Post-work gatherings regain momentum after prohibitions of pandemic
With post-work gatherings regaining steam across organisations, a new report has found that a majority of employees in Singapore have reservations attending.
The Singapore Mental Health Index from TELUS Health found that only 23% of employees said they look forward to attending and meeting new people as well as seeing people they know.
Another 36% only look forward to attending social gatherings if they know everyone well. In fact, 18% said they often avoid attending such events.
Nearly a quarter (23%) also said they often attend such events but want to leave as soon as possible, or they would likely feel uncomfortable participating in such events.
According to the report, employees under 40 are twice as likely as workers over 50 to attend social events but leave as soon as possible.
On the other hand, workers over 50 are 80% more likely than those under 40 to look forward to attending social events and meeting new people.
The findings come as social events, including post-work gatherings, regain momentum after the most got prohibited at the peak of the pandemic.
But their return does not guarantee that things are back to normal. In Japan, work-organised cherry viewing events are no longer as attractive to employees.
It comes as most employees want their social gatherings to be within the traditional work hours, emphasising the post-pandemic preference to work-life balance among the workforce.
TELUS Health's latest Mental Health Index also looked into workplace culture, psychological safety, among others. Grab your own copy here.