Canadian HR Reporter

NEWS BRIEFS Most HR professionals (89 per cent) are confident that their organizations will be bringing back all employees who were temporarily laid off because of COVID-19, while half expect to have all of their employees back in the workplace within six months. And nearly four in 10 say that they are planning permanent restructuring because of the pandemic, according to a survey by the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA), including changes to their business model, organizational structure, policies, new workflows, reduction of physical workspaces, downsizing and the ways people interact. A wide array of programs is being put in place including modified work schedules (25 per cent), flex time (19 per cent) and rotating shifts (18 per cent), found the survey of 1,127 respondents. "HR professionals have been front and centre in supporting their workplaces and employees through the most significant workforce disruption in modern times," says Louise Taylor-Green, CEO of HRPA. "Workplaces will fundamentally change and the 'new normal' will require a total reset in HR practices and policies." More than two-thirds (69 per cent) of IT decision- makers say that it has been surprisingly easy for the majority of their employees to work from home. However, 70 per cent are worried about information security as a result of remote workers, according to a Citrix Digital Shock Survey of 3,700 IT leaders in five countries — including 503 in Canada. And more than half (54 per cent) say there's been a spike in employees installing unsanctioned software. Almost half (48 per cent) of the IT leaders say that their organizations did not have a business continuity plan based on the vast majority of employees working REMOTE WORK RAISES TECH CHALLENGES MODIFIED WORK, PPE ON HR'S AGENDA 65% Roughly half of U.S. employees rank "lack of time" (55 per cent) and "finding suitable resources" (46 per cent) as the top challenges of developing upskilling or reskilling initiatives. However, 19 per cent also face resistance from upper management while 18 per cent have a hard time getting workers to believe in the initiative, according to a survey by TalentLMS of 400 workers. Six in 10 employees believe that their organization will be supportive of remote work after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to an O.C. Tanner survey of 1,426 employees in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, and most say that they would like to work from their home at least part of the time. • 81% of organizations are planning to permanently retain or expand remote working options. • 76% of organizations are planning to make special arrangements to assist their employees with family obligations. • 95% plan to implement or expand the use of PPE for employees • 91% are prepared to discipline employees for failing to comply with PPE rules. from home, and 61 per cent found it challenging to make the switch. "This crisis has thrust IT teams — often the 'unsung heroes' of a business — into the limelight like never before," says Meerah Rajavel, chief information officer at Citrix. " They have worked to deliver secure, reliable work environments that are keeping employees engaged and productive and business moving in extremely challenging times. And in doing so, they will emerge from the crisis more strategic and valued by their organizations than they were going in." • 68% to handle changes within the organization 21% would like to work from home full-time 70% would like to work from home between one and four days per week 9% do not want to work remotely at all Remote work popular with employees 'Lack of time' top training hurdle • 71% it's part of the employer's training and development culture • 65% to train employees on new technologies 81% 76% 95% 91% REMOTE WORK PREFERENCES WHY OFFER TRAINING? POPULAR SAFETY PRECAUTIONS 14 www.hrreporter.com M A R K E T N E W S

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