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This editorial titled "Remote work burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic" discusses the impact of remote work on employee burnout during the pandemic. It acknowledges the increased stress, anxiety, and isolation experienced by employees working from home, which can lead to decreased productivity. The editorial emphasizes the importance of organizational support systems and proper time management in reducing burnout and occupational stress. It also includes summaries of four related articles and references two research studies on the topic of occupational stress and its consequences on employees. The full articles are cited for further information. [Extracted from the article]

Research background: The corporate debt situation can be considered a crucial factor influencing the future development of the financial performance of the firm. It is essential for every business entity to know its financial health, its strengths and weaknesses, and how its business has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and all the changes it has brought. Purpose of the article: The main aim of this paper is to explain and quantify the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, analyze changes in the growth of crucial determinants, and identify new trends in Slovak enterprises throughout the monitored period of 2018-2021. Methods: Hence, a statistically significant difference between the individual indicators due to the period in which the firms achieved these values was determined using the Friedman test. It determined whether the average values of the financial indicators remained constant over the period under review (the years 2018 and 2019 are considered pre-COVID-19 years, while 2020 and 2021 are years when the globe was already being impacted by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic) or whether the individual values of the indicators differed significantly. Findings & value added: Considering that there are statistically significant differences in the indicators of self-financing ratio, current indebtedness ratio, and equity leverage ratio in all monitored periods except for the years 2020 and 2021, where the average values of these debt indicators are the same, the results indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic also negatively impacted the indebtedness of Slovak enterprises. Although this research paper, focusing on the financial performance of the firms in the post-pandemic period, is pioneering in Slovakia, the biggest contribution of the study is the application of the latest information, which could help in more precise monitoring of corporate financial stability and debt policy during the current challenging period. The obtained results provide important universal guidelines for building financial strategies improving long-term financial resilience of enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sharing economy, as a developing business model, is becoming more and more popular. This phenomenon can be observed in many countries. The sharing economy, as a part of human life in its essence, has existed for a long time. In general, the sharing economy is considered an economic model where individuals or organizations share a certain type of property or, in this way, provide services for a financial reward. One of the most used sectors, where there is constant interest, is the shared transport of people, goods, and services. However, platforms operating in the shared transportation segment should be analysed from various points of view, such as their financial results and overall economic stability. The study is primarily focused on the sector of shared transport and transport services. The chief objective of the study was to demonstrate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on shared transport and transport services within the territory of the Slovak Republic. The analysis included ride-hailing platforms such as Bolt Services SK as well as food and dining delivery platforms such as Wolt Slovakia. Through appropriately chosen methods of financial and economic analysis, the situation of the platforms before and during the COVID-19 pandemic was determined. We also performed an analysis of the development of the number of cars and the related level of automobilization in the territory of the Slovak Republic, since the shared economy represents an alternative to conventional economic models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transportation, logistics, storage, and many other sectors provide a wide space for applying Industry 4.0. This era, with its components, represents the equipment necessary to obtain a unique competitive advantage. Being smart through sensors, big data, and digitalization corresponds not only to evolution but also provides protection for businesses in the face of depression. The COVID-19 pandemic caused collapses and defects for very large enterprises and large enterprises, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This article focuses on SMEs and their profits from using smart sensors. Thus, the aim was to expose the striking effect of Industry 4.0 on earnings during the crisis in the Visegrad Four. The Mann–Kendall trend was used to map the consequences contrasting the period of 2016–2021. The investigation involved samples from 1221 Slovak, 259 Czech, 855 Polish, and 2156 Hungarian enterprises. The results showed that more than 80% of businesses did not have a negative trend in how their earnings changed over time. This fact was confirmed by a z-test for the comparison of one proportion for each analyzed country. The adaptation to Industry 4.0 strengthened the muscle for bankruptcy resilience during the crisis. In addition, it may encourage enterprises to be smart in the same or different sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The corona crisis has affected not only the economic sphere, but also the sphere of health, health care, employment, safety, and health protection in the workplace, shopping habits, and future expectations, to which people adapt their decisions in various areas of daily life. The COVID-19 pandemic, called a global health crisis, was an unpredictable risk of global proportions that paralyzed the entire world. The main aim of this paper is to quantify the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the construction sector, which is considered a crucial sector of the Slovak economy, to evaluate changes in the development of key indicators using adequate quantitative methods. First, a sample of 2000 businesses were analyzed using the 12 financial indicators that were chosen. Second, using the non-parametric Friedman test, a more thorough study was carried out with a focus on analyzing the existence of statistically significant variations in the values of computed indicators as a result of changes in the development of key financial ratios. The Bonferroni adjustments were employed to pinpoint the areas of stochastic dominance at the conclusion of the study. A detailed analysis of the calculated financial indicators showed that the arrival of the pandemic had a negative impact on many aspects of business in the construction sector and affected the financial and economic situation of companies in the construction sector of the Slovak Republic. However, due to the fact that this sector is characterized by slower reactions to changes in the economy, the most significant impacts will be even more noticeable in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transportation sector is a crucial sector of the sustainability of every national economy. Previous studies highlighted the core significance of transport enterprises in European countries over the past 60 years. The long-term sustainability of enterprises is determined by their ability to gain earnings. Thus, earnings are the synonym of significance in corporate life. The purpose of this study was to capture the lever year, the trend, and the slope of the development of earnings in the transport sector before the COVID-19 pandemic. Time series of the annual earnings of the enterprises from the close countries of the V4 region were used during a 10-year period. Buishand's test sets the change-points of the development and indicated the values of specific central lines. The year 2013 was the lever date for the earnings of 830 Slovak and 1042 Hungarian enterprises. The year 2015 was the year of momentum for 757 Polish enterprises. The development of 397 Czech enterprises was mainly influenced by the year 2014. The results of the Mann–Kendall test detected a positive trend in the series of business finance in all countries. In addition, the Sen's slope was estimated in the transport sector for the analyzed period 2010–2019. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current COVID-19 pandemic has affected every aspect of consumer behavior—their expenses, investments, and financial reserves, as well as their financial and social wellbeing. As a consequence of different restrictions, consumers and their shopping patterns have changed significantly; thus, the factors that influence new purchase patterns need to be identified to help traders, retailers, and marketers develop appropriate strategies to respond to crucial consumer changes in the market. A categorical analysis (Pearson's chi-square test) and correspondence analysis (simple and multivariate) were applied to a sample of 425 Slovak respondents to reveal the most important factors impacting consumers' financial situations, as well as the effects on the maintenance of new shopping habits established during the pandemic period. The results revealed that consumers' income, age, and sector of occupation play important roles in the context of new shopping patterns. These findings are in agreement with other global studies, confirming both the worldwide impact of the pandemic on consumer behavior and the importance of national studies on consumer shopping behavior in order for state authorities, traders, marketers, and entrepreneurs to be able to take necessary measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]