Michele Harmon
Be proactive, or better still, don’t repeat the mistakes of the past.
In April, I wrote about finding a new job. Now I find that my advice may be ridiculous because with the possibility of so many being unemployed, any new job may do. I write these articles two months in advance and, consequently, I am writing this on March 12, 2020, for the May publication. At this writing, we have had a rough couple of weeks and I hope that by the time this article is published, that there has been a resolution to the perfect storm that has caused the economy to take this downturn.
I lived through a layoff in 1986 after thinking I would work for Columbia Gas until I retired. Back then, we all had long-term job plans. When my world fell apart, I ended up getting a Master’s and Doctorate degree and followed that path to becoming a life-long educator. For me and for you, there will be opportunities to come and a bright future.
With that said, we know we could never have predicted the downturn in the oil industry and a mass pandemic hitting our world. I want to focus on employee safety in this article but I must give my two cents about the energy downturn. I recommend that you take time at this juncture to look for opportunities and not feel disheartened or disillusioned. I hope that no matter what has happened to your organization and employees, you have emphasized retooling skills. I promise, it is possible to make lemons out of lemonade and there are many more resources available to the unemployed now then there was in 1986.
So, you will need a human resources (HR) department in this downturn. You will first be inclined to lay off the entire HR department except the lady that does payroll. However, your HR professionals have a very important role to play.
First, they need to handle your layoffs and assist with training and placement for those employees that lose their jobs. They will reach out to Workforce Solutions, Midland, Odessa, and Howard College, UTPB, Texas Tech, etc. for training to assist those folks. Your HR staff will work with placement services with a local, state, and national presence to assist in finding new jobs. Lastly, they will handle the unemployment claims that will come.
Second, employers are responsible for the health and safety of their employees. HR professionals must take the lead with regard to being proactive pertaining to the coronavirus. We may be looking in the rear-view mirror with regards to this virus by May and, if so, then we need to remember the lessons learned and be better prepared the next time and there will be a next time.
The Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have recommendations for what to do and what the employer’s legal responsibilities are to both their employees and non-employees infected in their workplace. The big question is what are your policies with regards to employee illness? It is pretty typical that your employee handbook says an employee may not return after more than three sick days without a doctor’s note that they are now well enough to return to work.
However, with this and future pandemics, you need to have policies in place. You can require a medical release for someone to return to work. If your employee is ill and they do not have sick leave and show up to work, then it is time for you to change your absence policy to earned Paid Time Off (PTO) from an old-fashioned sick leave policy. With PTO, your employees earn time for work hours and can take time off as needed. Also, make employees that are eligible, aware of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) so that they know their jobs will be safe if they are out for a long period for their own or a family member’s illness.
Help your employees understand the disease and plan for the lost time. What is your plan in a disaster? Many of you lived through family and friends in Houston and New Orleans and a pandemic is no different.
What is your emergency management plan? Communicate with your employees and have your HR professionals manage the information with HIPPA in mind. What are the OSHA standards to reopen a facility where the illness has been observed, contracted, etc.? It may be time to rethink your employee training. Do you have posters around work about how to prevent the spread of germs? Being a responsible employer means having policies on bloodborne pathogens, communicable diseases, and infectious disease control. With all policies, you must train everyone on them. Do you have a sample exposure control plan and posters for stopping the spread of germs at work and social distancing guidelines? If you don’t then you need your HR professional to look them up on the SHRM website.
HR will also help you fill positions temporarily. In today’s economy, there may be more temporary employees available via a placement agency. If I were out of work, I would be rushing to one.
At this writing, large employers have already taken steps to restrict and/or halt all employee travel. We have seen some of the largest events in the world be shut down or cancelled. The United States has opted to save lives at the cost of huge financial losses. The cost is and will be monumental for years to come but the Permian Basin is resilient without a doubt.
Over the short term, employees will lose their jobs, seasonal jobs may be reduced, schools may opt for online learning versus face-to-face classes, and online shopping may do even better. In the long term, this crisis may transform the Permian in ways that we cannot predict.
There may be more opportunity to work from home because we have been forced to think more out of the box and less traditionally. Healthcare or the lack of healthcare in some locations will be highlighted. Education institutions may look more and more to online delivery and less to building new facilities.
Some things will not change. We love to drive in Texas and with a drop in gas prices and the concern for public travel, we may start taking those family trips again to visit relatives instead of a trip across the country to a celebrated destination. That might be a good thing.
Hold your family and friends tight and we will make it through the tough times. I learned a few lessons from the 1980s. Get a few skills that will always be needed and save your money. With regard to disasters, listen to the news as it is not always fake news.
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“Your employees are the heart of your organization.” Dr. Michele Harmon is a Human Resource professional, supporting clients in Texas and New Mexico that range in size from five to more than 3,000 employees. Email: micheleharmon1@gmail.com