THE NEW WORK ORDER

Organisations have had to rethink and restrategise to ride out the pandemic and prepare for a new era of working

- SHWWETA PUNJ

When the lockdown was announced, Jayanthi (name changed on request) hadn’t fully comprehended what the next few months would bring. With her husband stuck overseas, the mother of a toddler found herself juggling work from home (WFH), caring for her child and house work, all on her own. With her performance at work inevitably taking the hit, Jayanthi had to eventually move to working part-time for her employers. As the world grappled with the Covid pandemic, many like Jayanthi have been trying to make the best of a hard situation and struggling.

Jayanthi is not alone. Covid disruption has altered the career paths of many, especially women. On the positive side, feels Neha Bagaria, CEO and founder, JobsForHer, a career platform for women, the pandemic has prodded companies to re-evaluate how women work and view it differently. “Companies are working out flexible work options,” she says. “We have been trying to convince corporates of the need for flexible working options, and the pandemic has done that rather well for us,” she says. A caveat remains, though. WFH for women works only if she has adequate help and support at home.