Survey reveals challenges facing Kiwis working at home

According to a recent poll of Kiwis by Opinion Compare, 35% of respondents they felt less productive working from home, increasing to 44% for those in just the 25-34-year old range.

On the flip side, 48% said it made no difference and 17% stated that they felt more productive in response to the question "Those who are working from home (126 respondents) – How productive are you / do you foresee you will be if / when working from home?

Following the government's announcement that the country is headed to Level 4 and lockdown for the next 4 weeks, it is meaning a huge adjustment for the way we work in New Zealand, as well as across the globe.

Opinion Compare ran a nationally representative poll to understand more about how New Zealanders are feeling about the prospect of working from home.

Other results show that three-quarters of respondents aren't experiencing or foreseeing any issues/challenges when working from home but those in the 35-44 age group are more likely to be experiencing/anticipate challenges working from home (31%), most likely due to the fact they have younger children to look after whilst they work.

Relating to these statistics on working from home, other NZ Compare websites have seen a sudden increase in the number of users.

One of the busiest sites has been Broadband Compare.

The Broadband Compare website has seen a steady increase in site visitors as Kiwis use the site to ensure they are on the best broadband plan for their changing needs.

Broadband Compare site traffic has increased by 39% versus the average of the last 4 weeks.

"The increase in users can likely be explained by the need for a quality home broadband connection," says NZ Compare CEO Gavin Male.

"Individuals having to work from home may be used to better quality and faster broadband connection at their work and find their home connection unsatisfactory. If schools close and the demand on your home broadband connection gets greater through streaming, multiple devices and video conferencing people are going to need an unlimited connection and the best speeds possible."

The sample of n=518 New Zealanders aged 18+ was run from March 17-19.

As more people work from home due to the current COVID-19 outbreak, the New Zealand telco industry is preparing to keep up.

Geoff Thorn, CEO of the New Zealand Telecommunications Forum (TCF) says, "The New Zealand telecommunication industry has high-quality networks which are more than able to respond to extra demands on the networks from people working from home and spending more time at home due to self-isolation.

"The industry has made investments in the past to ensure that ample capacity exists, and this was demonstrated by the performance of the networks during the Rugby World Cup," he says.

The NZ Telecommunications Forum (TCF) was established in 2002. It works with the telecommunications industry in New Zealand to collaborate and develop key industry standards and codes of practice that underpin the country's digital economy.