Childcare a challenge in employees’ return to workplaces
CALGARY Wendy Giuffre’s phone has been constantly ringing with calls from nervous employers trying to figure out how they can bring their employees back to work as COVID-19 restrictions begin to ease.
The owner and president of Calgary-based HR consultancy Wendy Ellen Inc. said that in many cases the timing of businesses being allowed to reopen is not coinciding with a similar lift in the restrictions for childcare and day-camp operators, which presents an added challenge for employers trying to bring their employees back to work.
“One of the main challenges they’re having in getting staff back is childcare. It’s not even the really young ones, it’s the ones that are school age but not old enough to manage on their own,” Giuffre said, noting that children under five can go to daycare if there are spots available, but many schoolaged children cannot and schools remain closed.
“That’s going to be a nightmare for employers to bring their staff back,” she said.
A May 19 survey by the Conference Board of Canada showed that only eight per cent of employers are prepared to bring remote workers back to their regular workplace as the coronavirus pandemic wanes. But a clear majority — almost 87 per cent — are nearly prepared or somewhat prepared to begin recalling staff.
In addition, 40 per cent of the 279 survey respondents said they
“will require employees currently working remotely to return to the workplace in some capacity” in the future.
The need for companies to bring employees back to work is running up against a number of occupational, health and safety issues, especially since employment law has been revised federally and provincially since lockdowns began in March.
Multiple human resources consultants and employment lawyers said companies are trying innovative ways to handle employee concerns, including renting out parking lots so staff can drive rather than take public transit, because of fears about disease transmission in close quarters.