The dynamics of crisis home office and employee engagement

Abstract

PurposeDrawing on the JD-R theory, this study investigates the effect of working from home on employee engagement and work-life balance considering work-life balance as the mediator in the working from home-employee engagement relationship and altruism as the moderator in the work-life balance-employee engagement relationship.Design/methodology/approachAn online questionnaire using the snowball sampling approach was employed to collect data from 350 professional-level employees working from home due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling.FindingsThe findings indicate that work-life balance significantly affects employee engagement and confirm the moderating role of altruism in the relationship between work-life balance and employee engagement. However, work-life balance does not mediate the relationship between working from home and employee engagement.Originality/valueThese findings advanced JD-R theory in human resource management by focusing on a more humanistic and compassionate approach towards managing employees, particularly in the remote working context during turbulent times.