💼 Loneliness at work
In brief
You can feel lonely even in the middle of working life: when working from home permanently without informal exchange, in frequently changing teams, in shift work outside usual social hours or when there are conflicts in the team. Unlike private loneliness, there is also an occupational health and safety side here: employers must take mental strain at work into account as part of the risk assessment (Gefährdungsbeurteilung).
Step by step
- Assess your own situationIs informal exchange missing when working from home, is there tension in the team, or is it down to unfavourable working hours such as shift work?
- Seek a conversation with your manager or works councilWork-related isolation can often be eased by fixed team meetings, mentoring or more flexible office days – raising it with your manager, HR department or works council (Betriebsrat) is the first step.
- Involve workplace health managementMany employers offer counselling or services on mental health as part of workplace health management, often usable anonymously.
- If distress persists: workplace reintegration management (BEM)After a longer period of incapacity for work, employees are entitled to a BEM procedure, in which social isolation at work can also be addressed.
- Use external counsellingIf in-house contact points are missing or insufficient, external advice centres or your GP practice can help.
Deadlines
- The risk assessment of mental strain is required by law but is not implemented equally consistently in every workplace; employees can turn to the works council or the occupational safety specialist about this.
- A BEM procedure is voluntary for employees; declining it has no disadvantages under employment law.
- Reliable nationwide figures specifically on "loneliness at work" (as distinct from general stress or exhaustion) are rare; statements on this are deliberately worded cautiously here and without invented percentages.
- Permanent working from home without any personal contact with colleagues is named in the occupational psychology literature as a possible risk factor, but it is not automatic – a lot depends on individual arrangements and company culture.
In depth · legal basis, figures and practice – for advisers and professionals
Occupational health and safety legal basis
§ 5 Arbeitsschutzgesetz (ArbSchG) obliges employers to identify and take into account mental strain at work as part of the risk assessment. Social isolation, for example through a lack of exchange in permanent home working or through stressful team constellations, can be part of this assessment; according to the available information, there is no explicit nationally uniform requirement on how to measure "loneliness at work" in concrete terms – implementation is at the employers' discretion, often supported by the statutory accident insurance institutions (Berufsgenossenschaften and Unfallkassen).
Workplace reintegration management
Under § 167 Abs. 2 SGB IX, the employer must offer a BEM procedure to employees who have been unable to work for more than six weeks within one year, continuously or repeatedly, in order to clarify together how to overcome the incapacity for work and prevent further absences. Participation is voluntary.
State of research
Occupational psychology research discusses working from home, frequent staff turnover and shift work outside socially usual hours as possible risk factors for work-related loneliness, but warns against sweeping statements, as the effect depends strongly on individual arrangements, company culture and personal preference. A figure specifically representative for Germany on the prevalence of loneliness at work was not available in a reliable form as of this page.
A question about your situation that this page does not answer? Write to us or use the contact form – we will tell you which office is responsible and what to bring. Free of charge, without individual legal advice.