“Over the past year, there was a lot of experimenting and a little arm-wrestling between management and employees about what constitutes a fair return-to-office policy. In April last year, we warned companies against unilaterally demanding a return to work for all employees, who were often given very little time to make the transition. Now, quantitative and qualitative evidence from South Africa and globally overwhelmingly shows that was the right call at the time.
While it may be true that employees feel vulnerable and in a precarious position given global economic turmoil and uncertainty, leaders must not think that, just because workers are toeing the line, that they support decisions handed down without their buy-in, Naidoo says. A two-year survey by Great Place to Work of more than 800 000 employees showed that the shift to working remotely during the pandemic boosted worker productivity by an average of 6%.