By Natalie Chandler
BridgeTower Media Newswires
Remote work, a necessity for companies when the COVID-19 pandemic began two years ago, has become a way of life for many since.
The benefits – no more commuting, savings on office costs, the potential for increasing a company’s pool of applicants – can be vast. An Appcast survey found that employers received 12% more applicants if they included the option to work from home. The option of remote work also helped decrease the cost of filling the position by 13%, Appcast said. A recent Pew poll shows that 61% of Americans who are working remotely say they would choose to remain remote.
Neel Sus, founder and CEO of Metairie-based software company Susco Solutions, said his hesitancy since going fully remote in March 2020 dissipated after seeing his company’s performance remain strong.
“The problems we faced are probably around culture building, staff morale and overall well-being, bond-building,” he said. The company has since implemented an Employee Assistance Program, leadership development training, regular social events and monthly check-ins to ask staff for feedback.
“The check-in process helps solve problems before they become big,” he said.
Legal experts and human resources professionals say there are plenty of other pitfalls to be aware of. Companies may find lower productivity. Their employees may take on additional jobs. Some might prefer working in an office, leading to burnout and disengagement in a remote environment. Issues involving cybersecurity, wage-and-hour laws, workers compensation and home office expenses must also be taken into account.
Setting policies and procedures beforehand and clearly communicating those to employees are key, experts say.
Designing a plan
Employers need to create a program with goals in mind, said Amy Bakay, founder and CEO of human resources firm HR NOLA. They should consider whether staff should be fully or partially remote; if the arrangement is permanent or temporary; if all or some should work remotely; technology and equipment needs; and flexible hours vs. a set schedule.
Most clients she has worked with are professional, administrative and staffing firms that have adopted some type of hybrid or remote work schedule. The most common model has employees working from home on Monday and Friday and working in the office on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Bakay said businesses can do trial runs with this model and revisit it at a specified date to see if employees want to continue. Companies should keep a smaller or satellite office even if they go remote, since it’s beneficial to have a place to go and meet a client and have access to a printer and internet if technical issues occur at home, she said.
“Many have found there’s a better work-life balance, and there’s also been an increase in productivity,” she said.
Legal issues
Employers need to make sure hourly employees clock in and out, document their hours and understand that if overtime hours are needed to complete their work, the employee must request it beforehand, attorneys say.
Companies considering hiring workers who live in other states need to be aware of those state’s labor laws, which may vary widely from Louisiana’s. Some states require higher minimum wages and designated meal breaks, and there could be potential tax implications.
What to do if a Louisiana-based employee wants to work remotely from another state or country? That could become an issue if they want to stay longer than a month, according to Rebecca Sha, a labor and employment attorney in the New Orleans office of Phelps Dunbar. One of the biggest risks is if they will be subject to another state or country’s labor and tax laws.
“It’s a case-by-case determination,” said Sha, who recommends that employers consider allowing a temporary move and then revisit the arrangement.
“If you are talking about someone moving somewhere for six months or longer, there are serious risks with that,” she said.
Workers compensation is another legal risk. Even when working remotely, employers are still subject to OSHA safety laws, but whether an injured employee is entitled to workers compensation is another matter.
It depends on whether the injury occurred within the scope of employment, attorneys say. An employee who suffers a burn while cooking their lunch may not qualify for a compensable claim, but one who that working from a chair that breaks and results in an injury likely would, said Ed Harold, regional managing partner in the New Orleans office of Fisher Phillips.
Another question: Can employers mandate in-office work even if an employee requests to work remotely due to a medical or other condition? Attorneys say it’s a case-by-case basis, and the courts that have been reticent to disagree with employers may be changing their minds. Sha recommends a discussion with the employee to determine if the condition is short-term or permanent and whether they can perform their duties remotely.
Remote expenses
Employers should consider reimbursing employees for equipment used to work from home, Sha said. While there are no federal laws that mandate it, “It’s good to set up a policy in writing and clearly communicate that this is what is going to be treated as an expense and can get reimbursed,” she said.
“Some of my clients are paying it forward by leasing a smaller location and using the savings on a small stipend to account for reasonable expenses that employees may be incurring while working from home,” she said.
Employee performance
Debates abound over the ways companies are tracking employee performance. Some require employees to be monitored by video; others use software to make sure staff is working.
“I think the best way is to make it clear in writing, probably in a telecommuting agreement, these will be the ways we measure your productivity and we will revisit it as time goes on,” Sha said. “Document and communicate that they are not meeting the expectations you require.”
Remote work has made job descriptions and measurable outcomes “more important than they were before,” according to Sus.
“If you have those in place, then it’s easier to trust the work is getting done,” he said. “You are measuring outcomes, not behaviors. That’s huge.”
Cybersecurity
Companies must be certain that their information technology is “locked down,” Harold said, and that they are protected from ransomware attacks. Other issues include working from home vs. coffee shops with less secure computer servers, and using personal email accounts vs. logging onto the company’s portal, said Sha.
“(Cybersecurity) may be the biggest reason why companies can’t work remotely,” Harold said.
Staff morale
How to keep employees happy and productive? Managers will need to communicate differently and better than they did in the workplace, Harold said. He said that could include a policy of no meetings on Fridays.
They’ll also need to pay attention to employees who may tend to isolate when working remotely, as well as other issues that may arise after the transition.
When one of Sus’ employees found it challenging to handle 10 direct reports after going remote, Sus pivoted to making sure none of his staff has more than five.
“Also, we are very intentional about their holistic development,” he said “We help them document a 10-year vision and work on a one-year goal and what ways we can help them get there,” he said. “That’s been really beneficial to keeping everyone aligned and engaged.”
Bakay said her clients have benefited from weekly huddles Zoom or Microsoft Teams, covering business initiatives and having small talk to find out what is going on in everyone’s lives.
“We’ve found that this is just as important as agenda-focused items,” she said.
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