Basil Jarrett | COVID’s enduring lessons

WHEN THE COVID wave first crashed on our shores last year, Jamaicans were justifiably panicked. It seems a decade ago when that small community in Bull Bay went under quarantine after the first COVID case was detected there, and soldiers and social workers were scrambled to secure the area and to distribute COVID care packs. Shortly after, we went into lockdown, sheltering in place and bracing for the unexpected. For some people, introverts in particular, sheltering in place was no bad thing.

The more reticent and sedate among us slid into this new social norm with little fuss. But for those of us who were more outgoing, active and social, sheltering in place was the fancy term for prison – except of course that you had your family as cellmates. Those initial days for me were suffocating. What sounded like a great idea at first – no traffic to contend with, no dislikable co-workers to endure, no having to shave in the mornings – suddenly turned into a nightmare as the reality of sheltering in place hit. Long, lower-back-pain inducing online meetings, not seeing a single new face for weeks, and eating the same thing over and over suddenly began to take a toll. Then I got the news that my son had passed for high school and the reality hit me that he was nowhere near ready. Not in terms of his academics, but rather, in terms of his ability to deal with the reality of high school come September when he would set foot on campus. (Yes, I know. I laughed to myself as I typed that sentence about being on campus in September). So I did what any proactive dad would do; I bought him a pair of boxing gloves and we hit the yard training every day for his first encounter with Sean Greaves Junior. Initially, he was hesitant, but after realising that boxing gave him a chance to punch his father in the face with no repercussions, he warmed to the idea and not long after, he was the one yelling at me to keep my guard up. In the end, he learnt how to shift his body weight while throwing the uppercut, but more importantly, he and I bonded in a unique way, having survived those early pandemic days together. And that’s when it hit me that if not for COVID, I would probably never have had that opportunity to bond with him in such a tangible and enduring manner.

OPPORTUNITY IN EVERY CRISIS

My approach to crisis management and crisis communication has always been with the overarching principle that there is opportunity in every crisis. You just need to shift your perspective to see it. The obvious question then is, in the middle of this particular crisis, what opportunities can we look to exploit in order to bounce back stronger than we were before? You see, as a member of the Jamaica Defence Force, a lot of our time was spent trying to predict, prevent and prepare for the unexpected. We called it horizon scanning. We developed numerous techniques and protocols for doing this, and while I can confidently say that our procedures were fairly accurate and helpful, not one of us saw this pandemic coming. At least not until it had gone way past the horizon and was literally at an airport in Florida waiting to board a flight to Kingston. With COVID well and truly here, I believe that a different type of scanning is needed now as we continue to try to see our way out of this debacle. Rather than look solely for what other COVID-related threats may yet be on the horizon, we need to be also looking for the opportunities that COVID has presented to us to improve and strengthen our country.

One of the most immediate impacts of the pandemic is the effect it has had on work, employment modes and social life. People have been shifting through various social distancing protocols, including sheltering in place, working from home, working in on/off shifts, flexi-work, and in some cases, no work at all. These measures have obviously been implemented to help limit personal interactions, with well-publicised undesirable consequences. In many cases, productivity has declined or ceased altogether, businesses have folded and persons have been furloughed, laid off, or simply fired. Some have even just resigned out of fear of contracting the disease, or because of the heavy burden that the pandemic has now placed on their jobs. For example, I know of teachers who have left the profession, and nurses who have buckled under the weight of working in such an environment.

THE SILVER LINING

But there has been an unforeseen benefit from all of this. There is a noticeable reduction in traffic on the streets, shuttered offices mean reduced utility expenses for schools and businesses, some people have now found a better work-life balance and for others, COVID has revealed their entrepreneurial callings. I am curious to know what the comprehensive impact of all of this has been in terms of office and business productivity. Now obviously, not everyone has a job where they can work from home and remain useful, but in those situations where it is feasible for persons to work from home, what lessons can we exploit over the long term going forward?

One of the most immediate lessons to me is the simple fact that we can actually reduce our carbon footprint. With one eye on our recent participation in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Glasgow, climate change is squarely on the agenda for us as a country. Fewer cars on the road obviously mean less pollution. The question we should be asking now, therefore, is how can we move the economy forward post-COVID, while keeping our emissions levels low? Carpooling motor vehicle benefits and designated carpooling routes perhaps? Another related question to answer is how, if any at all, has COVID reduced our fuel bill? How and where has productivity improved and in what sectors? The good news is that the data is already out there and has been stress tested in a real-world environment for the last 18 months. What can we learn from it? One idea is that government and the private sector should embark on a comprehensive plan to overhaul our taxation and business laws to allow companies to shift some of their utility and operational savings to employees in a manner that benefits both employer and employee. For example, a system could be created that allows for an employee to claim tax credits for using a room at home for work-related activities, such as an office. Those persons could make the claim that they’re losing income from a possible rental, and so should be appropriately compensated. Such a formalised arrangement could possibly mean reduced employee stress levels, better work-life balance, fewer missed days from work, and a better reflection on the company’s balance sheet. Certainly, like all things in life, there is a possible downside to all this as some companies, for example, would find it difficult to build a culture based on teamwork and strong interpersonal relationships. But certainly it, like other practical ideas, is still worth exploring.

Crises are typically viewed as disruptive, dangerous and difficult, and with good reason. By simply shifting our perspective, however, just like shifting our body weight over our right knee, dropping our shoulder and attacking from a different angle, we can counter with a strong uppercut that suddenly puts us in a stronger position to push on.

Major Basil Jarrett is a communications strategist and CEO of Artemis Consulting. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com or basiljarrett.artemis@gmail.com.