Kuala Lumpur, 9 February 2022 – The COVID-19 pandemic has made organisations around the world rethink their employee support models. It is now more important than ever for Malaysian businesses to define a clear employee support strategy to ensure business continuity, according to International SOS, the world's leading health and security services company with 12,000 clients worldwide. According to its annual Risk Outlook 2022, organisations are facing a dual challenge on the health front. Along with the physical aspects of COVID-19 safety, the pandemic has significantly contributed to a mental health crisis. In fact, over half (56%) of the organisations have increased both physical and mental health support and intend to increase spending on both. 

Human Resources (HR) Directors are at the front line of this challenge and they are now expected to deliver a health programme that considers employees’ evolving expectations – both physically and psychologically. COVID-19 has brought about an evolution of the HR role at the highest level of organisations. This has led to a necessary increase in skills on complex health issues, national inter-branch agreements, and health protocols. The pandemic has also accelerated the need to build a safe, resilient and sustainable future for the workforce. Failure to do so could result in a backwards step in productivity, employee retention and operational resilience.

According to David Ng, Managing Director, Malaysia & Myanmar, International SOS, “During the pandemic, HR professionals have experienced the largest responsibility increase – 60% jump and are now more likely to be involved and play a crucial role in a Crisis Management Team. It is important to develop a strategy that is tailored to the size, unique needs and challenges of each organisation individually. Challenges including defining a vaccination strategy, creating optimal working conditions, reducing health-related absenteeism, or making health benefits a lever for attracting and retaining talent, are faced by many organisations. Workforce demographics who may require support include domestic employees, international assignees and business travellers.”

He continued, “Operating in Malaysia since 1996, we have been at the core of supporting organisations in many ways, including providing crisis response services which have helped clients future-proof and be better prepared for potential opportunities and challenges. We understand business challenges like no other and have a strong track record helping organisations to proactively manage the wellness, health and security risks of their domestic and global workforce.”

From managing a resilient return to work, to reviewing and implementing travel policies and journey management plans for return to travel, International SOS’ global health and security advisors are on hand to help businesses ensure a healthy and safe workforce to increase retention, productivity and operational resilience. This is especially important with organisations under increased pressure to retain current employees and attract new talent.

“A resilient workforce programme must include everything you need to safely manage your global teams while they work around the world. Our service helps prepare employees for layered threat environments, helps them to feel supported and productive, and provides them with assistance whenever they have a question, concern or crisis. Anytime, anywhere. Partnering with International SOS can help save lives, improve employee health and wellbeing, and strengthen an organisation’s resilience,” added David.

Elaborating on their experience with International SOS, Geraldine Koh, HR Communication Director, Terumo Asia Holdings, shared, “We wanted a programme that would run throughout the year because there was a lot of stigma around mental wellness. People found it very hard to talk about challenges they face personally as well as at home. This is why we decided to work together with International SOS. They have a programme that starts from awareness, to mental resilience surveys, to mental wellness webinar series, a Workplace Employee Assist training that trains employees to identify people with stress, as well as the Employee Assistance Programme where employees could call for confidential emotional support advice from counsellors. What we wanted was a team that was completely objective so that our employees felt comfortable and felt safe to seek help. We also wanted to measure the outcome of this programme.”

International SOS can help organisations in the following ways:

- Provide latest and up-to-date advice on policies to help maintain business continuity despite the volatile and uncertain environment;
- Increase employee engagement and business performance by providing them with a safe and positive work environment through workplace assessment and corporate wellness programmes;
- Enhance Employee Value Proposition to strengthen talent retention by offering robust health security programmes delivered by its global consultants, as well as 24/7 assistance; and
- Ensure organisation effectively fulfil their Duty of Care by helping them comply with legal frameworks and regulations.

For further information on how International SOS supports organisations and their people around the world, go tohttps://www.internationalsos.com/roles/human-resources.

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