The University of Waterloo Staff Association (UWSA) is pleased to present the results of our April 2021 COVID Campus Climate Survey.
On July 31st, 2020, we published the results of our first survey which shared a list of the top ten concerns of the staff who participated. The most pressing categories included workspace equipment/environment, working with family responsibilities, and workload. The results of the second survey can be found below.
As the organization responsible for representing and supporting University of Waterloo staff, the UWSA uses these results to determine which areas of concern require our attention. Rest assured that the UWSA continues to advocate for UWaterloo staff and that we are doing our best to keep you all informed.
In fact, we are happy to share that most staff respondents were satisfied with our efforts to keep them informed, and we will continue to do our best to support you all.
Please contact us if you have any questions, comments or concerns about the surveys, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Thank you to all who participated in our first and second COVID Campus Climate surveys!
Positive results
Our second survey provided us with information on how staff respondents were feeling about their work situation. We’re happy to share that a large majority reported feeling positive, even during these uncertain times.
| Statement | % Strongly or Somewhat Agree |
|---|---|
| UWSA keeps staff informed | 98% |
| I feel grateful | 97% |
| My manager is supportive | 95% |
| UW admin keeps staff informed | 94% |
| I feel confident about my employment stability | 94% |
| I feel efficient and productive in my job | 94% |
| Current situation is fine or better | 84% |
Areas of concern
Below is a list of the percentage of concerned staff respondents for each survey category, in order of the categories with the most concerns to the least concerns.
| Area of Concern | % Serious or Somewhat a Concern |
|---|---|
| General feelings of stress, pressure, and/or anxiety | 83% |
| Uncertainty/anxiety about returning to campus | 78% |
| Campus COVID-19 safety | 75% |
| Missing other campus community members | 69% |
| Workload | 66% |
| Balancing work with family responsibilities | 58% |
| Workspace equipment & environment | 48% |
The following section highlights a comparison of some of the data collected from both surveys:
Work location
Compared to the May 2020 COVID climate survey, there was a 10% decrease in the number of staff respondents working remotely in April 2021. As we begin to transition back to campus for the Fall term, we expect to see even more UWaterloo staff return to work on campus.
| Work Location | Survey 1 | Survey 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Remote | 89% | 79% |
| Campus | 2% | 6% |
| Both | 7% | 15% |
| Other | 2% |
UWSA membership
Most respondents in both surveys were UWSA members:
| UWSA Membership | Survey 1 | Survey 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Member | 88% | 92% |
| Non-member | 10% | 6% |
| Unsure | 2% | 2% |