A study into hybrid work arrangements in the Public Service

Towards the end of 2019, the world experienced the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in a shutdown of all services in most private and public sector institutions given the health emergency that came with it. The pandemic forced most organisations, including government, to consider alternative working arrangements in order to limit human and physical interaction. This resulted in the introduction of hybrid workspaces and the working from home option that was new for most employees as only a few private companies offered this option pre-COVID-19.

The Public Service was not prepared for the work from home arrangements that came with the response levels. Due to the pandemic and subsequent regulations, the Public Service had to comply. As a result, the new work arrangements had a varied impact on the delivery of services.

As part of reflecting on the lessons from the COVID-19 period, the Public Service Commission (PSC) conducted a study on the impact of hybrid work arrangements on service delivery in the Public Service. The study focussed on the shut-down period from March 2020 and the subsequent lockdown levels as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the study was to investigate the actual and perceived impact that the introduction of hybrid work and work from home arrangements had on service delivery in the Public Service in selected departments, with a view to formulate recommendations that could assist the Public Service to adapt.

Objectives

The objectives of the study were to:

establish the extent that departments used hybrid work arrangements and technology during the lockdown period and the impact of such arrangements on organisational or departmental performance; explore the impact of hybrid work arrangements on employee wellness; determine how the hybrid work arrangements affected the recipients of public services; assess the Public Service’s readiness to institutionalise hybrid work arrangements post COVID-19; and make recommendations to be considered for a suitable work-arrangement model in the Public Service.

The study focused on six service delivery departments and institutions – Education, Employment and Labour, Health, South African Social Security Agency, Home Affairs and South African Police Service. The information was collected through interviews, surveys and site visits. After the initial draft report was finalised, a stakeholder session was held with the participating departments and other

experts in the field to solicit the views to finalise the study.

Findings

The findings of the study suggest that existing primary legislation and policies were and are still silent on the practice of working from home or hybrid work arrangements. During the lockdown period, the gap had to be addressed through the passing of new regulations, directions and guidelines to enable departments to put measures in place to comply with the COVID-19 regulations whilst still ensuring work continuity. The study documents a combination of positive and negative practices and experiences, including notable innovative measures that were put in place by departments as well as the commitment of many employees who put their lives at risk in order to provide services to the public.

There were challenges noted with regard to the implementation of the hybrid work arrangement, including capacity constraints, additional expenses that were not budgeted for, inaccessibility of some service sites when some staff members tested positive for COVID-19, inconsistent practices in granting employees permission to work from home between and within departments and lack of appropriate tools of trade for some employees.

To ensure service delivery continuity, departments implemented interventions such as appointing additional capacity on contract basis, provision of tools of trade and allocation of alternative office space to ensure public access to services, in the event that the main buildings could not be used if there was contamination. With regard to performance management, there was no one size fits all solution for departments or units within departments. Performance was managed differently according to the different departments and in some instances it varied within the different units in the respective departments. There was also acknowledgement by some of the managers that it was a challenge to monitor employees’ performance remotely as this was a new concept in the Public Service.

When probed on the feasibility of institutionalising hybrid work post the COVID-19 lockdown periods, the SAPS and Department of Health were upfront that it would be difficult to adopt a hybrid work arrangement on a permanent basis for them because the nature of their work requires contact with service recipients. On the other hand, participants from non-essential service departments were of the view that there is a future for hybrid work arrangement in the Public Service, provided that systems are put in place and a strong change management programme is implemented to support the new policy.

Recommendations

The Report makes the following recommendations:

The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) should benchmark with other countries to determine how the hybrid work arrangement was managed during the pandemic and how it is being taken forward as a basis to review relevant legislation, regulations, directives, policies and conditions of service for different categories of occupations and employees. The Public Service, led by the DPSA, National Treasury and the Department of Communications and Digital Services must take the lead in digitising government operations and prioritising access to tools of trade that will enable the effective implementation of hybrid work arrangements, where feasible.

Departments, in collaboration with the National School of Government, should incorporate continuous training programmes on new technologies that are necessary to facilitate remote work arrangements, online collaboration and remote access to centralised systems as well as other emerging innovations for employees to stay abreast of the new developments.

National Treasury, in collaboration with departments such as the DPSA and Public Works and Infrastructure, must conduct a cost benefit analysis of implementing hybrid work arrangements for selected non-essential service departments in order to identify possible cost-saving measures and possible once-off cost drivers as a basis to generate resources to fund critical areas of need, including the rapid adoption of technology enabled solutions and provision of other essential services to the public.

The Report proposes that these measures be prioritised for implementation in the next 12 to 24 months. The PSC will engage the DPSA and other stakeholders regarding the recommendations and proposed timeframes.❖

*A full report can be accessed on www.psc.gov.za under 2023 Reports.