The pending roll-out of a new Living with COVID-19 plan for the months ahead should deliver certainty to businesses to enable them more robustly plan to sustain their businesses.

This is the call from members of the Shannon Chamber HR Forum, chaired by Derek McKay, managing director, Adare Human Resources Management and involving HR managers and professionals from Chamber member companies.

“Companies need advance warning of what’s being planned as otherwise it makes it more difficult for them to effectively organise and run their businesses. The short-termism that companies have dealt with over the past six months cannot continue as each new decision or reversal of a previous decision places an unnecessary burden on companies to re-organise their business structure.

“For instance, many had plans in place to safely bring a certain number of employees back on site prior to the last request for workers to continue to work from home and avoid using public transport. Now that the schools have reopened and childcare challenges have been resolved or are bedding down, it is important the Government and corporate needs are aligned,” stated Mr McKay.

In addition to abiding by COVID-19 protocol, the repercussions of the pandemic on employees’ health and well-being has placed a greater level of pressure and responsibility on companies to increase the supports they assign to this area.

“Many people have found the sheer pace of change and level of uncertainty difficult to deal with which, in turn, has required employers to increase the level of supports and resources they apply to this area of their human resource management function.

“Considering the financial challenges that the changeover from the TWSS to EWSS, effective 1 September, will have on companies, there is little doubt that many businesses will be forced to review their overall resourcing. Hence the need for greater stability in the policy and regulatory environment and for sustainable long-term support to help companies through what will be a difficult winder trading period,” added Mr McKay.

ENDS

About

The Shannon Chamber HR Forum brings senior HR professionals together to share best practice and thinking in HR and employment law and creates a network among HR executives in the Shannon region. Chaired by Derek McKay, managing director, Adare Human Resource Management.  

The Human Resources (HR) COVID-19 Information Hub for Shannon Chamber Members

Shannon Chamber has linked up Adare Human Resource Management to offer members complimentary access over the coming months to an online hub where all relevant information required by the human resources function in a company is contained to support Organisations during COVID-19.  https://www.shannonchamber.ie/human-resources-hr-covid-19-information-hub-for-shannon-chamber-members/