How will the crisis affect employment in Poland and how to deal with it?

Until two months ago, no one expected an economic crisis, but it knocked on our door very quickly. The freezing of the economy for a few weeks is coming to light and will continue to do so for a very long time to come. Reduction of jobs, change to remote working, outsourcing, new niches in the market and more bottom-up initiatives. What are the economic effects of the pandemic and what will be happening on the labour market in the nearest future?

Changes, changes, changes…

In fact, the lion’s share of economic activity is completely suspended until the black clouds that drove the coronavirus are dissolved. Many industries have been completely forced to close down due to the tightening of rules dictated by the government during the pandemic. Their activity hangs by a thread, and yet micro and small entrepreneurs – i.e. companies employing up to 9 people, according to the PARP report from 2019, generate as much as 40 percent of jobs, which gives about 4 million people.

What happens to employees of small companies?

Fortunately, there are companies that have moved their operations to the network, offer online services, deliveries, on-site collection and continue to employ employees, some of them even recruit additionally. Online shops and small flexible businesses are going through a renaissance, offering mask sewing, transport services, or even IT support for changing work modes.

Recruitment in times of crisis

E-learning platforms, Skype, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom have completely revolutionized the world of HR. Both the recruitment process and implementation training are successfully carried out entirely by means of ICT. As we know, tourism and catering have suffered most, followed by construction, training and industrial production. However, the IT, financial, pharmaceutical or retail sectors still have an unflagging demand for employees.

Is there always a big one?

It turns out that corporations are quite a safe place to work because of, among other things, abundant financial cushions, excellent crisis management plans and access to qualified managers who take immediate steps to ensure that the company has as little loss as possible, and even achieve more revenue in this difficult time.

A job in a corporation is still one of the safest forms of employment, right after the state administration. It is known that there will be no such redundancies in the budget, as in companies operating on the free market, which is currently in crisis. What is the cure for the crisis?

It is not known how long it will last. One of the solutions that are ideal both for an employer who does not want to tie in long-term contracts with an employee and for an employee in a difficult situation is outsourcing. Many companies and corporations decide to cooperate with temporary employment agencies, which preliminarily search for a suitable employee meeting the highest standards.