Race, age and sex discrimination • Wrongful termination • Retaliation • ADA accommodation violation • OSHA violations

These are just a few of the employee complaints that are increasing due to actions employers have and are taking since the COVID-19 Pandemic began. Let’s face it, we had to act fast based on Stay-at-Home mandates, and decisions were being made on the fly. Whether or not we followed our policies, this swift action is bound to have had an impact on employee perception.

According to a recently released SHRM article, “U.S. workers have filed about 5,000 coronavirus-related employee complaints of unsafe conditions and nearly 1,400 whistleblower complaints alleging they were fired or otherwise punished for raising coronavirus concerns.”

On May 7th, EEOC Chair Janet Dhillon made a public statement on preventing National Origin and Race Discrimination During the COVID-19 Outbreak due to an uptick in reports of mistreatment and harassment by Asian American workers.

And in a conversation with Joe Werner, Asst. Vice President at Nationwide Insurance, Joe stated that EPL policyholders and personnel attorneys are reporting higher than normal numbers of claims.

Worldwide, many of the activities we do as a regular part of life are now completely different than they were just a couple of months ago. Stress and anxiety are at a high level for many people. And the impact of the pandemic on our jobs and income in the future is unknown. So, it is critical that employers initiate and embrace discussions with employees about what is and is not working.

InvestiPro conducted a survey of over 9000 HR professionals in the U.S., and an astonishing 95% of them stated they believe that how HR communicates with employees right now will have a strong impact on how successful their company is at returning employees to work. And returning employees who are engaged and ready to work, whether it be from home or in the workplace, is critical to the recovery of our businesses and the economy as a whole.

Employees need to be heard. We can’t fix what we don’t know, so it is no longer enough to just assume employees will let you know when something isn’t working. It is up to HR and business leaders to provide a means for employees to bring forward their concerns and complaints. Now more than ever we need to encourage open and honest communication. Much of what is brought forth may be perception instead of reality, but perception can be just as damaging. And once we have a clear picture of how our employees feel, we can take the necessary steps to clear up misconceptions and remind our workers why they want to return to work.

Once employee concerns or complaints are received, it is crucial that they be addressed promptly. We don’t have all of the answers yet, and it is okay to admit that. But often, just knowing that they have been heard, and the matter will be addressed when appropriate, is all our employees need from us right now.

If you are looking for a way to receive, document, and resolve employee complaints and concerns in a fair and consistent manner and reduce the amount of time involved, InvestiPro can help. Learn more at Investipro.com.