Before the pandemic, organizing a conference call was almost a feat. Holding a videoconference was not even in our thoughts.
COVID-19 has changed us technologically in a matter of weeks. Quickly, employers were able to ask their employees to work from home.
Now that the worst of the pandemic is behind us (despite the seventh wave), one wonders how the post-pandemic job market will organize itself.
- Listen to Marc-André Leclerc’s commentary on Vincent Dessureault’s show broadcast live every day at 12:30 p.m. via QUB radio :
Towards performance
With the labor shortage, employees have an incredible power relationship with their employer. It will be difficult for managers to ask their colleagues, who have had a taste of teleworking, to return to a 100% face-to-face formula.
Telecommuting has forced employers to manage results instead of the presence of their employees. It’s easy to judge someone’s work just on the aspect of attendance. Does Paul arrive at 8 a.m. and leave at 4 p.m.? It’s easy to answer this question.
On the other hand, it is more difficult when Paul is at home. At this point, it’s performance that counts. Will he do a load of laundry at 10:15 a.m. between calls? Maybe !
However, the evaluation must be done at the performance level. Did he complete his work on time? Is his Tuesday presentation ready for the day before?
Request
Beyond salary and benefits, employees will also want to know if their future employer allows telecommuting.
Thus, it will be impossible for employers not to offer a hybrid formula. There are even employers currently offering telecommuting from a foreign country.
We do not know if we will still be talking regarding COVID-19 in ten years, but it is certain that telework will not disappear.
