Pandemic made the workplace jump forward five years

Whenever there is a challenging economy, companies and employers have to consider restructuring processes, which could include transferring staff into different roles within the business, moving staff around regional or global offices, reducing working hours for a temporary period, removing non-essential benefits from employment terms for a temporary period or asking staff to take leave during periods where the business is quieter. 

Companies and employers are more reluctant to add full-time roles, preferring to add more flexible roles in their team and opting for more part-time or temporary employees. 

The pandemic is forcing companies to accelerate their transformation to be more digitally focused and ushering a complete transformation in flexible working, which in turn has transformed both traditional job roles and the nature of work by creating a more agile way of working.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, businesses and employers are having to adapt rapidly to new ways of working remotely. This has affected how people communicate and interact with their team members, with everyone working from different locations. 

Though this has affected team-work and employee connection to an extent, with the adoption of several advanced telecommunication and collaborative platforms, employees can still connect with their co-workers through video or audio conferencing from any remote location. 

The new normal way of working is likely to have a dramatic impact on the workplace, as the traditional view of the office place and rigid 9-5 workdays give way to fully flexible working and the reinvention of office spaces to a more dynamic set up.

One of the most significant changes brought about by the pandemic was the passing of Resolution 279, which effectively introduced the concept of redundancy into the UAE Labour Law for the first time, putting in place certain protections for employees. 

However, many have viewed it as creating an environment to encourage terminations as it is likely that the courts will be sympathetic to employers who can prove that redundancy terminations were the only viable option for the business in the case of any disputes. 

One of the most negative changes brought about by the pandemic was the economic pressure it placed onto companies, which has resulted in many businesses having to reduce employee costs, such as salaries and job role opportunities.

The most positive legacy of the pandemic from a human resources perspective is likely to be the workplace environmental changes. The new way of structuring the working week in terms of when and where people work has advanced society by at least five years. 

The vast majority of companies and employees can take advantage of the new normal to make their time at work as productive as possible and at the same time, enable people to spend more time at home and spend more time with their families. 

Key takeaways 

• The new normal way is likely to have a dramatic impact on the workplace.

• One of the most significant changes brought about by the pandemic was the passing of Resolution 279.

• One of the most negative changes brought about by the pandemic was the economic pressure it placed onto companies.

• The positive legacy of the pandemic from a human resources perspective is the workplace environmental changes.