Susan Morgan Bailey
SVP, Culture & Inclusion Consulting Practice Leader
Loneliness and social isolation affect both employees and employers, but remote office workers often feel the impact more deeply. Supporting your remote office workers’ mental health and overall well-being can contribute to a more productive workforce.
According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace report, 25% of remote office workers experience loneliness daily—compared to 16% of those working fully onsite.
As found in a 2024 Ringover survey, remote office workers feel lonely 98% more often than their onsite colleagues and 179% more than employees in hybrid roles.
A USA Today poll sheds light on why:
- 34% felt isolated from their team
- 25% had fewer opportunities to learn from colleagues
- 22% struggled to unplug from work
- 11% felt more depressed
Loneliness can affect your company’s productivity, focus, engagement, and job satisfaction. Cigna’s Loneliness in America 2025 study found that employees who feel lonely are twice as likely to consider quitting. Additionally, 12% of those experiencing loneliness believe their work quality suffers.
This sense of isolation is also linked to physical health and mental health issues that may increase your health plan costs, according to an article by Cleveland Clinic.
Feeling lonely is connected to a range of physical health and mental health concerns, including:
- High blood pressure
- Colds and flu
- Cardiovascular disease
- Stroke
- Type 2 diabetes
- Dementia
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Suicide and self-harm
- Premature death
Loneliness can raise levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which may affect memory and thinking, weaken the immune system, and increase the risk of inflammation, heart disease, and other vascular problems.
Loneliness is a lack of meaningful connections.
Loneliness isn’t just about being alone. You can feel lonely even when surrounded by many people. It happens when you don’t have meaningful connections—something remote office workers often experience due to fewer opportunities to connect.
Researchers identify three types of loneliness:
- Social loneliness: lacking meaningful relationships
- Emotional loneliness: feeling disconnected from someone close or important
- Cultural loneliness: feeling unrecognized or undervalued for who you are
Each type can affect remote office workers differently.
Building connections to support well-being in a remote world
You can support the well-being of your remote office workers by helping them build and maintain connections through:
- Recognizing and addressing loneliness
- Building a supportive workplace culture
- Communicating regularly and openly
- Encouraging social interactions
- Offering learning and growth opportunities
- Involving remote office workers in team conversations and decisions
- Providing project management tools and regular check-ins
- Prioritizing employee well-being
Talk to Marsh McLennan Agency about your next steps.
At Marsh McLennan Agency (MMA), we partner with organizations to provide guidance and resources that can support efforts to improve workplace culture and address loneliness among remote office workers. Contact your MMA representative today to learn how we can support your team’s mental health and well-being.
If you’re concerned about how loneliness might be affecting your employees’ well-being, download our tip sheet for practical ideas to help them feel more connected.
