COVID-19 and the water sector: understanding impact, preparedness and resilience in the UK through a sector-wide survey

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic led to drastically altered working practices. During the UK lockdown, a questionnaire was distributed to water professionals to understand their experiences and perceptions of organisational response. Findings were evaluated on the measures of mitigation, adaptation, coping and learning. Employees' perceived there were adequate procedures to mitigate a threat, partly due to preparations for Brexit. Participants quickly adapted, with eighty-four percent working from home. Coping was experienced at an individual and sector level. IT issues and care responsibilities made it harder for individuals to cope, but good communication and signposting of support helped. Eighty percent felt able to continue their usual role, implying coping mechanisms were effective. At the sector level, coping involved the ability to meet an increased water demand with a remote workforce. Lessons learned highlight the importance of communication and collaboration. Future crisis plans should prepare for prolonged crises of international magnitude and multiple threats.

Keywords: COVID‐19; employees; organisations; resilience; water sector.

Fig. 1

Heatmap showing the relative proportion of eight coded themes (y‐axis) in the responses to 14 open survey questions (x‐axis). Darker colours represent the most prevalent theme within each question (a). The proportion of responses by men, women, or those who preferred not to disclose to each of the eight themes is shown in (b). [Colour figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]

Fig. 2

Regular location for work prior to lockdown (Q6) and during lockdown (Q7) for respondents from the five most prevalent organisation types (consultant, WSPs, regulators, contractors and researchers) and the entire survey population. [Colour figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]

Fig. 3

Ability to continue the usual role during lockdown (Q8) for respondents within the five most prevalent organisation types. [Colour figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]

Fig. 4

The impact of the COVID‐19 lockdown on: (a) the productivity of female and male employees; (b) the wellbeing of female and male employees; (c) the productivity of those with and without ‘essential worker’ status; and (d) the wellbeing of those with and without ‘essential worker’ status. Data collated from Q1, 5, 9 and 10. [Colour figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]