Are you feeling invisible and lonely at work? Are your employees feeling isolated and disconnected?
Research points to a loneliness epidemic taking hold in our workplaces. Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace 2024 found that one in five employees worldwide feels lonely. A 2023 study from Glassdoor Economic Research revealed that over half of employees with less than five years work experience feel lonely all or most of the time.
It’s a far more common problem that many leaders realise. Increasingly pressurised workplaces leave little space for real human interaction. The paradox lies in our modern capabilities. We are more connected than ever before across organisational and geographical boundaries, while at the same time loneliness is rising rapidly in both our home and work lives.
It’s important to recognise that this issue isn’t just connected to remote and hybrid environments. Employees can feel equally lonely when surrounded by others in an open-plan office, if they feel they lack genuine connection with their colleagues. It is becoming clear that despite advancements in technology and communication tools, the human need for genuine connection persists.
The health and economic consequences of loneliness
The health consequences of loneliness are myriad. Medical experts suggest it can lead to anxiety, depression, obesity, high blood pressure and coronary heart disease, to name just a few.
US research has equated the impact of loneliness to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. The World Health Organisation is so concerned that it has set up a Commission on Social Connection to address loneliness as a pressing health threat.
Read more: Loneliness leads to high mental health risk for 33% of employees, report shows
There is an impact on the bottom line too. The Co-op and New Economics Foundation found that loneliness costs UK employers over £2.5 billion a year, in increased sick days, lower productivity, staff retention and lost working days caring for someone suffering from the ill-effects of loneliness.
Unless we take action, loneliness in the workplace can spread like a virus. Below are several actions HR professionals and leaders can take to reverse this trend:
• Increase psychological safety. Suffering from loneliness carries stigma and shame. It is important to invest more in a climate of psychological safety where people can express painful emotions around loneliness without fear of being ridiculed.
• Allow time for micro moments of connectivity. Our daily work is often busy and packed with virtual or in-person meetings, schedules, and tasks. In the new world of work, we also need to allow space and time for human connections. This means ensuring that you keep time in your diary for informal, in-person catch-ups with colleagues and strategic partners. Don’t let the tyranny of the tangible – KPIs and target setting – drive out moments that build relationships.
• Reset expectations. Leaders need to reset expectations with their team. This includes having regular meetings to discuss the right balance of face-to-face and virtual working, and open conversations on how roles are shifting and how decision-making should be done.
• Insist on staying connected and provide virtual working skills. As humans, our natural genetic make-up favours face-to-face connection. Where possible, aim to get teams together. At the same time, it’s important not to lose some of the progress made via virtual connectivity. Our research showed that employees are asking leaders to help them develop new skills in how to maintain connection with people working from home.
• Show empathy and concern to others. Late actor Robin Williams said, in one of his movies: “I used to think that the worst thing in life is to be alone. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel alone.” Leaders at all levels can benefit from reflecting on whether they are unintentionally making people feel alone. Are they open to other people’s feelings and emotions, or are they busy with their own agenda? In a world where loneliness is growing, even the smallest actions can have a big impact.
The loneliness epidemic is having a real impact in the workplace today, and there is an imperative for leaders to act. Turning a blind eye can have significant implications for productivity and staff morale.
Lonely people can be in your team, the office next door or in another department. When you meet them, ask: What do you need? How can I help? And please, reach out yourself – you may well be lonely too.
Guy Lubitsh is professor in leadership and psychology at Hult International Business School
