From remote work to religious accommodation, the COVID-19 pandemic fundamentally transformed HR’s landscape.
Ginger Christ, Editor
Ryan Golden, Senior Reporter
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https://www.hrdive.com/news/3-ways-covid-19-changed-hr/742019/e
Five years.
Five years since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19, known then as the novel coronavirus, a global pandemic.
Five years since states and municipalities issued stay-at-home orders, and citizens were told to shelter in place.
Businesses around the country — and world — shut down. In the early days, movement was limited to essential workers — healthcare professionals, emergency responders and postal workers, among others. Companies scrambled to react.
Overnight, entire workforces went remote. Schools closed, and parents struggled to juggle working from home and caregiving. The unemployment rate skyrocketed as businesses scaled back or closed.
Work, as the world knew it, changed.
While the pace of change in human resources now certainly isn’t as furious as it was when the pandemic hit, dealing with disruption has always been a part of the profession, said Megan Berki, global people leader at Rocket Lawyer, a legal platform.
“I view it as the nature of HR,” she said. “There’s always going to be change that HR and organizations have to react to based on just the climate of the market and all kinds of different factors” — from the evolution of technology to skills training to responding to new legislation.
Remote work crawled, so flexibility could fly
Pew Research Center estimates about 40% of workers have jobs that can be done remotely, and huge swaths of these individuals did so during the onset of the pandemic. Zoom calls replaced in-person meetings; sweat pants replaced trousers; and commutes became a walk from the bedroom to the dining room table.
The huge shift to remote work fundamentally changed how companies managed employees, experts told HR Dive.
“Pre-COVID, in the office, there was a lot more in-person interaction, and a manager could observe much more directly how a person works and give feedback in real time. It was a much more fluid and engaging relationship,” Berki said.
With a suddenly remote workforce, employers had to reinvent how they coached, trained and engaged employees, she said.
“HR has had to get a lot more proactive, consistent and engaging,” Berki said.
Talent acquisition in a remote world also took on a new life. Companies were able to hire workers in locations where they didn’t have offices, opening up a larger talent pool.
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“We expanded into markets that we probably otherwise wouldn’t have, outside of COVID and post-pandemic, because we were an office organization,” Berki said. “We had offices in very targeted locations, and when we moved to remote, it opened up other markets for us that I think [have] really benefited our workforce.”
Remote and flexible work opened up access for underrepresented employees. A recent report by Flexa found that record numbers of Black workers and employees with disabilities were looking for positions with flexible schedules last year.
As more employers announce return-to-office mandates, it is unlikely that the workplace of the pre-COVID era will return, experts say.
“I don’t think anybody has figured it out. I think there’s a number of people trying different things to see what sticks,” Berki said. “There’s always going to continue to be some degree of flexibility.”
From increased productivity to a more diverse workforce to a better work-life balance, the pros of remote work are evident, said Jessica Hardeman, Indeed’s global head of DEIB+ and talent attraction.
“We are in an era where we’re going to have to focus on flexibility, because we have seen the need [and] demand for it now,” Hardeman said. “The future is about continuing to be intentional and thoughtful about the flexibility that we’re preserving, because I think we lose out on really, really good talent when we choose to not be flexible.”
Now and in the hybrid future, ensuring there’s a good workplace dynamic and culture among dispersed teams will remain a top priority, Hardeman said.
“I trust that they’ll get their work done. I’m really focused on how I can make sure that they’re having a good experience as an employee,” she said.
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