Return to the Office: Ignore Employee Input at Your Peril

I recently heard from someone I worked with in the past.
 
He was upset because his employer had just formally confirmed that everyone will be returning full-time, on-site, as soon as possible.
 
Since that is how things were before COVID.

• Despite the fact that everyone has worked very well remotely since March 2020.
• And more than 90% of employees said they would like to be either fully remote or to have a hybrid option.

 
He knows this because the results were announced at the most recent company-wide Zoom meeting.
 
Promptly followed by the announcement that they would be returning to 100% on-site.

• So, not only did the employer ask people for their opinion then blatantly ignore the majority, they also told everyone they were doing so.

 
Realize that any time employees are asked for their input, subsequently discounting it is worse than not having asked at all.
 
And it is detrimental to employee engagement.
 
𝘽𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙤𝙮𝙚𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚.
 
The world of work has changed and working five days per week on-site is no longer as acceptable as before, when the work can be done from anywhere.
 
Yes, there are jobs that cannot be done remotely, and those instance must be clearly communicated.

• But know that “because it’s always been that way” does not pass the ‘solid reason’ test.

 
My former colleague has started a job search, as have many of his co-workers, in search of an organization that respects and cares for its employees.

• Information that candidates can find by talking to current employees, or by reading Glassdoor reviews.

 
Yes, he is upset that the return will be 100% on-site, and he probably would have started a job search for that reason alone, albeit not as fast.
 
However, he is more perturbed at the way this was handled, and the disregard shown by leadership towards employees.
 
Pushing him to start his job search more urgently than he otherwise might have.
 
Luckily many employers have realized that as long as the work gets done, there is no need for a full-time, on-site presence.
 
So, he will no doubt find a job that allows at least some work-from-home.
 
But more importantly, he is looking for a job where employees will be treated with care and respect.