“We held down the fort”

Most UZH members have been working from home in recent weeks. Many could easily switch to working remotely – but not everyone. We spoke to seven colleagues who continued to work on site at UZH throughout the coronavirus crisis. How did they deal with their “new” working day and the associated challenges? And were they able to take away anything positive from these extraordinary few months?

By Alice Werner; translated by Gemma Brown

“I enjoy doing a frontline job and having face-to-face contact with students. So I have really missed this direct interaction over the past few weeks. Seeing the library deserted in the middle of the semester felt almost surreal. The only positive I was able to take away from this extraordinary situation was that I could whistle as loudly as I wanted when putting books away. Fortunately we were able to provide students with the literature they needed during the coronavirus crisis by significantly expanding our e-media offering, and sending ordered books from the Main Library collections to students’ home addresses free of charge. So, once a day, we had to take a whole load of parcels of books to UZH’s post office. Despite only maintaining minimum operations, we continued to offer advice and services as normal.  This was necessary, as we were positively overwhelmed with literature research requests, queries about the various e-book formats, but also questions about technical access requirements and digital learning. Our work over the past few weeks has been greatly appreciated and we have all been delighted with the positive feedback we’ve received from students and staff.”

“Even during the crisis, two technicians were on site on the UZH City Campus every day to be able to intervene quickly if an alarm sounded. Around 500 pieces of equipment – from ventilation systems and elevators to laboratory freezers and high-performance computers – are linked up to Facility Management on City Campus via the central control system. Luckily there were no serious incidents in the past few weeks, and all reported faults could be repaired by a technician single-handedly, so we had no problems complying with social distancing. I also made use of the quiet time to do various maintenance work, such as testing the emergency lighting control systems and replacing lamps. Normally we carry out repair work at off-peak times and make every effort to complete jobs as quickly and quietly as possible. So for me it was quite nice that most UZH buildings were almost completely deserted during the coronavirus crisis, as I was able to work knowing I wasn’t disturbing anyone.”

“There was never any question about whether we would close our kitchens completely during the coronavirus crisis. But it was clear that a certain level of emergency operation would have to be maintained on Irchel Campus, and that building work that was under way would have to be continued. We also wanted to make sure that the staff at the Institute of Medical Virology – who were already working flat out even before the closure – would continue to get their meals. We delivered two snacks to the institute every day, and also offered lunch and evening meals. During the lockdown, we fed a total of around 70 people a day. For us, that was a big adjustment. Usually we cook lunch for 2,500 people a day. And of course, our kitchen equipment is designed to cater for such large numbers, for example our pans hold 450 liters! So it was a bit of a challenge adapting our recipes accordingly. To better calculate quantities and avoid food waste, I only ordered unprocessed raw materials, so for example no pre-cut vegetables. This was a positive experience for the chefs who enjoyed being able to work more directly with the food and prepare the carrots themselves.”

“I regard it as a sign of appreciation that our gardening work is considered ‘essential’ by the Executive Board of the University and that we were able to continue to look after our plant collection during the lockdown. In the spring in particular, there’s always plenty to do: For example, the tub plants had to be taken out of their winter home, all annual plants for the sensory garden had to be potted up, shoots had to be planted, the water in the water lily pool had to be changed, and the vanilla blossoms pollinated. In order to comply with the necessary safety measures, we worked in two separate teams and in shifts. Obviously it makes me sad to think that our visitors weren’t able to enjoy the lovely spring blossoms this year, such as our camellias and various tree peonies. But the crisis has also had some silver linings, for example it has bound us together as a team – despite social distancing. What’s more, I’m suddenly getting my hands dirty again working as an active gardener. It’s really great that after 30 years at the Botanical Garden and a great deal of administrative, organizational and IT tasks, I’m coming back to my roots.”

“To make sure that all our animals were well looked after during the lockdown, half of our team was always on site – animal keepers and staff from the animal facility management team. As we generally wear PPE at work anyway (face mask and depending on the task, overalls, hood and gloves), we didn’t have to take any special measures in this regard. But we did transform our working spaces so that as few people as possible had to be there at any one time. Most of the planned experiments could not be carried out due to the restricted operation and the regulations regarding hygiene and social distancing. This is why we have significantly reduced our breeding activities and thereby the number of breeding cages in recent weeks. I also had many conversations with staff members who were very distressed by the whole situation.”

“Even when Irchel Campus was almost empty and most UZH buildings were deserted during the coronavirus crisis, we didn’t have any less work. Quite the opposite, in fact: Because we were operating with a skeleton staff, we had to enhance certain security measures in the area of Security Services, such as conducting more frequent on-site security checks and control rounds. Coordinating external security services and constantly adapting security contracts to the circumstances was a challenge. Every day, we and the external security services we deployed had to direct people away from closed outdoor areas and parks, such as the ASVZ tennis courts and football pitches, and the Botanical Garden. Luckily, people were understanding. What’s more, in consultation with the operators of the recently opened COVID-19 test center, we developed a security and surveillance concept to protect the center from break-ins, but also from overcrowding. Considering that we were in a crisis situation, there was pleasingly little to report as regards security at UZH – thanks in part to the good cooperation with internal organizations such as the facility management teams and heads of institutes and departments.”

“I work in the main building and look after around 40 properties on City Campus. There’s always a lot of hustle and bustle at UZH, which I really like. But in the last few weeks, the buildings have been deserted. It felt like a ghost town. Despite the limited operation, we were in action every day with a small team. Although there were only a small number of people around in UZH buildings, we still had to regularly check and clean toilet facilities, common rooms, labs and outside spaces. The fine weather meant that active use was made of the UZH gardens, which in turn meant a lot of litter. There was also various construction work under way for which we were needed. We have seen an increase in inquiries from UZH staff regarding hygiene measures in recent weeks. The fact that people are now paying more attention to this topic in general is a welcome development as far as I’m concerned as a specialist in the area. For me personally, managing my team remotely was a new experience. I was constantly in touch with them by phone to share the latest information, and was always on hand to listen to their concerns during this difficult time. Reassuring them and working together to look ahead and be positive was not always an easy task but was certainly an exciting challenge.”