Call for better conditions

THE Government has been urged to find ways to make doing business in the country easier, and to reward businesses for their contribution to the economy.
Brian Bell Group chairman Ian Cloughs said it was important that businesses be encouraged to contribute and support.
“Some of PNG’s biggest taxpayers continue to contribute to the economy, to the communities, and are still being asked to do more,” he said. “There may be different businesses in NCD so there are very different situations.
“Businesses that support the medical and cleaning areas of the market are seeing strong activity.
“Businesses that rely on servicing customers in hospitality are facing tough times.
“Retailing is mixed and food retailing appears to remain buoyant but discretionary businesses are seeing more challenging times.
“Unless a business provides a wanted service or product, of course as people stay at home trading is affected.” Cloughs said businesses were already working toward what would be a “new normal” but the full extent of some of these changes were yet to be known.
The areas include:

• Personal hygiene in the workplace;
• The designs of workspaces to maintain good openness and distancing;
• How businesses like offices manage the access to their work spaces from outside visitors; and,
• How stores were designed to provide wider aisles and more circulation for customers are all areas that are being reworked already.

“For businesses like retailers and traders, the mix of products that will be sought after by customers will change – at least in the short term,” Cloughs said.
“A stronger drive for medical supplies, cleaning products, air purification is being seen.
“Appliances to store food safely, generators to maintain power consistently and many others are seeing increased demand. With more people working from home, IT equipment, communication, office furniture, etc are all in growth.
“In the future, this may still remain and other areas will see demand decline.”
Cloughs said, in some markets, any demand for recreational equipment or travelling will reduce until the communities get confidence back.
“Businesses need to determine their tolerance regarding sick employees in the workplace.”