Last week, just before the Thanksgiving break, a video message went out from the head of our COVID-19 Task Force to all colleagues, kind of reminding us of the guidance to not travel or mix households over the holiday - because they need us all to stay healthy. It was a generally upbeat message that had sort of ominous undertones, and was the first time, among all the communications I've gotten from my employer, that I felt they were really serious and worried about the disease's impact on our colleagues.
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| Cherrydeck for Unsplash |
- Employees must work remotely unless impossible (previously we were able to return to the office voluntarily at 25% capacity, which we were well below)
- Masks must be worn at all times indoors, even if physically distant - so must now be worn at all times except while eating or drinking, even if in a room alone (previously they didn't require masks if you were 6 feet apart [e.g. spaced out in a conference room], or in your own office or at your own cubicle desk, which they said met the 6 foot requirement)
- Before returning to the office from out-of-state travel longer than a same-day trip, employees must quarantine for 14 days or get a negative PCR test result after day 7 (excluding people who commute from out of state)
Besides my brief trip into the office several weeks ago for a blood drive, I have no need or plans to return anytime soon. I appreciate that they're reviewing and applying these new state guidelines, especially since they seem to be generally voluntary and unenforceable, and many employers and organizations seem to be downright flaunting them.
The funny thing is, our colleagues in Wuhan, China have been back in the office for months, and most nights when we have meetings with them, they're all sitting together around a conference room table, masks optional. I never thought I'd be jealous of being able to sit in a conference room together 😂
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