HRdownloads Blog

Employees have had a taste of working remotely, and many are requesting to work from home more regularly. One major takeaway from this large-scale shift to remote-based work is that companies are now open to more creative ways to get the job done. The question arises, whether to continue with the remote-based model or get back to the traditional workspace, post-pandemic? The best solution could be an overlap of both!

Note: Certain industries, particularly healthcare, might have different guidelines regarding what information they can require from employees. Consult government guidelines, advice from regulatory bodies, or legal counsel to ascertain appropriate limits on information collection.

Requesting doctor’s notes (or more generally, medical certificates) is normal practice when employees require sick time. Employers want to verify that employees aren’t abusing the system, and check that employees can safely return to work after they recover. This second reason is far more important in the context of COVID-19, and screening for COVID-19 symptoms is required in many workplaces now. Ontario’s government has gone further, requiring active screening measures throughout the province. Even so, many employers are still uncertain how to screen. What can you ask? How do you protect employee privacy? There are more questions employers have about medical certificates and COVID-19, so let’s walk through the basics.

Many employers are feeling the urgency of ensuring their employees are vaccinated as soon as possible and are considering making it a requirement. If employers want their teams to return to the workplace or continue working but with reduced health and safety measures, it’s likely that most won’t feel comfortable until their employees have been fully vaccinated. But as necessary as full vaccination is, the question remains: “Can employers require vaccination?”

While days are getting longer, we aren’t quite out of the woods yet, which means employees may be experiencing a type of depression known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Ongoing and changing restrictions have already caused a major shift in our mental health, which may be affecting workplaces more than we realize. Symptoms will likely be amplified by anxiety and isolation arising from “stay home” recommendations and may last beyond the winter months.

Employers may notice that employees are less ambitious or productive this time of year and may shrug it off as them adjusting to getting back into the swing of things. However, employers should be aware that their employees may be experiencing deeper mental health issues.

Creating a supportive environment can help decrease gender inequality and repair a toxic workplace culture. Diversity, including gender diversity, contributes to improved decision-making and reduces conflicts among groups. Fostering diverse viewpoints and strengthening workplace equality improves collaboration and integrates different perspectives and problem-solving approaches.

As expectations around social responsibility become more widespread, organizations that advocate for gender equality and women’s rights, that provide a safe, supportive work environment for women, and that make efforts to improve diversity are recognized for their efforts with a better company image and customer loyalty among those who share their values and beliefs.

The message is clear: “Stay home if you’re sick. Don’t go to work.” All levels of government and public health officials across the country require Canadians to stay home if they show symptoms of COVID-19. But for many Canadians, even some on your own team, this is easier said than done. So how do you encourage employees who are sick to stay home? 

It’s the beginning of a new year, which means it’s time to reflect on the past and prepare for the year ahead. 2020 was a tough year for all of us as we navigated the challenges of a global pandemic. Together, employers and employees faced many challenges, including business closures, layoffs, strict health and safety measures, changing business models, remote work, and mental health struggles. It is no surprise that our experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic were a driving factor for the HR trends we will see this year. While there are numerous HR trends to explore, we have chosen to highlight people-based trends this year. 

Most workers are either employees or independent contractors, and which category a person belongs to has profound implications for every part of their work, and severe consequences for employers who get the distinction wrong. 

The reason the penalties for worker misclassification can be so severe owes a lot to how different the two classes are. 

The appeal of virtual onboarding during the pandemic is obvious. In the early stages of lockdowns and quarantines, it was unavoidable that new employees would be introduced to your organization virtually. Even now as organizations reopen, many people are still under temporary isolation or are joining companies that have restrictions on who can be onsite, meaning that many employees are still working from home at least some of the time. 

This pandemic will end eventually, but as that ‘eventually’ retreats further into the future, we can’t lose sight of our present responsibilities. Our organizations still have work to do, and that includes recruitment and onboarding. But how can you be sure that new hires you onboard virtually can still succeed and contribute quickly to your organization?

Trust is a two-way street; employers must trust their employees and earn their trust in return. It is an essential component of a healthy and successful workplace. Studies have shown that workplaces where strong trust is present have higher levels of employee engagement, productivity, and innovation, with lower turnover rates than competitors.

By now, you may be asking yourself, “Is there trust in my organization?”