CORONA CRISIS HIT PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION MOSTLY UNPREPARED

 Erfurt, 28 April 2020 - Public administration in Germany is also significantly affected by the corona crisis. A study with around 2,000 participants conducted by the Administration and Procurement Network in cooperation with the Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg (Prof. Dr. Ronald Bogaschewsky) and the IUBH International University of Applied Sciences (Prof. Dr. Michael Broens) has now determined how the situation is exactly. The study shows: four out of five administrations surveyed did not have pandemic emergency plans - but did take various measures to protect their own employees after the crisis broke out.

"The Corona crisis caught many administrations unprepared. Only 20% had pandemic contingency plans," says Prof. Bogaschewsky. "However, the administrations then took numerous measures at short notice to cope with the changes caused by the Corona crisis," adds Prof. Broens. Almost everywhere, public traffic was reduced to a minimum.The possibility of working in home office, increasing the physical distance between workplaces in the administration or the introduction of shift arrangements were also taken up as measures in many administrations. The possibility of working in a home office, increasing the physical distance between workplaces in the administration or the introduction of shift arrangements were also taken up as measures in many administrations. Protective masks, on the other hand, were only distributed in sporadic cases.

As a result of the measures taken, slightly more than half of the administrative staff surveyed feel sufficiently protected against infection. There is obviously still room for improvement here. Similarly, the survey participants assume that the existing Corona crisis will have a considerable impact on the finances of the administrations. Procurement projects planned so far are therefore already being partially postponed.

The full version of the study results is available at www.VuBN.de/Corona .

The Administration and Procurement Network (www.VuBN.de) is the largest web-based professional knowledge exchange platform for the public sector and churches in Germany. In addition to numerous topics such as procurement and awarding, finances, building yards or IT, the specialist group "Corona Virus/Covid-19" was created in the course of the Corona crisis, in which more than 2,000 of our members are already actively exchanging information. Click here to go to the Corona-Virus/Covid-19 specialist group!

Short summary of the results

●     The administrations surveyed have taken numerous measures, such as the introduction of home office concepts and shift arrangements, to protect their own employees.

●     In many cases, protective masks have not yet been issued to minimise the risk of infection, whereas public visits have been reduced to a minimum almost everywhere.

●     Only slightly more than half of the administrative staff feel sufficiently protected by the measures taken. So in many cases there is at least a need for improvement.

●     Before the outbreak of the Corona pandemic, 80% of the administrations surveyed had no pandemic emergency plans.

●     It is assumed that the Corona crisis will have an impact on the finances of the administrations. Procurement projects planned so far are therefore partially postponed.