The world is different. Whilst we still don’t exactly yet know to what extent it has changed, it has. In our personal, professional and social lives, there has been nothing in our lifetimes to create such a seismic change in the way we conduct ourselves. And until the dust of COVID-19 settles, we will continue to predict what our lives may or may not look like in the future. Though we can make no hard and fast assertions, there are learnings that business leaders and management teams can take from the seven weeks we have been in lockdown so far to ensure they create safe, open and collaborative working environments with their workforce and their health at the heart. The physical workplace Following the announcement from Government that workers from certain sectors can return if they don’t have the tools and capacity to work from home, businesses are considering the physicality of the workplace environment. Never before have they had to take steps to introduce social distancing measures; and quite simply, a lot of workplaces weren’t designed for people to remain 2m apart. Additionally, we are left wondering for how long this guidance will be in place. It will require day to day decision making and will mean businesses must quickly adapt to changes as restrictions relax. To help businesses overcome these constantly evolving challenges, we are making our Health and Safety Advisors and Consultants available to all. They can provide bespoke guidance on different workplace scenarios and the steps needed to socially distance employees while achieving some level of continuity. Knowledge is king COVID-19 has highlighted the need for ongoing education in the workplace. This applies to both us and our staff, and our clients – especially those who don’t traditionally work in safety-critical environments. With each Government announcement and every update from Public Health England, we are arming ourselves with knowledge and the resource to ensure our workforce remains responsive and valuable to clients and projects. As we venture forward, knowledge will remain king. As will common sense, and guided judgement. Currently, there is little right and wrong. That feels unsettling, but in the short term at least, we must embrace it, learn from it and grow. Communicating clearly Transparent communication was a key business requirement before COVID-19, and it has emerged as something that simply cannot afford to go wrong in the future. Messaging in and outside of businesses has had to improve during the pandemic, especially in scenarios where remote offices and home working have been involved. Individuals working away from the main bedrock of a business face feeling disconnected when previously, they were part of the social dynamic we enjoy in our workplaces. Striking a balance between safety and ensuring no-one is isolated is a challenge, and unique to every business. But, widely, we will continue to see a rise in video content; it works so well because as humans, we crave face to face contact. Plus, it can be done in real time and can facilitate the fast decision making we’re so used to on site or in an office. Additionally, now more than ever, clarity in written messaging is key. ‘What did you do?’ Working culture is hugely important, and looking ahead, candidates will be asking potential employers what they did during COVID-19 to protect their staff, make them feel valued, and remain operational. They will benchmark companies against one another, and arguably, it will be an employer’s response to this that will determine whether a candidate considers them for the role they’ve made available. Here at the Morson Group, we’ve prioritised showing our team, clients and contractors that we put them first. As we develop plans to phase our people back, we must consider their mental health as much as their physical health. In response, we’ve commissioned a COVID-specific mental health and wellbeing programme in partnership with our training arm, Morson Training, and our health and wellbeing engagement partner, Heather Deering, which will support anyone with a real anxiousness about coming back to work. This will also be rolled out to customers and our partners, so we can work to rebuild our supply chain. Of course, all this might change again in the coming weeks. We have little idea what the future holds so, arguably, we can only prepare for the ‘right now’. And while it’s always smart to have an eye on what the next 1, 3 and 5 years might look like, we’re encouraging everyone to take small, incremental steps. Listen to your workplace, listen to your suppliers, and respond to their needs. Simply, show you care. Seek out the experts To support our clients into the new COVID world, we have within our armoury a raft of services, expert consultants and technology solutions that work to deliver business continuity, protect the health, safety and welfare of workforces and ultimately ensure we can keep Britain working. To find out more about how the Morson Group can help with developing new policies and practices, through to the revising of office layouts and workspaces in line with Government advice, contact me at adrian.adair@morson.com. About Morson Group COO, Adrian Adair: With 19 years’ industry experience, Adrian Adair drives Morson Group’s diversification into new markets and transformation of the technical recruiter’s brand as a UK engineering expert into a global specialist in permanent and interim talent-based solutions. In 2019 Adrian was placed on the SI Staffing 100 list which recognises men and women who are charting a course into the future of workforce solutions. Adrian has a commitment to true inclusion and facilitated the Morson partnership with the Girls’ Network and is a Northern Power Women role model.
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If you are an employer or manager, you may never have had to think about other people more than during this time of crisis. It is essential that this continues as lockdown restrictions ease. The health and welfare of your people must be a priority and appropriately managed as many of your employees face a potentially daunting prospect of returning to their workplace. As an employer you not only have the responsibility of ensuring your employees’ physical health and safety by creating Covid-secure workspaces, but by understanding the effects of disruption and anxiety, you must also prioritise mental wellbeing. Here are some tips to help you put in place support mechanisms and create a culture where employees feel able to share their challenges and in turn, ease anxieties. 1. Talk to your people Keep in regular contact and whether people are in the workplace or at home, be honest and authentic. Start by acknowledging the uncertainty and the stress the workplace now causes, and be prepared to say that you don't have or know the answers to questions ‘right now’. Reassure anyone left waiting that you will prioritise finding the solution to their challenge, and you’ll come back to them at your earliest opportunity. Make sure that alongside regular communication with all staff, you also liaise with line managers. They are the main contact between the heads of an organisation and its people and if you want to achieve consistently applied policies and advice, they may need more information than you give to all staff. Remember, you should only share advice and guidance from accredited and responsible sources, especially in regard to people’s health. 2. Everyone has a different mental health This pandemic has had an impact on how we all think and feel about ourselves and the world we live in. There is a lot of talk of physical vulnerabilities in relation to the coronavirus, but many people will be going through the entirely new experience of mental vulnerability. From feelings of displacement, being overwhelmed and stress and anxiety, people who may never have experienced mental health issues before may be feeling mental distress and it’s important to consider this. These circumstances might lead people to disclose mental health problems they have previously not discussed at work. Treat new disclosures with respect and compassion and make reasonable adjustments. 3. Promote access to support Provide access to support services through your workplace – there are many excellent third-party mental health resources that you can promote to help your employees such as an Employee Assistance Programme and through charities like Mind. Make sure these resources are made widely available on company intranets and are clearly signposted within the workplace. In addition, ensure people also know where to go and who to talk to internally. If you have mental health champions, allies or mental health first aiders make sure they have the latest information, and that if you change working practices as more government guidance is announced, that this network of mental health support continues to adapt so it can provide constant support. If you need help with implementing mental health support services within your organisation we can provide accredited mental health first aider training and additional interim HR support to deal with peaks in demand. Contact our training director, Matthew Leavis at matthew.leavis@morson.com for more information. For most people anxiety will be temporary and will fade over the coming weeks and months. For others, it may represent a more long-lasting concern that will require support to overcome. As employers, we need to adapt our approach and develop the tools to support the wellbeing of our community in tackling the additional challenges that COVID-19 poses to the mental health of our workforces. Promote your internal mental health support services effectively and remember that as line managers and directors, they’re there for you too. Morson are here to support you. Our training business, Morson Training, have designed a bespoke training programme focused reintegration to the workplace which specifically focuses on mental resilience and stress management. With the constantly changing employment landscape, we have a 1 to 1.5hr training session that teaches strategies to identify external pressures and strains relating to change, coping strategies and future resilience. Contact our training director, Matthew Leavis at matthew.leavis@morson.com for more information.
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The measures imposed by UK government and authorities around the world to tackle the coronavirus outbreak have meant people have experienced isolation, uncertainty and disruption more than ever before. Homes have become workplaces, schools and gyms, and people are facing considerable uncertainty around their health, finances and job security. Against this backdrop, it is unsurprising that stress and anxiety have been exacerbated, with many of us – pre-existing mental health conditions or not – experiencing high levels of worry. However, as countries start to lift lockdown restrictions and governments set out tentative measures to re-open society, thoughts turn to how we will cope with reintegration and resocialisation. Over the past few months we’ve steadily adapted to our ‘new normal’. We’ve been able to stay in our homes, a space we can control and feel safe in, and we’ve been able to take measures to prevent our exposure to others, like limiting time outdoors and maintaining social distancing. This has been a worrying and stressful time, however through actions encouraged by our government and health experts we’ve been able to mitigate potential anxieties throughout the lockdown period. Whilst the prospect of easing restrictions will be positive for many – for example, we might final be able to give loved ones a hug, access a professional haircut and spend downtime in eating and drinking establishments – learning to live alongside coronavirus will evoke some levels of discomfort. After adapting to stay-at-home measures, we may feel hesitant or lack the confidence to go back out into the world – even if, at the same, time we’re looking forward to it. The concept of holding two opposing viewpoints simultaneously is called ‘cognitive dissonance’, and commonly causes mental discomfort to arise. In the employment context, integration back into office spaces raises similar anxieties. There will be a natural apprehension around returning to spaces which were once completely ordinary, but over the past few months have been deemed dangerous. As lockdown measures ease, mental health experts are anticipating a rise in the experience of anxiety, whether we have a history of mental health issues or not. Morson health, wellbeing and engagement partner, Heather Deering gives her top tips to follow if you are experiencing fear or anxiety about post-lockdown life: 1. Listen to yourself Take steps to understand how and why your anxiety arises, how you can recognise it within yourself and others, and develop strategies that may help you overcome it. This might take the form of engaging with mental health champions in your workplace, seeking out information or advice from mental health charities and organisations, or speaking with your doctor or other trusted healthcare professional. 2. Communicate Being open and honest about your feelings with those around you will encourage others to do the same. Though we all respond differently to stress, this is a unique and rare situation where the entire population is having the same experience at the same time. People sharing their feelings serves as a good reminder that we’re all in the same boat, and we can’t underestimate the comfort that this can bring to an uncomfortable situation. 3. Mental and physical health Protect your health and wellbeing by eating well, exercising regularly, getting plenty of good quality sleep, and by making time for self-care. When anxiety overtakes us, it can be difficult to find the mental capacity to do all of these things, every day. But take it all a step at a time, do little bits of each thing and watch how your mental load improves when you strike the balance. Build up from there. 4. Be kind to yourself Recognise that if you are feeling discomfort or anxiety, it is normal; we’ve gone through a lot of change in a very short space of time and adjustment to it is unlikely to be immediate. Be kind to yourself and those around you and don’t expect to necessarily slide straight back into life as it was pre-lockdown. It took time to adjust to lockdown and it’s going to take time to adjust back. If you don’t feel ready, don’t bow to any internal or external pressure to dive straight in to social activity – take it slow and steady. For most people anxiety will be temporary and will fade over the coming weeks and months. For others, it may represent a more long-lasting concern that will require support to overcome. As individuals, if you find yourself struggling with anxiety or feeling overwhelmed don’t keep it to yourself – speak to a trusted friend or loved one, your doctor, or to a mental health support organisation like Mind or Samaritans. Better yet, use your internal mental health support services – they’re there for you, too. As we all navigate COVID-19 and the changes it is bringing to each of our lives, we all have a responsibility to reach out and start the conversation around mental health. Talk, connect with one another and reinforce the support systems around you.
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Engineering apprentices have been thrown a lifeline, as new protocols for carrying out vital End-Point Assessments remotely allow apprentices to achieve required benchmarks during Covid-19. British businesses are being urged by industry leaders and unions to adopt newly developed techniques to ensure that thousands of young engineering apprentices can still qualify during the Covid-19 crisis. EAL is one of the country's leading awarding organisations for engineering and manufacturing and they have developed new protocols for carrying out End-Point Assessments remotely. This adaptation to learning would allow apprentices to achieve required benchmarks in the learning process, become qualified and be ready to help the nation’s economic recovery. The breakthrough ensures that even apprentices being furloughed could move to the next level, enhance their earnings and boost their career prospects. Andrew Robinson, operations and apprenticeship manager at Morson's dedicated training division. Morson Training, said: Apprenticeships are at the heart of the Morson Group and are key to securing a sustainable talent pipeline for all future projects. In these difficult times, working with the excellent team at EAL and using technology to find agile solutions to the End-Point Assessment process, has allowed us to ensure our apprentices have completed their learning journey and received the qualifications they have worked hard for. The remote End-Point Assessments, began on 13 March 2020 and are carried out by a strong team of 47 specially trained assessors – in aspects of engineering including automotive, rail, aerospace, manufacturing, project management, maintenance, automation and control, tool making and machining, fabrication & welding and engineering specialisms such as metrology and product design. Keep Britain Working Engineering and manufacturing will be in the front-line of recovery – and apprenticeships and training will play an essential part. This adaptation shows the importance of innovation to find new ways of working to boost the economy. To progress the economic fightback further, Morson has joined forces with REED as the strategic northern partner in its ‘Keep Britain Working’ campaign. Keep Britain Working sees business leaders and politicians from across the UK come together to protect jobs and preserve livelihoods. Through the campaign we will help redeploy workers from struggling sectors to in-demand ones, help people who have lost their jobs find new ones, share and implement the best ideas to help the country keep working and get people back into work. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has predicted the UK economy could shrink by 35 per cent, resulting in a total of 3.4 million people becoming unemployed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. This would mean 2 million people losing their jobs this spring. As such, we're encouraging businesses and workers to make pledges to #KeepBritainWorking both during the crisis and beyond it. Keepbritainworking.com also features ideas, advice and resources to support companies and their workers through this difficult time, giving guidance on a variety of topics, and will connect businesses with a growing demand for workers with those considering furlough, redundancies or reduced hours. Ged Mason, Morson Group CEO said: We’re all in this together, and as we digest the Government’s roadmap for exiting lockdown and embark on this new chapter of normality, we are committed to sharing best practice and supporting people and organisations to ensure the safety of our workers, protect jobs, preserve livelihoods and rebuild businesses. Find out more about the campaign and pledge your support here
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While the Coronavirus pandemic continues, against a backdrop of businesses eager to restart the economy and individuals seeking advice on how to safely return to work, a new emergency service has emerged which is going largely unnoticed. Due to some uncertainty around the Government's advice on the steps businesses and their teams should take to arm themselves against the virus, those working for the UK’s six million private sector businesses, and for the millions more operating within public sector services, have turned to their most trusted source of support. Almost overnight, HR teams have become counsellors, employment lawyers and experts on business legislation. They are facing demand for their service and expertise more than ever before. But who exactly is supporting them? While they are working around the clock, where and what are the most useful sources of advice for HR professionals? What are the key business continuity challenges emerging, and how can this sector prepare for the new normal? We want to hear from HR experts who are finding this time daunting; our team are here to help you. If you think you’re alone, continue reading for the variety of ways the Coronavirus pandemic is presenting a wholly novel challenge to the HR industry. Day to day operations Though the Government introduced a largely blanketed approach to how lockdown should be implemented, every business in the UK is different. That means there is a responsibility on every HR professional to assess the guidance and make a judgement, so it can safely and easily be implemented into that organisation’s existing working model. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, lots of HR teams’ agendas for 2020 have changed significantly. And while the weeks and months spent labouring over strategies and processes to help companies achieve their ambitions on targets won’t be totally wasted, it feels like an entirely new challenge to adapt them to cater for a pandemic. For many businesses, the safest option is to work reactively, as the news and response from Government changes daily. But when HR are typically tasked with outlining the comms to be issued to a business in relation to COVID-19, this is a heavy burden to bear. This challenge is heightened further when some organisations are seeing their absence levels rocket due to team members becoming sick or having to isolate. Not only is this damaging for those who continue to operate, due to the extra demand for their time, but the fluctuation in leave allows very little wriggle room for contingency planning to acquire appropriate staffing levels. Industries that are in demand – manufacturing, ecommerce, food and drink – still require sufficient peoplepower, and it’s up to HR teams to source it. And they’re pressured to do so while continually trying to strike a balance between these unprecedented challenges and positive staff wellbeing. The future of the HR team The Government’s business finance schemes have forced HR teams to quickly get to grips with furloughing staff and the resultant claims for loans and grants from HMRC. As a result, HR teams are searching for additional support of their own, with many drafting in temporary expertise to support the spike in HR activity. HR teams can often be found taking on the role of other departments – for example, payroll and finance – and these are essential tasks which must be completed alongside the demand to get to grips with Coronavirus-related changes in business operations. Thankfully, there are recruiters – like the Morson Group – on hand who are able to source immediately-available talent to plug this gap in resource and knowhow, meaning HR teams can share some of the pressure with those used to dealing with temporary changes in supply and demand. This is encouraging many HR teams to reconsider their ways of working, having identified the option to restructure to streamline processes. However, when still little is known about the recommended timeframes of returning to work – and how long the reintroduction of furloughed staff will take to complete – HR teams may be reluctant to consider huge changes in their make-up. Ongoing support Ultimately, HR teams need to feel empowered and able to liaise with their senior management, MDs and CEOs, to discuss what the short- and long-term futures may hold for businesses, and especially how this will impact their division. If this doesn’t feel possible, they can seek support from regional CIPD teams and unions, as well as industry experts on the challenges of HR, to form a collaborative approach suited to benefit all parties. Recently, candidates and clients – potential and existing – are seeking our support to gain a clear understanding of markets across different sectors; we work across a huge variety of industries making us best placed to learn lessons from what is working well for one sector, and how it could positively impact another. Plus, our connections with thousands of active candidates means that we can source available talent to support HR teams in their main challenges. There is no rule book for how businesses should try and survive COVID-19; ultimately, the health of your teams is superior to many other areas. But those struggling to muddle through the fog of the pandemic should utilise every support channel they can. For example, this webinar from the CIPD provides inspiration and tactics on everything from furloughing to mental wellbeing, and everything in between. We are encouraging every HR professional to open a dialogue with the Morson Group and work collaboratively with us and other key leaders to develop bespoke solutions for your business – because your ‘new normal’ is different to everyone else’s. Please get in touch with louise.ellis@morson.com or craig.saxby@morson.com; share your challenges and let us help you find a way through this challenge. And in the meantime, know that you’re doing a fantastic job. If you're looking for work in HR, search our latest opportunities here.
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Comment provided by Morson CEO, Ged Mason OBE The Prime Minister’s announcement has brought hope and confidence back to UK industry, particularly to those technical and complex sectors which had essentially ground to a halt under the lockdown restrictions. By modifying the measures and allowing those employers whose workforces cannot operate from home to return to work is the next logical phase in ensuring our economy can bounce back from the global pandemic. Businesses had already begun turning their attention to planning a return to work road map and how this would work in practice by safeguarding the health, safety and wellbeing of their entire workforce. Whilst there is no one-size-fits-all methodology and guidance, with each workplace facing their own individual challenges, organisations can adopt the same proactive approach to managing risk, delivering a safe transition and to mitigating the spread of infection. Assessing risk and taking appropriate action will be fundamental and is why we’re offering the practical support of our specialist in-house Health & Safety Advisors and Consultants. By working collaboratively with businesses, they will deliver a risk-assessment-based approach to identify the workplace risks and the control measures required to not only protect the health and safety of their people but any third parties which may physically interact with their workplace. The adoption of early detection technology will become more commonplace, as organisations work to create and maintain a ‘safety first’ culture that protects themselves and the welfare of their workers. Mobile applications, including our own ‘Fit For Work’ technology, will play a crucial role in arming businesses with the digital means to identify whether workers are experiencing common signs and symptoms of Coronavirus and to ensure these individuals do not enter the workplace. We’re on a mission at the Morson Group to lead the economic fightback against COVID-19 and #KeepBritainWorking. As such, we have joined forces with REED as the official Northern Recruitment Partner in its ‘Keep Britain Working’ campaign. We will lead the movement’s presence in the North to help match businesses with essential and key workers, to fill roles safely and in line with Government health advice. We will also spearhead the operation’s mission to identify and facilitate new roles for those who have found themselves out of work as a result of the pandemic, as the northern economy looks to rebuild. We are also working with organisations to support them beyond their talent acquisition needs, such as HR and wellbeing support. It would be naïve to assume that once the lockdown is lifted, everything will return to normal. Workplaces, and how we use them, will be significantly different to those we left behind in March, with measures such as social distancing being a new way of life for the foreseeable future. We’re all in this together, and as we digest the Government’s 50-page roadmap for exiting lockdown and embark on this new chapter of normality, we are committed to sharing best practice and supporting organisations to ensure the safety of your workers, just like ours, remains paramount. For more information on how we can support your organisation with anything from talent acquisition and flexible payroll to employment screening, workplace risk assessments and mental health support please email david.lynchehaun@morson.com
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