Omicron | Will latest Covid strain impact return-to-office plans?

Headlines are currently rife with information on the latest COVID variation to raise concerns among the medical and scientific community – the omicron variant.

And, as it looks to threaten the UK’s handling of the pandemic as a whole, and measures are once again introduced to prevent the spread, this raises questions around HR’s response.

The new strain of the virus, which was discovered in South Africa, has already made its way to the UK. Currently nine cases have been identified across the UK, with six directly linked to Scotland.

This new strain is concerning due to the highly mutated characteristics it holds, according to reports from the BBC, which could make it both more transmissible, and more effective at bypassing vaccine immunity.