Men are least likely to be able to work well from home, whereas women are more nervous about the idea of returning to the office due to COVID-19.
Office for National Statistics (ONS) data has found that men do not work as well remotely, while Culture Amp, a people and culture platform, found there is a 10-point difference on average between women and men in regards to how confident they feel about returning to work. As 56 per cent of women compared to 46 per cent of men want their company to implement more safety measures to the office.
The ONS also found that higher-paid employees are more likely to be able to work at a better standard from home. Chief executives and senior officials are in the group of workers who are most able to work remotely. As are financial managers, directors and software developers.
With regards to returning to the office, Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister has announced that from 01/08/20 employers can bring staff back to work if they believe it is COVID-19 safe. Meaning women could well be returning to the office soon.
Whilst making this announcement, Mr Johnson said:
We’re going to give employers more discretion and ask them to make decisions about how their staff can work safely.
That could mean continuing to work from home, which is one way of working safely and which has worked for many employers and employees. Or it could mean making workplaces safe.
Culture Amp also found women are more concerned about the availability of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), with 86 per cent of females wishing to have access to PPE in contrast to 77 per cent of men.
Men feel safer using the company gym, cafeteria, or other social areas than women with a difference of 45 per cent to 36 per cent.
Jess Brook, lead people scientist at Culture Amp said:
Women have been disproportionately impacted by Covid-19, especially when it comes to childcare duties, job losses and healthcare – it’s no surprise that as we look to what the future may hold, women are more likely to prepare themselves for a ‘worst case scenario’.
The findings should serve as a stark reminder to business leaders about the very real concerns that employees have about emerging from lockdown and what ‘new normal’ they’ll discover when they do. It also reminds us that these concerns aren’t blanket across employees.
Darius is the editor of HRreview. He has previously worked as a finance reporter for the Daily Express. He studied his journalism masters at Press Association Training and graduated from the University of York with a degree in History.
