As businesses have increasingly had employees returning to their workplaces after the COVID-19 pandemic, a focus for many has been improving workplace safety to make the office a more comfortable place for people who have grown used to working from the comfort of their own homes. Workers should feel like they are safe from contracting the virus in their workplace.
Companies must balance a variety of factors when rethinking workplace safety in the COVID-19 era, including the wellbeing of their employees, the culture of their organization and how their workspace layout contributes to safety and comfort.
Here are a few considerations and practices to implement to improve employee safety in the workplace.
General safety protocols
Businesses should clarify all safety protocols in areas such as lobbies, security checkpoints, reception areas, food and beverage areas and other common areas around the building. They should also consider the configuration of work areas to allow for appropriate boundaries and distances in between workers in the facility.
Remote work
Businesses should embrace remote work when possible. Prioritize which roles must be on-site, and determine which roles are optimal for remote work. Businesses that can limit the number of people working on-site can significantly reduce the risk of infection and also improve employee satisfaction, as some people simply function better in a remote environment.
Interaction and collaboration
When possible, try to put employees into groups or teams, and assign group working spaces to those teams to keep interaction and collaboration within bubbles. Offer both physical and virtual solutions for interaction as much as possible—it’s still important that people are able to communicate and collaborate with each other, even in the COVID-19 era. Invest in technology to keep remote workers connected.
Empower employees
Your employees should feel empowered to take charge of their own safety as well. Provide them with supplies so they can clean their own spaces, and give them room to personalize their spaces so they take more ownership over them and feel more comfortable working in them. Offer opportunities to your employees to choose their level of working in person versus remote, and be more flexible, particularly in dense departments. For those workers who are in the building, have plenty of spaces they can choose to use to safely get their tasks done.
Invest in technology
Adopt platforms for both internal and external communication that make it easy for people to stay in touch whether they are remote or in person. Make sure everyone knows how to clean touchscreens (their own and ones that are communal), and establish protocols for communication between on-site and off-site workers. Make sure all tech is safeguarded with firewalls and digital safety functionality.
Want to learn more about some of the steps you can take to ensure employee safety in the workplace in the time of COVID-19? Get in touch with the team at John G. Moser & Son, Inc., and we can discuss some ideas for the configuration of your office spaces. We look forward to learning more about your needs!