Archive for Editorial
Adapting to COVID-19
It is now almost six months since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic. As the epidemic was unfolding in February 2020, with little information about the new coronavirus, scientists from across…
Office and work-life after COVID-19
COVID-19 has brought unprecedented human and humanitarian challenges. Many companies have risen to the occasion, actingswiftly to safeguard employees and migrate to a new way of working. Before the pandemic, the…
We are being too reactive to the pandemic
If we were to analyze the actions taken by government in the first and second waves of the pandemic, we would conclude that the decisions taken on the two were different from each other. One recalls the decisions announced by government in recent months which were described with respect to the medical advice provided by the Health Authorities. The population of these islands had obeyed the advice propagated by public health specialists. Hence, collective discipline prevailed. In the first wave of the pandemic, the government was commended, particlularly by the World Health Organisation (WHO), for keeping the number of cases low. Subsequently, when we laxed the active cases began to rise again. The rush to get the economy back on its feet exasperated the WHO’s warnings to countries not to let go of their controls. What happened? Our country had responded to the demands of entrepeneurs, people in business and hoteliers, thereby failing to listen to the advice of the health authorities. Consequently, we witnessed a lot of confusion in the way things were communicated and discipline quickly fell apart. Cases have accumulated rapidly. We were told to enjoy summer. Several people quickly took off their masks and had fun at parties and entertainment venues. This has led to an explosion of COVID-19 cases and the government has now reacted by announcing new measures. This is not the way how to address the second wave of the pandemic. Government is being more reactive to the situation than active and is not taking the situation seriously. The well-being of workers and the most vulnerable is at stake. What concrete precautions are being taken to keep these people safe? In addition, social distancing must still be maintained at all times and those who disobey must be punished. Enforcement must be strong, serious and consistent whilst there should be no exceptions for violators. Let us be mature and use our common sense. Meanwhile, Voice of the Workers continues to urge the government to do more to control the virus before it has fatal effects on both the vulnerable and the country’s economy.
Government chooses to enrich the few and endanger people’s health
Our country needs to be led seriously because we are facing a dangerous situation whereby we shall witness an ‘explosion’ of Covid-19 cases. A marathon meeting, which lasted almost eight hours, between the social partners and the Prime Minister on Thursday 6th August, did not lead to the complete cancellation of mass activities. Despite the various concerns raised by representatives of the social partners, Government does not want to change its course but wants to resume with public events (albeit with a limited number of attendees) in the midst of a pandemic. Other European countries have ordered the cessation of mass events. On the contrary, the Maltese Government does not want to give in to the pressure being put on it by those who have the welfare of the Maltese at heart. Government, instead, wants to keep our country open to foreigners. Voice of the Workers stresses that in order to have a healthy economy we need a healthy population. The government is there to safeguard the people’s health. It is useless to open up the economy and facilitate business, when Coronavirus cases are on the rise. It seems that government has long forgotten that restrictions ordered by itself had forced many Maltese to stay indoors. Now it has to do away with the sacrifices made by all because of decisions that benefit those who want to profit swiftly to the detriment of the rest of the population. Meanwhile, this portal appeals to the public to continue following the advice and appeals provided by the health authorities. We all have to be in control of ourselves and be responsbible to where we are going. It is also important for vulnerable people to be given continuous protection and whoever goes outdoors must pay attention to himself/herself and to others. Voice of the Workers recalls that Malta has been fighting the pandemic for five months and unfortunately, when we look back, we see that government has not learned anything. Instead it is taking rash decisions without heeding to the concerns pertaining to the health of the Maltese population. (This editorial was submitted on Friday 7th August and may have been superseded by events)
Staying relevant at the place of work
COVID-19 has affected our personal lives and places of work. Organisations have never experienced such rapid changes to what they do and how they function, with remote working and social distancing becoming the new normal. However, the Coronavirus was not the only factor that affected our work practices. New technologies have been influencing the world of work for quite some time. Some jobs will surely be affected by automation. We already know, for instance, that some routine tasks in low-skilled jobs are being automated. Moreover, various technologies out there are waiting to be adopted. To mention just a few, let us think of artificial intelligence and drone technology. Are we truly prepared for more technological tools? How will new technology impinge on the workforce? Given, the fast-changing scenario, several technical skills will become obsolete. COVID-19 showed us how fast we have to adapt. Several workers were suddenly working remotely, leading and managing teams virtually, relying on video conferencing for collaboration and meetings, amongst other tasks. Investing in our personal development and growth is critical. The more we upskill and reskill, the more valuable we are in the eyes of our current and future employers – the more we are for future changes in our career progression. UHM Voice of the Workers is in continuous discussion with the relevant stakeholders in order to establish how technology could help places of work be more flexible and to enable workers to work remotely. Besides, with the rise of technology the human element will become important. We will need to draw more on soft skills like creativity, adaptability and critical thinking. All in all, we have to identify any gaps in our skills that are likely to prevent us from achieving future goals, stay focused, be curious and just keep on learning.
Can the cruise ship industry keep COVID-19 away?
Many of us will still recall pictures of hundreds of thousands of travellers stuck on board cruise ships — holidaymakers who weren't allowed to disembark and go back home because one or many…
Why do we wait?
Whether it's waiting to visit family, waiting for a holiday or waiting for the end of a pandemic, waiting seems to have become the order of the day. Waiting…
There is no place like home
As the world slowly reopens for travel, it is a good time to remember that we are emerging from a period unprecedented in human history. Never before have so…
Taking care of the environment and our livelihood
The world’s population will soon reach the eight billion mark. This translates into the disposal of eight billion single-use items. The need to do something on this issue is critical. Using a private…
Will it be difficult to get back to normal?
Everyone is yearning for the calm of normality. But can we really define what is normal? If we look at what is happening around us we see, amongst others, several economies struggling to rejuvenate. During the pandemic, a number of workers have suffered financially whereas frontliners were burnt out and sacrificed their time with their families. Some families have lost loved ones and regretted not being able to be with them in the last moments of their lives. This leads many of us to think about normality: when will things return to normal and what will the new normality look like? Normality, as we knew it, is one where the healthcare system and governments were not prepared to deal with crises like COVID-19. The new normality will be almost like the ‘old’ one, albeit the new one will hopefully be better prepared for global pandemics. We hope that the new normality, in other words, will change what was wrong and keep what was good with the old normality. The new normality will mean that many of us will go back to much we used to do before this pandemic broke out. However, our society will be making changes for the better, changes we hope will be good for the livelihoods of our communities. In the coming months, our lives will “return to normal”. For some, this normality is still far away. More businesses and commercial establishments have re-opened; others unfortunately closed down and made their employees redundant. More people may become infected with the virus and there might be individuals who will succumb to it. Meanwhile, the health authorities continue to remind us to remain vigilant and to take care of ourselves. Government has removed restrictions. A section of the population agreed to this decision whilst others are criticising Government’s swift actions very harshly on social media. In addition, we shall continue to face difficult challenges and we might not be prepared for them. Scientists and health specialists will try to overcome these challenges. They will be succeeding in some way, but the challenges will keep on coming.