Majority of employees ‘not comfortable’ using public transport to commute

Half (50.6%) of UK businesses will limit the number of people in the office to adhere to social distancing rules, while a staggering 88% of employees are not comfortable using public transport to commute in 2020.

That’s according to research from HR software specialist Breathe in conjunction with Posture People and HR Central, which polled 482 senior business leaders and employees across the country.

Almost three-quarters of those surveyed (70.6%) stated they are planning on returning to the office in a phased, partial manner, with more than half of those surveyed (55.2%) concerned about returning to work.

Breathe has just launched Breathe Rota, a product designed in response to requests from customers to enable them to organise and manage shifts.

Jonathan Richards, CEO and co-founder of Breathe, said: “Our findings show a worrying picture whereby most people aren’t comfortable getting public transport at all this year, which is especially tricky for city-based firms. A full return to the office may not be possible at first, so businesses looking to introduce flexibility to the office environment are implementing rota systems to manage staff coming into the workplace. As we found in our Culture Economy report this year, 1 in 5 (21%) of employees quit their job due to poor workplace culture. This is why, whatever decision businesses make, they must ensure they are made with their people at the core.”

Rebecca Woolmington, Managing Director at HRCentral, added: “As the UK moves out of lockdown and businesses reopen, they need an effective way to manage their people. Whether you are a pub that’s previously used Excel spreadsheets, a business preparing to open soon or an office that has to operate shifts for the first time, automating this task will save businesses time and hassle – enabling them to focus on rebuilding and growing the business.”