The post-pandemic wellbeing of young professionals: Construction’s next challenge

New entrants to the construction industry may face novel challenges compared with their counterparts a few years ago as they adapt to remote working and less in-person collaboration. How is this affecting their ability to learn and mental health? A WBEF webinar, in partnership with the Construction Industry Council’s (CIC) 2050 Group, discussed these issues.

Burnout and belonging

Burnout and a lack of sense of belonging are closely connected, which is why wellbeing discussions inevitably turn to diversity and inclusion, says Lara Ayash, Managing Director of LAMC. ‘The more employees feel that they can bring their whole self to work and have a sense of belonging, the less likely they are to face burnout and mental health challenges,’ she explains. Although this is true across all industries, the construction industry presents both systemic and cultural problems, whether in terms of talent diversity or cultural inclusion. Remote work exacerbates the challenges in understanding organisational norms, behaviours and building relationships with colleagues. When coupled with working in less-than-ideal conditions, this can obstruct employees from build support systems, both personally and professionally, she says. The unwritten rules of an organisation can often dictate its culture. New employees working remotely may struggle to understand them, notes Maria Coulter MRICS, Non-Executive Director (and former Diversity and Inclusion Chair), Construction Industry Council.

Onboarding and osmosis

‘The pandemic intensified and compounded what was already an intense and demanding industry,’ says Michelle Williams MRICS, Senior Construction and Development Manager at igloo Regeneration. As an experienced professional, starting a new role during lockdown was challenging, and must be even more so for new entrants, she says.

Many young professionals starting new jobs during the pandemic were onboarded digitally, and as normality begins to return are having to be reboarded because the way of working is so dramatically different, says Natalie Moores, Head of Marketing and Brand at RizkMcCayTribe. There is also, she says, a reluctance among some young people across sectors to come into the office, having become used to running their life from home and finding works aspects such as early starts and commuting a challenge. However, she points out that young people are fast paced and digitally savvy.

While working from home brings benefits, there is also a flip side. ‘The pandemic forced people to become self-starters… and not everyone can do that and knows how to… that culture has now dragged through to post-pandemic slightly, and it brings about frustration in people where they feel more pressure to tackle things on their own,’ says Natalie Moores.

Young people working from home miss out on learning through the process of osmosis, says Michelle Williams. Less in-person meetings and the ability to ask questions, for example, on site, are other side effects, she adds. While digital platforms such as Teams or Zoom are a substitute, they can be a more intimidating arena to ask questions. Working from home also creates the additional pressure of always being available, she points out. Paradoxically, the drive to increase work flexibility to improve the work-life balance of all employees, appears at odds with giving young people the face time they need, she says.

Creating a positive culture

Removing barriers allows people to be themselves, speak freely, put forward ideas, challenge and innovate, and creates a positive environment for people coming into the industry, says Lara Ayash. Expanding on the unconscious systemic barriers that exist, these can manifest through access to certain jobs, the promotion cycle and recognition, she explains. She cites the example of neurodiverse people being disadvantaged because of not shining in the way many companies traditionally expect. She also stresses the importance of the psychological safety element of a company culture that provides for people to challenge the status quo and disagree without fear of repercussions.

To encourage a positive culture, listening to employees is the first thing companies should do, advocates Lara Ayash. It’s the best way of knowing what is wrong or right and can be achieved through a simple survey or by utilising the company’s employee resource group, she says.

It’s all about understanding people, but pre-pandemic it was something that the construction industry wasn’t good at, says Maria Coulter. In such a busy industry, it can be difficult to make time to build a positive culture to get the best out of each other, but this is something construction has to do, she stresses.

The journey to wellbeing

During the pandemic, the conversation on mental health, wellbeing and awareness became mainstream, says Lara Ayash. Part of the reason, she says, was that company leaders were going through the same journey, and so were more receptive to feedback and listening. What also became apparent was the link between productivity and wellbeing, making wellbeing a board issue, she says.

Industry-wide, internal comms has risen in prominence, and for some companies this is seen as more important than external comms – something that would never have happened pre-pandemic, says Natalie Moores. This is also true of the built environment, although the adaptation is slower, she adds.

A distinction can be drawn between consultancies and working on site, with the latter more likely to expect individuals to conform to their way of working, says Maria Coulter. However, this is not so much the case with larger contractors, who are trying to do more around wellbeing and support but as you go down the tiers, she says. Michelle Williams explains that when companies like igloo put out a tender, they mandate adherence to certain social values and tolerance levels and set guidelines for the contractor on how they should operate. While larger contractors hopefully pass on these stipulations to their subcontractors, there is still significant scope for improvement in the industry, she says.

It’s about listening, about getting to know your people, letting them be themselves, understanding what they need but also understanding what you need from them, concludes Maria Coulter. ‘It’s the right thing to do, but it’s also the right thing to do from a business case scenario,’ she believes.