HR Industry Brief

The pandemic may be waning, but long COVID is an ongoing concern and is even affecting people who didn’t have severe infection. In fact, it is estimated to occur in 10-30% of COVID survivors. Here are a few issues you need to consider to develop a long COVID strategy:

• Long COVID may affect productivity. Identify workplace issues affecting performance. Consider how you might shorten hours, break up tasks and responsibilities into smaller pieces, etc.
• Workers with long COVID may need disability accommodations. Find out what kind of accommodations may be necessary and how you can provide them.
• Meet with employees who have long COVID diagnoses in private. Give them an opportunity to talk openly about their issues and concerns. Listen with empathy and not judgment.
• Long COVID affects everyone differently, so avoid trying to implement a one-size-fits-all approach to address it.
• Encourage employees to seek ongoing medical care … [Read more...] about (4/22) Do You Have a Long-Haul COVID Strategy?

At a recent panel discussion bringing together immigration and healthcare experts with researchers, participants talked about the role of immigration as one solution for the nation’s caregiving workforce crisis. Among the highlights:

• One researcher explained that they found that fewer older adults were institutionalized in local areas where there were more immigrants.
• According to statistics, institutionalization rates for older Americans was 10% lower between 1980 and 2000 because of increased immigration.
• Panelists suggested that the U.S. hasn’t kept pace with other countries regarding immigration policies and protections.
• Panelists agreed that the use of foreign-born workers in an essential component in any discussion of the aging services infrastructure.
• One panelist observed that current pathways for migrant labor to come to the U.S. are extremely inadequate. Most visa programs, they said, aren’t geared toward … [Read more...] about (4/21) Immigration Necessary To Build Caregiving Infrastructure: Experts

Increasingly, workers want leaders they can trust. According to the experts, trusting leaders give their workers the power to:

• Think for themselves
• Grow
• Employ personalized methods to deliver results
• Hold themselves accountable to meet goals and deadlines.
• Take reasonable risks and learn from mistakes.
• Devise innovative ways to solve problems.

• Do employees know I trust them and that they have my full support? Are people comfortable admitting mistakes, suggesting solutions, and trying different/better ways to do things?
• Am I fostering a culture of trust with everyone who interacts with our team? Do people want to work with my team and with me? Do people approach me with ideas and talk to me openly and honestly?

Long work shifts, staffing shortages, stressful work, family pressures, and lack of resources has led to an overwhelming rate of nursing burnout. How bad is it? As of last year, nearly half of nurses said they wanted to leave their job; and that number rose as the pandemic has dragged on. There are a few things you can help reduce burnout and empower your nurses:

1. Acknowledge, empathize, listen, and help. Encourage them to share their fears and needs, then make a real effort to address them.
2. Support nurses’ physical and mental wellbeing. This can be as simple as hosting events such as meditation classes or walking groups, starting a wellness program, or creating support groups. Share opportunities for online education, counseling, and supportive services.
3. Encourage nurses to take breaks and have a work-life balance. Make sure they know what breaks and time off they are entitled to.
4. Offer flexible hours. Flex schedules are increasingly … [Read more...] about (4/19) 6 Things Leadership Can Do to Prevent Nurse Burnout

Employees who have to work on Easter and be away from their families for the holiday may appreciate a little fun and festivity at work. Even for workers who don’t celebrate Easter, these are great ways to show appreciation for their dedication and sacrifices:

• Treat your team to morning breakfast. Start the day with a free breakfast buffet or coffee and bagels or croissants and pastries.
• Have an adult Easter egg hunt as a team building exercise. For instance, the department or team that collects the most eggs gets an afternoon off or a catered lunch.
• Hand out thank you notes with a chocolate egg or other treat.
• Have Easter treats or baskets that employees can take home to their kids.
• Have pictures with the Easter bunny in the lobby for residents, staff, and families alike.
• Have a box of bunny ears and other Easter apparel staff can use to dress up.

An important part of leadership is getting people to do things they don’t necessarily want to do. One of these involves getting people to accept – even welcome – change. It can be challenging but it’s not impossible. Try these steps:

• “Foot-in-the-door” technique. This involves getting people to make a small change as a step toward something more difficult or extensive. When you get your employees to agree to a small change, it builds confidence, commitment, and trust and helps make big change easier down the line.
• “Door-in-the-face” technique. This involve asking for or demanding a larger, more difficult, and/or more dramatic change than you want or expect. When staff balk, you put forth your actual—less extensive—change. In comparison to your original demand, it doesn’t seem as extreme; and people are more willing to comply.

According to a new study, there is a growing trend toward ‘youngism’ in this country, where people are painting young adults as “clueless and burdensome.” In the study, when researchers asked people to described members of the younger generation, most words were negative. These included: entitled, coddled, disrespectful, and radical. Fewer positive words were mentioned, such as  ambitin, intelligent, and tech-savvy. Just like ageism, youngism should be addressed. To do this, experts suggest:

• Have open conversations about this and recognize it as a bias.
• Provide training to educate staff about both ageism and youngism.
• Work on uncovering unconscious biases and stereotypes. Use real-world examples.
• Team younger and older workers for projects and encourage them to learn from each other.

You’re probably not surprised to hear that the pandemic has had a negative impact on staffing in long-term care. Yet despite some hopeful optimism, a new study shows that the numbers aren’t getting better:

• Turnover remains higher than pre-pandemic levels, unlike hospital settings where staffing is starting to rebound.
• Frontline staff, including Certified Nursing Assistants, have felt forgotten and unappreciated for their physically and emotionally demanding work.
• Most states did not address the needs of workers such as home health aides at all.
• Better pay isn’t the only reason some workers are leaving long-term care. Some are taking jobs with comparable pay but less stress and risk.
• 36% of U.S. nursing homes are understaffed, but the numbers vary significantly from state to state. For instance, 5.5% of California facilities are understaffed, compared to over 80% in Alaska.

Your workers, especially Gen Zers and Millennials, could be contemplating a career move, according to a new survey of 35,000 people. Among the findings:

• 48% of Millennials and 49% of Gen Z workers say they wouldn’t accept a job offer if the company if the position didn’t mesh with their social and environmental beliefs, compared to 35% of Baby Boomers.
• 40% of Millennials and 42% of Gen Zers say they’d be willing to earn less if they believed their job contributed to the world or society; only 25% of Boomers agree.
• Many than half of Gen Zers say they’d quite their jobs if they felt it was preventing them from enjoying their lives.