Tips and Tricks to return
to work smoothly
With the government lockdown restrictions easing, some businesses will be keen to start opening up their workplaces and get back to their normal lives – as normal as one can be!
Needless to say, everyones priority should still be safety. Your clients, customers and employees should feel safe when going back to their offices, stores, warehouses and schools.
But let’s not forget that safety is not the only important thing, your employees wellbeing will determine any successful return to work.. A high-spirited and motivated employee is what really drives the success of a company and so, in order to help you have an effective re-opening, here are some tips from our reward experts here at Motivates.
1. Safety First
Just like before the pandemic, a safe working environment is key. Why not reward your staff for taking all the necessary precautions needed to make your workplace safe. Washing hands, keeping safe distancing, working well with a new staff rota or, even in better weather, walking or cycling to work.
Remind and Reward are our watch words for maintaining a happy and healthy workforce.
2. Check how your staff are feeling – survey them
Not everyone feels the same about going back to work. Yes, most people will be aching to be able to socialise with their work colleagues in person (while still being 2m apart), but everyone has different worries. There will be staff who are concerned because they have families and they don’t want to put them in danger or they would have to go on public transport where they could potentially be exposed to the virus.
So, ask them some questions about how they really feel, what their fears are (if they have them) and what their key opinions are about what they consider to be a safe working environment.
Don’t know what to ask? Here are some ideas
Ask questions about their current health and wellbeing. You want to find out how they are feeling. How did they find working from home or what problems did they encounter whilst attempting to do it – are all great ways to start getting valuable feedback to work with. Here are some more suggested questions:
– How would you rate your mental wellbeing right now?
– Do you know where to go to get support regarding your health and safety?
– What have you enjoyed about working from home?
– What were the obstacles you faced when you worked from home?
Ask them about their travel arrangements. You can find out if they are feeling safe to come back to the workplace and it may help you suggest other travel options, like cycling to work.
– Before the pandemic how did you travel to work?
– If you were to return to work tomorrow, would you be doing the same to get into work?
– Do you feel confident about using the same method to get into work?
Ask them about their thoughts of being back within the office/workplace to see what may worry them most about being back.
– How worried are you about using communal areas?
– What type of PPE equipment would you want to have available?
– Do you feel confident going back to the workplace?
3. Bring them back with a bang – reward them!
Staff like to be thanked and commended for a job well done. Nothing drives us more than a bit of appreciation from our senior colleagues. Work is a journey and it’s a long one, so giving and receiving thanks is important. Staff recognise the value of being rewarded little yet often.
The power of employee recognition is a positive force in employee engagement. Do it right, and you’ll retain your best workers, create good memories, bring your team closer together, and give some life back into the workplace.
4. Regular communication
Communication has always been important, but it became even more important during this pandemic. You want to make your employees feel looked after. By regularly communicating with them you can monitor and see how they feel, see if the safety measures that were implemented are working or just have a normal chat about anything really.
Remember that this shouldn’t be a one-way communication and that you should keep everyone updated about what is currently happening within the business so that your employees feel more engaged.
5. Be reassuring
It is very possible that we will never see workplaces as they used to be. Businesses will implement new rules to keep everyone safe and it will bring not only change but also new opportunities. So, make sure that you are reassuring your employees that whatever you decide to do, you’re doing it with their utmost interest in mind. Support them where you can as they will need it.
Want to ask for more advice or find out more on how to reward and recognise your people?