Our managing Director Jodie Hill was invited to speak on BBC Radio 5 Live all about how introducing a flexible working policy could help in regard to the Coronavirus if workplaces had to be shut down or employees had to self-isolate. If you would like to watch her vlog all about this, please click below.
Here is a summary of what Jodie had to say:
“I mean there is a lot of businesses that obviously can’t work from home and that is proving really difficult for those in manufacturing and especially retail but in my experience professional services do have an opportunity here to use flexible working, working from home and the technology that comes with that facilitates those types of working arrangements. So, if they have already started to use that it’s a real opportunity to put that into place.
We already do (flexible working) so I work from home 2 days a week and all of our staff can work from home any day of the week that they want regardless of what level of seniority they are so for us it’s really important to integrate that into our actual systems as opposed to doing it in reaction to something. So, businesses who haven’t already trialled homes working, there is a real opportunity to do that.
I think you’ve got to have a level of trust obviously one of the main concerns for employers is ‘what are my staff going to be doing if I can’t see what they are doing?’ but there’s got to be a level of trust to be in place in the first place. My employees say that they feel empowered as they are allowed to work from home vent at an apprenticeship level so giving them that trust at that early stage, I have actually seen an increase in productivity from working from home.”
Jodie’s Top Tips:
Have a clear policy in place which indicates what your employee’s requirements are in regard to home working and flexible working
If you are asking someone to work from home, make sure they are provided with all the correct equipment for their job, e.g. a laptop, mobile phone, internet, etc.
Make sure all individuals are clear in their responsibilities and their roles
Make sure there is a level of trust both ways between employee and employer.
Next Steps:
If you would like to find out more about your obligations as an employer in regard to the Coronavirus, you can read our blog here.
If you have any queries about the Coronavirus in the workplace, please Get in Touch!