Covid-19 and its reeling effects on the workplace

The Covid-19 pandemic arrived without warning and took the entire world by surprise. It is not that the world has not seen epidemics or pandemics before, but rather that the world had never witnessed a pandemic with such huge global impact. The Black Death or Bubonic Plague of the 1300s, the Cholera Pandemic in 1910, and the SARS pandemic in 2005 had affected millions of people, however, in all cases, the effects were confined to a particular geographical region. None of them immobilized the entire world in one go. With the spread of Covid-19, new norms and in some cases a new lifestyle have emerged for many of us. This lifestyle has not been confined to one profession, class, creed, region, or location, it has become universal for all. From personal hygiene to social distancing norms, from lockdowns to multiple vaccine trials, from Work from Home practices to multiple layoffs, the world has seen a lot of changes in the last few months. The Covid-19 is different from all its predecessors in one aspect, and that is its impact. It has affected millions of lives and brought about an ever-lasting change in all domains: social, economic, cultural, and political. While the medical community is still trying to understand the Coronavirus, this epidemic continues to wreak havoc on all of us. With complete lockdowns in multiple countries, workplaces have been the worst hit. Along with hampered productivity and economic activity, the workplaces have seen a paradigm shift in the way they operate. In the months after the outbreak of Coronavirus, workplaces have seen different phases. The first phase was the lockdown, putting a complete stop to economic activity, manufacturing activities, factory production, business travel, trade activities and caused complete business disruption. The automobile sector, manufacturing industry, aviation industry, hospitality sector, travel, and tourism industry were among the worst-hit businesses. When physical proximity became a paramount issue, companies shifted to the virtual medium for maintaining business continuity. Advanced technology has proved to be a big help in these times. Many industries, regardless of how tech-enabled they were before the pandemic, have now adapted to technology fairly well. Work from Home became the new normal, and many businesses have had to resort to it. Subsequently, there has been a dual focus on reducing the transmission of Coronavirus and boosting the economy. Thus, many countries have seen an easing of restrictions since the initial lockdown and business operations have started again, but with more restrictions and stringent guidelines in place. Corporates are striving to bring everything back on track. However, in a situation where human interaction is limited, it can become quite challenging to remain productive or even stay connected. However convenient the WFH (Work from Home) option is for employees; it poses some inevitable challenges for companies and businesses. Some of these challenges are: 1. Impact on organizational processes – In many businesses, the existing processes require field visits, physical examinations, physical signatures. With the shift to remote working, companies have to digitize these processes and come up with alternate arrangements for the same end result. Effective communication is also necessary in this regard.

For more information on Covid-19 and its reeling effects on the workplace talk to Relaxa Posture Group