Online Resources to Help HR Managers Navigate COVID-19 Issues

We are all trying our best to maintain some normalcy in our daily lives under a barrage of information about COVID-19 that becomes more and more overwhelming, confusing, and disheartening every day.   LinkedIn feeds are heavily weighted towards updates about job losses while social media channels are filled with posts about personal fears, opinions about nearly everything, game requests, line graphs, memes and so much more.   It’s heavy for everyone as we sort through fact from fiction. But, when you’re a go-to person for workplace leadership­, and your co-workers are looking to you for guidance, how can you be sure you’ve been informed by the best sources­? COVID-19 is uncharted waters for absolutely everyone and ClearStar would like to offer a little help to employers.   COVID-19 Resources Specifically for HR Navigating life during a global pandemic is mystifying enough as the medical community tries to reverse engineer it for healthcare purposes, but it’s all the more confusing when local, federal, and business sector directives seem to change minute-by-minute.   SHRM (the Society for Human Resource Management) has organized a comprehensive set of resources just for employers. Some of the resources are for SHRM members only, but the following links are available to everyone.  

• Visit the COVID-19 State & Local Resources pages for the latest news that applies to changing legal compliance issues in your location(s).
• Register to attend SHRM webcasts about a variety of specific COVID-19 related policy issues.
• Learn about telecommuting and managing a remote workforce in general.
• Get a lawyer’s insight into the WARN Act and COVID-19 forced reduction of labor

  SHRM also offers advance search tools and free access to a limited number of timely articles related to our current concerns. There’s great information on their site; no membership required.   General New Resources for COVID-19 In addition to work-related resources, it can be helpful to have general news resources at hand for updates about local and global affairs related to COVID-19.   The U.S. is home to two of the oldest independent wire services (aka news agencies) in the world. Wire services–which are established to be non-biased news reporting and distribution services–are excellent resources for journalistic reporting on a variety of topics. They excel at delivering breaking news.  

• The Associated Press (AP) is a non-profit agency founded in 1846 and remains the largest wire service in North America. AP publishes print, audio, and video news 24/7 via the web, social media, email, blogs, RSS feeds, and smartphone apps. Start with front-page news at apnews.com or go straight pieces on the topic of COVID-19.

 

• United Press International (UPI), founded in 1907, also published new 24/7 on the web and via its social media channels, email newsletters, RSS feeds, and a smartphone app. Start with front-page news at upi.com or go straight to articles on the topic of COVID-19.

  Whatever your role in your workplace, we hope you’ll find some reassurance in these information sources.   We know your workforce is changing drastically and unpredictably right now. Please contact ClearStar if you feel your business could benefit from some outside help for recruiting, screening, and/or managing employees. Not only do we have expertise in compliance, security, data management and more, we understand the importance of providing candidate care throughout our efforts.

At ClearStar, we are committed to your success. An important part of your employment screening program involves compliance with various laws and regulations, which is why we are providing information regarding screening requirements in certain countries, region, etc. While we are happy to provide you with this information, it is your responsibility to comply with applicable laws and to understand how such information pertains to your employment screening program. The foregoing information is not offered as legal advice but is instead offered for informational purposes. ClearStar is not a law firm and does not offer legal advice and this communication does not form an attorney client relationship. The foregoing information is therefore not intended as a substitute for the legal advice of a lawyer knowledgeable of the user’s individual circumstances or to provide legal advice. ClearStar makes no assurances regarding the accuracy, completeness, or utility of the information contained in this publication. Legislative, regulatory and case law developments regularly impact on general research and this area is evolving rapidly. ClearStar expressly disclaim any warranties or responsibility or damages associated with or arising out of the information provided herein.