HR leaders across the globe have experienced the most stressful year of their careers due to coronavirus pandemic. New research from employee engagement company Reward Gateway has found a lack of resources, time, and money has made 2020 the most challenging year for 71% of HR professionals. The largest challenge was feeling pressure to connect to a remote workforce, followed by keeping up workplace culture, and doing more with less time, money, and resources. HR leaders reported that they believe their workforce is more stressed (59%), less connected to colleagues (41%) and their organization (32%), and less engaged (34%) since the outbreak of the pandemic. HR Magazine
Some workers might be hesitant about getting a vaccine or feel uncomfortable about their employer having a say in their medical decisions. But legal experts say that employers can mandate getting the shot. Whether they should is a different matter. Some jobs already have vaccination requirements. For instance, some health care workers are required to get flu shots. Once a COVID vaccine becomes available, experts think some employers are likely to require workers to get it. But federal protections could allow for some exceptions. Workers with underlying medical conditions might be exempt under the Americans with Disabilities Act. And Title VII of the Civil Rights Act could allow employees with “sincerely held” religious beliefs against a vaccine to seek accommodations. Under these circumstances, employers would have to provide reasonable accommodation. CNN Business
As Gallup’s pioneering research clarified, millennials don’t see much distinction between their job and their life, they expect flexibility and work-life balance, and they will quickly bail on companies that don’t meet their definition of a life well-lived. Millennials are the least engaged age cohort, show the most turnover, and have the lowest rates of wellbeing. And then last March, almost overnight, millions of people started working remotely. The workplace suddenly offered all the flexibility and potential for work-life balance millennials ever wanted. And a whopping 74% of them don’t want to go back to the office five days a week. Which leaves leaders with a decision to make: Should these workers get what they want? Or do they need to go back to the pre-pandemic normal? Gallup
Remote work has become the norm thanks to COVID-19, and the pivot is accelerating the adoption of a fairly new job title for several companies, including Facebook: director of remote work. The position at Facebook is designed to support CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to allow employees to continue to work from home through summer 2021 and his pledge to have half of the company’s global workforce working remotely within the next 5 to 10 years. The job isn’t entirely new. In 2019, before the pandemic, tech company GitLab hired Darren Murph to be its head of remote, helping manage the employee experience for its entirely remote workforce. Since the pandemic, Murph has been advising other companies on designing successful remote working arrangements, including Facebook. Fast Company
If a second wave, or even a first wave, of layoffs hasn’t hit your business, that’s great. Survive and thrive! That’s what’s going to make our economy rebound. But if layoffs are a possibility looming on your horizon, now’s the time to start thinking seriously about how your company’s reputation could falter if you go about it the wrong way. It’s about protecting your brand from the scathing reviews former employees can and do post online. Remember the days before Glassdoor? Human resources pros nationwide just let out a collective groan. That’s because Glassdoor and sites like it are now the retribution forum for disgruntled employees. People who are job hunting regularly check Glassdoor and similar sites for an inside look at what it’s really like to work at their company of choice. Negative company reviews on these sites make it highly difficult to hire top talent, hence the HR disdain. Even in this uncertain job market, top talent has choices. You don’t want to give them any reason to choose your competitor. Forbes
