The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on our health, our lifestyles, and even our work lives. Since the start of the pandemic, our work setup has shifted virtually. Companies have opted for a remote work setup to keep their employees a bit safer from the virus. There are side effects to this remote setup, though.
During the quarantine period, remote work burnout tends to happen. Employees take less time off from work as they fear to be the next employee to be laid off. This results in clocking in more hours than necessary, leading to work burnout.
Having less productive employees as a result of burnout is not good for any business. Though you have to consider your company’s status, you also have to consider your employees’ overall well-being. As an employer, how can you ease this virtual workplace tension?
After-hours Treat
The ideal way to prevent remote work burnout is to understand your employees’ needs for alone time and self-care. Although this is true, a bit of team building activities wouldn’t hurt as well.
As an employer, you can organize a virtual game night. Get to know what your employees are interested in so that you can even provide prizes as an incentive. Do your employees enjoy a bottle of wine now and then? Get a fine bottle as a prize. Perhaps your employees will be more interested in a beer brewing activity. Find a source for in-demand hops such as Triumph and learn how to make good beer together.
In line with providing prizes during game night, you can also provide small gifts to your employees as a token for their hard work throughout the pandemic. Given that you have the extra budget, this will motivate your employees to stay and it may ease the tension by providing them something new to appreciate. ;
By giving gifts, you can also link this to recognizing your employees’ hard work. The gift may be a reminder for them that they have been working hard for the company and that they deserve to take a break. ;
There are many ways to give back to your employees especially during this pandemic when everyone is tense and worried. It is important to reassure your employees of their status to help ease the tension that may be affecting their productivity. What are the warning signs that your employees are burning out?
Warning Signs of Remote Work Burnout
As an employer, you should always take care of your employees. A part of this responsibility is recognizing whether they are on the brink of breaking down from burnout. What does burnout look like in a remote work setup?
Your employees may have difficulty focusing on given tasks. You may notice that your employees have not been as productive as before. This may be due to their increasing work burnout. Your employee who was previously incredibly motivated may not be working as much as before due to the tension that the pandemic has brought upon them.
Another warning sign is if an employee seems more irritable or angry towards their teammates. Not only is this bad for their mental health, but it will also put a strain on office relationships that may have previously been a good source of camaraderie.
If you notice that your employee has been making more mistakes than usual, it may also be a sign of burnout. Missing deadlines may be normal but forgetting them altogether is a completely different topic.
Lastly, a bad warning sign is having your employees remain negative about projects and how they are to deal with them. You may be hearing more emotional comments such as finding the task too difficult or impossible to accomplish. This is a warning sign that your employee is under great stress.
These warning signs should be recognized and addressed immediately. Showing these signs is a warning that your employees are burning out fast. This could take a toll on your team and your company.
The Team
Teamwork is vital in any organization. If your employees are burned out, it will be difficult for them to participate in good teamwork which could affect the company and the individual. Why is it important for you to promote good teamwork?
Teamwork increases the efficiency of each team member which could benefit the company greatly. Positive teamwork provides a good learning experience for each individual and this promotes growth within an organization. By having growth, team members will also learn how to communicate effectively among each other to increase productivity in generating new ideas for the team. Along with this, teamwork may build many strong leaders within your organization due to a positive work environment.
As an employer, it is important for you to take care of your employees even during a remote work setup. You might be thinking that staying at home is the ideal setup for your employees, but you should also recognize that this may not be the case for all. Take some time to get to know what your employees are interested in so that you can provide a small treat for them to encourage them to also take care of themselves.
