Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the labour market in South Africa

  • Many industries are experiencing mass job cuts, with no prospects of increasing their contribution to the economy or the labour market.
  • Unemployment will rise sharply, and this will impact jobs in both the private and public sectors.
  • Employers may realise that they can run their businesses on a much smaller labour force; and employers are most likely going to avoid re-hire in the future if they can avoid it. And because they may be running on greatly reduced numbers of people and getting by, it may reduce the demand for labour.
  • More companies could adopt the remote working structure of having their employees work from home depending on the productivity and output level during this time.

Advantages going forward

  • Quality over quantity – employees measured on deliverables rather than hours at the office
  • Pollution reduction due to less traveling for business purposes
  • Employers can reduce costs through rent savings
  • Considerable increase in the logistics sector due to uptake of online shopping.

Possible challenges

  • The unemployment rate will increase
  • The underprivileged members of society will become even more marginalised
  • Technology will play an even bigger role and the need for human labour will decrease
  • The retirement age may be lowered for employees who cannot adapt to technology
  • Many companies may opt for webinars as opposed to human contact and it could have an adverse impact on human interactions and networking
  • Some sectors may suffer immense losses (hospitality, tourism, retail)
  • Certain employees will need to be micromanaged.

How BizArmour can help employers

  • Assessing your business operations holistically to advise on appropriate cost reduction strategies
  • Identify financial relief sources applicable to your business
  • Application for relief from, for example, UIF/TERS or the Solidarity Fund
  • Interpretation of contracts with your service providers to identify where you can cut costs
  • Negotiations with your service providers to reduce costs
  • Lawful way of dealing with non-paying clients
  • Retrenchments and other labour-related advice
  • Restructuring your company
  • Conduct a risk assessment on whether your business is ready to implement 4IR.

For more information, visit the BizArmour website

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