50% Capacity, 100% Commitment to Safety: Salarium Welcomes Employees into a Safer Office After the August MECQ

When Metro Manila, along with Bulacan, Cavite, and Rizal, reverted from General Community Quarantine (GCQ) to Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) last August, a lot of businesses had to once again halt their operations. Salarium is classified under essential businesses so we were still allowed to continue in making our clients’ payroll an effortless process and their payments convenient, as we have since the beginning of the lockdown in March.

Being allowed to continue operations, however, didn’t mean that all our employees can still physically report back to our office. Public transportation is once again extremely limited and movements from city to city difficult due to checkpoints. We also understand that everyone has become more anxious and cautious, being hesitant to go out of their houses during the two-week long MECQ.

As a company, we have to reassure our employees that our office is as safe as it can be. This is why we utilized the August MECQ to revisit our safety protocols and initiatives so we can welcome them back into a safer office when we transition back to GCQ.

Here’s how we ensured the safety of our employees in our workplace:

Touchless Timekeeping

We used to do our timekeeping via Salarium’s fingerprint biometrics, which was the most convenient way before the pandemic. It is a high-touch surface so we had to discontinue using it for sanitary purposes. We didn’t want to compromise the convenience and efficiency of automated attendance monitoring, so we’ve invested in a new touchless technology that is much safer.

Salarium’s now offers FacePass: a Touchless Time and Attendance Solution.

FacePass features an advanced touchless facial recognition device, S.A.F.E. Tech (Secured Attendance & Face-Enabled Technology), that can detect facemasks, scan temperature, and record clock-ins and clock-outs—all at the same time. It reminds employees to wear their masks on before clocking in, and alarms when someone exceeds the normal body temperature. It can accurately recognize our employees within seconds, even with their facemasks and face shields.

The device is also seamlessly integrated into our Timekeeping System, so our HR department can create, track, and manage shifts and schedules, manage overtimes, undertimes, and leaves, and complete attendance reports instantly.

Learn more about FacePass here: https://www.salarium.com/facepass/

Distance Markers

Our working spaces are marked with black lines to emphasize social distancing among our employees. Wearing of facemasks in these areas is also strongly required. After crucial working hours,  we also sanitize our office tables, chairs, floors, and other high-touch surfaces such as door handles.

Scheduled Breaks

Our pantry is the only area in our office where we allow our employees to remove their facemasks. This makes everyone who uses it vulnerable, so we’ve scheduled a time for when each team can use it to avoid crowding. Social distancing is still highly encouraged, and employees are discouraged to talk excessively to one another when eating.

Accessible Sanitary Essentials

We’ve instructed our employees to sanitize their hands every time they touch something, so we’ve placed alcohols and hand sanitizers in every table, corner, and commonplace, and refill them daily. We also ensure that liquid handsoaps never go out of stock in our comfort rooms, along with toilet papers and paper towels.

Since face shields have been an added requirement, we’ve provided one for each of our employees. Facemasks, both disposable and washable, had been also available since the start of quarantine.

Founder and CEO Inspires the Salarium Family

On our August E-Town Hall meeting, our Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Judah Hirsch, encouraged us to “keep playing like the winning team’”

“You can still be the winning team but are not winning at the exact moment, because even winning teams don’t win every tournament.”

Judah comforted those who might have felt like we aren’t on the winning team by stating that, with everyone’s continued dedication, the company is still steadily reaching its goals. He reminded us that although it is a difficult time, it’s not the first challenge that we have faced and overcame, and our victory will never be about the problems we face, but how we respond to it.