Employees under 50 working remotely during coronavirus pandemic struggle to stay motivated: study

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At least two-thirds of Americans working remotely during COVID-19 pandemic

Majority of employees working from home; Fox Biz Flash: 4/16.

Money isn’t enough of a motive to keep young adults engaged at work during a global pandemic, a new report claims. 

Forty-two percent of adults aged between 18 and 49 working from home say it’s been somewhat or very difficult to find motivation since the coronavirus pandemic began, according to a survey published recently by the Pew Research Center. That’s significantly more than the 20% of adults 50 and older who said their motivation was lacking during the new normal.

The survey found there were myriad factors for why young people felt less on track at work while remote including distractions from lack of childcare and working in a more confined space.

42% of adults aged 18 to 49 working from home can't stay motivated, new research suggests. (iStock)

Indeed, while more companies are allowing employees to work remotely, a number of those younger than 50 have said it's been difficult to get work done without interruptions, at 38% for employees between 18 and 49 vs. 18% for workers 50 and up.

Separate research has shown that working women are increasingly facing challenges while working from home, particularly working mothers. Twenty-eight percent of women surveyed in a separate report say they are spending three to four hours managing, researching or planning for children’s schooling needs, according to research from pay-equity software company Syndio released in the spring.

What’s more, nearly 25% said they are spending the same amount of time actively teaching or helping their kids with virtual learning, the same research showed.

PROFESSIONALS WORKING REMOTELY DURING THE PANDEMIC ARE WATCHING TWO HOURS MORE OF TV: STUDY

The new Pew report also found that 53% of employees aged 18 and 29, Gen Z and young millennials, were most likely to say it's been difficult for them to feel motivated on the job – and too much screen time could be to blame.

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Television and other forms of entertainment have proven to be taking a timely chunk out of remote workdays, according to new figures. Americans working at home are consuming around two hours and 10 minutes more each week of TV – that’s 26 more minutes per day than they did pre-pandemic, per a survey released earlier this month from market research firm Nielsen.