How to Safely Return Back to Work During the Coronavirus Pandemic
Employers and employees may both take precautions to protect their health.
As companies reopen and workers are expected to return back to work, employers and managers should prioritise the safety of their employees and those with whom they engage. While COVID-19 is expected to continue to impact individuals for the foreseeable future, knowing how to return back to work safely is critical.
Employee Expectations Regarding Safely Returning to Work
While many workers have professions that enable them to work remotely from home, some have had to stay on-site throughout the epidemic. However, as vaccination rates rise, more businesses are preparing for a return back to work. According to a research conducted by the employment business LaSalle, the majority of companies anticipate their workers to return back to work by the autumn of 2021.
This excitement about returning back to work, however, is accompanied by a greater demand for safety and flexibility. According to a poll done by TELUS International, a worldwide customer experience and digital solutions provider, approximately 75% of respondents feel that a safe and clean workplace will be most vital to business culture post-COVID-19, closely followed by work-from-home flexibility at 65%.
Gallup’s research throughout 2020 confirms this employee perspective of flexibility, and it should be a crucial consideration as businesses plan how to safely return their employees to work. Prior to COVID-19, Gallup observed that weekly face contact with coworkers and management seemed to increase engagement and that the greatest engagement boost happens when employees spend 60% to 80% of their time working off-site.
Safely Return Back to Work
As companies continue to examine the effect of remote work and establish appropriate standards for their organisation, information regarding how to safely return back to work has been collected as the epidemic has progressed.
The most successful employers have thought about ways to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and its effects in their organisations. Employees will be able to believe that their culture and work environment are assisting them in returning back to work safely as a result of this.
This should contain things like:
- Implement social distance, limit congestion in shared places, and use masks to prevent and reduce transmission among personnel.
- Maintain healthy company operations by identifying all places and work duties that may be exposed to COVID-19 and implementing control measures to minimise or decrease such exposure.
- Maintain a healthy work environment by requiring temperature checks, informing workers to stay home if they are unwell, taking extra precautions with cleanliness, and scheduling shared use areas.
- Colleagues should be trained on best practices for keeping safe, working safely, and avoiding infecting other employees.
Preventing Employee Transmission
Employees expect employers to wear masks, maintain personal distance, and refrain from enabling congestion in common workspaces such as toilets, lunchrooms, and conference rooms.
According to a May 2020 poll conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), 86% of HR professionals needed or intended to require their workers to use personal protective equipment (PPE) such as face masks at work. And 80% intended to supply or pay for such PPE.
According to the report, 83% of organisations will restrict or ban meetings in communal places such as conference rooms, break rooms, lunchrooms, and lavatories. Many firms have also said that they would retain social distance policies, such as having fewer people in workplaces and not allowing employees to be within six feet of one another.
Maintaining a Healthy Workplace
According to the SHRM poll, 89% of employers require their workers to wash their hands or use hand sanitizer before entering work areas and going to/from breaks. In addition, 73% use onsite temperature-screening measures when their personnel arrive at work.
Many firms are implementing new processes to decrease the danger of viral transmission among workers. According to the poll, 77% of organisations were developing or contemplating introducing new “contactless” processes, while 68% were installing extra “touchless” features.
Providing Employees with Training and Information
Employers must educate and interact with their staff in addition to following the above-mentioned safety practices. Employees must understand and support the steps their employers are taking to enable them to return back to work safely.
Employees must also comprehend the CDC’s guidelines, which include the following:
- Employees who return back to work must continue to safeguard themselves by taking preventative measures on a daily basis. When they return back to work, they should have the following materials on hand: a mask, tissues, and hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
- If an employee suspects they have COVID-19 or have been exposed to the virus, they should isolate themselves and remain at home for 14 days.
- Employees should be aware of their employer’s regulations on themes such as maintaining a personal distance of at least six feet from others, limiting most in-person meetings, avoiding confined locations when other employees are present, and conversing outdoors at a distance when the weather permits.
- Every employee is responsible for monitoring their own health and taking care to keep other workers safe from viral exposure.
In conclusion
While there are numerous procedures to implement and hurdles to overcome, such as providing workplace flexibility, employers that take the initiative and adhere to these crucial guidelines may assist guarantee that their workers can return back to work safely.
