Is it time to go back to the office?
As a Recruiter, it may seem odd to write about how to retain your staff, but building loyalty and creating a great workplace actually makes our job easier.
How did we get here?
Many of us will remember, only a few years ago, that everyone who went to work actually went to a place of work and did their job for their allotted shift. In a few cases, people were occasionally allowed to “work from home”, but it was a tiny percentage.
Then, on 16th March 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that everyone who could, should work from home. Companies scrambled to buy laptops and update their IT systems so staff could work from home. We muddled through, got most stuff working and settled into the lockdown way of doing things. Everything was different!
As the risk of coronavirus faded, there was a drift back to office, but not everyone wanted to return. One thing that lockdown did was make people think about life and work differently.
Staff Benefits
There are benefits of working from home: the reduced cost and time of commuting, fewer work interruptions from colleagues, and maybe reduced stress from less office politics. You can also work when it suits you, give time to family commitments, stay in your pyjamas, and most importantly, for many, you can have a dog! Between 2020 and 2022, UK households owning a pet rose from 23% to 34%. Our lives had changed.
Company Benefits
Some companies heralded a work-from-home/ hybrid model as the best thing ever. With fewer people in, the office size and costs would be reduced. Companies could now employ people from anywhere in the country, even in the world. The world of work had changed.
And that is where we could have left things. Employers and employees are happier than before and enjoy cost savings. But the world of work is more complex than that.
Not everybody in a company can work from home. If you are in the factory, shop or warehouse, you must be on-site. It seems unfair if your colleagues are benefitting and you are not. Not everyone can work effectively from home – they may not have the space or facilities. Some people need regular interaction with team members or more supervision.
If everyone in your company works from home, are you a company? There is little in the way of company culture or the feeling of teamwork.
What do Employers Want?
As a recruiter, I see more employers asking staff to return to the office. They want at least 3-4 days a week, if not full-time. They want to see what their staff are doing, and they want to promote teamwork and a sense of belonging. Working together also benefits mental health, building friendships and sharing ideas and expertise. Having a chat or sharing a joke in the office kitchen can’t be done over Zoom.
And talking of Zoom. Even the rising star of the WFH brigade is telling its staff to get back to the office!
Not everyone is happy about this.
Having responded to your employer’s demand to work from home and changed your life to accommodate this new way of working, some employees are very comfortable with it. They do not want to return to getting up earlier, battling with the traffic or trains, and facing a day of interruptions and distractions.
When asked or told to return to the old way, some employees say “No”. The Directors and HR departments are feeling friction and dissatisfaction and are working on ways to keep everyone happy. The new Flexible Working Bill has almost passed through Parliament, giving employees the right to request flexible working. But is a new law the right way to go? Or is it better to consult with everyone in the company and agree on a way forward?
Many UK sectors are still experiencing a shortage of skilled workers. Offering flexibility should go a long way to building loyalty and retaining staff.
Tony Line is a recruiter who has worked in the industry for over 20 years. He runs a Kent-based recruitment agency and an exciting job advertising service – The JobsBoard.
