Telecommuting and stress wrapped in bytes

No one knows if the end of the Covid-19 pandemic has come, we get confused by the fact of being vaccinated and the need to resume “normal” life, mobility and especially the work that we all need to survive in this difficult economic time.

The health contingency arrived when we were just beginning to find out that the new rules and regulations to protect workers from mental illnesses caused by work stress were a fact. Without understanding it, we went home to start a new reality: work more hours, be available 24 x 24, and do the double shift in parallel, home and work.

Rule 037, referring to teleworking, imposed health and safety conditions on this model, by defining the basic working conditions and identifying physical, ergonomic and psychosocial risks for employees. The norm prohibits the reduction of the salary for said situation. How many did it happen to? And how many survived with less pay or less work?

Although companies should also know that the rule determines that benefits complementary to salary can be adapted to this scheme, for example changing the “mobility aid” for transfers for “aid for connectivity or internet payment”.

This is explained very well by Martha Barroso, director of Manpower Latam, who anticipates -hopefully- that the regulation of the home office will benefit people who work at least 40 percent of their weekly shift under the teleworking scheme, and obliges companies to agree in writing on working hours and days, recognizing the right to digital disconnection and work breaks.

In the midst of the reactivation and the doubt about whether the pandemic is over, “there will be people who, due to the type of activities they carry out, cannot be done remotely, and others who would like to maintain their face-to-face activities due to the lack of a space to do so. remote work or social contact”.

Not an easy situation, it is not like staying home in pajamas and working, many situations have to be taken into account. Due to the fact that this Regulation emphasizes the disconnection from work of collaborators, a precept typified in 2021 in the changes to art. 213 in the Teleworking Law, it is recommended to schedule face-to-face events to avoid social isolation.

In addition, “one of the factors to take care of is burnout in collaborators as a result of constant exposure to digitalization. Given this, it is advisable to generate benefits, such as mental health days, disconnection or rest times, and counseling or psychological support.

Manpower specialists also warn that the gender gap at work has changed due to the promotion of teleworking and the digitization of jobs, which is why companies need to know the needs of female workers.

In Mexico, 58 percent of companies regularly measure pay equity, and only 20 percent regularly measure the number of women in leadership positions.

It is not easy, but it can be done and it is regulated.

REMNANTS

Capital funds have established a new goal among young entrepreneurs and that is that beyond creating a successful business, they are now looking for a group of millionaires or corporations to buy their proposal.

Much is said about unicorns, companies that are not listed on the stock market and are valued at more than a billion dollars; But the support of the funds has remained among slightly less visible spheres for a big reason: it is the difference between a startup and a unicorn. National and foreign funds such as BlackRock, Apollo, Kaszek Venture and Sequoia Capital are the ones behind the success of Brian Chesky’s Airbnb; Google, founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin; as well as Kavak, by Carlos García Ottati.

In Mexico we have eight unicorns, among which Stori, by Marlene Garayzar, stands out, the first woman to found a company of its kind, and bids begin among the funds for the most promising startups, such as Moons, by Tommaso Tomba; Kichink, by Claudia de Heredia; Justo, by Ricardo Weder; and Food News, by Moisés Jafif and Mónica Díaz; among other. This last one that raised many eyebrows after announcing that in 10 months it reached presence in more than a thousand points of sale. Write them down on your fridge, you’ll need the list.