COVID-19 And Immigration
The pandemic made some significant changes to the job market, and some jobs were affected a lot more than others. While most companies took to remote working, some industries could not make the change and businesses that revolved around hospitality, construction, and healthcare were the hardest hit. While they could make a few changes online, they could only complete the bulk of the work in person.
With changes to travel and restrictions on people moving from one place to another, small businesses with clients dependent on obtaining job offers and subsequently work permits were finding it tough. Employers are reluctant to hire during the pandemic, which in turn meant that we could not assist the bulk of people we work with, and that made business slow.
Overall, however, the pandemic did not disrupt our business as bad as was the case with many other people. Our company did not reach a point where we were panicking but were facing significant challenges that we had to overcome and adapt, including exercising patience on wait times and planning because of delays in processing applications.
Although we have adapted to a lot of the changes taking place across the board, we have not made many when it comes to communicating with our clients and still use the same approach we were using in the past. We have international clients that we regularly contact while working remotely, so we are familiar with this type of communication.
We prefer Zoom as it is a secure platform and makes communication very easy, but we are available for all platforms depending on the preference of our clients.
In terms of in-person client meetings, we prefer them taking place remotely or virtually, but there are instances where they should be present because we require them to bring original documents. We take every precaution to make sure everyone is safe in the office. When we work from the office, we try to keep meetings to a minimum. Furthermore, we are always following the necessary health guidelines and recommendations on allowing the right number of people. We also keep a close eye on the changes we are allowed to make so we can adapt.
Even though we rarely meet people at the office, we wipe down and disinfect our workplaces, before and after work. All our staff play a significant role in making these changes, and they all assist in their small ways. We have a mandatory wearing masks rule, mainly when conversing with each other, and we keep our distance. We have hand sanitizers and isopropyl alcohol available.
When it comes to our work, we love working remotely as much as possible, but we do have some clients who insist on meeting in person. Fortunately, we can get stuff done both remotely and in the office as that is the nature of our job.
There are a couple of challenges with remote working though, and one of the most significant ones is not having access to physical documents and files, especially, if we did not scan them. Additionally, in an office space, there are fewer distractions, but if you create a den, remote working can work in your favor, with you finding your space more comfortable, in turn making you more productive.
We did not make any changes to our working hours, and they match our pre-pandemic system if anything there is less work as the economy is slowing down. A lot of the rules and systems that we are following pre-pandemic are the same ones we are using now. We are using the same secure platform that we were using before COVID-19 hit. The advent of COVID-19 did not warrant any changes to our File Management System. One Drive is a very secure system, at least for the moment.
We are reluctant to travel to meet clients because of the pandemic. The parameters that both the consultant and client observe is to wear a mask and maintain distance on the rare instances that we have to meet. We are open to taking part in virtual public events and business Expos as it is steadily becoming the norm. Public events and business expos are a great way to network, albeit and being virtual, they maintain their usefulness.
The lockdown gave me the time and opportunity to reflect on my personal life. It has made me appreciative of the relationships I have and the ability to work safely in a Country that values safety and security.
If you are looking for assistance when it comes to immigration, get in touch with Springwind Immigration Consulting Service Inc. We are an Immigration Firm In Scarborough, Toronto and have been in this line of work for some time now and have a decent understanding of the ins and outs of assisting with immigration. We are registered with the Government of Canada and strive to provide the best services with professionalism, efficiency, reliance, and responsiveness to customers. We additionally give credible and affordable solutions to individual cases.
Although located in Toronto, we are open to working with people remotely, no matter where they are based. If you find the work that we do interesting and would like us to assist with your immigration, please get in touch with us. If you want to understand all the services we provide, please click here.