As we all know, this pandemic has made numerous remote options for workplaces to help their employees continue going about their everyday business situations from home. With the extreme use of remote desktop operations, managed services, VoIP, and video conferences, many companies that would have never used remote sessions or allowed working from home has been happening more and more. While this is a terrible situation that has caused all of this to happen, there is one good thing about it – it has broadened horizons for sick workers (even if it’s not from COVID-19).
What does this mean in our future? Well, as far as we’re concerned, we may end up seeing fewer employees being able to “call in sick” to get the day off of work and so much more. Let’s explore this topic, shall we?
Table of Contents
Benefit: Less Actual Sick Days May Be Used
Most companies often work on a “point” system. The point system means that employees can call in sick and only miss so many days. Employees often receive sick leave pay, additional benefits and even enjoy getting the day off. The problem with this is that many people abuse the systems in many places, and therefore, they get to play “hooky” just because they have a common cold. With remote options available, they can call in sick and then begin working from home when applicable.
Benefit: Transportation Issues Become Less of an Issue
Some people have problems when it comes to transportation to work. Mass transit options can shut down, have delays, and so much more due to various reasons (including this pandemic), and sometimes they’re overcrowded because they become free to use by the public. Another common problem with transportation in the workplace is that rush hour in Phoenix can cause people to miss work if they head out of their homes just 5 minutes late. Try getting stuck on the I10 or the 60 in rush hour traffic at 8:30 AM and see if you get to work at 9:00 AM.
This man is stuck in traffic and hating life. He is 100% wishing he was working from home.
Of course, some employees have fundamental transportation problems, such as their car not starting. Well, what if working from home was an option? Using remote options, there are fewer excuses to get work done simply due to the lack of transportation.
Benefit: Numerous Free Options for Remote Work Are Available
In the past, it was almost impossible to find options that didn’t cost a ton of money for businesses to get everyone working from home. While there were very few options free for remote messaging and video conferencing at the dawn of the internet boom, they were often with the same applications that everyday computers used for their personal use. Therefore, it pretty much threw professionalism out the window.
These days, there are so many apps out there that are offering free trials and memberships. You can also find free resources to use for remote work. Have a tablet or a notepad running an Android environment? Microsoft Office is now free for mobile devices, and you can use every single app: Outlook, Microsoft Word, Excel, and even PowerPoint. They are entirely free.
Add this to the fact that you can synchronize your phones and mobile devices with your laptop using Windows 10 tools. With third-party remote meeting software, such as 3CX’s WebMeeting, you can host entire workplace meetings, as well as monitor employee usage to ensure that work gets done the right way every time! Remote options make working from home a win for everyone!
Studies have shown that working from home leads to happier employees that are more productive.
Are Sick Days Gone Then?
Unfortunately, not every company can host remote working from home options for every position. Many essential workers, such as those in factories, have to still be at work and run machinery, and more. But believe it or not, some smaller businesses can operate almost 100% with employees working from home.
Let’s face it; sick employees should not be in the office and should be working from home.
For example, if you run a laser-etching business in which you have a worker to monitor the machine, you can have another employee working from home remotely connected to the PC that’s associated with the laser printer/etcher. Then they can operate and execute the machinery directly from home. While this can’t be done for literally every job, there are often positions that certainly can benefit from having remote options. Even if they’re at home sick with the flu, or if they’re in quarantine during these tough times! Working from home is merely adding to your business’s arsenal.