Aon is leading an initiative with the support of other businesses to set out key recommendations on how employees can safely return to workplaces in the wake of the pandemic.

The Australian Work, Travel and Convene Coalition aims to release its initial insights later this year after holding its inaugural virtual meeting last week.

Other members are Allianz, Wesfarmers, Accenture, Lendlease, the Black Dog Institute and Ramsay Health Care.

Aon says the coalition is focused on sharing its members’ key lessons related to planning and operations, the impact of different approaches and evaluating technologies that will support employers to make the transition.

“All parts of Australia face challenges in acclimatising to the ‘new better’ and our major cities face specific challenges in getting people back to the workplace, such as high-rise buildings, the density of buildings and people, and dependence on public transport,” Aon Australia CEO James Baum said.

“These parts also form an interconnected eco-system, and decisions made by the large employers that inhabit them will be a determinant in our cities’ ability to move toward societal and economic recovery.

“We also believe there is an important opportunity to learn from the pandemic and its impact, to build stronger operational resilience and explore improvements in how we most effectively use the workplace – effectively looking at the future of work.”

Aon has launched similar initiatives in New York, Chicago, Dublin, Singapore, London and Rotterdam.