Most employees have grown accustomed to the benefits that working from home has provided. It’s no secret that COVID-19 has changed how we do things in our personal lives and in our professional lives. However, with increased safety efforts and the overall effects of the pandemic becoming part of our daily lives, employees are beginning to start the conversation Americans have been dreading for the past two years. Is it time to go back to work and no longer work from home?
What Are People Saying?
One of the reasons that your employer may no longer want you to work from home is due to a recent study’s findings that nine out of ten workers want flexibility on when and how they work. There’s no doubt that organizational culture has improved because of the pandemic. Almost every other person you see in the Starbucks drive-through at two o’clock on a Monday is between at-home Zoom calls and projects that they are working on with coworkers in other cities and sometimes even states. Companies like Apple and Google are working on designing hybrid return-to-work options for their employees, but experts are warning that the return-to-work will be difficult.
Employer Considerations
Employers are typically responsible for what happens to their employees while working onsite. On its face, this notion feels obvious. However, employers realize that forcing employees back to work comes with greater responsibility. Mandating the end of the work-from-home lifestyle means many employees will return to the workplace with resentments and discomforts. Companies are being faced with the realization that things will look very different when their staff clocks hours in an environment they can no longer control. Not only does this cause readjustment backlash, but it also puts employers in a position to consider the effects of these potential future mandates.
Building owners and managers, office building employees, and building operation specialists can take specific steps to create a safe and healthy workplace for their workers and clients. The CDC recommends the following:
- Creative a COVID-19 free workplace health and safety plan
- Before resuming business operations, check the building to see if it’s ready for occupancy.
- Identify where and how workers might be exposed to COVID-19 at work by conducting a thorough hazard assessment of the workplace.
Security In the Workplace
Additionally, employers will need to provide security for employees’ workspaces. This goes for both work-from-home employees and individuals who return to work. Protecting every in-office employee is nearly impossible, and safely and appropriately implementing security for at-home employees often comes close to crossing the line towards an invasion of privacy. Business owners must consider their employees’ rights and values to both safety and privacy as commuters thicken and waves of workers return to the office.
Final Thoughts
Whether we like it or not, companies are preparing to bring employees back to the workplace and reopen offices in the coming months. (Yes, many employers will no longer allow you to work from home!) Therefore, it’s so important that businesses everywhere have a handle on their site’s COVID-19 protocol and security approach. BPS Security is leading the industry standard when it comes to corporate security. Our team of experienced professionals provides security guard coverage and general protection.
Remember, even security guards have to make the return to work. Thankfully, at BPS, we know how to hire highly trained and prepared personnel to assist with every return-to-work security you can think of. We can have security guards onsite with as little as 24-hour lead time. We are passionate about protecting you and your employees from avoidable harm while on the job. Together, we can make the end of the work-from-home era transition as successful and as easy as possible!