Question

You are the Executive Director of Human Resources for the College of New Caledonia. There is a global pandemic called COVID-19 causing unprecedented disruption to society, business operations, and global economies. Every one is feeling the impacts and no one is immune to this including your organization CNC. The President of the College of New Caledonia has asked you as the Executive Director of Human Resources to prepare a Human Resources Pandemic Plan for the organizations COVID-19 response. To create a comprehensive plan, you are required to pay particular attention to a few key details that will impact employees.

In your plan, briefly discuss the following topics (and provide your reasoning):

1,Compensation plans for employees - is peoples pay changing as a result of disrupted work?

2.Employee benefits and services plans for employees - is this changing as a result of disrupted work?

3.Health and Safety decisions made to protect employees.

4.Union partners collaboration and communication – what is the plan for how you work with the unions?

5.What will happen if employees are non compliant with recommendations or are not able to work to expected standards?

word limit should be 1500 to 2000

Answer 1

Being an Executive Director of Human Resources for the college, I would suggest few changes in the policies and plans during the Covid19 global pandemic.

Firstly, since this is a college, and although students were asked not to attend classes in the college for the fear of the pandemic, yet their studies need to continue for the academic year, hence virtual online classes are conducted in all the colleges across the world. And the teachers have the same work irrespective of whether they teach online in a virtual classroom or offline in an actual classroom. They need to work on the students coursework, classes, assign projects and assignments to the students, prepare for their classes, prepare questions for the students tests etc. Teachers have the same responsibility even if they work and teach online or offline. This is an undeniable fact and every management of the college knows this. So, the compensation policies and plans for the employees will not change as a result of the pandemic. Although work may get disrupted a bit, because the hard work that is put-in in teaching a class online and offline will differ a bit, but the level of stress that goes in preparing for the lectures is the same. So, in my opinion, there should not be any change in the compensation policies.

Second, as long as the employees are working for the college and teaching students, clearing their queries online, taking special interest in assuring that the students get the best out of the class, teachers should be getting their benefits and service plans. Any student enrolled with an organization need to pay the fee in full, because they get same knowledge online or offline. The amount of hard work that will be put in will be same. Similarly, when an organization hires staff, then it should take care of its employees even at the time of crisis. When everything goes well, organizations make profits from their employees, but if the same organization is in crisis situation, it should not leave its employees. In the similar lines, when employees are a part of an organization, they should be getting the benefits to a controlled extent, if not full. This way, organization can always indicate its employees that come what may, let any pandemic struct, we are there for you. This is a kind of assurance that organizations give to its employees.

Third, pandemic is the time where most of the organizations should take care of its employees health. For the employees safety, organization should take necessary precautions to ensure that employees are healthy and safe. In such scenario, most of the organizations tell their staff to work remotely from the safety of their home or tell them to come to the organization with safety precautions and aids. In this case, since this is a college, and students do not attend the college, college authorities can inform their teachers to come down to college and maintain social distancing from the other staff. In case any teacher has the symptoms of Covid19, they should be asked to stay at their home and work remotely from their home by staying in home quarantine.

Fourth, Unions are a part of most of the organizations. Unions generally agitate and retaliate if their demands are not met. In most of the organizations, if the unions feel that their management is trying to manipulate or not accept their demands, then they try to retaliate on the management. In this case, when the management is trying to be fair, positive and optimistic, then they will be no need for the unions to retaliate over the management. But if the unions have any special demands and are not ready to compromise on certain factors, then management should make them understand that situation and give them viable options to choose from.

Lastly, if the employees have any special demands and are non-compliant with the recommendations and are not able to work as per expected standards, then management should give them three chances to rectify and work as per the standards. And if they change their ways and work as per the required standards, then they can be get every privelige they get as an employee. If not they can be fired and unions will have no way to retaliate, because the employee is given enough chances to prove himself and if they still cant prove and work as per the standards, they can be fired.