Recognising our employees with caring responsibilities

Employee wellbeing is a priority at Urenco and a key element of our long-term culture programme.

This includes providing flexibility for our employees to manage their work and home commitments and achieve a good work/life balance.

During COVID-19, this has become even more important as we have all needed to adapt to different patterns and styles of working with often increased responsibilities at home to juggle as well.

This week is Carers Week and we wanted to celebrate how well our employees with caring responsibilities, assisted by their colleagues, have adjusted their working days during the unusual times we are in:

Evonne

Senior Chemistry and Environmental Specialist, UUSA

In March 2020, our school district closed down for two weeks due to COVID-19. That’s when my working from home journey started.

The first few months were a definite challenge and I struggled with the work/life balance. I was anxious about the state of the world and the amount of news coverage surrounding COVID-19 was overwhelming. My children and their teachers were navigating a new world of online learning and I was struggling to fit everything in.

I started to block out periods of time and plan out my whole day to ensure I met my work commitments and helped my children through their schoolwork. Fortunately, I had the tools to make my working from home life easier. Our department used virtual meetings as a way to continue having our morning catch-ups and training, guaranteeing that we stayed connected and maintained our level of proficiency. Our management also created an environment that embraced flexibility, which meant that my work hours and days could shift, if necessary.

Despite the challenges, there have been positives during COVID-19. Personally, I have spent more time with my husband and children and we even attended my cousin’s wedding online! 

Lauren

Maintenance Administrator, Urenco UK

During my seven years at Urenco I have worked across the site in a number of roles. I am currently in the maintenance team for UUK as the team administrator and my usual desk would be in the offices of one of the plants.

In May 2019, I took 12 months of maternity leave after having my little boy. As the pandemic escalated, it was clear I would be working remotely on my return. I was apprehensive, as coming back to work after a long period of time is nerve-wracking enough without there being a pandemic and a different working style. I didn’t even have a laptop, so my manager dropped one off and reassured me.

I didn’t expect to be doing my job from home, sometimes with nursery rhymes in the background, however, I have made it work! It’s been a huge adjustment, but I’m lucky Urenco have been understanding about their employees having children and other commitments at home.

More information about Urenco’s culture programme

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