The coronavirus crisis has left scores of Aussies out of work. But a new venture has already helped 350 people find jobs within days, news.com.au reports.
Heather Loxley had been an area manager at Politix Menswear for eight months when the coronavirus pandemic struck.
The brand is owned by the Country Road Group, which was forced to stand down staff due to the unprecedented shutdown period sparked by the virus.
That meant Ms Loxley was one of thousands of Australians who suddenly found themselves out of work – but within days she had been redeployed into another role after registering her interest with Hatch Exchange.
She is now working at a virtual contact centre helping people with COVID-19 questions, a position she describes as “amazing”.
“There was definitely no lag time between jobs which was pretty amazing – it meant I could breathe and it gave me a lot of comfort,” she said in a video shared by Hatch Exchange co-founder Adam Jacobs on LinkedIn.
The company’s website explains the initiative is “building a future where all people find and do meaningful work” and that it initially centred on “creating opportunity for students to do meaningful paid work while they study”.
But as the coronavirus crisis decimates the economy and forces countless Australians out of their jobs, Hatch Exchange has switched its focus and is now helping businesses across the country to quickly hire workers who have been stood down as a result of COVID-19.
“Hiring businesses can temporarily engage experienced workers for frontline or professional roles, keeping them employed until they can return to their original company,” the website explains.
So far, more than 350 people had been “successfully redeployed into critical roles in growing customer support, data, digital, logistics teams within Government, large employers, and SMBs”.
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The Iconic co-founder launches company matching stood-down staff to new jobs (news.com.au)