How Has Covid-19 Changed The Way We Live And Do Business?

Since its outbreak in December 2019, Covid-19 has brought about fundamental changes to the way we live and do our business. Here in Singapore, we used to go to work and go to school every day. The typical weekday of ordinary Singaporeans including me usually starts from sending our kids to school early in the morning around 7am. After this, we hurriedly rush to work by public transport. After a long day, we hang out with family members and friends for some quality time. On weekends, most Singaporean families will dine out. Families with young kids will also watch a movie in the cinema together. The onset of Covid-19 has changed our daily routine. You may discuss with your economics tutor Singapore in economics tuition Singapore how Covid-19 has changed the way you live.

Life No Longer As Usual In Singapore

Life was not as usual even before the circuit breaker kicked in on 7 April 2020. The government implemented strict safe distancing measures in shopping centres, food courts and workplaces. Economics tuition centres have been suspended operation together with entertainment outlets such as pubs, KTVs and cinemas. To continue to support students’ learning, Economics Cafe Learning Centre, the best economics tuition centre in Singapore has switched to online economics tuition Singapore. Its founder and principal economics tutor Singapore Mr Edmund Quek has also committed additional consultation hours apart from the usual teaching hours. Since 7 April 2020, the start of the circuit breaker period, the majority of the workforce, with exception of those working in essential service sectors have been working from home. Schools have been closed since 8 April 2020, with students moved to home-based learning.

Technology savvy generations, including young office workers and students find no difficulty in adapting to the new norm. Meetings and tutorial sessions via Zoom, Skype or the dedicated e-learning platforms such as Student Learning Space have become their new daily routine. The online economics tuition by Mr Edmund Quek, the best economics tutor Singapore has been well-received by students and parents. You may visit the economics tutor Singapore’s website to find out more about his economics tuition and his economics tuition class schedule.

Darkest Period For Most Business Owners

Despite the government’s various support measures to retain jobs and protect income of local workers, some employers have no choice but to resort to cost saving measures such as retrenchment and pay cut. For those employers who still manage to stay afloat without retrenchment and pay cut, they are tapping on their past reserves or credit facilities to maintain staff and their income. This will not be sustainable in the long run. With guidance from your economics tutor Singapore in economics tuition Singapore, explain why most business owners will inevitably resort to retrenchment and pay cut if the situation does not improve in the near future.

It is a double blow to the local business owners as most of the responsible business owners have committed to full pay or partial pay for their employees, though they suffer from zero sales and negative cashflow during this period. The Enhanced Jobs Support Scheme and waiver of foreign worker levy from the government are helpful yet far from enough to offset their payroll cost during business suspension period. In consultation with your economics tutor Singapore in your economics tuition class, discuss the benefit of these government support measures.

Unprecedented Opportunity For E-Commerce And IT-driven Firms

The silver lining of this Covid-19 is that it presents an unprecedented opportunity for e-commerce and IT-driven firms to grow exponentially. Prior to Covid-19, few of us knew about Zoom. Now, it is among the most widely used video conferencing tools together with Skype.

Grab is another company which might have benefited from this pandemic. According to media report, Grab has expanded its delivery team to cater to the significant surge in demand. Those employees in the delivery team have also seen a significant increase in their income, with some reportedly receiving up to S$7,000 per month.

Another example is Amazon. While other companies are cutting headcounts, Amazon, on the contrary, have opened up 100,000 new jobs to cater to increased demand. The Company has also committed to a pay rise of US$2 per hour from their current hourly pay of US$15.

Linda Geng

Click to Read Next Post

economics tuition, back to homepage

Economics Tuition Singapore @ Economics Cafe
Principal Economics Tutor: Mr. Edmund Quek