Patriots at Work: Notes from the Staff Senate Chair

Patriots at Work: The future of telework should reflect Mason’s core values

Colleen Rich — Wed, 24 Feb 2021 17:06:46 +0000

Patriots at Work: The future of telework should reflect Mason’s core values Colleen Rich Wed, 02/24/2021 - 12:06

When the pandemic is over, what will telework look like at Mason?

Telework has been a crucial way to help slow the spread of the coronavirus and support employees with caregiving responsibilities over the last year. But looking toward the future, we need to start thinking about telework as more than just a pandemic-response measure or an occasional stopgap.

As a university with physical campuses, there are many staff job functions that simply need to happen on site. But the pandemic clearly revealed that many staff jobs can be performed remotely at least some of the time.

Thanks to the efforts of staff in Information Technology Services, Human Resources and Payroll, and others around the university, our technology tools and infrastructure to support teleworking are stronger than ever.

Now that more employees have had the chance to telework, organizations have an opportunity to consider how they can keep the practice in place for both their employees’ benefit and their own. According to a study conducted by Pew Research Center, 89% of telework-eligible adults said that after the pandemic is over, they want to continue teleworking at least some of the time.

Managers can effectively coordinate staff telework schedules so that quality and accessibility of services are not negatively affected. In fact, shifting administrative processes online often makes them even more efficient. Many departments at Mason were already doing this successfully before the pandemic.

Research shows that when implemented in a strategic way, flexible work options like telework play a vital role in enhancing worker retention and productivity. Fewer interruptions and distractions offer a chance for employees to truly focus on their work.

When I ask Mason staff about their teleworking experiences, most talk about the benefits. An overarching theme? The gift of time. Fewer hours spent commuting means more opportunities to exercise, prepare healthy meals, spend time with loved ones, volunteer in the community, and even get more sleep.

Cutting back on commuting also protects the health of our planet. According to Mason’s Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory for FY2019 conducted by the Office of Sustainability, commuting is the second-largest source of GHG emissions at Mason (30.4%), after purchased electricity (34.7%).

In 2019, 78.3% of Mason faculty and staff used single-occupancy vehicles as a primary mode when commuting to work, according to Parking and Transportation’s bi-annual survey. Their average daily commute was 24.1 miles each way—in Washington, D.C., metropolitan area traffic, of course.

And although students account for the largest segment of Mason’s total commuting footprint based on their sheer numbers, staff travel to campus far more frequently than any other group, both in trips per week and weeks per year.

There are things we miss when we aren’t physically present on campus—especially the opportunity for serendipitous interactions with colleagues and students.

But for many staff, it is possible to get the best of both worlds. If the majority of our staff members teleworked a couple of days per week, it could go a long way toward enhancing employee well-being and cutting Mason’s commuting footprint.

This is an opportunity to model the behaviors and values we hope to impress upon our students. Using telework as a strategic initiative beyond the pandemic would signal Mason’s commitment to sustainability and employee well-being—both of which the university cites as core values.

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Faculty and Staff News

Telework

Patriots at Work: Notes from the Staff Senate Chair

Staff Senate

Patriots at Work: A renewed sense of hope

Colleen Rich — Mon, 11 Jan 2021 16:51:36 +0000

Patriots at Work: A renewed sense of hope Colleen Rich Mon, 01/11/2021 - 11:51

I think about new years past, when I returned to campus in January, coffee in hand, refreshed from the time off.

For many of us, winter break is a treasured benefit of working at Mason. It's the finish line of a busy semester. A sacred time when we can reset our minds and bodies for the new year ahead.

How do we turn the page to a new year when we are still recovering from—and absorbing—the wear and tear of 2020?

To find a renewed sense of hope, I am reflecting on what we accomplished in the face of adversity.

At Mason, we rose to the challenges of 2020. We transformed processes on a dime, leveraged technology to work efficiently, and found new ways to support students who needed it more than ever.

The state hiring freeze on staff positions meant that all of this was accomplished with fewer people to do the work. Plus, many departments were already understaffed before the pandemic hit.

Some of the wear and tear of the past year cannot be measured as easily. It’s the ongoing emotional cost of proctoring virtual school, living without child care, coping with loneliness, or worrying about loved ones affected by the virus.

As we turn a corner into this new year, let’s continue to show patience and empathy for one another. By doing this, we strengthen our collective resolve to move forward.

We can also focus on what falls within our control: our own behaviors. Mason is ramping up its commitment to surveillance testing. If we can participate, we should do so. We must continue practicing physical distancing, wearing face coverings on campus, and following public health guidance to keep ourselves and others safe.

The past year has been a challenge. It’s okay to be tired. At the same time, we at Mason are resilient. You can see it in the work we do every day.

I always find some comfort in the cyclical passage of time at a university. We are a part of something big, and the university's work continues. We'll always have the fresh start of a new semester and the promise it brings. My fellow Patriots are one of my greatest sources of hope for 2021.

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Faculty and Staff News

Patriots at Work: Notes from the Staff Senate Chair

Patriots at Work: Creating a supportive place to work and learn

Colleen Rich — Tue, 01 Dec 2020 10:00:20 +0000

Patriots at Work: Creating a supportive place to work and learn Colleen Rich Tue, 12/01/2020 - 05:00

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Patriots at Work: Notes from the Staff Senate Chair

coronavirus; COVID-19; News; Editorial

Staff Senate

Faculty and Staff News