Even in 2021, the covid-19 pandemic is continuing to hurt the productivity and payroll of white collar staff here in Egypt, according to a survey by fintech startup NowPay that highlights the extent of the disruption the pandemic is having on our working lives. The poll of 243 Egyptian firms in more than 10 industries also showed that despite more leeway being given to employees as far as working from home is concerned, HR engagement, training, productivity are all down, while business conditions have seen layoffs and cuts go up.

The top major challenge facing businesses was sales, followed closely by managing daily operations and employee stress. Firms cited building corporate culture and engaging employees as two of their biggest challenges this year. Half of HR departments surveyed said they would invest in employee engagement this year.

Surprise, surprise: 79% either introduced full-time WFH policies or asked staff to only work from the office part time.

Not helping matters: Around 45% of HR managers said that the pandemic impacted workers’ pay while 20% of firms downsized their workforce. Compensation was the main driver of employee turnover this year, with 31% of respondents citing it as the main reason for workers to leave the firm. Meanwhile, 20% said that dissatisfaction with managers was the main cause for turnover.

Some businesses are struggling to find talent: Some 25% of HR departments are having trouble sourcing talent. The most used channels for recruitment used this year were LinkedIn (84%) followed by Wuzzuf (48%).

Nearly 60% of HR departments are planning to invest in employee training and development this year. While there are no preset training plans for employees, 66% of firms said they offer training based on the employee requirements and 72% offer that training in-house.

Looking ahead: The HR trends firms expect to see in the coming year include the emergence of hybrid workforces (59%), an increased focus on employee well-being and inclusion (47%), and the rise of people analytics using data rather than human evaluation (46%).

Other findings from the report: farid

• Medical ins. is the most popular benefit in Egypt, 87% of companies said, followed by phone allowance at 65% and life ins. at 56%.
• Some 51% of HR departments assess their employees annually.
• The major challenge firms faced was a drop in sales, followed by managing daily operations and employee stress.