Hurricanes and different pure disasters have gotten extra extreme and extra frequent. Final month, hurricanes Milton and Helene devastated elements of the South, together with the Tampa space in Florida, and the Asheville area of North Carolina, inflicting billions of {dollars} value of harm.
As once-in-a-lifetime storms develop into an annual prevalence, enterprise and HR leaders must spend time occupied with how they’ll present up for staff who’re affected by these occasions. That features planning for disasters earlier than they hit, and connecting workers with emergency companies of their hour of want.
“Things that are as simple as determining whether you’re in a disaster-prone area and what types of disasters you could be subject to at your facility is one of the first steps you should take,” Patrick Joyce, a labor and employment legal professional who assists shoppers with environmental counseling and litigation, tells Fortune.
Limbach, a constructing resolution enterprise with over 300 workers within the Florida and 100 within the Tampa space, has handled hurricanes for years. Firm leaders put together workers months upfront, notifying them of evacuation routes and various shelter choices, and reminding them of which provides to maintain available, together with first support kits and backup turbines.
“We’re not starting from scratch,” says Melissa DiMuro chief individuals officer at Limbach concerning the firm’s hurricane planning. “We’ve already prepped everyone, so when they do hear from us, it’s just a reminder.”
Consultants that Fortune spoke with say having a communications plan in place, in addition to a number of completely different strategies to contact workers, is essential. Offering help companies within the aftermath of a catastrophe can be key—these can embrace Worker Help Packages advantages like trauma counseling, and grant packages in order that workers can entry cash instantly. Some corporations, like Financial institution of America and EY, even have full time emergency response groups, that are set as much as join workers with the sources they want.
However HR leaders ought to do not forget that they’ll and may suppose outdoors the field. Which will imply renting lodge rooms in order that workers with out water have a spot to bathe, or establishing a makeshift shelter in a satellite tv for pc workplace.
Maybe most significantly, workers may have break day work to get better, in addition to the choice to work remotely whereas they get again on their toes.
“A company that‘s looking out for its people will give them flexibility, whether it’s work from home or PTO, to care for the family and figure out the next steps,” says Dan Kaplan, senior associate at Korn Ferry’s HR officers follow.
Learn extra about how HR managers ought to go about making ready for hurricane season right here.
Brit Morse
brit.morse@fortune.com
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