Our Returning to Work Survey Results are in…!

Posted 4 years ago

Last week we conducted a survey to find out more about how our client’s organisations are returning or planning to return to work during or after COVID-19. We heard from roughly 245 OSH and HR professionals and got their thoughts on returning to work and an indication of what their organisations are doing to prepare for returning to work during COVID-19.

Here are some of our key findings…

Are you and your staff currently returning to work?

48% of people said that some of their employees are returning to the workplace and some are not. Only 13% said they are not returning to work.

Do you believe you can do your job safely in the current climate?

87% of people said that they thought they could safely do their job upon returning to work.

Which of the following topics do you consider the most important upon returning to work?

Infection Prevention & Control (79%), Mental Health and Wellbeing (69%) and Risk Assessments (56%) were the top 3 topics people considered most important when returning to work.

Did your organisation complete a risk assessment and/or COVID-19 policy before allowing staff to return to work?

75% said their organisation had completed a risk assessment/COVID-19 policy before staff returned to work.

Some also spoke about the extra preventative measures their organisations have put place since returning to work during the COVID-19 pandemic…

“Face masks and gloves, distance between learners and different methods of assessments.”

“Extra cleaning stations; extra general/deep cleaning; 1 person at each table in kitchen area; separate desks to ensure 2m apart; tape on floor with 2m spaces; we have a shared office so in discussions with property management to ensure safety when using lifts/etc”

“Yes, spacing out desks, having desks pointing in different directions, lots of extra cleaning sanitizing products available, limiting certain areas to only one person at a time.”

These clients also shared any tips that they had about returning to working and remaining safe…

“Having a positive mind frame really helps; washing hands often and not touching face; social distancing; having your own utensils and cup; extra disinfectant in washrooms for toilet seats”

“Share all documentation with staff prior – if they’re not ready to return to work and are happy and able to continue working from home, allow it.”

“Document clear risk assessments and procedures in collaboration with management and staff working in the facility, train staff in the content and understanding and enforce their implementation.”

“Complete a wellness action plan to monitor colleagues wellbeing/resilience and managing change”

Each and every organisation is different and will need to implement different things to keep their workforce safe during the coronavirus pandemic, but these are just some of the things that our clients are doing in order to keep their employees safe at work. Gov.uk are providing lots of guidance for different industries and should be the reference point for guidance on what to do in your workplace.

Download this infographic

Workplace Training

We have created a number of courses to help you transition your staff safely back into the workplace and we’ve also created some free policy templates and training plans that many training administrators may find handy during the return to work phase.