Page 140 - COVID-19: The Great Reset

the condition that the company constrains executive pay
(including stock options) and commits to not paying dividends.

Better alignment between public policy and corporate planning
will be a particular focus of attention in terms of greater
government interference. The scramble for ventilators during the
peak of the pandemic epitomizes why. In 2010 in the US, 40,000
ventilators had been ordered through a government contract but

were never delivered, largely explaining the country’s shortage
that became so apparent in March 2020. What led to this situation
of scarcity? In 2012, the original company that had won the bid

was bought (in somewhat dubious and obscure circumstances) by
a much larger manufacturer (a publicly traded company also
producing ventilators): it later emerged that the purchasing
company wanted to prevent the original bidder from building a
cheaper ventilator that would have undermined the profitability of

its own business. This company dragged its feet before eventually
cancelling the contract and ultimately being acquired by a rival.
None of the 40,000 ventilators were ever delivered to the US

government. [132] It is unlikely that this sort of situation will reoccur
in the post-pandemic era, as public authorities will think twice
about outsourcing projects that have critical public-health
implications (or indeed critical public implications, security or

otherwise) to private companies. The bottom line: the
maximization of profit and the short-termism that often goes with it
is rarely or, at least, not always consistent with the public goal of
preparing for a future crisis.

Around the world, the pressure to improve the social protection
and salary level of low-paid employees will increase. Most likely, in
our post-pandemic world increases in the minimum wage will
become a central issue that will be addressed via the greater
regulation of minimum standards and a more thorough

enforcement of the rules that already exist. Most probably,
companies will have to pay higher taxes and various forms of
government funding (like services for social care). The gig

economy will feel the impact of such a policy more than any other
sector. Prior to the pandemic, it was already in the cross hairs of
government scrutiny. In the post-pandemic era, for reasons

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