Jake is acutely aware of his good fortune. News headlines reporting coronavirus infections and death tolls, as well as widespread job losses, are a daily reminder that the in-house lawyer is lucky to be in good health and able to work from home. Nor does he need to juggle Zoom calls with childcare, as schools in the UK are open.

Nonetheless, almost 10 months into the pandemic, Jake, who does not want to use his real name, is “physically fatigued, stressed” and disengaged from his work.

Pre-pandemic he would work long hours, but intense spurts would be followed by quieter times, allowing him to recover. Now colleagues don’t think twice about calling at 7am. Technology has ballooned communication. “When the ping of a new email arrives,” he says, “if I don’t answer that email pretty much immediately then there’s a different ping of a new instant message arriving over Microsoft Teams. If I let that go unanswered, then you can bet on a phone call.” 

His experience resonates with consultant psychiatrist Dr Niall Campbell, based at the Priory’s Roehampton Hospital in London, whose clients report “work ‘burnout’ [due to] anxiety about work, with smaller organisations in particular under massive pressure, tethered to endless Zoom calls as well as emails. They talk of a ‘barrage of emails’, and if they go off sick, they come back to literally thousands of them.”

This is a marathon, not a sprint

While the end seems to be in sight following positive news on Covid-19 vaccines, remote workers complain of pandemic fatigue, struggles with heavy workloads, unable to switch off at home, ongoing uncertainty about their working lives and potential job losses. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, psychologist and chief talent scientist at Manpower Group, points out that while the crisis that marked the overnight shift from the office has faded and home-workers have adapted, “things are lasting longer than we thought. We used to work from home, now we live at work”.

Brian Kropp, Gartner’s head of research in its human resources division, says that “early in the pandemic, companies had a reserve of goodwill from their employees that they could tap to help them get through all of the disruption, but the reservoir is empty and employees just feel tired.” Too many companies, Mr Kropp adds, have been slow to move off a crisis-footing and adjust their work processes to the demands of long-term remote working despite the pandemic-inspired rhetoric that the future of work will be flexible. 

The mass homeworking experiment has illuminated divisions among those employers who have good management and wellbeing policies in place — and those that do not. For some companies, it has been a wake-up call, says Emma Mamo, head of workplace wellbeing at Mind, the mental health charity.

Sarah Henchoz, employment partner at Allen & Overy, an international law firm, points out that remote work can breed anxiety. “Some people are quite isolated, feel excluded. If people are feeling paranoid . . . distrust can increase, and feelings of being ostracised.”

While some workers in cramped home conditions or dealing with heavy workloads and remote micromanagers might feel the strain, others are liberated. They are able to concentrate better away from open plan offices and politicking. Ms Henchoz says managers must not make assumptions, and when it comes to wellbeing policies “you have to find something that is inclusive so that people can pick the things that work for them”.

A recent survey of US executives by PwC, the professional services firm, found 31 per cent were worried about the effects on the workforce, more than double the number were concerned about decreased consumer confidence (14 per cent). In response, 72 per cent of employers said they would expand benefits targeted at employee wellbeing, and 59 per cent are extending new benefits, such as reduced hours.

At the start of the pandemic, many companies launched online talks by wellbeing experts, digital meditation apps, resilience coaching and Zoom social meetups, on top of employee assistance programmes. As the months progressed, some employers tried to encourage employees to recharge.

Such initiatives include days off, meeting-free days, or daily breaks to spur employees to leave their homes to take exercise in the daylight, particularly important in those countries with short days. Oliver Wyman, a consultancy, has recently launched paid “recharge days”, which are taken at the same time by all employees in a region. General Mills, a US manufacturer, has introduced Free Form Fridays, devoted to different aspects of wellbeing, in which employees are encouraged to use the corporate Headspace app and exercise, or get involved in community programmes.

Take action to lessen staff fatigue

Aaron Lamers, General Mills’ human resources director for northern Europe, says as rules have tightened “we have seen an increase in reports of mental health issues, serious fatigue”. 

At Headspace, the mindfulness app provider, employees already benefited from a fortnightly no-meeting day and twice daily mindfulness breaks at 10am and 3pm. Since April, MinDays, which allows employees a day off, were introduced to alternate with the no-meeting Fridays. Yet as the pandemic continued, Jolawn Victor, its chief international officer, was concerned these were not being prioritised. “We have to reinforce that we are committed to MinDays and ‘no meeting’ times. You have to lead by example and refresh your commitment.”

The Priory’s Dr Campbell says that coaches can also help support the workforce. “People who know about a company’s ethos and work practices and can provide professional support, and an outlet for overburdened and stressed staff who are struggling.”

Employers need to recognise what worked early in the pandemic might not do so now.

Susan Bright, global managing partner for diversity and inclusion at another law firm, Hogan Lovells, says it is a challenge for managers to spot problems remotely. “It’s harder to tell if people are struggling over Zoom compared to face-to-face.”

Employee surveys are one source of information. In November Oliver Wyman introduced a digital app called Balance, a weekly digital survey that asks staff about their work — the spotlights and challenges. Gemma Porter, the consultancy’s global wellbeing manager, says “as a business we can determine themes. It’s anonymised but you can also select that you want to be named and a specific concern can be addressed. It gives people another channel to give feedback.”

59%


Number of employers extending new benefits, such as reduced hours

A workplace counsellor who sees Hogan Lovells’ employees over Zoom helps to identify emerging issues, too. Ms Bright adds that talking to other firms and clients has helped inform best practice.

In regions where children are still unable to attend school, the dual pressures of home schooling and work weigh heavily on parents. Salesforce, the US software provider, expanded family care leave, allowing six weeks’ paid time off for parents and additional childcare support. General Mills has recently offered emergency childcare to support parents who need back-up. Mr Lamers says: “We need to reduce anxiety and potential triggers.”

One-to-one calls with staff are vital

Rather than additional benefits, sometimes the solutions are rather more straightforward. Dan Lucy, principal research fellow at the Institute for Employment Studies, says “the more contact individuals have with their manager, the better they feel and more committed they are to their health”.

Katie Jacobs, stakeholder lead at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, says six months into the pandemic, some employees had not had a conversation about their wellbeing with a line manager. Over time, she says, work has become increasingly “transactional”.

In the worst cases, line managers undermine company policies. Jake, the in-house lawyer, says “despite messages from certain members of senior management about looking out for each other and safeguarding our wellbeing [and] mental health, in practice the exact opposite is the case.”

The discrepancy between rhetoric and practice is real — and widening as the pandemic goes on. Even if vaccines arrive early in 2021, organisations may find that productivity will be hampered if they do not reset their work practices. In a turbulent jobs market, employers may hold all the cards yet managers will find addressing workload and supporting exhausted workforces will pay dividends. 

The FT is exploring the impact of the pandemic on people’s work. Fill in a short survey to tell us about your experiences of working during the pandemic. 

Diego Maradona, the footballer who led Argentina to victory at the 1986 World Cup, has died at the age of 60, with the sport mourning an iconic player with few peers on the pitch but who struggled with addiction throughout his life.

The Argentine Football Association responded to the news on Wednesday by expressing “its deepest sorrow for the death of our legend, Diego Armando Maradona”, saying, “you will always be in our hearts”.

Maradona had struggled with his health this year and was hospitalised due to a brain clot in early November. Media reports suggest he died on Wednesday after a cardiac arrest.

He will be best remembered as a diminutive yet powerful player, who captained Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.

During that tournament, in the quarter-final against England, he scored the opening goal with his arm in an incident he referred to as the “hand of god”. Later in the same match, he would weave through several flailing English defenders to score one of the greatest goals in the history of the competition.

Gary Lineker, the former England striker who played in that game, wrote on Twitter that Maradona was by “some distance the best player of my generation and arguably the greatest of all time. After a blessed but troubled life, hopefully he’ll finally find some comfort in the hands of God.”

Argentina went into mourning as the sudden death of the national icon took the country by shock, even though his poor health and struggles with addiction had long been a subject of intense media attention.

Although Maradona embraced, and was embraced by, the political left around the region — he even died on the anniversary of the death of one of the people he most admired, the late Cuban dictator Fidel Castro — Argentines of all political stripes were distraught by the news.

Social media was flooded by messages of sorrow and commemoration by Argentines from all walks of life, including President Alberto Fernández, who declared three days of national mourning.

“You were the greatest of all. Thank you for having existed, Diego. We are going to miss you all of our lives,” tweeted Mr Fernández, posting a picture of himself in a smiling embrace with Maradona.

Maradono also captained Argentina at the 1990 World Cup in Italy, but narrowly lost in the final against West Germany.

At club level, he led Italy’s Napoli to its first Serie A league title in 1987, a remarkable feat as the club faced heavyweight sides at the time, such as Juventus and AC Milan. He would go on to win Europe’s Uefa Cup and a second Italian league title with the club.

Maradona also played for Spain’s FC Barcelona, Argentina’s Boca Juniors among other clubs.

Off the pitch, well documented problems with cocaine addiction and a playboy lifestyle led to a deterioration in his private life which eventually engulfed his career. He would be sent home from the 1994 World Cup after failing a drugs test, and continued to struggle with health issues and obesity long after retiring as a player in 1997.

He was unable to recreate his footballing genius as a coach, with several unsuccessful stints as a manager including leading Argentina to defeat against Germany in the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup.

Pelé, the former Brazilian forward often cited alongside Maradona as the greatest ever footballer, wrote on Twitter: “I have lost a dear friend, and the world has lost a legend . . . One day, I hope, we will play soccer together in the sky.”

Gary Lineker, the former England striker, wrote on Twitter that Maradona was by “some distance the best player of my generation and arguably the greatest of all time. After a blessed but troubled life, hopefully he’ll finally find some comfort in the hands of God.”

Donald Trump’s legal options to challenge his election loss are about to significantly narrow, with three battleground states carried by Joe Biden due to certify their results in the wake of a crushing weekend courtroom defeat for the Trump campaign. 

Pennsylvania and Michigan could make their results official as early as Monday while Nevada has a Tuesday deadline to certify its vote. These milestones would further undermine Mr Trump’s unprecedented effort to overturn the results of the election.

The certifications will arrive just as steadfast Republican support for Mr Trump’s legal challenges has begun to crack, with a few elected officials in recent days publicly telling the president to respect the democratic process or begin a transition process.

Pat Toomey, the Republican senator from Pennsylvania, called on Mr Trump to concede defeat, while Liz Cheney, a top Republican in the House of Representatives, warned the president he should “immediately” provide evidence of supposed widespread election fraud.

Kevin Cramer, the Republican senator from North Dakota, on Sunday defended Mr Trump for merely “exercising his legal options” but said it was “past time to start a transition”. “There has to be an end,” he said on NBC’s Meet the Press.

But Mr Trump has shown little sign that he will ever admit defeat, even after a conservative judge in Pennsylvania on Saturday evening tossed out a Trump campaign election lawsuit in an opinion that described the case as lacking in legal merit and evidence.

“We will find massive numbers of fraudulent ballots,” the outgoing US president claimed on Twitter on Sunday. “Fight hard Republicans.”

Mr Trump has since November 3 launched an attempt to cling to power unseen before in US history. He has fired off lawsuits that have almost all been dismissed by the court, and urged state lawmakers to disregard the results and unilaterally declare the election for him.

His legal team, including Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, and Sidney Powell, a defence attorney, have made increasingly extreme and unproven claims, with Ms Powell claiming that Republican election officials were involved in a conspiracy against Mr Trump.

Chris Christie, the former Republican governor of New Jersey and an ally of Mr Trump, on Sunday called his legal team “a national embarrassment” and said it was time for the president to concede.

“The country is what has to matter the most. As much as I’m a strong Republican and I love my party, it’s the country that has to come first,” he said on ABC’s This Week.

So far, the efforts have failed to derail the electoral process, with Democratic and Republican election officials expressing confidence in the integrity of the results and rejecting the Trump campaign’s allegations of widespread fraud.

On Monday, counties in Pennsylvania are set to certify their results to the state’s top election official after the Saturday dismissal of the Trump campaign lawsuit that sought to block that certification. Mr Trump’s lawyers have said they would appeal the dismissal with the intention of taking the case to the Supreme Court, a move widely viewed as a longshot given the failure of Mr Trump’s legal strategy thus far.

A Michigan state elections board made up of two Republicans and two Democrats is also due to meet on Monday to vote on whether to certify its results. Earlier this week, a similar county level board in Michigan’s Wayne County, which includes Detroit, briefly deadlocked along partisan lines.

And on Tuesday, Nevada, which Mr Biden also won, is set to certify its results. A judge on Friday had denied a lawsuit brought by a conservative activist to block Nevada’s certification.

Ronald Klain, who Mr Biden has named as White House chief of staff, said the president-elect was preparing to take office on January 20, regardless of Mr Trump’s efforts, and will announce his first cabinet appointments on Tuesday.

“Everything that Donald Trump’s doing now is bad for democracy, it’s bad for our position, our image in the world, but it’s not going to change what happens here when we get a new president next year,” Mr Klain said on This Week.