RTO Is Stealing Work-Life Balance—And Employees Are Mourning the Loss
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For employees who live in countries where work (meaning titles, salary, and employers) reigns supreme and can easily usurp family, rest and free time; the 2020 pandemic provided an unexpected surprise for the salaried non-essential worker. There was no more rushing. There was no more shoving breakfast down throats. The Formula One race to get out of the house (possibly in conjunction with a partner and children), and into the office was cancelled. There were no more traffic laden commutes. The decisions about what to purchase for lunch were usurped by what to prepare from the refrigerator for lunch. The hustle ended just so…abruptly. All of the sudden employees felt there was space. They were forced to slow down. Some even started deeply breathing again. They also found they could mix work and home duties and responsibilities. While nothing was compartmentalized anymore, it all seemed to get done just as well if not better than before. It wasn’t perfect and completely stress free, particularly if employees had small children who needed looking after and home schooling, or family members whom still had to attend jobs that put them in pandemic risk. Nonetheless, not having to do all the things to go to a work site provided some semblance of calm during an anxious period and in an anxious life, they hadn’t had before. Employees really liked it. They didn’t want to give it up. Employers are quick to remind their employees that remote work was always intended to be temporary. Fair. But no one could have predicted, what can only be characterized as, the eye opening effects of a true quality of life.
Return to the office creates a type of grieving for employees who felt as if they actually lived out work life balance. Regardless of age, for some that was their very first time. But I think the second layer of employees feelings are much more entrenched and are at the core of RTO resistance. It’s something they won’t articulate to an employer and maybe even not to themselves. That is the feeling that something(s) in their life isn’t working. Where, how and on what someone is working; is one part of a larger life fulfillment puzzle. The unintended consequence of remote work and the pandemic in general was to get people thinking about how people wanted to spend their time during life.
How Does an Organization or Employer Respond to the Employee “Grieving” Process
Let the employee grieve. Like with all grieving processes there is denial and anger. So let your employee have both when they show up to the office..so long as they're not disrupting or hurting others it’s okay. I was a family law attorney for many years. There was this odd expectation when my client was ordered to pay child support or alimony, in an amount we didn’t think was warranted. Everyone wanted the monthly check handed over on time and with a smile while doing it. You can expect one. To expect both is arrogant and controlling.
Don’t expect or ask employees to work in the office 5 days per week. Adaptable businesses have longer life spans, but they create so much more. They not only create more resilient employees, but also increase employee retention. Flexible and responsive work environments can lead to increased job satisfaction and a sense of security for employees. The world and employee expectation changed with the pandemic. Employers need to change too and keep their RTO to a minimum.
Don’t micromanage on remote work days. Software such as Microsoft Teams and others allow for employees to mark if they are away, busy, free, at lunch &c… It’s not healthy for a leader to be monitoring team members’ statuses like a guard dog. Firstly, it’s a waste of their skill set and the financial compensation they are paid. Secondly, this type of micro managerial behavior does not instill trust into a team. If a leader is concerned that a team member is not completing their work (first they should have proof of such), it rarely has anything to do with her presence outside or inside the office. I’ve lead unperforming team members. Physical location had nothing to do with it.
Let the employee figure it out. There are employee who are asking a bigger life question. They may come to realize their employer no longer fits into their answer. That’s okay. Let them go. Be gracious and wish them luck.