Citation: Debono, M.; Garzia, C. Trade Union Members’ Experiences and Attitudes towards Working from Home during the Pandemic. Sustainability 2023, 15, 1953. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15031953 Academic Editor: Andreas Ihle Received: 13 December 2022 Revised: 12 January 2023 Accepted: 16 January 2023 Published: 19 January 2023 Copyright: © 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). sustainability Article Trade Union Members’ Experiences and Attitudes towards Working from Home during the Pandemic Manwel Debono * and Christine Garzia Centre for Labour Studies, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta * Correspondence: manwel.debono@um.edu.mt Abstract: The pandemic increased working from home (WFH) across the world. The implications of such practice for both organisations and employees are not sufficiently clear. This study examines the work-related experiences and attitudes of trade union members WFH in Malta during the first two years of the pandemic and compares them to those of workers not WFH. Data was collected through a mixed-method approach comprising focus groups (11 participants), a survey (340 participants) and interviews (15 participants). The pandemic appears to have affected less the careers of participants WFH than those of their peers. Participants were generally satisfied with their preparedness and productivity when WFH and experienced better work-related attitudes than those not WFH. But since the pandemic started, significant minorities of participants WFH felt lower levels of happiness and higher stress levels and experienced a deterioration in their physical and/or mental health. Participants experienced differential access to WFH according to their demographics and managerial attitudes. This study recommends trade unions to promote blended work whenever possible, as this system was not only favoured by participants WFH but also appeared to carry considerable benefits for both workers and organisations. Keywords: working from home; working conditions; attitudes; trade unions; COVID-19; pandemic; careers; access; health; wellbeing 1. Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in widespread changes in work organisation, the most visible of which was the expansion of working from home (WFH) arrangements, which significantly increased their importance for work organisation [1,2]. It has been argued that the pandemic eroded employers’ negative attitudes, which had been blocking the growth of WFH [3]. Indeed, while “before the pandemic, many employers were hesitant to offer their employees the option of working from home ... [t]he measure encountered a widespread acceptance and it is likely that the demand for work from home as a flexible work arrangement will persist also after the pandemic has ended” [4] (p. 1). This attitude change has been influenced by the performance gains that many companies accrued with the transition to WFH [5]. Governments have also facilitated the transition to WFH in various ways. WFH resulted in drastic changes in the way work is structured. The implications of these changes for enterprises and for the occupational health and safety of workers are not sufficiently clear. Besides, the benefits of WFH “may not be distributed equally throughout the workforce” [5] (p. 1). Not only do different groups of workers have varying access to WFH, but they also have different experiences when WFH. In view of this, it has rightly been argued that this period of great change provides “an opportunity for renewed discussion about the way we work” [6] (p. 196). This study focuses on how the work-related experiences of a specific group of workers, namely trade union members WFH in Malta, developed during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Their working conditions, attitudes and perspectives are examined Sustainability 2023, 15, 1953. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15031953 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability