Our members’ action against Covid-19
In this time of uncertainty, it is good to pull together and provide support where possible. The Automotive 30% Club sends wishes to all of health and wellness during this period of the pandemic.
Whether you’re currently working from your kitchen table and video conferencing to keep in touch with your teams and colleagues for the foreseeable or attending your usual work surroundings as normal, one thing is agreed by all of those within the Automotive 30% Club’s member organisations; the safety and health of customers and colleagues is paramount.
We have taken a look at how our suppliers, manufacturers and retailers are taking action to ensure the safety of all, as plans evolve in response to the changing situation and we hope you will find it useful.
Many of the manufacturers and suppliers have implemented remote working for staff. Retailers are remaining open as usual and are of course experiencing much reduced footfall, but are reassuring customers and colleagues that extra precautions are being taken, in order to ensure the wellbeing of all. Here are a few of the actions they are taking;
Dealership surroundings
- Colleagues and customers will be expected to wash hands upon arrival to any dealership.
- Increased frequency of dealership cleaning and additional car cleaning measurements, whether this be a new or used vehicle, or when vehicles come in for a service.
- Some retailers are implementing a no handshake rule, for both customers and colleagues.
- Hand sanitiser is now displayed in all areas of dealerships, from workshops to sales departments and, in addition to this desks and work areas continue to be regularly sanitised.
Browsing and collecting vehicles
- In light of social distancing, online methods of browsing vehicles have been implemented. Videos and photos can be sent by each department, allowing customers to chat with service advisors or reserve preowned stock.
- Non-contact collection and delivery for service and MOTs is being offered to customers
The Team
- Member organisations are abiding by the advice of the government to restrict non-essential travel, and many of their employees will be working remotely. This includes no face to face meetings taking place and both internal and external events being postponed.
- Self-isolation is in place for colleagues feeling unwell and for those who have travelled through high-risk areas, be it through holidays or business.
- Internal communications schedules have been put in place by many of our members to keep colleagues informed on the latest development each day.
- Many of our members are also providing health and wellbeing support, whether this is through mental health first aiders or general daily catch-ups with their teams.
Our Automotive 30% Club members should continually monitor developments with regards to government support for business on the gov.uk website and ensure they are in a position to act swiftly to take advantage of any assistance available. There have been indications that there may be support with payroll obligations in order to avoid job losses that would be extremely helpful https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19
In this time of uncertainty, please do continue to spread positivity, whether it be sharing funny memes with colleagues on your lunch break, or simply picking up the phone instead of sending an email. The Automotive 30% Club hopes to maintain morale with all of our wonderful followers and we would urge you to continue to share your positive stories with us. Please do get in touch with victoria@automotive30club.co.uk to do so or for further information.
We’d like to share our most recent article on the Inspiring e-zine, which details ‘tips for working remotely’. Simply sign in, or subscribe for free, to the inspiring e-zine to read the full article.
Article by Sophie Oak, Degree Apprentice, Automotive 30% Club