Impact of Covid - 19 on
an organization all over the world;
Emloyment And HR Best
Practices During Covid - 19
Many organisations are using remote working for the first
time. HR professionals are having to improvise daily, while
there is now a great deal of discussion concerning the
impact of Covid-19 on and implications for working
practices and human resource management (HRM), much of
the content and comment on these topics tends to be of a
general nature, offering observations and/or guidance that
seek to define what a ‘new normal’ might be. For example,
that remote working will become the norm, or that working
practices will become more flexible. While this may be
indeed what happens, because Covid-19 is a global
pandemic, we need to understand its impact on working
practices, well-being and HRM in specific contexts. It is
likely many changes will be common across country
contexts, but we should also expect, given institutional
differences, that there will be localised nuances.
First, while the majority of industries have been negatively
affected by Covid-19, particular industries and sectors have
been affected positively. For example, in Australia, amidst
some reports of negative impact, many respondents from
healthcare and social assistance, public administration,
finance and insurance and mining have reported a positive
impact. As would be expected, the majority of our
respondents so far have moved to remote working, but
most have not made positions redundant and have worked
to retain staff without using government subsidies. In some
sectors, some additional hiring has been undertaken while
in most, hiring freezes have been put in place.
In Australia, through a survey of and interviews with
managers and others with people management
responsibility, our ongoing research has highlighted some
important outcomes. Some of the factors that affected the
1
already hired employees and newly hiring candidates in
Cost Cutting
Because of the coronavirus, many companies are enacting
hiring freezes and downsizing and preparing for a second
round of cuts.The COVID-19 pandemic has already radically
transformed the workforce, as many professionals have
transitioned from the physical workplace to remote work
because of the public health threat. The COVID-19 virus has
delivered a major hit on the economy, as companies are
shuttering, the travel and hospitality industries have
become virtually decimated, and the stock market is
plunging. As the pandemic is showing no signs of slowing
down, many businesses are experiencing a serious decline
in revenue, and are forced to think the pay cut of
employees salary.
Great job loss
A startling indicator of the economic impact of COVID-19 is
that unemployment rates reached the highest level since
the Great Depression in April. As a result, claims for
unemployment benefits have risen dramatically, though
millions of people who have lost their jobs have
been unable to apply or have had trouble applying for this
benefit. Yet these figures do not reveal the extent to which
households are struggling financially as a result of a
COVID-19 related job loss.
Impact in Nepali migrant workers.
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all aspects of human
life, including the world of work, and has further
exacerbated the impact of financial crisis brought about by
agrarian crisis , job crisis, rise in oil prices and trade
renegotiations. The crisis has intensified and expanded its
global reach, and the full and partial lockdown imposed in
response to the crisis, along with other restrictions, is
already affecting almost 2.2 billion workers, representing
approximately 68% of the world’s workforce . Business
across a range of economic sectors, especially smaller
enterprises, are facing losses and millions of workers are
vulnerable to income loss, temporary reductions in working
time and loss of jobs . Migrant workers are particularly
vulnerable to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which
has constrained both their ability to access their places of
work in the countries of destination as well as their ability
to return to their countries of origin.
HR best practices during covid
- 19
In times of crisis such as the one we are currently
experiencing, HR is called to assess and contribute to a
broader response that embeds our organization’s
mission, values, and societal impact with a focus on the
well-being of our staff, stakeholders, and the community.
We need strategies for business continuation that also
addresses how people can stay psychologically resilient.
This is particularly important in the nonprofit sector,
where dedicated staff are the champions of the
continuation of services to their communities. Now is
the time your people need you the most. It is key for HR
to promote a climate of calm while also engaging
leadership to respond with timely, accurate, assertive,
clear, and consistent communication from all levels of
the organization. In addition, communication needs to
be honest, open, and as transparent as possible to
maintain credibility. The approach should always come
from a place of empathy and understanding of the
different impacts situations like these have on people,
from the physical to the mental. Staff are our most
valuable asset, and we need to look at our mission and
our people together.
Best practices of HR are as follow ;
1.Create/Activate an Emergency
Response Team
Ensure that HR is part of an Emergency Response
Team. Provide input in the guidelines to be
implemented, gather and share staff and client’s
questions and concerns; inform the team of new
developments in employment laws and benefits;
share revised policies; provide strategies to manage
remote workers; share risks related to the crisis; and
make sure that values and equity are still at the center
of decision-making.
2
2. Make Communication Deliberate,
Consistent, and Over Communicate if
Necessary
 Communication and the actions you take should be
thoughtful, clear, succinct, accurate, consistent, and
as transparent as possible. This way of
communication builds trust. Work with leadership
and your internal communication team to build a
robust internal updates framework and a
communication plan.
 Communicate how to report possible cases of
COVID-19 exposure or diagnoses. Reinforce there
will be no retaliation for disclosing this information
and that their confidentiality will be treated with
the upmost respect. Share with staff the status of
identified cases (keeping confidentiality), how the
organization is addressing it, and what the
organization’s next steps are.
3. Care for Staff! Employee Wellness and
Safety Initiatives
 Keep in constant communication with your
employees on their physical and mental health.
Staff should hear from leaders often and feel
supported. Practice empathy and address concerns
in a prompt matter.
 Encourage social distancing by asking staff to
not only limit travel and large group gatherings, but
also avoid handshakes, hugs, and other physical
interactions.
 Continually inform staff of what is included in
their benefits plan. Activate your Wellness Program.
Share and connect staff with your Employee
Assistant Program as well as with other Health
benefits such as Telehealth.
4. Reconsider Leaves and Policies
 Stay updated. Monitor changes and updates on new
employment legislation that impact employee
benefits and leave, like the Families First
Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), and
communicate those with the Emergency Response
Team to develop solutions around implementation
and communication.
 Define and modify policies, controls, and
practices that address these emergencies.
Communicate those changes with transparency
through your leadership.

5. Implement Remote Work Strategies
 Social distancing is key for helping slow down the
spread of COVID-19. If working remotely is a
possibility, HR should work with IT to ensure the
smooth transition to a remote work scenario.
 Activate a Communication Phone Tree, to make
sure everyone know the channels of communication
in an emergency.
 Create and share a quick guide for supervisors
and employees with best practices for working
remotely. This guide should address efforts to
encourage health and well-being, work engagement,
boundaries, and the rhythm and pace of remote
work. Make sure you set up a live meeting to share
these practices.
Recruitement and selection in an
orgnanization during covid - 19
The study also found that remote meeting tools tend
to be low-priority items in HR budgets despite the
surge in remote meetings, that new employees who
were onboarded virtually had a hard time feeling like
part of the team, and that HR managers struggled
with employee engagement and effectively
integrating them into the corporate culture.
The future of business and the hiring process as it
relates to the COVID-19 pandemic is uncertain, so
small businesses will need to be flexible and adjust
their usual practices until face-to-face business is
again possible. Here are five steps you can take now
to adapt your hiring practices.
1. Let people know you're hiring.
Many qualified candidates who were looking for
jobs before the pandemic hit may assume that
most companies are not hiring during the crisis, so
you must make it well known that your company
is actively seeking new employees.Make sure all
of your current job postings are listed on your
company's website, and call attention to your
open positions on social media and your other
marketing avenues to help find the right
candidate.
"Companies should refresh and cleanse their job postings
online – new postings will get the most traction, and ones
posted even a month ago will be viewed as potentially not
relevant anymore.
3
2. Have a detailed employee recruitment
procedure.
If you are hiring during the coronavirus pandemic, you need
a detailed and well-thought-out procedure or recruitment
plan in place before you begin the process. Hiring
completely remotely will be a very different experience
from hiring in person, and it is your responsibility to the
company and to potential employees to make sure you
have a process that will work.
3.Be realistic in your offer
It is a very uncertain time for businesses and employees
alike, so when you are hiring, be sure that your company
can support a new employee with no reservations or
modifications.
"When you're hiring during a crisis, I think you need to be
very conscious of what you can offer," said Walden. "Make
sure it's going to be a long, permanent position – to the best
of your knowledge – complete with competitive pay and
benefits."
If you think or know that circumstances will change after
the crisis has passed, such as the employee shifting
to in-office work, lay all of that out when you give the job
4. Prioritize remote working skills.
While your company may not be fully remote forever,
specifically seeking these skills in job candidates can make
their transition into your company easier and increase their
initial productivity, since there may be less of a learning
curve to adjust to remote work.
5. Utilize your existing candidate pool.
Many companies have pools of candidates who have
previously submitted applications and may be seeking a job
during the crisis. If you'd like to avoid an active recruiting
campaign, you can shift your focus to this existing pool of
candidates and hire from there.
Lastly but most importantly, do not forget to show your
humanity and your compassion. Share strategies on how
to stay physiologically resilient in the midst of these
strange and difficult times. Business is not “as usual”
right now, and it will take time to adjust to a new routine.
There is still much uncertainty, and the economic and
social impacts of this pandemic will have long lasting
effects.
4