Linking traffic congestion and remote work to employees work-life balance and health: the case of Lagos

Abstract

This chapter focuses on developing a conceptual framework to study the relationship between life balance and employee health in the congested Sub-Saharan African city of Lagos. We argue that traffic congestion and remote working are expected to have different outcomes on work-life balance and employee health in organisations. However, the relationship is not straightforward but complex. Thus, while organisations can leverage remote working to promote employees’ work-life balance and health in congested cities, there can be unintended consequences as employees may work more from home, unsettling the same balance they wish to achieve. We argue that in organisations, the relationship between work-life balance, employee health, remote working, and traffic congestion is complicated and that one directly or indirectly affects the other. For instance, digitalisation can blur the boundaries between work and non-work life. We make a theoretical contribution by summarising these relationships in the nine propositions argued in this chapter. Although our chapter focuses on the commercial city of Lagos, Nigeria, the discussions and the broader perspective on work-life balance and employees’ health are applicable globally, and the propositions can be tested in future empirical studies.