LaSalle Network surveyed 350 CEOs, COOs, human resource executives, and other corporate leaders and 70% stated that by the fall they anticipate having their employees back in the office.
Apple and JPMorgan Chase & Co. are getting their offices ready to have their employees return to the office. Bringing employees back to the office in a post-pandemic environment is not a simple process and one that depends on the drop in COVID-19 cases, commuter transportation and schools remaining open.
Companies also need to manage the new expectations that their employees now have when it comes to working from home, which is encouraging companies like Google, Unilever, and many others to create a hybrid work environment where employees come to the office on certain days and work remotely on others.
Though the hybrid approach tends to create a balance between corporate and employee needs, it may also be disruptive to the commute. According to Amy Webb, founder of the Future Today Institute, if the in-office work week largely takes place Tuesday through Thursday, the increase in traffic could become unbearable. “Tuesday through Thursday is going to be hell for anybody who’s trying to commute with a car..And what does that mean? Well, it’s a signal for local cities and highway administrations who could right now be adjusting what those traffic patterns look like, but we know they’re not doing that. So there’s going to be gridlock in ways that we just haven’t seen before and haven’t anticipated.”
Additionally, employees that have become accustomed to working remotely have expressed hesitation about the commute on public transportation when returning back to the office. One concern is about health and safety and the potential spread of COVID-19 on public transportation. And others are concerned about the physical safety of a post-COVID-19 commute given the rise of violence in public transportation locations.
In early June on the NYC subway there were two separate violent incidents within hours of each other. These incidents, and a rise in violent crime rates in cities across the country, have employees nationally worried about the safety of their commutes to work.
As part of bringing employees back to work, human resource managers are juggling all three of these concerns: commuter traffic during peak commuter days, health concerns that public transportation poses, and the uptick in physical safety incidents that have left their employees anxious about commuting into the office.
To address these concerns, human resource executives are incorporating corporate commute programs that are designed for their corporation that would take employees to and from work, implement social distancing and contact tracing, and eliminate the need for stressful driving, or public transportation. With more and more companies encouraging shared commutes via corporate shuttle platforms, traffic will decrease since individuals who would have driven to work can now shuttle in with their company vehicle. Employees can also track their vehicles, see the route it takes to work and enjoy the advantages that a corporate vehicle offers – comfortable seating, power outlets, etc.
The post pandemic era has put human resource executives to work, forcing creative solutions during a time where there is no playbook to look at. Never before has the workforce faced so many challenges and creating a new in-office normal requires innovation and ingenuity.
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Source: http://hrnews.co.uk/complicated-commuting-issues-in-the-post-pandemic-workplace/
