The last three weeks have been especially difficult for those of us on Long island. Hurricane Sandy left its mark and the destruction and damage is virtually everywhere. As a company headquartered here and one that provides contingent workers to regional businesses, we have heard our share of storm disaster stories as well as some inspiring tales of people rising above the challenges.
Many businesses were closed during the storm; some had skeleton crews or chose to have employees work remotely to avoid venturing out in dangerous conditions. Two of our clients who utilize our temporary associates honored and paid these contingent workers during the first two hurricane days even though these clients were closed for business – they said they didn’t want to contribute to more undue hardship for something workers had no control over. The big dilemma for many businesses is whether to pay employees who could not make it in to work or for how long.
We would welcome hearing how you handled this question. In the meantime, this article from The Wall Street Journal deals directly with this issue and how some firms responded.