Malta’s New Redundancy Issues: Here’s How You Can Cope With COVID-19 Induced Company Restructuring
Several employees in Malta are currently being made redundant, not through any fault of their own but as an unfortunate side effect of restrictions brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
While some businesses have no choice but to restructure their operations if they want to weather the storm, they do have a choice in how they go about making their staff redundant.
If you’ve found yourself in such an uncomfortable hot seat, this advice is essential reading.
Instead of leaving redundant workers out in the cold, companies can partner up with Vacancy Centre, a Maltese recruitment agency which describes one of its services as a form of “redundancy aftercare”.
Here’s a taste of some of the guidance and skills that Vacancy Centre will offer people to help them transition into their next career step:
Resume-writing skills
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Your resume is the first impression a potential new employer will form of you and it’s a fact that first impressions can be everything. Writing an impressive resume is a skill in itself and, as employment professionals, Vacancy Centre know exactly which words and phrases will catch a potential employer’s eye and which will see their eyes glaze over.
After finding out who you are, they will help you tailor the wording and structure of your resume to maximise your chances of landing that coveted interview.
Dealing with the emotional impact of unemployment
Being made redundant comes with an emotional toll that ranks as one of the highest stressors a person can experience, and this anxiety cannot be downplayed. Vacancy Centre offers people 50-minute one-to-one professional coaching sessions to help them get back on track, reframe their situation as an opportunity and make use of positive coping mechanisms to look to the future with optimism.
Preparing for interviews
If all of this works out, you will eventually be called in for an interview. While you will be alone in the interview room, Vacancy Centre will prepare you for this big moment in advance.
Not only will they give you advice but you’ll also get to hold a mock interview with a highly trained and skilled HR professional as though you were applying for a job in real life. Once this interview is done, they can also prepare a mock report with feedback which will guide you on the do’s and don’ts for future interviews.
The power of LinkedIn
Everyone has a Facebook or Instagram account but how many of us have a LinkedIn account, let alone a well-oiled one? LinkedIn is the social media platform for the business world and your LinkedIn account is your personal brand.
Vacancy Centre will teach you about the powers of this platform, help you build your online profile and advise you on how to use it to promote your key skills and experiences to potential employers.
So why should employers place their redundant staff on this scheme?
It might seem counter-intuitive to spend resources on someone who no longer works with you but that’s only if you’re looking in the absolute short-term.
The matter in which you make someone redundant will form their opinion on your business and likely entrench it for years to come.
Deeply negative opinions could come back to haunt you if your redundant staff move to a competitor or a business partner or if spread the word amongst their circles. It might also make them think twice if you ever plan to rehire them in the future.
Not only that, but it will dampen the mood among your remaining employees, some of whom might have been close to the newly redundant staff, harming their own productivity and engagement to the detriment of your business.
On the other hand, businesses partnering up with Vacancy Centre will help their former and current staff alike understand that certain decisions were not borne out of malice but necessity, and everyone will know that as an employer you went the extra mile to help your newly redundant staff.
Besides, helping your former staff get back on their feet is a true act of social responsibility, something which is well-needed and well-appreciated in these uncertain times.
What is Vacancy Centre offering?
There are two packages on offer. The core package, will see Vacancy Centre train employees in resume-writing skills, give them career advice, help them deal with the emotional impact of being laid off, and give them mock interviews with a HR professional.
The elite package, offers all of that plus a detailed mock interview report with feedback on where they went right and wrong as well as training on how to use LinkedIn to improve their career prospects.
These are uncertain times for everyone but people whose life situation suddenly went from one of job security to one of redundancy, through no fault of their own, will feel the brunt more than most.
While some hard boardroom decisions will have to be taken, that should be no excuse for businesses not to ensure the redundancy process is as smooth as possible.
After all, we’re all in the same boat together and it’s our collective duty to make sure life doesn’t have to be harder than it should. In Vacancy Centre’s own words, “company restructuring does not need to be a nightmare”.
For more details on Vacancy Centre’s offers, you can contact them by sending an email to [email protected] or by calling (+356) 2123 2224/5. For additional employment advisory related matters, please contact CSB Group.
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