“Originally published by Angad Rajain on LinkedIn”
The surge in Omicron cases has started to weigh on the global businesses, delaying their reopening plans. In India, major IT companies such as TCS, Wipro, and Infosys were planning to call employees back to the office from January this year. But, with the looming uncertainty around the Omicron variant, businesses are compelled to rethink their reopening plans. On the other hand, essential businesses are faced with a choice that they have no control over: to operate amidst the ongoing third wave or to wipe out due to high competition. The latter option is a big no for the business that has suffered the blow of COVID-19 in the past two years. Most of the staff in quarantine, reduction in work hours, and fewer customers were a few of the consequences of the pandemic-induced lockdowns.
Thus, the essential businesses must be equipped with the necessary information, policies, and procedures to operate amid the Omicron surge.
Maintaining a safe and healthy workplace and mitigating the spread of viruses:
According to a recent study, Omicron was found to be 2.7 to 3.7 times as infectious as the Delta variant among vaccinated people. This has added to the ever-increasing stress on employers or business owners to encourage and keep a tab on the status of employee vaccination. Also, workplaces can serve as a breeding ground for not only COVID-19 but also other disease-causing pathogens when employees return to the office. In this case, employers play a critical role in containing the spread of the Omicron alongside staying on track when it comes to ensuring operational continuity.
