Virtual Breakfast Forum – Sep 23, 2021
At today’s Breakfast Forum we enjoyed reconnecting with members, having a good discussion on Vaccine Passports. Members reported feeling challenged on how to handle unvaccinated staff, whether to invite them back to the office, or to require them to work from home, what type of work they will do, etc. Some members found that while their teams in the office are predominantly vaccinated, their teams in the field are widely not. This becomes an issue where more and more job sites are requiring contractors and sub-contractors to show vaccine passports when working on site.
Leaders are now facing challenges bringing people back into the office, even with safety protocols that remain in place. We need to ask our employees what is the concern: is it actually safety? Or is it simply that they prefer working from home? One tip that was offered is to try to focus on outcomes rather than where they’re working. One member reported that when COVID began, they flipped their entire office space into transient desk space, where employees need to now reserve a desk to come in to work, rather than have an assigned desk.
Labour shortage seems to continue to be a problem in some industries. Temporary workers can be fickle, choosing to move on to better paid gigs. Leaders must get creative to incentivize workers to join their teams, to stay engaged and make them feel like family. With taking on temporary workers, we must not lose sight that Health and Safety remains the utmost concern. These workers may not be familiar with the site, and we all need to be vigilant to stave off dangerous practices.
Tim Croyle of BC Transit reported that one of their biggest H&S challenges are MSI’s. As part of their “Recover at Work” program, BC Transit has recently instituted onsite physio services in both of their transit depots. As their workers start to feel something they can book an appointment at work, allowing a more preventative approach with injuries that build over time. Interesting timing for our October 7th Virtual Breakfast Forum, where we welcome WorkSafeBC, discussing Musculo-Skeletal Injuries. We hope to see you and a guest join us there.
