Employee Wellness: How Are You, Really?
March 18, 2021 Business, General, Human Resources, News, Social, Technology, Uncategorized 1 comment

Employee Wellness: How Are You, Really?

Samantha Badr

 

Three months into 2021 and employees are still feeling the mental and physical effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Are you feeling burnt out? Tired of your “co-workers” at home? Any physical or mental distress? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then you are a part of the majority. Back in 2020, employers and employees alike were concerned with the transition from office to home office – now, employees are more concerned with the aftermath of extended periods of isolation and lack of work-life balance.

A survey conducted in May and June of 2020 by the insurance company Chubb, found that 41% of Americans have had new or increased back, neck, or shoulder pain since they started working from home. In another survey conducted in June of 2020 by digital health company Hinge Health, it was found that 45% of workers reported back and joint pain – while 71% claim their pain was new or had worsened. These numbers don’t sound surprising considering that a lot of employees were forced to create office spaces in their homes. Working from bed in pajamas might have seemed fun at first, but employees are finding that they are straining their backs and necks more than ever before. The burden should not be placed on the employees to find new ways to complete their daily work tasks, especially if nobody could predict that this would be the reality for over a year.

How are employers contributing to their employees when the separation of work and home life is blurred? I recently spoke to an essential worker who informed me that at the beginning of COVID-19, employers were providing services to all hospital staff. This included a free meal or spaces set up for 15-minute massages to compensate for the lack of necessary medical supplies. Nowadays, medical personnel receives nothing of the sort – how nice. In another interview with an HR professional working in the office, all she received over the last year was a little basket with some assorted snacks. Come on, employers. We have to do better than this.

With vaccination sites on the rise, employers might start to transition employees into the office again – but what if employees are too scared to return? Unfortunately, employees won’t have a legally defensible excuse for refusing to go back to the office. Employers might have to take disciplinary actions or even terminate employees. It’s essential that employers consider all the reasons an employee might refuse to return to the office before taking any action. Employers should consider if any of their staff has an underlying medical condition that makes them more susceptible to contracting the virus or if the organization is taking all necessary safety precautions to prevent the spread. For some organizations, remote work remains a reasonable accommodation option for certain positions. However, some employees who have a legitimate high-risk condition could be granted a leave of absence if remote work is not an option. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has taken the position that leave of absence should be the second-to-last resort, with termination as the last resort. If the issues cannot be resolved, the Biden Administration recently said that laid-off individuals who turn down work because of COVID-19 safety concerns can be eligible for unemployment benefits.

For the employees feeling the burn out of working from home (WFH), there are ways to make your home/work life a happy and productive one. Even if your conference call isn’t until the afternoon, wake up early anyway. Being too lax at home can negatively alter your sleep schedule and could lead to burnout if you are working past the regular 9-5 shift. Another way to feel better while WFH, is to get dressed for the day when you wake up. Taking a shower, brushing your hair, or even putting shoes on could positively impact how much work you get done. Even though we love our pajamas and slippers, it’s hard to separate work from home if employees spend their days in their robes and fuzzy socks. It’s also important to designate a workspace. Beds and couches are not ideal places to be productive during the workday – opt for the kitchen table with a nice supportive chair, instead. Lastly, make time for breaks. Make sure you step away from the computer and go get some fresh air or a drink of water. Set a time to “clock-out” and stick to it.

If you’re working at the office, make sure that your organization is up to date on all safety precautions. EEOC policies mandate that employers ensure their employees are wearing their masks and remain socially distanced. Speak out to the HR department or your manager if you feel that your workspace is not safe. If you’re WFH, try and make the best of it. Start some new practices to separate your work and home life as much as possible. Either way, I wish you all the best, and hopefully, life can resume to some form of normalcy in the near future.

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All You Need to Know About WFH
February 1, 2021 Business, General, Human Resources, News, Social, Technology, Uncategorized 1 comment

All You Need to Know About WFH

Samantha Badr

 

Welcome back to another blog! In this installment of all things HR, I will be talking about the biggest drama of 2021 – working from home (WFH) versus working in the office.

In a time where it seems that everyone is WFH, it’s hard to picture life prior to the pandemic. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2018, only 14% of employees worked from home five days a week. Two short years later, that number tripled. These days employees are able to work a full shift in their pajamas, but how long can this luxury last?

An employee survey conducted by leadership and communications consultancy, The Grossman Group, showed that 48% of employees working from home say they’d like to keep it that way. The consensus among family and friends is that WFH was the only positive of last year, further verifying these survey results. If staying at home wasn’t incentive enough, employees can save between $2,500 and $4,000 on travel expenses if they WFH. However, WFH is not for everyone. For some employees, it makes their job a bit harder. Collaborative projects leave employees relying heavily on technology to keep in touch with their co-workers. While some find that they can work better at home, it’s a distraction for others. If employees are too “laissez-faire” during the workday – it can leave them scrambling to finish their tasks at night, eliminating the barrier between work and home life.

Though the long-term effects of WFH are unknown, some employers are choosing to look on the bright side. In an interview with CNBC, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that Facebook expects “up to half of their 48,000 employees to work remotely within five to ten years”. Facebook conducted an employee survey and found that many workers indicated an interest in WFH, and Zuckerberg saw the potential benefits of letting employees shift away from their offices. Even if employers are undecided on WFH, shifting to remote work can cut down on real estate costs. A typical employer can save about $11,000 a year for every person who works remotely even half of the time, according to Global Workplace Analytics. If companies can save money by downsizing their offices, they might begin to encourage employees to WFH.

Still, some employers do not agree with keeping WFH permanent. They fear that collaboration between employees suffers without face-to-face communication. Since WFH became a reality, company culture has shifted, and many companies had to find new ways to retain their employees. Another reason some employers do not back WFH is a lack of trust in their staff to complete tasks without supervision. A manager at a customer service agency might find that supervising their employees during the workday ensures they answer more phone calls.

The “Working from Home versus Working in the Office” debate has sparked discussions among employers and employees across the board. I recently had a conversation with two people that had differing opinions on WFH. I interviewed an HR professional, who said that the employees at her organization wanted to WFH, while their employer disagreed. The employees voiced their opinion to their manager, ensuring higher productivity and a safer environment if they WFH for the time being. However, their employer continues to mandate that they come into the office, even when corporate employees remain at home – leaving the rest of the staff very dissatisfied with management.

In another interview, the employees had the opposite viewpoint. They wanted to return to the office, but their boss wants them to WFH. This person had a job that required they have access to hundreds of classified documents. Unfortunately, these documents are in an archive in the main office. The employees are then forced to commute an hour just to obtain the documents they need. When they voiced their concerns to their employer, she stressed that their safety was her number one priority. Even though the staff is made up of only ten employees that have separate offices, their employer still didn’t budge.

Employers should be encouraged to let their employees find where they work best, whether it’s at the office or at home. Surveys say that employee satisfaction has increased or stayed the same since the pandemic started, so should employees have the choice to WFH? Even when offices fully re-open, a lot of employees might start asking to WFH or have partial remote work. If employers start mandating workers to come to the office, employees who are at high risk of contracting the virus may reach out to lawyers to fight their case. Regardless of the outcome – will organizations thrive, or suffer in the long run? Only time can tell.

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