CPSC Staff Split on Return-to-Worksite Comfort

There is a roughly equal, three-way split among CPSC staffers' comfort with returning to on-site work, according to a May 27 report from the Inspector General office. About 32.4% of those surveyed expressed comfort, 31.1% said no, and 36.5% were unsure. The survey also found a correlation between higher comfort and a respondent already being back on-site even if only temporarily.

For the 335 respondents, the top return-to-work concerns were better ventilation (278 yesses), clear standards for return (267), COVID-19 notification policies (263), policies for reporting safety worries (251), and workplace surface disinfection (248).

On the other hand, lowest return comfort was among those based at the Bethesda, Md., headquarters, where the bulk of CPSC employees work. For the three agency workplaces, comfort answers were:

• Headquarters: Yes (23.9%), No (40.0%), Unsure (36.1%).
• Lab: Yes (35.9%), No (15.6%), Unsure (48.4%).
• Field/Ports: Yes (63.3%), No (14.3%), Unsure (22.4%).

The survey – done in February and March of this year – also found carryover of the main finding of an earlier survey (PSL, 2/22/21): greater desire for and receptiveness to telework following experiences during the pandemic.

However, it also found worsened opinions about communications on the pandemic and telework from all three management offices – acting chairman, executive director, and human resources.