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THE BUREAU
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After weeks of lockdowns in Shanghai, foreign businesses are trying to rehire staff as the country confronts its largest Covid epidemic since the pandemic began.

After over a month of Covid restrictions in Shanghai, businesses in the United States and Europe report that only about half of their employees are allowed to return to work.

This is directly affecting production, as the demand for products from across the world is higher than the available products and the little that are being produced at the moment, report says.

Shanghai is the third most industrialized province in China.

From the southern metropolis of Shenzhen to the northern province of Jilin, mainland China has enforced travel restrictions and stay-at-home orders since March. Covid controls have varying degrees of effectiveness depending on the location.

Lockdowns in Shanghai, China's southeastern metropolis, began in late March, 2022 and have been among the most disruptive - to daily life as well as foreign enterprises and supply lines. The city is home to the world's busiest port and accounts for around 3.8 percent of China's GDP.

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology stated on Friday that it has dispatched a team to Shanghai. Prioritizing the restoration of work at 666 significant enterprises in industries like as chips, biopharma, and auto and equipment manufacture, according to the government. According to Bettina Schoen-Behanzin, the chamber's vice president and Shanghai chair, a "substantial" number of members of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China are on the whitelist, particularly in the manufacturing, chemicals, and auto industries.

However, "many enterprises continue to confront labor shortages and logistical difficulties," she said in a statement, estimating that just about 30% of members' personnel is eligible to return to work owing to the lockdowns.

If a factory is on the list, it can resume operations if workers live on-site and interaction is limited to persons who have valid negative virus tests – a practice known as "closed-loop management" in the area.

According to Matthew Margulies, senior vice president of China operations for the US-China Business Council, "some estimate that with the re-opening whitelist, the requirements to achieve closed-loop status may not be attainable, or maybe can only recall 30-40 percent of staff back to manufacturing facilities."

Companies can't readily bring in new staff for other shifts since it's tough to get workers into factories, according to international business associations.

Prior to the publishing of the list, several enterprises in Shanghai and other Covid-controlled areas were able to sustain minor operations via closed-loop methods.

When corporations try to hire new employees, they often "fail with local populations who don't want to allow people out," according to Johan Annell, a partner at Asia Perspective, a consultancy firm that predominantly works with Northern European companies operating in East and Southeast Asia.

Source

Convid 22

Is already high adding another is suicide