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Too many digital meetings, increasing workload and a lack of social connection with colleagues have all enhanced the risk of health and wellbeing problems for remote workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, new research reveals.

However, it is not all doom and gloom as employees have reported that the greater flexibility offered by homeworking has created more opportunities for recreational activities.

These were some of the outcomes from a study of five organisations during the pandemic, the findings of which are in a new report, Learning from the COVID-19 pandemic: approaches to support employee health and wellbeing, published today by IOSH.

The researchers aimed to understand the impact of the pandemic on employees, managers and organisations, look at how employers could support workers’ health and wellbeing and identify barriers and facilitators to this.

They have also unveiled eight recommendations to protect employee health and wellbeing, to serve during this and any future pandemics, including senior management demonstrating their commitment to this area through regular communication, acting on feedback and sharing personal stories, and involving employees in job design and redesign.

Among the issues highlighted in interviews with employees were homeworking challenges, including physical issues caused by a lack of office equipment and mental health challenges due to a lack of boundaries, with “digital fatigue” a key concern.

Also common were increased operational demands with reports of increased workload – caused by COVID-related work and absent colleagues because of furlough or self-isolation – and an “always-on” work culture.

One employee commented that he felt his work resembled “running on a treadmill with someone throwing ping pong balls and [needing] to keep catching them”.

Reports of a lack of social connection with colleagues also featured regularly in interviews and, while organisations did have employee support mechanisms on offer, there was often a lack of awareness of these and how to access them.

Duncan Spencer, Head of Advice and Practice at IOSH, said: “This research really brings to life some of the experiences employees have had, both positive and negative during the pandemic.

“While many have clearly benefited from the increased flexibility and other benefits of homeworking, many other people found it to be challenging, with poor work-life balance and the inability to connect socially with colleagues among the issues highlighted.

“With some people continuing to work remotely while others have moved a hybrid system as we continue to live with the pandemic, it is clear that more needs to be done to protect the health and wellbeing of workers and I hope that organisations might be able to follow some or all of the recommendations.

“What is clear is that if we don’t act on this, there is a strong possibility we will face a health and wellbeing crisis among our workforce.”

The study was conducted by Affinity Health at Work, an occupational health psychology consultancy. It was sponsored by its Research Consortium, which is made up of a number of organisations including IOSH.

The interviews and focus groups were held with employees, managers and health and wellbeing stakeholders between November 2020 and June 2021.

Other recommendations are developing line managers’ skills around wellbeing, promoting an environment of social connection and trust, embedding wellbeing across the culture of an organisation and communicating it consistently and continually, conducting an internal wellbeing audit and monitoring organizational wellbeing.

Dr Jo Yarker, Co-Director of Affinity, said: “Protecting and supporting the mental health and wellbeing of our workforce has never been more important. Our research shows that the priority concerns for staff change over time and this demands that organisations regularly review workforce needs and continually develop their provision.

“Early in the pandemic, many organisations rapidly provided all staff learning opportunities such as webinars and online resources. As time went on, more localised activities and tailored offers were provided and, encouragingly, there was increasing recognition that wellbeing activities will not combat poor job design with some organisations reviewing job design, workload and tasks. As we move beyond the pandemic, organisations must prioritise good jobs and put the ‘work’ back in to workplace wellbeing.”

The research can be viewed at iosh.com/covidlearnings

Pye-Barker Fire & Safety has acquired Yarnell Security Systems, a leading commercial and residential security service in central Pennsylvania. This acquisition further strengthens Pye-Barker’s position in CCTV and access control monitoring.

Yarnell Security Systems, headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, is ranked among the top 100 alarm companies in the country. Yarnell provides 24/7 monitoring of commercial and residential fire, security, CCTV and access control systems staffed by certified security personnel local to central Pennsylvania. Yarnell Security serves over 10,000 customers annually. The company was founded by the late Harold Yarnell, Jr. in 1967 and later owned and managed by his children Teri and Ron Yarnell. Yarnell Security employs 47 team members.

Pye-Barker Fire & Safety, founded in 1946, is a leader in fire protection and life safety, with over 110 locations and 3,000 team members. It is a full-service life protection company offering all the necessary specialties including portable extinguishers, restaurant fire suppression, special hazard systems, fire sprinklers, fire alarms, and security. Pye-Barker is rapidly expanding its national footprint.

“For over 50 years, the Yarnell family has protected their community and cared for their employees as if they were their own family,” said Pye-Barker Fire CEO Bart Proctor. “That’s a core value shared by Pye-Barker. We’re excited to grow our alarm servicing business with the Yarnell Security Systems team.”

Honeywell has announced it has agreed to acquire privately held US Digital Designs, Inc., a Tempe, Ariz.-based company for a purchase multiple of ~14X EBITDA in an all-cash transaction. The company delivers alerting and dispatch communications solutions, which enhance first responders’ efficacy and enable faster emergency response times.

US Digital Designs’ EBITDA margins are accretive to Honeywell, and Honeywell is expected to achieve a return on investment of greater than 25% by the fifth year that US Digital Designs is part of Honeywell.

The acquisition will be integrated into Honeywell’s Fire and Connected Life Safety systems business and will expand Honeywell’s line of solutions for public safety communications, providing first responders with better situational awareness of building emergencies and improved life safety. When combined with Honeywell’s solutions, US Digital Designs’ offerings will securely transmit detailed data about the emergency, such as the type of hazard, severity, and location within the impacted building, all before first responders even arrive onsite.

The existing communications infrastructure between fire stations and emergency centers often uses legacy, manual technology, which slows response times and affects the accuracy of transmitted information. In contrast, solutions from US Digital Designs instantaneously connect dispatch centers to fire stations, improving both the quality of the information shared and the time it takes for first responders to arrive at an emergency. It is estimated that in the coming years, aligned to pending federal legislation to improve the 911 system, several billions will be invested in the United States alone to upgrade legacy alarm infrastructure to provide faster, more precise alarm alerting to first responders.

“The future of public safety relies on technology. We are integrating intelligence throughout the fire alarm transmission process – from the fire panel to the first responders – and providing uninterrupted communications to first responders,” said Doug Wright, president and chief executive officer, Honeywell Building Technologies. “Integrating US Digital Designs’ fire station alerting capabilities with Honeywell’s Connected Life Safety Services will allow us to eliminate manual processes and significantly reduce response time. Helping first responders arrive faster on site means potentially saving more lives and providing a higher level of asset protection.”

US Digital Designs’ suite of hardware and software solutions, which includes dispatch communication aids and mobile alerting applications, provides situational awareness and helps reduce response times. US Digital Designs also offers solutions that awaken first responders with soft-start LED lighting and audio alerts that are less disruptive.

The offerings complement Honeywell’s suite of solutions that help its customers meet their environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals, including improving safety for first responders.

“We are pleased to join the Honeywell team and support its efforts to add more automation and digitisation to the public safety communications process. Reducing response times means we can protect more people, buildings and their assets,” said Todd Smith, president and chief electrical engineer, US Digital Designs.

“Honeywell’s scale, global reach and commercial relationships will enable even more fire stations to access our solutions, helping to create safer communities,” said Dominic Magnoni, vice president, chief mechanical engineer and chief operating officer, US Digital Designs.

With this acquisition, Honeywell will further expand its public safety offerings designed to improve the safety of first responders and building occupants. These offerings include Fiplex bi-directional amplifiers (BDAs) that provide continuous and critical in-building radio coverage. Honeywell acquired a majority stake in Fiplex Communications, Inc., in March 2021.

This is the fourth acquisition announced by Honeywell in 2021, part of the company’s disciplined strategy to deploy capital to high-return acquisitions, which will drive future growth.

There is no change to Honeywell’s financial guidance as a result of the acquisition. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022 and is subject to certain regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

A new range of auxiliary lighting from the leaders in automotive lighting is taking driver vision to new levels. Launched by Lumileds and shortly available in the UK and Ireland, the Philips Ultinon Drive 5000L series combines the brightness and clarity of light from LEDs with rugged design, to create a fresh generation of road-legal lightbars for trucks and cars and the option of an off-road boost*.

The range and illumination to spot hazards early

The new Philips lightbars provide superior visibility of around 400 meters or more and give drivers a clearer view of the way ahead and more time to plan or react to changing conditions. The high-lumen LEDs produce a combined spot and floodlight that shines far and wide illuminating potential hazards on the roadside as well as in front of the vehicle. The cool 6500 Kelvin color temperature enhances driver focus without inducing eye-strain. The top-or-the-range UD5050L has an integrated off-road boost function that generates 4,000 lumens at full power, offering even greater visibility when drivers are off the beaten path.*

Durability that’s designed in 

The sturdy, single-piece build of the Philips Ultinon Drive 5000L series allows for optimised heat management (illustrated) and consistently high light output. IK07 impact resistance ensures trouble-free performance on uneven surfaces and the unbreakable polycarbonate lens will withstand bangs and scratches. 

Aided by an ingenious  design, dust and water resistance to IP68 and IP69K standards means that these lightbars can take dusty trails and power washers in their stride. Robust connectors keep the power flowing and the lightbars’ stainless-steel mounting brackets are corrosion-free and capable of handling snow, ice and even salt. In short, the 5000L series is engineered for years of reliable service.

Road-legal and ready to roll

Fully compliant with ECE-R149 standards, the new Philips lightbars are approved for use on public roads. They have also been tested to EMC R10 specification, guaranteeing they will function smoothly without interference to the vehicle’s electrical systems. So wherever a route leads, drivers can be sure the Philips Ultinon Drive 5000L series has the power and durability to light the way.

*Off-road boost integrated for UD5050L. It is the vehicle owner’s responsibility to ensure that the installation and use of the LED lightbars complies with applicable local legal requirements. Boost function is not permitted for use on public roads and can only be used off road.

Six trade unions – the Fire Brigades Union, GMB, PCS, the Prison Officers Association, the Royal College of Nursing, and Unite – have applied to the High Court for judicial review in relation to pension changes.

The six unions say that the government is trying to make some public sector workers essentially pay for the government’s discrimination.

The courts had previously ruled that the government’s public sector pension reforms discriminated against firefighters based upon their ages on 1 April 2012 (the McCloud and Sargeant cases). Older workers had been allowed to stay on a previous, pension scheme whilst younger workers had been required to leave it and/or be transitioned onto the new 2015 scheme.

The government has said that it will try to impose the cost of the government’s discrimination onto those who are now on that 2015 pension scheme.

The unions claim that this amounts to age discrimination in and of itself, since members of the newer scheme, who are being forced to carry these costs, tend to be younger than members of the old scheme, who are not.

Mark Rowe, National Officer for the Fire Brigades Union, said: “It is unbelievable that the government is trying to make public sector workers pay for the government’s own discrimination. The government needs to get a grip, recognise its mistakes, recognise the highly valuable contribution that public sector workers make every day, and sort out this issue in a timely and straightforward manner. Years after the relevant pension reforms came in the government is still in a mess over this. The FBU has fought for decades for our members’ pensions, and we will continue to fight for what is right and what our members were promised.

“The government is trying to make public sector workers pay via a scheme in their pensions called “cost control”. Cost control adjusts pension contributions or benefits if the actual cost of the pension scheme diverges from the target cost of the pension scheme by 2% or more, with workers losing out if the actual cost is higher.

“It was the government who introduced the cost control mechanism into the new pension scheme. The mechanism provided that savings from the new scheme should be passed on to those scheme members. The government now wish to ignore the legislation that made that provision, legislation that they introduced.”

For the fifth year, ADT partnered with the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) to donate to volunteer fire departments during the holiday season. This December, ADT provided $10,000 donations to five departments in recognition of their tireless commitment to protecting our nation’s communities.

“At ADT, we believe volunteer firefighters are true American heroes because they run into burning buildings to battle blazes while others flee, and they don’t get paid,” said Bob Tucker of ADT. “These incredibly brave men and women are on the front lines of their communities, protecting residents and providing emergency services. Ensuring they are set up for success is the purpose of ADT’s annual campaign.”

The giving took place in early December as Tucker visited the five departments over five days to present the donations. The contributions will enable the departments to make needed improvements and updates to benefit their members, increase their readiness to respond, and better serve the community.

The following departments received donations:

• Sierra Blanca (TX) Volunteer Fire Department will use the donation to replace significantly worn and outdated protective gear to enhance the safety of their firefighters.
• Spring Valley Volunteer Fire Department (Milpitas, CA) will be able to obtain a new radio system thanks to the donation.
• Dansville (NY) Fire Department will use the donation to refurbish the station’s kitchen, enabling them to hold more fundraisers for the department.
• Mendon (NY) Fire Department will buy new nozzles and fire hoses thanks to the donation.
• Readfield (ME) Fire Department will use the donation to expand and improve cramped office space at the fire station.

“Volunteer fire departments often struggle to find funding to keep their equipment and facilities up-to-date so they can best serve their members and their communities,” said NVFC chair Steve Hirsch. “We thank ADT for stepping up to provide donations to local fire departments to help them meet these needs. We are proud to partner with a company who gives back to our nation’s volunteers.”

ADT has long been a supporter of the fire and emergency services, including through its LifeSaver program that honors ADT employees and local fire departments who have saved lives. Over $550,000 has been donated to local first responder agencies through the program. ADT partners with the NVFC on the annual holiday donation program, volunteer recruitment and retention initiatives, the NVFC’s annual awards program, and other initiatives that support the volunteer fire and emergency services.