Majority of Canadian workers feel safe at work: survey
The vast majority (86 per cent) of Canadians feel safe in their workplaces right now, according to a new survey.
The survey, conducted by Angus Reid on behalf of ADP Canada, found 75 per cent of frontline workers and 97 per cent of those working remotely said they feel safe at work. Men (79 per cent) were more likely than women (70 per cent) to say they feel safe at work. And looking at different generations, 82 per cent of employees aged 55 and above said they feel safe at work, compared to workers aged 35 to 54 (70 per cent) and 18 to 34 (75 per cent).
Among working Canadians, 80 per cent said they believe their workplace has taken all necessary precautions to protect them from the coronavirus. These measures include allowing employees to work from home (61 per cent), encouraging social distancing (58 per cent) and increasing sanitization and cleaning of workspaces (56 per cent).
Read: Number of staff working remotely, part time up 415%: survey
However, the survey also found 42 per cent of frontline workers said they feel pressured to go into work during the pandemic. This is highest among employees aged 18 to 34 (37 per cent) compared to those aged 35 to 54 (26 per cent) and workers over age 55 (24 per cent).
Looking specifically at regions, employees in Quebec are feeling the most pressure to go into work during the coronavirus pandemic, at 44 per cent compared to a national average of 29 per cent. In addition, frontline workers in the province said they feel less safe going into work, at 63 per cent compared to the national average of 75 per cent.
Employees in Saskatchewan and Manitoba are least likely to work remotely, at 19 per cent compared to a national average of 26 per cent.
And employees in British Columbia are most likely to feel they aren’t being pressured to go into work — 77 per cent compared to a national average of 66 per cent — while workers believe employers in the province are most likely to reduce business hours.
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