Starting Over, Building a Culture of Employee Engagement

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May 22, 2022 - One of the biggest changes the workforce has experienced during the pandemic was the sudden and prolonged “work-from-home” strategy. The pandemic required organizations across the globe to send many of their office workers home, with little guidance on how to support employee health in what was initially thought to be a temporary work environment.

We were in such a hurry to get everyone home to keep them healthy, there was not much time to consider how this transition would affect the employees’ overall well-being. According to recent Gallup survey that discussed the needs of more than 140,000 U.S. workers, only 8% of remote-capable employees worked exclusively from home before the pandemic. By May of 2020, the number of remote employees reached 70%. By February 2022, the Gallup research indicates most remote-capable employees continued to work from home at least part of the time, with 42% using a hybrid schedule, and 39% working entirely from home. Employees have spent the last two-year working from makeshift workspaces, wondering and waiting to see if working from home is the “new normal.”

Now, as people can safely return to a traditional in-office environment, we are seeing that many employees prefer to continue a more flexible work location and schedule. While a flexible work life can be beneficial to worker health, it does pose a unique challenge of maintaining a culture of employee engagement and safety.

Despite the remote and hybrid work models having been underway for quite some time, now is the time to revisit and optimize your total worker-health programs like ergonomics. We know that proactive ergonomic interventions can make any work setting safer, more productive, and more energizing for your workforce. Yet many elements of a pre-pandemic ergonomics program will need to adapt to this new work model to better address wellness risk factors.

It is almost as if we are starting over, yet again.

How do we positively influence an uncontrolled working environment? How do organizations create a culture of safety into a hybrid and remote workplace? How can you make your workplace, both in an office and in a home workspace, a safer and more comfortable place to be?

This is probably the biggest disconnect employers are faced with. As people work from home, a coffee shop, or wherever they choose to be, organizations are still responsible to keep them safe. As the pandemic comes to a close and a new way of working in upon us, employers now have a pivotal opportunity to re-engage their employees and re-examine their EHS programs to meet current and future organizational goals. Decisions made in this area will have a direct impact on the perception of value employees feel from their employer.

Before the pandemic, EHS professionals could walk around the work environment and personally engage employees in safety and ergonomic initiatives. The physical presence of EHS professionals was a visible reminder that safety and health was important and valued by the organization. The perceived value often led to a strong safety culture enhanced by employee engagement. Now, that result is not so easily achieved with our new virtual presence. We must reimagine our approaches, our initiatives, our programs, and our processes for this new post-pandemic work environment to regain our strong safety cultures and employee engagement. This is particularly important for the remote and hybrid work force.

Before the pandemic, it was understood that companies should provide a safe and healthy work environment. This requirement is still true in the post-pandemic work environment. Companies should provide equipment for home office spaces such as good chairs, work surfaces, and monitors. Now we have new safety concern, are employees setting up and using equipment correctly. As I look around my own home office and see all my things, I have wonder if it really promotes the desired safety culture for my organization. Does it make me feel valued as an employee? Do I feel comfortable? Can I be successful?

This might not seem like a big issue, but worker productivity is directly related to worker health. Someone experiencing back pain from poor posture or neck pain from long virtual meetings is going to be less productive. An employee’s workstation set-up has a significant impact on the physical and mental aspects of how he or she is able to work. Physical discomfort often leads to feeling underappreciated and neglected by an employer.

Currently, many organizations in this country are experiencing high employee turnover and labor shortages. If people are feeling undervalued and are essentially beating up their bodies for their job, they are going to find somewhere else to work. Employees have a strong desire to work for organizations that value their mental and physical health. Having an intentional ergonomics program that supports employee well-being and health will enhance an organizations ability to hire and retain good talent.

Join us for BSI’s Safety Culture webinar on June 22 and learn how workplaces can develop and sustain cultures valuing total worker health, discover trends and challenges for the remote and hybrid workplace, and consider proactive ergonomics and wellness approaches for workplace safety and well being.