Flexible work: The impact of a new policy on employees' sedentary behavior and physical activity

Objective: The aim of the study was to assess change in physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) in office-based employees after the implementation of a flexible work policy that allowed working at home. Methods: A total of 24 employees (62% female; 40±10 years) completed an online questionnaire 4 weeks pre-and 6 weeks post-implementation of the policy. Changes in PA and SB were assessed using Wilcoxon signed rank test. Results: There were no changes in PA after the introduction of the flexible work policy (Z=-0.29, P>0.05). Sitting time increased on days the employees worked at home (Z=-2.02, P>0.05) and on days they worked at the office (Z=-4.16, P>0.001). Conclusions: A flexible work policy may have had a negative impact on sedentary behavior in this workplace. Future work is needed to explore the potential impact on workplace sitting time.