Even if employees are allowed to have “flexible hours” when working at home, the perception of being perpetually “on-call” can place a great strain on both them and their families, according to the study, “Killing me softly-electronic communications monitoring and Employee and significant-other well-being,” by a team of researchers led by William Becker, a Virginia Tech associate professor of management.

“The competing demands of work and non-work lives present a dilemma for employees, which triggers feelings of anxiety and endangers work and personal lives,” Becker says.