Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1485769
14 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 NOVEMBER 2022 NICOLE MEILAK A majority of workers in IT and telecommunications suffered a regression in their physical health as the COVID-19 pan- demic forced them into remote working. A study by Dr Luke Fiorini, director of the Centre for La- bour Studies at the University of Malta, found remote work- ing proved to be a positive ex- perience for some, but was also a period of poorer health for many others. Indeed, more workers re- ported a regression in their health during the first year of the pandemic as opposed to an improvement, a health impact that depended on how much of their work was being carried out at home or another loca- tion outside the office. Those who carried out a greater percentage of their work through remote-working were more likely to report bet- ter levels of health. Health lev- els were worse for those who spent less time working outside the office. Participants in the study ex- perienced the pandemic in dif- ferent ways. For those who ex- perienced an improvement in their health, the pandemic was an opportunity to put in more exercise in their day as they no longer wasted time commuting to work. The added flexibility meant that they were able to sleep longer hours, prepare more nu- tritious food and spend more time with their loved ones or practicing different hobbies. These participants often de- scribed the work-from-home period as one of reduced stress and greater efficiency. For those who experienced a deterioration in health, this period saw them becoming more sedentary, eating more frequently or more junk food, and unable to go to the gym. Spending more time at home led these participants to devel- op negative feelings or men- tal health issues, especially feelings of loneliness due to reduced social contact. They also felt more anxious and un- certain due to the nature of the pandemic. Another major struggle among workers was that they struggled to draw the line be- tween work and non-work hours. Some used digital com- munications more frequently whilst working from home, re- sulting in them falling behind in their work and having to make up for this time in their non-work hours. Others struggled to cope with working from home whilst dealing with other domestic duties, such as caring for chil- dren. The results offer several im- plications for companies toying with the idea of working from home or adopting a hybrid ap- proach. Remote working offers added flexibility and reduces wasted time in the daily com- mute, but it also poses health risks on physical and mental levels. While this bodes well for a hy- brid approach, the study found that those working from home on a full-time basis were more likely to report positive health changes. In his study, the research- er suggests that organisations should consider policies that limit excessive digital commu- nications or communications outside working hours to al- leviate some of the challenges faced by remote workers. Organisations should also re- main in touch with those work- ers who find working from home to be a lonely experience. Other measures organisations could take include health pro- motion initiatives, such as re- mote exercise classes, or train- ing for managers on how to manage remote workers. Pandemic a mixed bag for remote workers - study JAMES DEBONO THE Nationalist Party has made it clear it will only sup- port a law on termination of pregnancy limited to cases where the life of the mother is threatened, ignoring other threats to women's health. Like the learned critics of the 'Prudente' law, clearly these opponents think the risk of disabilities like blindness in the case of mothers suffering from myopia, or even perina- tal suicides in case of severe depressions, are not tanta- mount to sacrifice the life of foetus to safeguard the health of the mother. Bernard Grech has clear- ly asserted his authority in leaving no room for ambigu- ity, as he had done previously on cannabis clubs, when he first hinted being in favour and then backtracking. Some may interpret this as a sign of the party's compactness and a rediscovered right-wing ethos. It was surely a victory for conservatives in the party and a middle-finger for any liberal tempted to vote for the PN out of spite for Labour. A simplistic reading of the situ- ation is that the PN has finally discovered its identity, some- where to the right of Gior- gia Meloni and even Donald Trump. Yet such a reading ignores a growing constituency of younger voters who follow the international news cy- cle, whose cultural digest of film and literature hails from a world where anti-abortion views are associated with the villains in the Hand- maid's Tale. They belong to a world in which the fight- back by women has prevent- ed Trump's Republicans from taking over the Senate, and where women in Iran are in open revolt against the mo- rality police. And while Maltese elector- ates tend to be more insular and anti-abortion feelings remain deep, surveys already show a chasm in outlooks on this issue between older and younger people, and ter- tiary-educated voters who agree with its decriminali- zation: the latter groups are the most likely to say that they will not be voting in any forthcoming election. So the PN's conservative lurch will further reinforce this view or even push more of these voters to Labour. In- stead of challenging the gov- ernment over the poor record of the police force on domes- tic violence, the PN has di- verted public attention on its ideological aversion to female bodily autonomy. Despite be- ing stuck in a deep hole, the PN keeps digging its grave. But the PN faces another problem, one tied to its strong identification with EU sym- bolism. Not only was it the party which campaigned for Malta to join the EU, a pros- pect which attracted liberals to a winning coalition which secured PN victories in 1998 and 2003, but even in more recent times it has continu- ously attacked Labour for its disrespect of European values on rule of law issues. The party now seems obliv- ious to a European reali- ty shaped by the backlash against abortion rights in the US, which has increased mo- mentum for enshrining abor- tion rights in the European charter of human rights. And even when conserva- tives win power as happened in Italy, the first pledge they make is to commit themselves not to touch abortion laws, as Giorgia Meloni did in Italy. One just wonders how some- one like Roberta Metsola can identify with the PN's opposi- tion to abortion even in cases where the mother's health is in danger. One thing is for sure: she only got elected in her post by clearly stating that her po- sition on abortion will reflect that of the European Parlia- ment. It was this declaration which ensured Emmanuel Macron's crucial support for her. The PN may have rediscovered its conservative ethos and unity in opposing abortion even when the health of the mother is at risk. But could educated and young voters react to the re- edition of Bernard Grech's 'handmaid's tale'? Middle finger to the young and educated as PN finds unity on abortion NEWS