'Difficult conversations' ahead for employers looking to bring staff back to office: expert

Employees working from home over the past two years of the pandemic could soon be preparing for a return to the office as Omicron spread subsides in Ontario.

In Toronto’s financial district, foot traffic is picking up, but there is hesitancy about going back to the office.

“I wouldn’t like to come back full-time. It’s much more comfortable to work from home,” Chris Clifford, who was back downtown Tuesday to deal with some equipment at his work, told CTV News Toronto.

Chris Clifford (Beth Macdonell/CTV News Toronto)

“I can’t tell you how many people have told me they would quit,” Nola Simon, a hybrid work consultant, said.

Simon said she’s been hearing from workers worried about employers requiring staff to return to the office in both hybrid and full-time scenarios.

She’s in the process of starting a business in March to help companies develop hybrid workplaces. Over the past decade, she’s advocated to work remotely and switched into a different position to do so full-time.

Simon said it could be costly to replace staff and recommends companies provide training and support to managers.

“Unless there is really compelling messaging about what the benefit is for the employees at the office, it’s a difficult conversation to have, especially if there are caregiving responsibilities,” she said.

She adds that if employees haven’t had a raise during the pandemic, some could view going back to the office as a pay cut, as money for clothes and travel become part of budgets once again.

ALMOST 1/4 OF CANADIANS WORKING FROM HOME

StatsCan reported in January almost a quarter of employees are working exclusively from home, compared to 7.5 per cent who usually worked at home in 2016.

The highest proportions of remote workers are in urban areas, with Ottawa at 40 per cent of employees working from home and Toronto at 34.7 per cent.

Employers have begun offering hybrid ways of working. So far, 3.6 per cent of workers fall in this category from legal services, engineering, public relations, finance, insurance and real estate.

FINDING BALANCE AND FLEXIBILITY

Wade Hillier works in a managerial role downtown. He comes to the office two days a week and is having conversations with employees. He said the commute and safety are big topics.

“The need to come back to a full-time office space just doesn’t hold a lot of value for them because they can demonstrate they can still deliver [from home],” said Hillier.

He said finding balance is key, which, for some, means working at the office.

“For me, I think having the separation of home and work is really important, so as soon as I got approval, I went back to the office — not everyday, but when it was allowed,” Henriette Grootenhuis, who works downtown in financial services, said.

Henriette Grootenhuis, works downtown in financial services. (CTV News Toronto)

Through surveys of 14, 000 employees, Deloitte Canada said it found where and how people work are best determined by the people doing the work. It’s still not clear how many will physically come back to their offices regularly.

“It’s definitely a spectrum across the board. I think we haven’t been in that situation yet where we are fully open in every location in Canada,” Linda Blair, Chief Experience Officer at Deloitte, said.

“I would say we are really looking forward to that and we’re looking forward to continuing to ask our people how they’re feeling, to pivot and adapt.”

Chris Clifford said his employer has been supportive and enjoys working out of the office.

“I’ll be coming back to work maybe one day a week, permanently, so that’s good for me.”