Extended Availability of Public Servants for Work from Home During Non-Work Time in the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic, with its public measures, has led to changes in public administration and in the way public servants organize their work and working time. The purpose of our article is to determine whether there is a correlation between work during non-work time and extended availability for work among public servants in the Slovenian public administration who worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research was conducted in February 2021 in the Slovenian public administration and involved 1,676 public servants. Based on the data of our study, which we analyzed using various statistical methods (Chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis test, Dunn-Bonferroni post hoc test, Spearman’s rho), we assert that during the COVID-19 pandemic, public servants in the Slovenian public administration who worked from home performed their work during non-work time and were excessively available for work. As a result, their ability to psychologically detach from work decreased.

Keywords

• covid-19 pandemic
• extended availability for work
• non-work time
• public servants
• work from home.