Since the pandemic, the workforce has evolved in several ways:
- The balance of power has shifted in favor of employees, who expect more from their employers and are no longer willing to settle for less.
- Employees put more of premium on work/life balance and preserving their mental health than ever before.
- Remote and hybrid work is now the norm.
Trend #1: Employees are no longer willing to settle for less.
The pandemic took a toll on our collective financial, emotional, mental and physical health. Focusing primarily on survival for years left us tired, anxiety-ridden and with a new sense of priorities.
Employees began to place a premium on work/life balance and preserving their mental health. As a result, they left their jobs in droves. Although the Great Resignation is said to have peaked in 2022, new trends suggest that the number of resigning employees might rise even higher this year.
With new standards for what they expect from their employers, fewer employees are willing to settle for less than they feel they deserve – particularly when it comes to harassment, discrimination, or workplace bullying. This new sense of empowerment will likely result in an increase in complaints as employees are no longer willing to endure workplace mistreatment. Employers should be ready to conduct a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation into those complaints.
Trend #2 Remote-based companies still face familiar investigations
Part and parcel to the new premium being placed on work/life balance is employees’ insistence on being able to work from home, at least some of the time.
Since the pandemic, many companies have learned that remote work, despite its inherent challenges, can be highly effective. The biggest reasons for this shift appear to be attracting the best workers who desire a better work/life balance and building a more diverse workforce. In fact, remote work’s relative success has prompted some companies to boldly embrace the idea of shifting to remote work permanently.
Indeed, a remote workforce is not without its issues. It is still possible to experience harassment, discrimination, disability and privacy issues remotely – therefore these familiar complaints remain very active. With the Zoom landscape, the workplace is now in the homes of employees, where comfort takes over and defenses may be down – particularly during virtual happy hours, where alcohol is in play. This may lend itself to inappropriate dress, or virtual calls being held from employees’ bedrooms or bathrooms, making others uncomfortable. In fact, we recently helped a client navigate racial bias and hostile work environment claims in a 100% remote workforce with team members based in Idaho, Washington, New York, and California.
Employers report other sticky issues cropping up. For example, wage and hour complaints due to the difficulties in tracking employees’ time worked at home. We’re also hearing how employers’ flexibility regarding when employees work can sometimes create unintended pressure to work more and raise questions of overtime or unpaid wages.
To be sure, the pandemic has changed the way we work. As for the rest? Let us know your thoughts! Drop a comment, email us or ping us on social media. We’d love to be part of your collaborative discussion on managing the post-pandemic workforce landscape.