This pandemic has demonstrated the interconnectivity of ESG risks and opportunities. COVID-19 is inherently a social or “S” issue. Companies are grappling with an enormous range of short- and longer-term issues relating to their employees. Short-term issues include how to keep their employees safe, how to accommodate illness and caregiving responsibilities, how to keep employees engaged and productive when working remotely, while also supporting their mental health in a time of crisis and significant uncertainty. Longer-term issues include the potential impact on employees of more widespread virtual work, a potentially reduced workforce and the real or perceived additional health risk of business meetings and travel. How well (or poorly) a company deals with its workforce during this crisis will also likely have lasting brand and reputational impacts.
pleaase see these papers:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1045235421000289
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1057521921000132
It is a tough time to think that the companies have to keep their employees to be on the safer side because finally the human resources are the ultimate stakeholders who involve the productive economic activities.
The companies have to think deeply about the health and caring services to maintain the employees during the pandemic period.
None can predict this virus pandemic period is going to be ended on which month or year. That is the case that these companies have to apply all possible ways to enhance their production as well as their employees health care conditions.
To some extent the virtual work could support but some of the work needs the employee in person in work site that is production on the unit output.
It is very challenging catastrophes to take a right decision to culminating the sluggish movement of the industrial operations.
The other issues like insurance coverage on health and healthcare could bring a better solution to save the employee. The new investors have to twice about ESG issues seriously before commencing their business endeavours.
Dear Mr. Anand!
You spotted a relevant topic. I think there is really one option - COVID-19 must trigger positive impact on ESG - factors for investors:
1) Gupta, N., Soni, G. A Decision-Making Framework for Sustainable Supply Chain Finance in Post-COVID Era. JGBC (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42943-021-00028-6 Free access: Article A Decision-Making Framework for Sustainable Supply Chain Fin...
2) Meyer, P.B., Schwarze, R. COVID-19: The Great Reset – A Review. Int. Journal of Com. WB (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42413-021-00117-7 Open access: Article COVID-19: The Great Reset – A Review: Review of Klaus Schwab...
3) Zhan, J.X., Santos-Paulino, A.U. Investing in the Sustainable Development Goals: Mobilization, channeling, and impact. J Int Bus Policy 4, 166–183 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-020-00093-3 Free access:
Article Investing in the Sustainable Development Goals: Mobilization...
4) Amanjot Singh (2021). COVID-19 and ESG preferences: Corporate bonds versus equities, International Review of Finance, Early View, Free access: Article COVID‐19 and ESG preferences: Corporate bonds versus equities
5) Carol A. Adams et al. (2021).Connecting the COVID-19 pandemic, environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing and calls for ‘harmonisation’ of sustainability reporting, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Available online 23 March 2021, In Press, Corrected Proof, Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1045235421000289
6) Tampakoudis, I., Noulas, A., Kiosses, N. and Drogalas, G. (2021), "The effect of ESG on value creation from mergers and acquisitions. What changed during the COVID-19 pandemic?", Corporate Governance, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/CG-10-2020-0448 Available at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/CG-10-2020-0448/full/html
Yours sincerely, Bulcsu Szekely