When Will Covid Be Over?!
We had all hoped we’d be coming out of our pandemic now, not sinking back under another wave of Covid. Unfortunately, we can’t always plan ourselves into the circumstances we want. I hope you are taking care of yourself and your people during these trying times.
One of the articles I read recently (though published last year) seems particularly appropriate right now. It discusses the stresses we and our employees experience due to the ongoing public health emergency and the continued changes that wreaks on us: how “physical places of work have given way to virtual ones, job loss or fear of it has become rampant, pay and insurance [benefits] are at risk, and service workers [are] often putting their own health in jeopardy.”
In addition to the problem, the article also focuses on a specific way to handle this stress, especially when managing your team. The idea is focusing on dignity. As Donna Hicks, author of the workplace-focused Leading with Dignity, says, “[A] dignity-conscious company [is one] that recognizes the importance of treating ourselves, each other, and the customers we serve in a way that honors their value and worth and the significant role they play in the organization.”
That is, we should treat our workers and our guests, clients, customers, and even suppliers as if they matter, which, of course, they do. We couldn’t operate without them.
Specific ideas on what “dignity” looks like in the workplace are included – things like recognizing the efforts of your people, listening to them, empowering them whenever possible, letting them know you care. One of my favorite areas emphasized was that of remote work and how it should be paired with “remote humanity” – video or group “socials”, regular check-ins, virtual lunches, etc.
And this work shouldn’t end, even as the pandemic (hopefully) does.
What are you doing to show your people that you know they are integral to your success?
How do your actions show you care about them and want what is good for them?
In what ways are you honoring the dignity of each person in your organization – and each person who touches or is touched by your company?
Quoted article: https://rfkhumanrights.org/news/honoring-workplace-dignity-is-crucial-during-a-global-pandemic
Additional resources:
https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights
Donna Hicks - https://youtu.be/GPF7QspiLqM