A random Friday somewhere in 2021…
What happened to the traditional outlook on the workforce? Years ago, employees were horrified at the idea of losing or leaving their jobs—a family to care for, a mortgage to pay, a life to support...what would they do? Of course, those things still exist and are still stressors (and it’s still 100% not something anyone wants to experience), but the stress that unemployment brings about has seemed to lessen in recent years, especially since COVID-19.
Forbes recently published an article where members of the Forbes Business Council shared their suggestions for effective ways employers can preserve their workforce, one of which speaks directly to the recent implementation of the hybrid worker.
Flexibility.
| Members of the Forbes Business Council (Source: Forbes) |
There was a point in time where remote work wasn’t even a blip on the radar. Many office workers would have never believed they could do their jobs from anywhere in their home and still be productive. While that’s not always the case (even now), COVID-19 did a great job of flipping the script on what businesses can realistically handle. For some, the clouds parted, and life bloomed anew when work switched to the home. No, it’s not ideal for companies to have their employees scattered around and for some workers it’s not the setting they prefer—but either way, the point remains: It is possible.
Workers now know what is feasible, and what they (and the company) are capable of withstanding. Pre-COVID, we followed a set of routines and regulations because there was no reason to think it was realistic otherwise. But people have had to juggle work and life in one setting for the past two years—they know what they can handle, and when, so the flexibility to self-manage (or even to simply choose your work setting from day to day) is a major benefit to many.
With the newfound knowledge that we, as office employees, have a little more leeway than initially thought, it’s no surprise that there’s less fear wrapped around the idea of losing/leaving your current job. After all, the world is brimming with opportunities that involve remote work now, and it’s clear that there likely will be another option if the current one falls through. And while that’s great for employees, employers may not be too thrilled.
This is not a one-way street, absolutely not—both sides have to be flexible. That said, businesses can thrive by making sure their employees want to stay, because the prospect of losing/leaving current positions has become a little less daunting.