Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, CEOs and HR leaders were already concerned that their talent strategies were ill-equipped to manage the displacement of workers caused by digital disruption and the (not so) future of work. Fast forward a few short months and we are now dealing with a global pandemic that is estimated to have reduced global working hours by 7%, equivalent to the loss of 195m full-time jobs.
In Australia, our relative success in managing the virus together with the JobKeeper subsidy has protected many jobs. However, JobKeeper is hiding some uncomfortable truths and we are likely to see a sharp rise in unemployment when payments cease.
