Returning to the Workplace: What Your Organization Needs to Know
The light at the end of the tunnel has been getting brighter as COVID vaccines roll out and the economy appears to be starting to stabilize. HR and business leaders still have plenty on their plates managing the ongoing disruptions of the pandemic, but now is the time to strategize for a post-pandemic world. If that includes reopening your office after COVID-19, there are several factors employers need to consider today to ensure business success tomorrow.
Top Tips for Reopening Your Workplace
1. Compliance
As employers strategize for their office reopening after COVID-19, one of the first steps should be to become familiar with all local, state, and federal guidelines that could impact the worksite. Building capacity, requirements for masks and social distancing, and more all vary among municipalities, and compliance with local regulations is key to avoiding further disruption once your site reopens.
2. Transparency
One of the things that employees have craved most in the last year is information—about everything from long-term company plans to the pandemic’s potential impacts on staffing levels—and that will likely remain once workers return to an in-person experience. Communicate clearly and frequently about changes that have been made to the facility, new policies, and expectations for the new, post-pandemic workplace.
3. Sanitation
Before reopening the office, employers should carry out a full, deep cleaning of the worksite. A cleaning service can lead that effort, scrubbing the space from top to bottom, including ventilation systems. Such efforts should also be clearly communicated to employees, so they are confident in the employer’s strategy for protecting their health.
4. Safety
While preparing the office for workers is important, that commitment to their safety needs continues after employees return. Hand sanitizer should be placed throughout, along with masks for employees’ use. Signage should also clearly document when certain higher-traffic areas are sanitized.
5. Wellness
The mental health strain the pandemic has inflicted upon employees will continue even after the worst of the pandemic subsides. Returning to the office provides a good opportunity for the employer to demonstrate their support for employees’ overall health and well-being through offerings like on-site counseling. Continued flexibility is another way for business leaders to show employees that they can bring their whole selves to work, no matter where that is.
As with all big disruptive change, there are opportunities and threats. It’s going to take extra effort on the part of all levels of employees, HR, and other management personnel to keep the corporate culture stable, and employees happy, engaged, and safe. A pro-active, positive communication system to address all employee concerns will make the whole process smoother.
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