For more information on how WeWork collects, uses, discloses and otherwise processes personal information in connection with our response to COVID-19, please see theWeWork COVID-19 Privacy Notice. These spaces allow you to take work outside, WeWorks security team shares lessons learned as we all shift to a hybrid model of work, Companies can no longer ignore the impact of mental health on company culture and the work experience, These institutions provide students who crave connection a collaborative and distanced experience, To attract top talent, businesses must adopt a hybrid and human-centric approach to managing employees, Bureau Veritas awarded WeWork a Global Certificate of Conformity after a thorough audit of global buildings, The pandemic changed how we travel around our cities. Weve decreased capacity and identified safe to occupy seats where applicable. Game rooms, pool tables, and barista bars are regularly cleaned to our new and enhanced standards, while signage clearly communicates each rooms unique distancing guidelines and maximum capacity. These past months have seen a meteoric rise in the use of videoconferencing software. Members are encouraged to modify their private spaces to ensure social distancing by utilizing staggered seating where possible. Take a look at our commitment to ensuring our members are returning to a space thats safe and secure so they can focus on their work, with as little distraction as possible. Communicate the new protocol ahead of your teams return to the office, and be on the lookout for anyone absentmindedly returning to old habits. Copyright 2022 WeWork. If there were any gaps we addressed them and made sure that every building was compliant, so that our teams and members had the assurance that our spaces were as safe as possible. Here at WF_ were adhering to local government guidance on covid safety. Heres how weve adapted our signature spaces. Jimenez: Once we completed the review, the Bureau Veritas technical advisor was impressed by five main points: Although this did not necessarily surprise me, it made me feel proud of what our teams did before a third-party organization validated our solutions. We are a global company, and the importance of being accurate where general policy applies and where local regulation applies is fundamental to being compliant. Get your office free until September 1, 2022 when you sign up with a three-month commitment. WeWork has worked with landlords and property managers to implement new elevator guidelines and passenger limits. For more information on how WeWork collects, uses, discloses, and otherwise processes personal information in connection with our response to COVID-19, please see theWeWork COVID-19 Privacy Notice. Before you start moving desks, changing layouts, and positioning signage, you need a reliable idea of how many people will be inhabiting each part of the office at a given time. It assured our members that our response was not only a corporate response to the global pandemic but an actual site-by-site implementation of that response. We had to understand every single HVAC unit in the building and what it was able to deliver. COVID-19 has changed how employees work. Consider offering incentives to use alternative forms of transport, too, such as cycling vouchers or credit toward rideshare services. If youre able, consider getting into the habit of taking the stairs instead. Our commitment to prioritising health and safety. Questions about your building? Weve partnered with International SOS for strategic direction on medical considerations and quality assurance, and Bureau Veritas to audit and endorse our policies so we can constantly improve. Questions about your building? Heres how to find a daily commute that works for you. This, together with our health and safety measures and response plans, gave us a very good starting point to present to Bureau Veritas for them to advise, recommend, and validate what we were doing. For more information about local safety guidance, feel free to hit up the team in. Got a question or want to book a tour of the space? We cannot eliminate this virus, but we can, at the very least, do our part to minimize the spread of it. All rights reserved. Consider eating at your desk rather than in a communal dining area, and time your lunch breaks to avoid the afternoon elevator rush. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), social distancing is one of the most effective measures available that helps reduce the transmission of COVID-19 as society continues to safely reopen. Rentable, customisable spaces for your events and shoots, Dedicated studio space to record high-quality podcasts, and shoot videos with a green-screen background, A full suite of business services including HR, IT, Admin, Marketing and Finance solutions, under one roof, Our spaces are ISO 45001 certified for occupational health and safety. Ensuring that every WeWork locationover 800 locations in 38 countriesis adhering to the strictest COVID-19 guidelines is a titanic task. While some people will continue to work from home at least part of the time, many employees are eager to get back to the office. Jimenez: First, the broad topics that the certification covered. It was heartening to see how this was even more prominent during this whole audit process. This is not something that we wanted to look at as, All right, I want to do this one time, and then were done. This is something were now auditing every day were open. McBride: The biggest challenge for me was intimately understanding HVAC in more buildings than I would have thought about.

On the floors and walls, youll spot vinyl decals indicating one-way traffic flow systems, usually spaced exactly six feet apart to help you measure out a safe distance. No surprise here. The coronavirus pandemic has transformed the office in ways nobody could have predicted, and the health and safety of everyone in the workplace is more of a priority now than its ever been. And dont forget those masks! Throughout our WeWork spaces, you will find complementary disinfectant products and social distancing reminders to help our entire community stay safe. Understanding how to deploy COVID-19 control measures across all countries, where each one of them has a different rhythm of COVID-19 evolution, is key for a global policy to be effective. I walk in and out of building lobbies every single day. Give your team the flexibility to arrive and leave earlier or later in the day to avoid peak travel times. Copyright 2022 WeWork. Signage placed throughout common areas will help us prioritize our health, together. Adam Weinke, Northern California area director, in San Francisco: It really puts that stamp that we are putting health and safety first. Inevitably there will be places and situations where its simply not possible to stay more than six feet apart, such as in a confined corridor or elevator. Weve kept the amenity areas in WeWork spaces open where possible.

These institutions provide students who crave connection a collaborative and distanced experience, Bureau Veritas awarded WeWork a Global Certificate of Conformity after a thorough audit of global buildings, Healthcare operations expert Dr Mark Parrish shares how to make buildings safer, ASAP, With miniaturised, low-cost sensors, it is possible to visualise indoor air quality at a unprecedented scale, Two metres is good, but three metres is better and other pieces of advice from leading experts, They oversaw the largest shipment of protective equipment ever made to WeWork buildings, The design team considered much more than just furniture placement when it revamped over 800 offices, As we return to the office we left months ago, here are some helpful tips on cleaning those workstations. We have implemented cleaning measures that prioritize the health of our members and employees. Weve also brought in experts to advise on best practices, and we continue to work with International SOS to provide strategic direction on health risk management, and Bureau Veritas to audit and certify our policies. Our protocols are in line with international best practices including frequent sanitisation of high-touch points, social distancing, health and safety signage and more. Many WeWork buildings also offer outdoor areas such as terraces and gardens, which provide plenty of wide-open space for our members to meet safely. Weve also brought in experts, working with International SOS to provide strategic direction on medical considerations and quality assurance, and Bureau Veritas to audit and endorse our policies so we can constantly improve. For more information about local safety guidance, feel free to hit up the team in Southwark or Fulton Market. Reserve the elevators for those who need them most, and familiarize yourself with your buildings updated guidance on their use. Precautions to take in the office during the pandemic, A multistory sanctuary rises in the center of Boston, Three best coworking spaces in Minneapolis. As COVID-19 lockdown restrictions ease and society returns to something approaching a sense of normalcy, employees around the world are having to adjust to an entirely new way of working. Heres how WeWork uses creative signage to remind us of practices that help keep everyone safe, Studies show being outdoors lowers the risk of disease transmission. Bureau Veritas looked at our consolidated approach and issued a Certificate of Policy Assurance based on our approach being in line with the guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Details on getting in touch with your Community team can be found on the building guide page on the member network or WeWork app. All rights reserved. WeWorks community wellness guidelines include behavioural expectations in our Communities relating to Covid-19. Heres how to navigate social distancing in the office. Standalone, private conference rooms that can be booked by the hour. The benefits of remote working are numerous and varied, but there are limitations to what can be achieved over a video call. Weinke: It taught our communities to think long term as well.

Sanitising stations will be placed in key areas, with increased cleaning practices across high contact points like printers, door handles and phone booths. Weve partnered with International SOS for strategic direction on medical considerations and quality assurance, and Bureau Veritas to audit and endorse our policies so we can constantly improve. Were committed to prioritising the health and safety of all members and employees in our spaces. Clean and disinfect surfaces: wipe down desks and countertops after use. Building updates and policy changes will be communicated to members via email. Lee: This pandemic is going to be around for some time, whether we like it or not. Clean hands: wash hands with soap and water for 20 seconds and sanitise your hands regularly. One thing you may want to consider is if they, or someone in their family, have health conditions that might put them at risk of severe illness if they were to contract COVID-19. Be flexible and ready to adjust your guidance as your team gets used to the new way of working. Questions about your building? Chelsea Chret, director of operations, southern Europe, in Paris: Our facilities operation managers and community teams did a fantastic job auditing every single building across southern Europe to ensure that all policies were implemented correctly. Building updates and policy changes will be communicated to members via email. Six feet is good, but 10 feet is betterand other pieces of advice from leading experts. WeWork can help you find a solution that best fits your needs, How to practice social distancing at work, Navigating the new rules of personal space in the workplace, The top questions brokers ask about WeWorkanswered, Top three HVAC questions in the time of COVID-19, Top five questions about staying healthy in the workplace. This could mean restructuring your teams usual workflow to eliminate the need for passing around printed documents. Avoid a full office by splitting your team into one or more groups and staggering their attendance. WeWork can help you find a solution that best fits your needs, Signs that reinforce social distancing in the office, Seven outdoor spaces designed for productivity in fresh air, How office security has changed in a hybrid world, Prioritizing mental health in the new world of work, Two universities giving students space wherever they are, How to engage your workforce for the future of work, How WeWork earned a certificate for COVID-19 response plans. In the elevator lobbies and inside elevators in spaces managed by WeWork, floor decals will act as a friendly reminder of safe distancing guidelines. Maintain a distance of six feet (two meters) from your coworkers whenever you can. Break up your emails with the odd update from us. Eight ways WeWork All Access helps you be more productive, Eight pro podcast studios that are waiting for your show, A concrete workspace with soaring windows in Berlin. They may be able to provide you with a one-time-use, disposable face covering. The more people following the signs, the more effective the system becomes. For instance, one half of the team might work from the office one week, then swap with the other half to work from home the next. Bureau Veritas awarded WeWork a Global Certificate of Conformity after a thorough audit of global buildings. Lee: There were several changes implemented on the ground, including but not limited to: All of which would not have been possible without great teamwork from the local facilities operations managers, community teams, and most importantly, our community service associates! Download our COVID-19 handbook for more details. Below are the most current updates on our buildings, including the health and safety measures we have in place across the world. WeWorks community wellness guidelines include behavioral expectations in our Communities relating to Covid-19. All rights reserved. Contact our local teams by filling in this super easy form. Chret: We learned so much during the process, especially about business continuity planning and sharing best practices on matters such as de-densification controls and the rollout of new assets. Identify places in the building where people tend to congregatesuch as cafeterias, kitchens, lobbies, and coffee barsand either plan around them or avoid them entirely. These asymptomatic carriers transmit the virus on surfaces they touch and through microscopic droplets exhaled into the air.

The operational and strategic efforts required were staggering. It may be a lengthy process, but once we get the essential checklist and key pointers in place, these best practices should be a part of daily operations and not something that we only look out for during an audit. Consider wearing a face covering: consider wearing a face covering when in close contact with others. He is the travel editor of City AM newspaper and the deputy editor of City AM Magazine, where his work focuses on technology, travel, and entertainment. All rights reserved. Consider employees responsibilities and preferences to decide who can continue working remotely and who might want to return to the office, but also consider their personal circumstances. New information about COVID-19 is being discovered all the time, but one thing that experts agree on is that social distancing works. All rights reserved.

The following safety practices are being implemented across all our WeWork facilities.

We discussed well-being, mental health, stress, internal quality assurance, protocols for cleaning, travel advisory information, policy awareness, signage on elevators, food and beverage best practices, and a lot more. We then did a secondary process, a Certificate of Implementation. We had to think creatively. If you cant avoid gathering the team in one place, consider hosting it somewhere outside or in a meeting room thats been properly adapted to allow for social distancing.