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Employers rebuild in a post-coronavirus workplace Workers seek a sense of normalcy returning to the office and working from home. By Staff Report
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eopening the economy after a deadly global pandemic isn’t as simple as flipping a switch. Not only must employers consider the health concerns of employees, they also must think about clients and customers. If people don’t feel comfortable entering a restaurant, hotel or store, then these businesses will struggle. The COVID-19 pandemic that initiated strict government regulations forced many employers to rethink the most basic principles of their business models. The terms “essential workers” and “social distancing” became part of the daily lexicon and prompted retailers to literally draw up new plans for their stores. And for many of those still employed, work from home became the norm rather than the exception. As the coronavirus curve flattens, companies face the challenge of reintroducing employees to the workplace. An immediate issue is convincing employees that they are returning to a safe and healthy workplace, said Kara Govro, senior legal analyst at ThinkHR and Mammoth HR.
“EMPLOYERS ALSO DISCOVERED THAT THEY HAVE EMPLOYEES WHO DO MUCH BETTER AT HOME.” — KARA GOVRO “Physical changes will include things like spacing out desks or customer seating, changing the air conditioning system, providing cleaning products and implementing regimented cleaning protocols,” Govro said. “But there will also be changes that impact employees (and employers) emotionally and financially.” Summer 2020
Gossiping around the water cooler workplace. Supervisors discovered that isn’t the same when you have to be six employees who were out of sight can feet apart, Govro pointed out, adding be as productive if not more so than if that many employees also will be asked they were in the office. to pick up job duties that belonged to Working from home doesn’t have to colleagues who have been laid off. be a free-for-all, Govro said. Employ“Things are going to feel different ers can still have high expectations of and mostly not in a good way,” Govro employees, even when they can’t hear said. “Following the immediate chal- them clacking away at their keyboard. lenge of providing a safe environment, “Working from home will definiteemployers will have to find ways to ly become more acceptable, largely improve morale. I think being compas- because employers have had it provsionate and communicating gratitude en to them — albeit against their will regularly even if employees are just do- — that it can work,” Govro said. “I ing their job is a good start.” think many employers assumed that It’s also clear that many of those someone working from home must employees who have telecommuted be goofing off for a majority of the will remain doing so long after the pan- day, and they’d have no way to keep demic subsides. A Brookings Institute track of them or verify that they were report in April suggested that about actually doing work.” half of employed adults were working Employers also discovered that they from home, and consulting company have employees who do much better at Global Workplace Analytics estimates home, she said. that when the pandemic is over, 30 “The open office floor plan that has percent of the entire workforce will be had workplaces in its death grip for deremote at least a couple of days a week. cades has been shown time and again Companies previously hesitant to to reduce productivity and cause time implement flex work but forced to rap- loss to distraction,” Govro said. “Emidly adopt a work-from-home policies ployees who need quiet to focus may because of the pandemic learned about be significantly more productive and their workers’ productivity outside the happier in their own homes.” 11
