Virus could spell the end for the open plan office, says psychologist
Companies will need to redesign workspaces to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection among staff, and this may mean the end of the open plan office, an Auckland business academic has said.
Rachel Morrison, an organisational behaviour psychologist at Auckland University of Technology, suggests that the “new normal” for offices will include strict rules about hygiene and physical distancing.
“Even if some organisations can operate with minimal risk, there will be an expectation they provide virus-free workplaces should there be future outbreaks,” she writes in an AUT editorial.
“Worldwide, there will undoubtedly be fewer people in the office—now workers have tried working from home, they may find they like it. And organisations may have little choice but to limit the numbers of workers on-site. Staggered shifts, enforced flexitime and 24/7 operations may become the norm, along with working remotely.”
Morrison is a lecturer in work psychology with AUT’s faculty of business economics and law. She says open plan offices have been criticised for lack of privacy, lower productivity and exposing staff to antisocial behaviour. However, they can also improve cooperation and communication.
“While the merits and disadvantages of open plan and flexible workspaces have long been debated, the risk they posed of allowing dangerous, highly contagious viruses to spread was rarely—if ever—considered,” she writes.
Working from home may mean less exposure to potential health risks from hot-desking and shared computer equipment, but virtual meetings are creating new anxieties about privacy and digital inequality.
“Communication is more challenging when conducted remotely. We are more persuasive in person, particularly if we know the person,” Morrison writes.
“Being on a video call is more draining than a face-to-face chat because workers must concentrate harder to process non-verbal cues such as tone of voice and body language. Anxiety about technology is another barrier, and some find lack of eye contact in virtual meetings—mimicked by staring at the ‘dot’ of your own camera—disquieting.”
She says new routines for hand sanitising, cleaning shared office equipment and wearing masks will be introduced to workplaces. Staff may also find that family photos and mementos on their desks will need to be removed “if they prove too difficult to sanitise”.
“Aside from behaviours, policies and attitudes, the physical office will need to change. Already, a company in the Netherlands has coined the term the ‘six feet office’, aiming to redesign workspaces to help workers maintain social distancing at work.”