Back To The Office: How To Keep Anxious Workers Safe And Happy After Coronavirus How To Keep Office Safe From Covid 19

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Corporations have tentatively started to devise phased return-to-work schemes for roles that were ... [+] mostly desk-based before coronavirus

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Having cracked the logistical challenge of enabling entire workforces to do their jobs from the kitchen table, employers now face a brand new, and potentially far more complex one: how to get people safely back to the office in the aftermath of a deadly pandemic.

With infection rates in many countries slowing, or at least plateauing, corporations have in the past weeks tentatively started to devise phased return-to-work schemes for roles that up until earlier this year had been predominantly office-based. 

On Monday, U.K. estate agents re-opened while across parts of the U.S., barbers, gyms and even cinemas are welcoming customers. In Manhattan, an epicentre of infection, investment banks are floating plans for getting workers . Elevators are proving a particular pain point. 

But in order for any business to successfully resume an operating model that relies on at least some of its staff working physically side by side, those workers must be willing, able and comfortable leaving lockdown and enduring the company of people beyond their immediate households. And that shouldn't be underestimated.

Some 70% of Americans said that something would prevent them from returning to the office or work site if their employer asked them to do so now. More than half of the respondents said they were fearful of getting sick, while others said they were reluctant to use public transport to commute. Some said that caring duties would prevent them from leaving the home as long as schools and nurseries are out of session.

Bhushan Sethi, PwC’s global people and organization co-leader, says that during this time it’s paramount that any business understands its employees’ “needs, constraints and concerns”.

“Communicating the extent of [any new] safety and hygiene protocols will be essential in assuring employees they are safe in a post-Covid-19 workplace,” he says. 

“A key component of that education is raising awareness of the connection between tracing and each employee’s health — the importance of being able to pinpoint potential risk exposure precisely so they can take action quickly,” he says. “Embarking on this type of ongoing dialogue can help employers identify the best path forward to help protect people and productivity.”

Returning to a ‘New Not-Normal’?

Our reluctance to return to offices is not surprising. Health authorities have for weeks enforced rigorous rules around social distancing. Public campaigns and media outlets have aggressively spelled out the potentially grim consequences of human contact. Almost overnight we were forced to overhaul our daily routines, and just as we’ve started to adjust to new habits, some of us are being asked to revert to old ways - only with a hygiene-focused twist.

“Recognizing the psychological impact of returning to a 'new normal', which for many is an alien environment, is as important as addressing the logistical issues,” says Dr Shainaz Firfiray, associate professor of human resource management at Warwick Business School.

Echoing the findings from PwC, more than third of respondents to an Ipsos MORI poll conducted in the U.K. at the end of April said that they would be uncomfortable going to their place of work, and over 60% said they wouldn’t feel comfortable using public transport.

“There is clear unease at [some of the] consequences of the lockdown ending,” said Keiran Pedley, research director at the market research company. 

Firfiray also emphasized that for many, being able to return to a work environment outside of the home is wholly dependent on the reopening of schools and childcare facilities. “The ambiguity on these issues will cause obvious concerns.”

No Easy Solution 

Some employers have already made policy changes to accommodate their workforces after coronavirus and to support not just their staff’s physical but also mental wellbeing.

In a separate PwC survey conducted this month, 43% of chief financial officers said they plan to make remote work a permanent option for roles that allow it. that it will give all its employees the unconditional right to work from home after the pandemic subsides. 

But for others - in the hospitality, retail or manufacturing sector, for example - a future of remote working for all just isn't feasible, meaning that support will have to be more tailored, widespread and lasting.

Oil major BP has made Headspace, a guided meditation and mindfulness app, available to all employees globally, while for staff and their family members. 

“The new model for all employers should incorporate proactivity when it comes to mental health,” says Maryam Meddin, CEO of The Soke, a private clinic integrating mental health care, wellbeing, support and performance coaching.

Caring about your workforces’ mental health isn’t just the “right thing to do”, she says, but will also “positively impact the bottom line through fewer lost hours to illness, enhanced performance and, ultimately, less money poured into an insurance premium that may or may not serve the company's needs when the time comes to draw on it”.

Perhaps one of the most fundamental things an organization can do to make employees feel supported though, is to ensure them that they’re under no pressure to rush back if they don’t feel comfortable doing so.

“The default should be to continue to work from home for now,” says Peter Cheese, chief executive officer of The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development in the U.K.

“Employers should only be considering bringing people back into the workplace if they can meet the following conditions: is it essential, is it safe and is it mutually agreed with the workforce.”

If handled in the right way, Cheese says this crisis could even present an opportunity to support more flexible working in the future.

“How we use places of work and home working in blended ways that give people more choice, provide opportunities to extend the diversity of our workforces, and even to reduce overall stress and improve wellbeing,” he says. “These should be part of the longer term thinking now for every organization.”

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