An Unsettled Workforce BY RICHARD D. ALANIZ
T
he Coronavirus pandemic has turned our world upside down. Businesses have been shuttered and many jobs lost permanently. A resurgence of COVID-19 infections in several parts of the country largely halted some reopening efforts. In addition, with a new school year beginning, parents of school-age children are dealing with the dilemma of in-person versus online classes. With infection numbers beginning to trend downward, we may soon be seeing light at the end of the tunnel, but there will surely be lingering effects when this pandemic ends. The effects of Coronavirus have been felt particularly acutely in the workplace. Employees in “essential” industries who kept working, as well as those gradually returning to the workplace, have been confronted with a radically altered environment with pre-work temperature checks and other screenings, social distancing protocols, hand washing and sanitation protocols, and even COVID-19 testing. Many employers continue to have their entire focus on trying to ensure that their businesses and workplaces are safe from potential exposure to Coronavirus. Little time has remained to attend to the routine employee concerns that consistently arise in the workplace. Perhaps more significant has been the lack of attention to the unique employee pressures created by the pandemic. Employees experience an understandable anxiety created by being in unavoidable proximity to others for hours each workday. The concern is not only for themselves, but also for their loved ones at home.
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NJ Contractor • NJ PHCC
Reports of employee walkouts and workplace demonstra tions over actual or perceived employer failure to implement adequate safeguards have been common. In some cases, employees have filed lawsuits alleging such claims as failure to provide adequate PPE, failure to enforce social distancing and other CDC-recommended protocols, and failure to inform employees of a coworker’s positive test result. Some employees have refused to return to work from layoff due to fear of possible infection. Workplace safety concerns have spread notwithstanding employer efforts to implement and follow all CDC/OSHA guidance and prevention measures. Personal safety in the workplace had rarely been the primary concern for most employees. That is no longer be the case as a result of COVID-19. The pandemic-created anxiety is almost certain to impact productivity, quality of work, and employees’ well-being. Another effect of the pandemic on almost everyone, but especially on employees is a genuine uncertainty about their economic security. Mere months ago anyone who wanted a job could find one. Unemployment was at record lows. Wages were rising. This changed almost overnight. The federal enhancement to unemployment benefits has eased some financial pressures temporarily, but a return to a booming economy remains the only true solution. However, speculation of even more, permanent business closures and layoffs result in even greater uncertainty. COVID-19 related fears and anxieties will very likely confront both employers and employees for the foreseeable future.
