Working on-site during a pandemic isn't only a stressful time for the employees, but also for Managers. It brings about questions: How do you manage them?

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There's been an enormous amount of attention and talk focused on 'How do you use Google Meet or the supposedly iniquitous Zoom?' But there are so many employees that are not actually able to work remotely.

If you break these employees into three categories, there are ones that can work remotely; there's those that are no longer working; and there's those that are actually still going into a workplace, the third category accounts for 40% of employees.

Working on-site during a pandemic isn't only a stressful time for the employees, but also for Managers. It brings about questions: How do you manage them?

How do you think about engaging with them?

To help HR managers improve on-site employees' experiences during this pandemic, I have listed a few strategies which are quoted from my latest book “The Midas Touch” – 99 Pages to Acquire Alchemy & Forge Champions, an Amazon Exclusive.

1. Keep them Safe

Employers who still have workers reporting in-person should screen every individual before they enter the premises. HR and senior managers should continue encouraging employees with symptoms to remain at home, and amend policies to ensure sick employees can stay home without losing pay.

I would also recommend limiting on-site teams to as few people as possible, providing more private spaces, and enforcing strict hygiene rules to help prevent the spread of the virus. 

In addition to basic safety standards, people will react to this pandemic in various ways, companies should maintain composure and steer employees toward feelings of safety.

2. Communicate, Communicate & Communicate

Employees are going to view the coronavirus in different manners. Some may think the virus is a hoax or not worth paying attention to, and others will take it very seriously. Regardless of beliefs, organizations must maintain clear communication with them.

Managers should show their commitment to safety by regularly sharing helpful and fact-based information via the company's internal employee portal or through virtual webinars. These mediums allow HR managers to educate workers with proper courses of action should they begin showing signs of infection or come in contact with an infected individual, according to the release. 

3. Design Employee Support Systems

We realize right now, especially with schools closed, employees who are also parents are juggling different things with all of the uncertainty that's out there, a lot of companies are trying to find ways to make their employees' lives easier.

HR managers can provide support in numerous ways, whether it's by dividing workers into teams that alternate workdays, or providing free on-site food and snacks or even doing the grocery shopping for workers. 

Organizations should also permit high-risk employees--such as pregnant women, those with weakened immune systems, or those older than 65--to take paid sick leave for up to 45 days if necessary. 

4. Feedback is a Two-way communication

We're all making it up as we're going along. We're listening and we're adjusting and we're learning, but there's no playbook for any of this that we are facing today.

What one needs to do is consistently get feedback from those employees that are coming into the workplace to learn from them, learn what's working, what's not working, and what is makes them feel safe.

Feedback can be used to drive employee investment decisions and learn how to better deal and manage the safety and experience of on-site workers.

5. Reward and Recognition

Many high-level professionals in the upper part of the hierarchy have announced that they are taking pay-cuts to help on-site workers.

HR professionals can also show recognition by using the company's communications channels to acknowledge employees by name for the commitment they've shown working during this crisis, according to the release.

Let us all understand that employees, for the most part, are trying to work hard and make an impact. The problem is that everyone is moving full speed trying to get things done. One of the things that the HR often forgets, as managers or policymakers of an organization, is simply to say thank you and recognize the contributions that their employees are making.

Remember the fact that as HR,

“Nothing we do is more important than managing people. At the end of the day, you bet on people, not strategies.”

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article above are those of the authors' and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of this publishing house