Gallup 12 research that says that it is important for people to have a best friend at work. When people have a friend at work – someone with common interests to have lunch with and to connect with – they are less likely to be lonely and more likely to be productive. 

You can break the loneliness cycle in your workplace by fostering a more collaborative work environment. Consider ways to bring people together to problem solve or serve on cross-functional work teams giving them a chance to connect with people from other departments or functions. Encourage face-to-face communication by getting people moving – less texting, more walking over to talk to a coworker. Have no-texting Tuesdays.

Consider some ways to bring your employees together just to socialize:

• Monthly potluck lunches where everyone contributes a dish from a country that represents their heritage.  Food is a great way to bring people together.
• Speaking of food, assess common eating areas. Are they places where people can/want to go—places where they can sit with others, eat, and have a conversation? Encourage this and discourage grabbing something to eat and taking it to your desk to eat alone.
• Start a book club that meets during a monthly lunch break. It need not have a theme – whatever the group is interested in or organized around your industry. Either way, it’s a great way to socialize.
• Survey your team for ideas. For example, one organization found they had a lot of people who were training for a marathon, so they started a running club that spilled over to the weekends. When the employees ran the marathon, lots of their non-running coworkers went out to cheer them on and celebrated after it was over. 
• Start a mentoring program that encourages people to come together. Mentoring is a natural way to bring people together and has proven to be effective to help ward off loneliness at work.
• Consider doing some team building activities at each of your staff or all hands meetings. The more people know about each other as human beings, the easier it will be for them to connect.

Loneliness is something to be concerned about at work and in general. Connecting with remote employees is another challenge for a future blog.  For now, what can you do today to ensure that there are fewer lonely employees working for you?