I’m sure that I am not alone in finding these winter Covid-19 lockdowns so much harder to handle. I think it is having some understanding of what is coming next that is particularly draining – and cold, dark, wet days don’t exactly make things any easier. At least in the film Groundhog Day, Bill Murray had the time, energy and freedom to work out new and fulfilling ways to impress Andie MacDowell – learning how to play the piano, sculpt ice, speak French… but for many of us, the groundhog day in which we find ourselves is more of a relentless juggling act.
After nearly a year of limited freedoms, trying to find ways to balance our mental and physical needs with the demands of everyday life – including childcare and education, relationships, work and health – is becoming increasingly tiring.
While I’ve loved seeing video call cameos of partners, children, pets and more (getting an insight into our colleagues and clients as people as well as the polished professionals we were used to seeing in the office), I am under no illusion of how taxing it can be too.
Balancing act
Right now, one of the biggest challenges that our people and clients face is managing the balance between work and family responsibilities. With schools closed in some capacity for the foreseeable future, the routine that underpins much of family life continues to be disrupted.
With schools more prepared than during the first lockdown and the volume of homework activity increasing accordingly, the natural parental desire for children not to fall behind has also grown. The pressure to be a top-notch teacher (which, lest we forget, takes years of training and experience), parent, and employee can be extremely difficult to manage. This is especially true for single parent households and households where both parents work.
Businesses need to be supportive of working parents facing these extraordinary challenges. I’m so grateful for the pragmatic and empathetic responses I’ve seen from our people, but we wanted to offer a more formal release valve, too. This is why we have given our working parents an additional seven days’ special paid leave – on top of the three days of leave all employees get to help care for dependants – to help them navigate the juggling act while schools are closed.
Every business will be approaching the best way to support their people in their own way, knowing that people work better when they are happy, relaxed and feel supported. Talking to people is important, and it is remarkable to see how a little flexibility can make a huge impact on a person’s wellbeing. Over the last year we’ve worked with specialists and our people to quickly respond to Covid-19 by introducing measures to help people cope – mental health campaigns, flexible working, office equipment and so on – and our productivity and creativity remain as strong as ever.
The speed with which our support teams have responded throughout the pandemic has been inspiring, and I’m sure that is a sentiment echoed in many other firms. Their efforts enabled us to also begin this year with a new policy giving all UK employees an additional two days’ special paid leave per month to help support the Covid-19 NHS Vaccination Programme as volunteers – which has allowed everyone to once again imagine a life beyond this pandemic.
Reach out
Beyond Covid-19’s terrible toll, the pandemic has really underlined the importance of giving ourselves a break and being kinder both to ourselves and those around us. To anyone out there struggling, I encourage you to reach out, talk and take the breathing space you need.
We’ve adjusted our way of thinking and working, from the front desk to the boardroom, and become a more considerate and flexible business as a result. Wellbeing is a key priority right across the industry, which is heartening to see given that has not always been the case.
These transformational lessons should continue to impact the way that we operate way beyond the pandemic, which is a real positive for the future.
George Roberts is head of UK & Ireland at Cushman & Wakefield
