What if an employee uses all their sick leave — do you have policies in place for using annual leave or taking sick days in advance?
If there is a major outbreak and team members are temporarily suspended or asked to take an indefinite period of leave without pay, what process would you follow?
"Businesses should be carrying out risk assessments and analysis and then putting plans in place to protect workers' health, safety and wellbeing," says Gould.
"In the case of the spread of a virus, the most obvious risk will be if a worker has been in contact with someone who is sick or they have contracted the virus. However, the potential fear and personal disruption impacts are much broader."
She urges employers to reassure team members and customers of the measures taken to ensure their wellbeing in the workplace and to demonstrate care and concern to anyone who is confirmed or suspected of infection.
Remote working
The obvious course of action, if the virus ramps up, is to allow more employees to work from home. Last week Amazon, Facebook, Google and Microsoft encouraged their employees in the Seattle area to work from home as the outbreak in Washington State grew.
Megan Alexander, general manager of Robert Half New Zealand, believes that working remotely can be done without sacrificing productivity or team dynamics.
"Maintaining efficiency and team culture amongst a team of telecommuters with varying schedules can be a challenge — particularly for those in companies who have not previously made flexible working arrangements available to their team. "Telecommuting should not sacrifice high levels of professional standards or disrupt productivity — one of the most important steps a manager can take is establishing clear lines of communication to aide collaboration, transparency and accountability among the team."
Work-from-home management tips
■Establish regular catch-up meetings
Communication is central to any working relationship. Setting aside time for regular communication is a powerful way to work together – it's also a faster way to address issues than typing emails on the fly. Moreover, biweekly status calls and regular feedback allow telecommuters know that out of sight is not out of mind. A regular Skype meeting or phone call can help the team to connect, discuss the progress of projects, share new developments and resolve any issues that could potentially arise.
■Set clear expectations
When it comes to quality and deliverables, there should be no difference between the work an employee performs remotely or when that person is present in the company's office. Set equal standards for on-site and off-site professionals in areas such as client service, deadlines, office hours, and response times for emails and phone calls.
■Choose the right tech tools
In a virtual environment, technology is everyone's communication lifeline. Slack, Google Hangouts and Skype for Business are some of the platforms employees can use to reach out to colleagues and employers throughout the day. File-hosting services like Dropbox, Google Drive or an in-house system also foster virtual collaboration and information sharing in real time.
■ Keep virtual team members in the loop
Managers can do much to help telecommuters and other remote workers feel like part of the team by encouraging virtual discussion boards or video meetings to conduct spur-of-the-moment conversations.
■ Don't overlook the needs of on-site workers
For those who are working from the office, consider easing the office dress code, allowing flexible scheduling or offering commuter benefits like subsidised parking or transit passes for those workers. To make telecommuting work well for the workforce, employers need to make sure that remote team members never feel left out. Likewise, don't overlook the need for in-office employees to maintain a better balance between their professional and personal lives and to work in a more relaxed environment.
Source Robert Half NZ
