More than a year ago, the coronavirus pandemic turned the workplace upside down. Although safety restrictions are slowly easing in most areas, the effects of the pandemic are still present in communities, homes, and businesses.
The pandemic was particularly hard for startups and small businesses in terms of rent, customer flow, revenue. Some turn to search engines and search for ‘business litigation attorney near me‘ for legal representation when faced with bankruptcy, landlord/tenant litigation, and selling of personal property or business.
Employee relations and labor policies also became a hot topic on media. While transitioning to remote work lessened the economic blow on most businesses, many employees suffered from the sudden shift to new work policies. These include unexpected layoffs, poor leave and salary policies, lack of company support, strict work schedules, and other factors associated with deteriorating labor conditions.
During the early months of the pandemic, employees, including those in the essential industries, staged extensive walkouts and public protests, demanding their rights and protection. While 2020 has been a tough year for everyone, we’ll look back on workplace lessons during the pandemic and how employers can maintain employee trust in times of crisis.
Employee wellness
In the past years, the corporate world has been in a long-standing debate on the right measures to ensure a healthy work-life balance for their staff. Workplace burnout is particularly high, especially in corporate sectors where employees have to take multiple responsibilities and render overtime.
Many assume that adopting the work-from-home model will reduce cases of work-related stress. After all, working in the comfort of your home is a great idea, without the boss and nosy coworkers to annoy you.
Contrary to what we believe, remote working made everything worse for employees. According to the global employment website Monster, 59% or more than half of remote employees have less time for themselves during the pandemic, while 69% have burnout symptoms.
The pandemic raises the concern that employers and business leaders should invest and focus more on employees’ mental well-being. In these tough times, maintaining a healthy work environment should be everyone’s top priority to mitigate the harmful consequences of mental health concerns.
Employers can start an online wellness program by supporting non-work-related activities, such as online bingo, group workouts, and fun-filled breaks. This also includes creating a supportive onboarding experience to help new employees adjust to the new work environment.
Workplace communication
To ensure smooth-flowing remote work processes, companies should maintain an open flow of communication. While technology tools offer a range of features to facilitate online communication and work collaboration, communicating with employees was still a huge challenge.
From weak Internet connection, poor digital literacy, and differences in work schedules, these things further complicate the communication flow in the company. In normal circumstances, employees can easily drop by at their coworker’s desks and visit other departments if they need something. Today, people have to consider a lot of factors before gathering everyone for an online meeting.
Communication is critical in any business, as it helps employees feel connected with their jobs, coworkers, and employers. Without them, employees will have a hard time accomplishing a task or coordinating big projects.
Even if the company doesn’t require constant meetings on communication platforms, it is important to maintain regular communication with all employees. People are already struggling to cope with the current situation, and it would help if their employers will reach out and check on them.
Employers should have a weekly or monthly habit to talk to their employees to see how they’re getting on. This approach will not only enhance their relationship with their teams but will also encourage employees to be more productive.
Work flexibility
Prior to the pandemic, many of us assume that flexible working means working at home. But as companies began adopting remote work arrangements, employees are still struggling when setting the boundary between work and personal life.
Remote working during a pandemic put more pressure on employees by working beyond their usual work hours. If this goes on, employees are likely to experience burnout because of poor work management practices.
Besides remote work, employers should allow flexibility in work hours so employees can easily incorporate their jobs into their personal lives in the most manageable ways.
As the global pandemic forced companies to make significant changes in the workplace, employees have to deal with its consequences, causing a complete disruption to the workforce. This shows that the corporate world should learn from their mistakes, especially when setting standard procedures in protecting the health and wellbeing of their workers during difficult situations.
