Don’t Panic, But Wash Your Hands, and Stay Home!

              Right now, it seems all the world is abuzz over the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19 as it is now being referred to. Between its highly contagious nature and ever higher publicized death toll (currently resting at 3%), everyone is scrambling for the figurative hills. COVID-19 is the newest in a long line of characters that we’ve been in fear of for quite some time. We’ve been on the run from everything from bird flu to swine flu, SARS to MERS, Zika to others that don’t get the big marquee welcome. While sitting in the emergency room with my daughter last week, a more realistic picture was painted. She was being treated for influenza. Apparently, flu is more rampant than COVID-19, with symptoms more severe, and with a higher death count. Don’t Panic, But Wash Your Hands, and Stay Home!

                While these illnesses are no picnic to suffer through when infected, they can also wreak havoc on the workforce. COVID-19 is being referred to as a pandemic in the making. This creates a real sense of panic among the workforce, and supervisors and workforce management teams can aid and reassure by having a plan. Those plans don’t need to differ far from those put in place for inclement weather. We discussed these points a few weeks ago when discussing managing snow days for demand work.

                It just so happens that, if you are using Vantage Point and WebAccess from Pipkins, these steps are being followed with help from the best workforce management software available. As we mentioned previously discussing how snow days don’t always mean a drop in productivity, same with illness. Whether weather or illness (or simply fear of either) are striking your workforce, you should have workforce management scheduling system that works to give you the best options for coverage of demand work.

                As we discussed in our January 21, 2020 blog, in the event of the unforeseen, there are companies that allow for flexible scheduling to work around issues. Given this time around the obstacle is a possible pandemic, more and more employers have at their disposal the option to work from home. Typically, this was an option reserved for management and non-demand employees but changing times have created new options, and demand employees are now able to take advantage of this benefit. Having a web-based product like Pipkins’ Workforcescheduling.com will allow for your employees to clock in and out as well as check their schedules or anything else they might need to do when in the office. Having them connected to the workforce management system from home means that monitoring tasks and adherence can be achieved as if everyone were simply in the office on any typical day.

                In all seriousness, just as you should choose the safest option in inclement weather, so should you approach illness the same way. Be safe. Wash your hands. If you’re ill then you need to stay home! If you feel like your workforce management software isn’t handling your needs with this same level-headed approach, reach out to Pipkins, Inc. and schedule a demo. We’ll be here, ready to answer your questions and solve your workforce management crises. If it’s questions of health, you can consult www.cdc.gov .