P: COVID-19 has had a massive impact
on the spa industry, with the
vast majority of spas worldwide having
laid off or furloughed employees
for months as a result. As they reopen
and rehire their teams, how can
they best support the needs of
younger employees during this challenging
time?
S: The spa industry knows how important
it is to take employee wellness seriously.
Employee burnout was already
on the rise before COVID-19, and things
have only gotten worse—especially for
younger employees, who are facing rising
rates of stress, anxiety and even depression
at work. The World Health
Organization (WHO) has even redefined
burnout as a ‘syndrome’ linked to
chronic stress at work. Understand that
younger employees will need extra support
during this time. Be as flexible as
possible when re-opening and understanding
that your workers may be balancing
the toll of pandemic stress,
career uncertainty, financial hardship,
as well taking care of family members
and caring for loved ones who are
sick—all while trying to show up to
work on time. Be transparent. Create
time for open and honest communication
and allow people to share what
they’re going through and what they
need from their employer. If possible,
provide access to mental health support
and resources. When in doubt:
treat your employees like your own
family members.
P: What long-term impact do you
think the COVID-19 pandemic will
have on the current and future workforce?
S: The economic impact on the workforce
cannot be understated and
many middle- and working-class families
will be hurting for years to come
because of the pandemic. So many
people have lost income and opportunity
due to COVID-19, and it will take
years for our economy to fully recover.
There will be an entire generation of
workers that has to juggle two or
three part-time jobs to get by since
there won’t be enough full-time positions
to go around—this was already
the case for many people before the
pandemic—and now will be the reality
for more people. Hopefully, we can
come together to create a stronger
government safety net for those who
need financial security, worker protections
and healthcare the most.
Everyone has been saying that the
office is dead and teams will be working
remotely forever. I actually predict
the opposite. I think employees are
starving for that human connection,
that physical touch, and that sense of
being in the room with other people
that was common place before
COVID-19. Sure, remote work has
become more popular and many
companies will move to a hybrid
model, where you can work from
home several days a week and be in
the office once or twice a week. But
the long-term impact will be that we
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