It is 3 years since the UK was officially 'locked down' due to the Covid 19 pandemic. How has this impacted the workplace and what have we learnt?

It’s hard to believe that 3 years ago today, the UK locked down for the first (but certainly not the last!) time due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Schools were closed, employees were furloughed, flights were grounded, and the supermarket shelves ran dry. It felt like the world had stopped and in some respect, it had!

Shipping and maritime were one of the few industries which had to carry on.?90% of the world’s trade is carried by sea and during the pandemic, it remained an essential means of transporting goods across the globe.

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3 years on, covid has clearly had an impact on the world of employment as we know it.?Many employees now have the flexibility of being able to work from home which in many cases equates to a better work-life balance.?Increased flexibility means that parents can now attend school events which they may not previously have been able to, commuting time has decreased, many have experienced a better work-life balance which in turn can impact positively on an individual’s health and well-being.

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We asked one of our Recruitment Specialists David Tubb for his thoughts on the world of work post-pandemic.

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“Working from home allows you to choose the right environment for the task at hand.?For example, collaborative work vs work that requires a deeper focus. It can help with easing personal commitments, certainly when commuting is taken out of the mix. It definitely enables a better work-life balance. Life happens, it does not fit into the “nine to five” standard week.?For me personally, as a recruiter, this is a job you can do anywhere as long as you have a phone line and an internet connection.

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During the pandemic, international travel virtually ground to a halt, and business travel certainly stopped in its’ tracks.?We turned to Teams as an alternative to face-to-face meetings and training programmes began to run remotely. We asked Dave if he felt there was still a need for business travel.

“I think it has made a lot of companies, including us, look at best practices when it comes to business travel.?What are the benefits of “jumping on a plane” compared to a virtual meeting? The timing of the pandemic coincided with the growing focus on ESG and environmental matters and being aware of our carbon footprint.?This is very noticeable to me in interviews.?I have only arranged a handful of interviews that require a flight, most interviews are now carried out virtually.?That said, face-to-face contact cannot be replaced in some contexts, nor can the need to be on, or go on a vessel visit.?Having said that, there has been a noticeable change in the need to travel of superintendents and surveyors who are now using one of the many virtual tools available at their disposal.”

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Our Chairman Phil Parry visited Singapore at the end of 2022, his first overseas trip since the pandemic hit.?He met with several clients in the region and came away feeling that there was definitely a change in employee attitudes and in particular the style and demands of the younger generation.?He felt there was an expectation of flexibility in the workplace that was unrealistic.?He wondered if employers’ hands were tied due to staff shortages, inflation, and pay pressures and employers were therefore fearful of losing staff and not being able to recruit.

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We asked Dave for his take on the subject.?“Each request needs to be looked at in context, but there are also some requests that do not make logical sense such as an Office Manager wanting to be fully remote.?This role would entail managing the office, the facilities and the visitors that came through the door.?On the flip side, there are some companies who have not moved forward with hybrid or flexible working and have a policy of 100% office based.?While they may have their own reasons for this, they are now cutting off a section of the candidate pool when trying to attract talent against their competitors.”

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An important point to finish on is that of an employee’s health and well-being. Whilst working from home has obvious benefits, one of the negatives is the lack of interaction with others.?This is especially important for people living on their own or away from family and friends.?We shouldn’t underestimate the importance of the ‘watercooler moment’ and the ability to chat with colleagues. We asked Dave for his thoughts.?“I think there can be positive and negative impacts. For me personally, working remotely 100% of the time would have a negative impact.?Whilst certain individuals thrive around other people as they love being in a collaborative environment, others can perform better in a solo environment with just some interaction.?Whichever is the case, it's great that many employees now have the option of flexibility. I think that working remotely adds additional pressures to some people who feel like they have to prove they are working harder.?They open themselves up to the danger of working longer hours, not taking breaks, and not switching off as home and office are the same environment. We need to remember that if we work from home we take time to reset and decompress after hours, something which you get from a commute, no matter if it’s just 15 minutes or an hour and a half.”

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Whatever your thoughts on the world of work post-pandemic, it has certainly changed beyond recognition in an extremely short time period. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.