HR Issues During COVID-19
Photo Credit: Martin Sanchez via Unsplash
With COVID-19 radically transforming business operations across Australia, HR teams are being faced with a raft of employment-related implications.
From negotiating unavoidable stand downs to managing the Workplace Health and Safety of remote workers, Human Resource leaders have had to adjust rapidly in light of the changing conditions.
Furthermore, there have been a multitude of unexpected flow-on effects from the pandemic, with the following issues at the top of the HR agenda.
Increase In Unfair Dismissal Cases
According to Fair Work Commission President Iain Ross, there has been a significant increase in the number of unfair dismissal claims and stand down disputes due to the impact of COVID-19.
In his latest statement, Ross stated that from March to July 2020, there were almost 2000 more unfair dismissal applications than in the same period last year, with the largest spike occurring in April when the implications of COVID began to be felt across the country.
"Stand down dispute applications have also significantly increased during the COVID-19 period," he said, with 228 applications put the Fair Work Commission between March and July as compared to 10 cases in the entire 2018/2019 financial year.
Other disputes included those around enterprise agreements, which also increased by almost 50%. Ross said this was "symptomatic of the serious challenges facing many Australian workplaces".
Things have been further complicated by the implementation of the JobKeeper payment, with the commission receiving 639 JobKeeper dispute applications between April and August. Nearly half of these cases hinged on whether casual workers were eligible for JobKeeper payments.
Zero Progress on Gender Pay Gap
Unfortunately, the Coronavirus pandemic has disproportionally affected women in the workforce, at a time when we were starting to see real inroads in creating pay parity.
The Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) recently released data on the gender pay gap in Australia for the six months to May 2020, demonstrating a difference of 14.0% for full-time employees, or $253.60 per week, on average.
WGEA director Libby Lyons has stated that "a number of female-dominated industries have suffered the worst of the job losses" due to COVID-19. Professor Rae Cooper, co-director of the University of Sydney's Women, Work and Leadership Research Group, echoed these sentiments, implying that released figures may be much more flattering than the reality.
"Considering that women not in full-time work – and those pushed from full-time into part-time work because of COVID-19 hours reductions – are not included in these(sic) data suggests that there will be a much higher underlying gap."
Mental Health At The Top Of The HR Agenda
A Direct Health Solutions' study of HR professionals from 101 enterprise organisations found that 66% had seen an increase in anxiety, depression and substance misuse in their workforce, while 61% reported an increase in stress, fatigue and burnout.
Of those participating, two-thirds said they expect this trend to continue over the next year, attributing the increase in mental health concerns to organisational changes, work overload due to new challenges and increased job uncertainty.
To help organisations deal with the increase in mental health concerns, Beyond Blue has partnered with Accenture and Medibank to launch a coronavirus mental wellbeing support service. The service is free to access and offers around-the-clock mental health information, phone and web chat-based counselling, and referrals to other organisations.
Does your business need assistance in understanding the latest workplace legislation and restrictions? Are you looking for strategies to support your workers and their mental health? At Infinity HR, we assist businesses in all aspects of Human Resources, from remaining compliant to setting up employee support networks. Contact Iolanda on 0400 489 743 or email iolanda@infinityhr.com.au.
References:
President's statement - The Fair Work Commission's Coronavirus (COVID-19) response
Hr Daily - Dismissal claims balloon; Gender pay progress stalls; and more