Miranda has worked for a construction company for three years, mostly conducting on-site safety inspections involving lengthy travel. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Miranda started working from home, and inspections for her projects were temporarily paused. As months passed and restrictions eased, Miranda received an email from her boss letting her know that she would be expected to travel by plane to a location for a week to view and survey a construction project. Not only is Miranda worried about travelling and putting herself at risk, but the nature of the project also means that she will be in contact with many people once she gets to the construction site. At the same time, many of Miranda’s colleagues are of the opinion that COVID-19 is “not a big deal.” Miranda is unsure about how to let her boss know that she is not comfortable with travelling for this project. Miranda has also been hoping for a promotion, and she worries that refusing to travel for this project would ruin her chances.
Miranda has worked for a construction company for three years. Part of her job includes in-person inspections of various building sites, and she has been conducting such inspections regularly throughout her employment. The locations of these inspections range from a one-hour drive away to lengthy air travel, and visits can last for up to three weeks at a time. Miranda is used to travelling for her many projects and has been praised for her hard work by her supervisor many times.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Miranda started working from home, and inspections for her projects were temporarily paused. As months passed and restrictions eased, Miranda started getting a bit nervous about eventually having to go to sites in person again. Eventually, Miranda received an email from her boss letting her know that she would be expected to travel by plane to a location for a week to view and survey a construction project.
Miranda is concerned. Ever since the pandemic started, Miranda has been taking COVID-19 restrictions seriously: she paused visits to family, cancelled vacations, and in fact, put off sort of travel. Not only is Miranda worried about travelling and putting herself at risk, but the nature of the project also means that she will be in contact with many people once she gets to the construction site. At the same time, Miranda is unsure about how to let her boss know that she is not comfortable with travelling for this project. Many of Miranda’s colleagues are of the opinion that COVID-19 is “not a big deal.” Miranda has also been hoping for a promotion, and she worries that refusing to travel for this project would ruin her chances and make her look bad. She’s been told that this work must be done in-person.
What should Miranda do? Have you ever had to say no to something you were expected to do?