Corona has accelerated family-friendliness in Lucerne companies

“We live a fair weather equality”, said the Lucerne equality expert Gesine Fuchs to Zentralplus. But how does the corona crisis really affect equality and family-friendliness in the world of work?

Initial studies show that the crisis has actually thwarted initial social achievements. It was especially mothers who reduced their workload during the lockdown and at the time of homeschooling. At the same time, the crisis and the associated increasing digitization and home office in turn had a positive effect on family friendliness.

On Wednesday evening, experts discussed this topic at an online panel discussion organized by the “Corporate Responsibility” network in cooperation with the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts – Social Work.

Paraplegic Center created a central workforce planning facility

The crisis also hit the paraplegic center in Nottwil hard. It is one of the world’s largest and most important competence centers for acute care and rehabilitation of paraplegics. The proportion of care services is very high – as is the proportion of female employees who had to be present.

“We have seen how we had to change our corporate culture incredibly quickly,” says Stefan Staubli from the Paraplegic Center. You had to make decisions much faster, delegate responsibility, and simply remove many meetings from the agenda.

“All employees who had to show up for work and could not send their children to school could simply take them with them.”

Stefan Staubli, Paraplegic Center

One of the measures taken was the creation of a central workforce planning system. In other words, a position that coordinates and plans the entire workforce, creates shift schedules 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and caters to the needs of the employees. “Every mother and father, all of our employees, could turn to this office every day and night to report problems.”

After the federal government announced the school closings, the paraplegic center also carried out a massive expansion of the day care center over the weekend. Since the Hotel Sempachersee, a subsidiary of the Paraplegic Center, was closed, additional rooms and freelancers were available. “All employees who had to show up for work and couldn’t send their children to school could simply take them with them,” explains Staubli. A valuable thing, as he says. Home office was also introduced in the departments in which it was possible.

Luzerner Kantonalbank took measures years ago

The Luzerner Kantonalbank also had to react – but had already taken appropriate measures years earlier to improve the compatibility of family and work and was thus armed.

Eight years ago, LUKB implemented a “family and career” concept. “There’s a lot in there,” says Jürg Stadelmann, Human Resources Manager at the Lucerne Cantonal Bank. From part-time work – also for customer advisors and specialists in management functions to home office, which has been introduced – albeit on a small scale. In addition, the bank offers its employees the opportunity to compress their workload a little. “For example, employees can do 90 percent in four days. If you also work one day from the home office, which means you are fairly free to organize this time, then that already brings something. ” Especially the mothers, who are well qualified and can therefore continue to work in their profession if the fathers at LUKB work in such models at the bank.

Home office: Individual cases became normal

But even if LUKB had already granted its employees years before: Home office was an exception. That has changed as a result of the pandemic. “We had to switch from individual cases to 50 percent and more within a few days.” Even if it was a challenge, it worked perfectly.

“We communicated – without any time limit – if mothers have to take care of caring tasks, then they just go home. And this with full wages and without limiting the number of days. “

Jürg Stadelmann, Lucerne Cantonal Bank

Measures have also been taken specifically for mothers. Many of them returned to work during the pandemic and at times of lockdown and homeschooling to take on additional care responsibilities at home. “We know that mothers are more stressed,” says Stadelmann. “That is why we communicated – without any time limit – if mothers have to take on care tasks, for example because the grandparents are no longer allowed to look after them, then they just go home. And this with full wages and without limiting the number of days. “

LUKB also offers promotions from 50 percent workloads. “And we try to integrate women who expect children into work as quickly as possible, even if it is ‘difficult’ for us. That means: We also offer 20 percent work, which is not really ideal for working. But if it helps a mother to get back to work quickly, then we don’t shy away from these costs. “

After all, that is also a question of attractiveness as an employer. Stadelmann emphasizes that women must be able to stay in their jobs. “We simply cannot afford to do without 50 percent of the population, so to speak.”

The expert agrees

As Lucia Lanfranconi, lecturer and project manager from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences in the Department of Social Work, underpins her own surveys, women with care responsibilities are particularly affected by the corona pandemic. But fathers also cared more about the children.

“The corona pandemic harbors many opportunities for equality and family friendliness,” says Lanfranconi. Not surprisingly, companies with family-friendly structures were better prepared for the crisis than others. In the survey, however, many entrepreneurs in central Switzerland stated that they would maintain flexible working models in the future.

Fabian Leuthold from the “UND” department, the competence center in Switzerland for the implementation of the reconciliation of family and gainful employment, said that they have received more inquiries from companies since the pandemic. “Now we are feeling the need to stabilize and establish these quickly established systems and new forms of work and to find permanent solutions.”

There are limits when it comes to flexibility

However, the health industry is one in which there are certain limits to family-friendliness, as moderator Iwona Swietlik noted. Stefan Staubli from the Paraplegic Center agrees. “We have a three-shift model, seven days a week, that can only be made more flexible to a certain extent.”

“And we know that on this day they look after the children more than they work. That’s why they work at other times. “

Juerg Stadelmann

In addition to being open to part-time work, an important central point is to provide adequate childcare. “The fact that we can offer a good and large daycare center is a very, very important element so that we can still find enough skilled workers. And we are currently not finding enough skilled workers. ”

The flexibility achieved that remains

The two entrepreneurs like expert Lucia Lanfranconi all raised the point that the crisis has led to an accelerated change in corporate culture.

“The companies and the bosses couldn’t help but have trust,” explains Jürg Stadelmann from LUKB. «It just couldn’t be any other way. It was a huge live experiment. Half of the employees have been sent to work from home. And one saw that the great lack of discipline did not occur. ” The bank was run in full normal operation the entire time. “Many bosses have experienced it in their own emotional way: the employees are not lazy if the bosses don’t look at them all the time. They work in the home office. That was the big driver. “

Staubli emphasizes that the crisis has accelerated tendencies that were already underway. «We are not going back to this time before Corona. Definitely not. We have firmly resolved to maintain this flexibility as far as possible. ” So they are just starting to build an even bigger day nursery.

Stadelmann also says that the possibility of working in the home office will remain. Up to 50 percent of the entire workload. Employees on the second management level also spend at least one day in the home office. “And we know that on this day they look after the children more than they work. That’s why they work at other times. So that’s also possible without any problems. “

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