Many employees have been working from home for well over a year, due to government guidelines surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic. It is therefore understandable that there will be a certain amount of anxiety around returning to the workplace post-lockdown, especially as the risks of Covid will not be eradicated entirely.
A UK survey from CIPD, back in May 2020, suggested 44% of employees felt anxious about returning to their workplace and a more recent survey from Blind stated 65% of US tech employees were anxious about office reopenings at this stage in the pandemic.
How managers communicate with the staff they are responsible for will very much determine how successful the transition back to the office environment will be. The more we talk about the wellbeing of employees during this difficult time, the easier it is for individuals to share if they are struggling. However, the recent Time For Change research into mental health noted that 49% of respondents said they were reluctant to talk to their employer about their own mental health.
‘Returning to the Workplace Post-Lockdown’ helps bring these conversations more into the everyday, sharing tools, models and approaches on how this can be done. It will provide you with greater understanding of stress, anxiety, depression, and how the working conditions over the last year may have intensified these. We will discuss what is healthy versus unhealthy pressure, and how to spot potential signs of stress within your teams.
Taking a proactive approach to talking about mental health during the transition back to the workplace prevents these issues from escalating over time, and this course will encourage wellbeing for everyone, including you as a Leader.
You will also get an opportunity to consider how effective you are in role-modelling these conversations with your teams.