She says different home environments mean some employees are more eager to return to work than others.
A lot of employees will have appreciated their time working from home without the need for long commutes and having to deal with office politics. Or at least that’s what one would think. To the contrary, quite a number of HR leaders in the CHRO SA community say their employees cannot wait to get back to the office.
In particular, Globeleq HR manager Laura James says some of their employees who have been working from home actually want to come back to the office. As an essential service business, not all staff have worked from home, but among those who are doing so, some are really struggling with cabin fever while others do not have the luxury of a private and conducive workspace at home.
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“It is getting to the point where we can see the state of mind and energy of our colleagues deteriorating,” says Laura.
“One can’t underestimate just how valuable it is to be able to come to work and be in an environment that is most conducive for working. For some, it’s great to work from home because you don’t have to commute but, if you have to work in your bedroom because that’s the only private area you have, it can get pretty uncomfortable and even unsettling after a while.”
Many employees will start heading back to their offices from next week as South Africa’s lockdown restrictions are relaxed to level 3.
