Uncertainty normally breeds anxiety. Between the economic fallout, ongoing protests over a pay rise, and increased numbers of Covid-19 cases, you can’t possibly tell what will happen next. And all these are taking a toll on people’s health.
As your company navigates different transitions in the few years or months to come, your employees may struggle with different problems, including PTSD, burnout, depression, trauma, and anxiety, just to mention a few. So the best thing to do in order to avoid all these is to help your workers in the following ways:
1. Apply for Employee Retention Tax Credit
The ERTC, also known as employee retention tax credit, is a refundable IRS payroll tax credit for eligible employers. It is available to many businesses and has millions in savings.
Originally, it was overshadowed by PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) because of the prohibition on businesses from getting both PPP and ERC funds.
Now the ERC funds are available, and your employees can be offered $5,000 or $7,000 when they meet certain criteria. And the best part is that, unlike PPP, you can use ERC on a family.
2. Grant Flexible Arrangements for Working
A flexible work arrangement can give your employees freedom over where and when they can fulfill their work responsibilities. Since the needs of some employees, especially those working parents, vary a lot, different kinds of flexible arrangements for working support them to care for their families.
A flexible arrangement for working may include ensuring protected long-term leave, compressing the work week, or teleworking so that your employees may care for their elderly parents or family members who are disabled and sick.
3. Hold Your Managers Liable
Managers are valuable when it comes to developing frontline employees because they are suited to develop, direct, and identify workers who have the potential to contribute to the business’s success.
With that said, frontline managers are subject to a lot of limited bandwidth and conflicting responsibilities, taking a more generalized approach toward supporting their workers as a result.
In order to change this, a performance appraisal needs to incentivize as well as hold managers liable for reinforcing opportunities for growth.
4. Support Health Needs
Especially women workers report a higher level of depression and anxiety compared to men. A recent survey also shows that single mothers are twice likely to worry about how their caregiving duties can affect their work in the office.
So as an employer, you need to play a visible and active role in directly addressing the need for health, both emotionally and mentally, for the entire workforce. This should also include tending to the unique requirements of women in the team.
5. Create a Safer Environment
Disclosing important information regarding a chronic illness or disability can be very intimidating for many workers. However, transparent communication can be helpful for employers to offer the right type of support employees require.
Some workers may decide to disclose their health conditions during their job interview. In such a situation, it can benefit both parties if employers offer prompt responses confirming that they understand the worker’s disclosure and request for accommodation.
Concluding Thoughts!
Your workers are better positioned to attain their career goals when they know that you, as their employer, support their dreams. Even if your employees work remotely, you can still make professional development of workers.