Staff want to return to work but safety concerns remain
People want to get back to work, but remain anxious about their safety when they return, a new survey reveals.
While almost seven out of 10 of those questioned support moves back into the workplace, only just over half feel it is safe.
And three quarters believe the option should remain for people to continue working from home.
The survey, on shropshirestar.com, coincides with efforts by the Government to persuade staff to get back into their normal routine.
It comes as new figures reveal town centre shops have continued to see a slump in footfall in August as vast swathes of people remained working at home.
The latest monthly BRC ShopperTrak footfall monitor revealed that UK footfall slid by 34.3 per cent in August compared to the same month last year.
It said this represented a 7.3 per cent percentage point improvement from July as the rate of recovery slowed, but still reveals the extent of the ‘stay away’ culture developing among staff.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson reportedly wants Parliament “back to normal” by the end of 2020, urging MPs to lead from the front on the return to workplaces.
Mr Johnson spoke of the importance of returning to workplaces to Conservative backbenchers as the country seeks to strike a balance between public and economic health.
Downing Street fears huge job losses in town and city centre shops and cafes if workers do not return to their pre-lockdown commuter patterns.
Divisions
But there are reported to be divisions in Government over whether the time is right, with the coronavirus rate still growing in some areas, to put pressure on employees to return to the workplace.
The shropshirestar.com survey largely backs the efforts of Boris Johnson to support business as well as manage the coronavirus crisis, despite a number of U-turns on a number of policies.
Readers also back the removal of furloughing as the majority expressed unhappiness at the prospect of having to pay more taxes in the future to pay for the steps being taken now during the crisis.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium said it was vital for economy of the West Midlands to get people back.
She said: “With many office blocks still empty and much of the public avoiding public transport, footfall is not returning and this is having a devastating effect on the local economies in these areas.
"While businesses have been investing in making workplaces safer, we are unlikely to see significant growth while government advice remains to ‘work from home if you can’.”
