Microsoft Corp. is pushing back its return-to-office date in the U.S. indefinitely amid rising uncertainty due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. While the technology company had originally planned to reopen its Redmond, Wash., headquarters and other U.S. offices on Oct. 4, those plans have “shifted,” according to a company blog post written by Jared Spataro, […]
With 57 per cent of Canadian employees expecting flexible working arrangements to continue post-coronavirus pandemic, 54 per cent of Canadian employers are adopting a hybrid working arrangement, according to a new survey by Mercer Canada. The survey found 61 per cent of employees said they prefer to work from home and, currently, 77 per cent […]
It’s 18 months this week since a global coronavirus pandemic was first declared and employers are applying many hard lessons learned as Canadian organizations and employees stare down further uncertainty wrought by the Delta variant, fourth wave and stagnant vaccination rates. As the country and world looks towards another tumultuous fall and winter, employers are […]
Nearly four in 10 (39 per cent) U.S. employers said they don’t expect their organization will return to the workplace and end coronavirus pandemic-related policies and programs until the second quarter of 2022, according to new a survey by Willis Towers Watson. The survey, which tracked more than 900 American employers’ coronavirus pandemic reopening and vaccination […]
Google is once again postponing a return to the office for most workers until early 2022, in addition to requiring all employees to be vaccinated once its sprawling campuses are fully reopened. The highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus is driving a dramatic spike in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations, leading companies to delay or […]
More than half (54 per cent) of attendees to Benefits Canada‘s virtual return-to-work webinar on Aug. 12 said they’re planning a phased return to the workplace beginning in the third or fourth quarter of 2021. Among the respondents, which included nearly 200 plan sponsors and other industry professionals, a further 18 per cent said they’ve […]
More than a third (41 per cent) of U.S. employees believe unvaccinated workers should pay higher insurance rates, with generation Z the least supportive (23 per cent) and baby boomers the most supportive (45 per cent), according to a new survey by Eagle Hill Consulting. The survey was published this week as federal regulators in […]
More than half (60 per cent) of employees said their employer is communicating a return-to-workplace strategy, according to a new survey by Maru Public Opinion for ADP Canada Co. Of the working Canadians who said they’ve received a plan, more than half (53 per cent) are already back in the office. An additional 29 per […]
Air Canada is requiring all employees to be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus and to report their vaccination status by Oct. 30. While the company will accommodate employees who have valid exceptions, such as medical conditions, that prevent them from being vaccinated, failure to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 30 will have consequences — including unpaid leave or […]
Concerns surrounding returning to the office and workplace coronavirus vaccination policies are negatively affecting Canadian workers’ mental health and well-being, according to LifeWorks Inc.’s latest mental-health index. Although July’s mental-health score held steady at negative 10.1, the same as for June 2021, it was the 16th consecutive month in a row that the index revealed […]