Hyderabad: Some companies are not able to make optimum use of their manufacturing facilities due to shortage of labour. The situation did not improve despite the lockdown restrictions getting eased over time, said Industries and IT Principal Secretary Jayesh Ranjan.
Speaking at an event organised by industry body FTCCI to present HR Awards to select companies, he said some manufacturing companies are finding it difficult to find labour as the latter have not returned from their native places or if they have returned have found a new job with other companies.
“Some companies did not treat the labour the right way. Now, they are paying back in the same coin by not coming back to work,” he said, urging the companies to ensure that respect and dignity of the employees are protected all times.
Covid has brought to the fore that people management skills are more important for business continuity. Citing instances of some employees in the IT sector, Ranjan said that they volunteered to be at offices during the lockdown despite police acting tough to implement the lockdown guidelines. “The companies will value such people who have gone beyond the call of the duty,” he said.
The Government together with IT industry bodies like the Nasscom and the Hysea has formed a committee in the early days of lockdown when there were reports of some companies laying off their employees. The committee representatives heard issues from employees and also from the companies on this. In all, there were below 200 cases and more than 70 per cent were settled by the committee interventions. In some cases, the employees were asked to hone their skills or don new roles to be relevant in the job market, the official said.
While work from home concept has now become the key model for business continuity, the companies and the employees have to make many adjustments including setting up the required infra at home. “Many of the IT companies work from SEZs, which do not even allow using their own laptops, mobiles and other electronic gadgets and stationery. The companies have to take special permissions from their clients to allow the staff to work from home,” said Ranjan.
Employees see HR departments as being responsible for job losses and there is a need to work to change this kind of impression. The focus of HR should be on putting people, their rights and dignity first and not restrict themselves to targets and milestones, the top official said.
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