The Eaton and Palisades wildfires have been top of mind for many this month. Though these fires are now over 90% contained and people may soon begin returning home, many employers may be wondering how they can help.
“Think about it from Maslow’s hierarchy,” said Karishma Patel-Buford, chief people officer at Spring Health. Patel-Buford, who describes her company as a mental health solution for employers, said that ensuring physical security for employees is crucial.
Spring Health first asked: “How many employees do we have in LA in the area?” Then it reached out to those workers.
“It’s not one-size-fits-all in terms of needs,” Patel-Buford told HR Dive, saying that the goal was “leading with empathy and understanding and curiosity.”
Luana De Mello, assistant general counsel and HR consultant at Engage PEO, said something similar. Engage PEO partners with smaller companies on administrative functions, including payroll processing; De Mello specifically “helps companies navigate through complicated HR services,” she told HR Dive.
In regard to the wildfires and other natural disasters, “employers have to remember that these employees are truly your colleagues,” she said. Because these workers are undergoing something traumatic, there’s “an obligation to understand the emotional aspect of it,” she added.
Empathize, then focus on logistical concerns
Patel-Buford highlighted the concern of logging hours under the duress of wildfires. Regarding time-tracking, some employees asked, “I can’t work right now. What does that mean? And am I going to have to use PTO in order to get paid?”
Spring Health worked it out so that employees would not have to worry about pay, in a situation where “they literally are not able to work due to a disaster like this,” Spring Health’s CPO said.
“We got together as the people team and worked with legal to do things the right way, from a compliance standpoint,” she said.
Apart from pay, workflow will be a concern during a natural disaster like this, too.
De Mello’s advice: “Provide flexible work arrangements. Allow an employee to temporarily work remotely if they’re in an area that’s been impacted,” she said.
Transportation has been a hassle amid wildfires, with highways and schools closed. “It’s very important that employers are offering that flexibility — that additional day off [if needed],” she said. Now is “not really time to enforce the attendance and tardiness policies during these difficult times.”
That’s where the human aspect comes into play, she added.
As wildfires happen, De Mello said, “I think employers also have an obligation to stay informed, monitor updates and communicate with their employees on what is going on. Check in on them and ensure that they’re OK as well — responding to developing situations. Because we know how quickly situations can change and evolve throughout the hours or days.”
After addressing workflow and pay, look at long-term effects
“Go up Maslow's hierarchy around the loss — the psychological and the emotional impact of what is happening,” Patel-Buford said.
Spring Health employees have access to their own company’s mental health resources. “People at Spring Health are on the platform, and you can find a therapist, get coaching and get the mental health support that you need,” she said.
Patel-Buford said Spring Health equipped managers with methods to support employees. “We provided a free community resource kit for our customers, including strategies for managing mental health through natural disasters, tips for leading teams during crisis and coping strategies,” she said.
De Mello also encouraged employers to offer support through employee assistance programs.
Spring Health’s head of people operations also reached to his peers to see what other companies were doing in response to the wildfires, Patel-Buford said. “This is a good time to connect with your community externally, to [ask], ‘How are you handling this from an employee experience and people operations standpoint?’”
Empathy was a recurring motif in conversations about supporting workers through wildfires.
“I’m just an hour and a half south of it — I have colleagues and friends that have lost homes and have had to evacuate. I think it’s very important to remember the emotional and the human side of these disasters. Well, certainly, there are business needs involved,” De Mello said. But, “what’s most important is that the human comes first.”
