TRANSFORMING TEAMS

Reimagining your workplace: Hybrid work

Oin the current COVID world with the relaxing of COVID restrictions across the country requires considering what your future workplace will look like. According to a survey conducted by orrester Research, while only of companies offered remote work options prior to the pandemic, going forward more than plan to offer fully remote or hybrid work arrangements.

An equally important factor in the structuring of the workplace will be how employees want to work. According to a FlexJobs survey, 96% of employees would like some form of remote work arrangement. The primary reasons for their desire to remain remote are their continued concern about COVID-19 safety as well as their concern with having less fle ibility and less work-life balance. econdary reasons employees want to keep a remote work arrangement are due to the cost savings and their not having to commute. In fact, remaining remote is so important that of surveyed employees are willing to take a pay cut to continue their arrangement and 58% are saying they would look for another job if they cannot continue with some sort of remote work arrangement.

What does this mean? It means that, while you may be uncertain about the need to offer some remote work arrangement, not offering something may result in valuable employees leaving you in a job market which is very employee-friendly. And who are the companies finding candidates to accept their positions he ones who are offering remote work.

While weighing options for your workplace, consider some of these thoughts:

COVID is not gone yet. With a large unvaccinated population and the once-again increasing percentage of COVID cases due to the Delta variant, no one should act like everything is “back to normal.” As long as there is a chance someone can contract COVID-19, employers must take actions to prioritize the health and safety of their employees. his may mean offering reasonable accommodation to those who are at high-risk or who legitimately cannot get the COVID vaccine. If an employee is still staying isolated in fear of contracting ID, then offering a remote work arrangement may be necessary. But if they are eating in restaurants, going to the movies or sporting events, and traveling on vacation, you have more of an argument to require some in-office work.

Changes to policies and work arrangements can be

temporary or become regular practice. As with any policy or practice (except employment-at-will), employers should always reserve the right to modify or rescind an agreed-to arrangement based on company needs. This allows employers to try a new arrangement while not being committed to it if circumstances such as poor performance, lower ID rates, need for more in-office man power, or financial impacts change in the future.

Most employees do not expect a fully-remote schedule but would prefer a hybrid arrangement to always work-

ing in-office. By having some days each week that they do not need to commute or face the disruptions in the office, employees can balance their face-to-face needs while having time at home to concentrate on their productivity.

If you cannot have a fully-remote workforce, look into

hybrid options. This could be having employees stagger

their workweek with certain days in the office with the rest at home. Most companies have certain positions that cannot work remotely but that does not mean you should not try to offer a partially-remote option for those positions that can.

Avoid falling into the “presenteeism” trap of valuing the work of employees in the office more than the work

of those who are remote. Instead, create realistic performance expectations for every employee regardless of where they work and hold each employee accountable. Someone being in the office does not mean they are working harder or more effectively than someone who is remote. ou can learn more about presenteeism in our video found here.

Focus on availability for remote employees as you

would attendance for in-office employees. Require remote employees to be available during certain days and times so they can be reached by clients and co-workers. But also allow some freedom when possible as long as their work is being done. If they are not available and/or are not producing, talk to them about their failure to meet expectations and then offer options such as increasing their in-office time or reassessing how their tasks are done.

Create effective communication methods for all

employees. Employees should be connected with their managers and co-workers so create requirements for scheduled and impromptu communication using phone and video calls, not just email. Most remote employees do not need to talk to their manager more than a couple of times a week but, since each employee is incentivi ed differently, you may need to create different plans to interact with each one.

Establish policies to define expectations and require-

ments. Your policies should cover the issue, use, and return of company computers and laptops, the protection of company and client information, network security, expense

Q. I received a call asking for a verification of employment for one of my employees. I thought everything was good based on recent conversations, but now I’m not sure what is going on. Can I ask them if they are job hunting?

A. Legally, yes, you can ask since you learned about the job search through a legitimate source. However, you should not if you learn of it through an unreliable method such as the rumor mill, by searching an employee’s social media page, or by finding the employee’s resume on a job site. The more important question is SHOULD you ask and if so, HOW.

If this is a valuable employee, then you may want to have a conversation explaining that you received the employment verification request and were wondering if they are searching for a new job. If they are, you can ask why and see if you can offer some reason for them to stay. You may not be able to meet their demands, but it could help ease the transition out when they do leave.

If you are not going to be sad to see the employee leave, perhaps you stay quiet and hope they get the job. Their resigning should alleviate your unemployment burden as well as a wrongful termination charge.

I would also think twice about asking certain employees, however. It may be best to not mention it to an employee who is angry or vindictive or who would burn the place down on their way out. Even if they are valuable, you may be making the situation worse for yourself. So instead of confronting them, you may want to bide your time and quietly start looking for their replacement. reimbursement, time-tracking for non-exempt employees, and ergonomic work areas to reduce Workers’ Comp claims.

If you are hesitant, consider asking those who move

to remote work to offer a concession. Employees who value remote work may be willing to take a reduction in pay, benefits, or perks. hile not effective in a fully remote workplace, it may help balance morale in a company where some employees must work in the office.

Set different in-office policies for vaccinated and

unvaccinated employees. Follow the guidelines of the CDC, OSHA, and most states by allowing vaccinated employees to forego masks and social distancing while still requiring it of the unvaccinated. Require employees to prove they are vaccinated or else require them to follow the policies for the unvaccinated. Please note: This is not requiring anyone to get vaccinated or submit proof of vaccination but rather offering a mask-less option for those who can prove they are vaccinated. veryone had to be fle ible when everything shut down. he best approach going forward is to remain fle ible since COVID-19 is still impacting employees in various ways, some of which are unexpected and cannot be planned for. Understand if a family need arises which requires more working from home as that accommodation is probably better than having to find a new employee.

Paige McAllister, SPHR Affinity HR Group contact@affinityhrgroup.com