The lock down imposed to arm the mankind in its fight against the deadly virus has led to a sudden alteration in our daily routine. Reduced natural physical activity and fading demarcation between work and home, is it just our physical health going bonkers?
Working in the financial sector has its constraints and not being able to work from home was one of them. However, when the push came to shove, determined to service our customers: we figured that out as well and declared work from home for all our employees. I like most other millennial had rejoiced at the news of ‘work from home’ when first announced. While it indeed was fun for the first week: no getting up early to travel, cook and eat when you want, wear comfortable PJs during zoom calls, no uncomfortable chairs and the list goes on. What I knew not was that this life is not some fairy tale. Soon the detachment from the physical world, no travel to office, no meeting friends/colleagues engulfed me into clouds of melancholy. I sit here and ponder if there is an end to this despondency.
Emotional health is going to be the next big challenge for all and will considerably affect the employee productivity.
The fear of losing jobs, pay cuts, knocked off bonuses &perks and delayed appraisal have led to aggravated levels of stress and anxiety in the workforce.
Change in the working style with expectation to work round the clocks does not give the mind any time off. Consciously or unconsciously all of us are struggling to separate the work time from leisure and this has reduced our effectiveness in our work.
Even the employees working in different onsite services where the work has increased manifold like health care, sanitation etc have different stress levels and concerns than those working from home.
A mind consumed with fears cannot operate at its full power. This necessitates interventions from the management to help keep the staff motivated navigate our way to a productive workforce even in this unprecedented times.
Employers should open all possible channels of communication with the employees to invite people in opening up about the slightest unease that they may be experiencing. This could be increased frequency of one-on-one meetings with the supervisors.
Another useful tip would be to encourage breaks hours for mental wellness; particularly for those struggling with care giver responsibilities at home and less-than-work from home infrastructure.
There are multiple personal and social resources that help to cope with such crises. Being in constant touch with friends, family and relatives via social media or other mediums helps alleviate this stress considerably. As employers we need to focus more on the ones living away from the family. In such scenarios, even an acknowledgement of their difficulty goes a long way in comforting them.
We need to acknowledge the change and the issues it is raising. With constant efforts from the management coupled with naturally strong survival instincts that humans are born with; we will soon adapt to the new way of life.
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