Slowly, yet steadily, the world is looking to get back to the pre-COVID state. For the corporate world, this involves getting the employees back to working from the office. The work from home during the lockdown was a disruption that many firms and employees had to adapt to quickly. However, with most governments easing the restrictions gradually, corporates are opening up workplaces for essential teams and departments. But this move is not without trepidation since the virus hasn’t yet gone away. Rather, in many areas, the number of cases is rising, and with travel restrictions being lifted, it is only expected to peak in the coming months. The message is very clear—we have to learn
to live with the virus. This means we need to make changes in our lifestyle, especially work-style.

There is significant change that needs to be brought into the workplace to ensure that there is a safe working space for all. Investing care and thought to guarantee this will be the best way out. This will not only ensure the safety of everyone in the office but also a healthy output. If employees feel stressed out, constantly worrying about the chances of contracting the virus, productivity will suffer. Hence, this change will have to be gradual and well thought out, with employees being allowed to return in phases, maybe getting back people from the same department, business groups, or floor at a time. Calling everyone back in one go can prove to be difficult to manage and dangerous.

While ensuring the overall wellbeing of the employee has always been a part of the corporate setup, it is time to prioritize it now. It should reflect in the workspaces, specifically with respect to cleanliness, decor, and layout. It is a big shift in approach, one that must necessarily and consciously be achieved.

Social Distancing—No compromise

Social distancing is an uncompromising safety measure in post-COVID-19 life. Even at work, this should be maintained with arrow-sharp guidelines spelt out for everyone. An awareness program about the changes and how to ensure social distancing is critical. The guidelines recommended may also be posted around the workspaces as a constant mental drill. Seating arrangements should necessarily change.

1. A minimum 6-feet distance between workspaces is a must, and desks and chairs will have to ensure zero overlaps. The density on the floor could be reduced by creating more space between cubicles. Ensuring at least a 6-feet distance between two employees is the key here. As per the new workspace norms, there should be a minimum of 2400 mm between two seats.
2. The seating arrangement should be reworked to have meeting tables and desks in between as space fillers so that employees maintain the distance even when they form a cluster for a discussion.
3. Barriers like screens or panels could be used to have divisions between employees to help prevent the spread of the pathogens. Such barriers may also be used to ensure separation in spaces or situations where a 6-feet social distancing is not possible. Flexible screens that can be fixed to any workstation, office table, or a free-standing desk are best. Screen sizes will have to be optimized,
   with easily cleanable surfaces.
4. Desk shields between workspaces may be installed to mentally reassure the employees that they are being well-protected.
5. Floor signages to ensure social distancing and division of spaces using floor stickers throughout the office, including the restrooms and the cafeteria, is a must.
6. The movement of people can be designated towards one direction with the help of arrows and markers to avoid chaos or collisions of any sort. For instance, people may be directed to move only in a clockwise direction or keep to the left in corridors.
7. For a few months, employees could be asked to bring their food and eat it at their desk to ensure minimum contact and to avoid crowding at the cafeteria. 
8. Technology could be put to good use, and interactions such as meetings and collaboration could be made virtual even when in the office, thereby continuing the social distancing in every aspect of the business day.
9. If inevitable, meeting rooms should be used with only 50% occupancy, that too after proper sanitizing.

Regular sanitization and disinfecting

Despite the best care, there is a risk factor, and a person or a surface may be infected. Hence, it is vital to change the cleaning methods and schedules. There should be thorough sanitization and disinfecting of the floor, tables, doorknobs, etc. A certified sanitizing agency may be contracted for this job.

1. Individual work desks could be provided with sanitizer pods for employees to sanitize their personal items such as phones and watches.
2. Auto sanitizers may be placed at the reception and entry and exit points of the common spaces within the floors.
3. Restrooms should have touch-free sanitizers and faucets that are regularly checked and maintained.
4. The login/attendance procedures should be changed if they involve contact modes. Contactless operations involving voice-mode activation or facial recognition should be installed.

Rules to keep infection at bay

The whole idea of making these changes is to ensure that the infection is kept at bay. A slew of measures can be introduced to ensure this, with the help of certain guidelines, many of which the government has already stipulated.

1. Do thermal scanning at the entry to ensure that people with fever do not enter the workplace and pose a threat to the others.
2. Use visual aids such as posters, stickers, and signages to communicate the new guidelines effectively.
3. Communicate the new guidelines to all visitors, including delivery agents, security guards, and the people manning the reception and entry points.
4. Make proper hand hygiene mandatory through frequent hand wash and/or using sanitizers.
5. With consent, use health or activity trackers to strategically to record employee data and analyze the same to ensure overall employee wellbeing.

Encourage people to adapt and change The key to creating safe workplaces lies in the willingness of people and firms to adapt to changes in the working style. This includes changing habits, adapting to new healthy recommendations, and evolving as per the demand of today’s post-COVID-19 period. The future is uncertain, and we do not know when the Corona virus will recede. This is a time when the most hygienic and the most evolved offices and employees will sustain, see it through, and emerge victorious.