Family status and changing demands/resources: the overlooked experience of solo-living employees transitioning to homeworking during the Covid-19 pandemic

Abstract

Solo-living employees are a growing segment of the workforce, yet their work-life experiences are under-researched. Taking a biographical narrative approach, we interviewed 35 solo-livers from different countries to explore their transition to homeworking during the Covid-19 lockdowns. Drawing upon the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model and key concepts from the work-life interface literature, we explored both lost/reduced and new/increased job and personal demands and resources at this time. We found that the transition to homeworking during lockdown created several challenges for solo-living staff, often exacerbated by changes to the demands and resources of others–namely those with childcare responsibilities. We argue that ‘sense of entitlement to support for work-life balance’ is an important personal resource, which impacts the work-life interface, and which solo-living staff often lack. Our findings offer solo-friendly recommendations for organisational practice.