Local business process outsourcing (BPO) services have said that they have implemented measures as advised by the Public Health Ministry as they continue operations.
On a daily basis, hundreds of persons come into contact with each other while working at these services, however with the coronavirus (COVID-19) measures in place, some companies have decided to allow employees to work from home while reducing hours of operation and restricting operations to accommodate social distancing.
Qualfon Guyana, one of the companies which has implemented measures to tackle COVID-19 said on Tuesday that all employees working at their sites are subjected to temperature checks at the gate.
“If their temperature is above what is advised they will not be allowed into the compound. We have sanitization points at strategic locations in the compound and the building for staff to use,” Lanessa Benjamin, a Human Resources Officer told Stabroek News in a telephone interview.
She further explained that social interactions in the workplace have been limited and where several persons are accustomed to sitting at a table, only two persons can do so now.
In addition, they have been providing transportation to staff to be dropped off directly at their home after work.
“We have recognised the difficulty in some staff getting transportation after the 6pm [curfew] and we took that into consideration and are dropping staff home,” she added.
Benjamin disclosed that they have equipped staff possessing the necessary infrastructure, with the software to work from home. This move, she explained, has reduced the number of persons working at one time at their location.
The human resources officer emphasised that while 90 per cent of staff members are working from home, they are looking at implementing a 100 per cent work-from-home policy and are currently examining how best they can assist staff to do so.
“We have to check, who has to get the necessary infrastructure such as a reliable internet connection or reliable power supply so we are working to have everybody [working] from home,” Benjamin added.
Meanwhile, at the Nand Persaud Communications, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Darren Ramdial related that they have reduced working hours due to the difficulty the staff have experienced with access to transportation after 6pm on the Corentyne.
The CEO of Corentyne’s only BPO stated that they too have provided the infrastructure to allow staff to work from home.
“At present about 50 per cent of staff work from home and the remainder work in the office. We have not laid off anyone but persons have voluntarily expressed concerns over their health and safety and have decided to stay home during this period,” Ramdial said.
Like Qualfon, he said too that they are continuously sharing health advisories and encouraging persons to practice social distancing and hand washing.
Persons entering their compound are subjected to hand sanitising before entering the building.
Stabroek News on Tuesday reached out to Teleperformance and Emerge, but both companies declined to comment on the measures they have implemented during this period.
The Teleperformance Human Resource representative said that in keeping with the company’s privacy policy she could not release any information but stated that they are following the health guidelines as stated in the advisories from the Ministry of Public Health.
A Jamaica call centre had to be closed down after COVID-19 spread among its workers.
