Employee Support

While many companies offer employee assistance programs, disaster relief is an element of employee assistance that, unless an organization has experienced a disaster in their home community, may not be fully developed or integrated into a business continuity plan or disaster preparedness plan.

• Experts in disaster recovery say that it takes a minimum of three to five years for families to begin to recover, and in some cases of severe damage and loss, it can take up to ten years.
• In the wake of a disaster, employees are dealing with the daunting challenges of:
  • rebuilding homes;
  • replacing some or all personal belongings;
  • relocating their place of residence (either temporarily or permanently);
  • finding a new school for their children;
  • caring for aging family members;
  • navigating mounds of paperwork, especially insurance claims; and
  • dealing with post-traumatic stress, anxiety and depression.
• The long-term recovery process is slow and may place a strain on companies who have a significant number of employees struggling to recover.
• Comprehensive employee disaster assistance programs can alleviate some of the exigent circumstances facing individuals and facilitate the return to normalcy as quickly as possible, for both the benefit of the employee and the organization.

In the immediate aftermath of a disaster, private and corporate grantmakers have:

• Established new employee disaster assistance funds, in cooperation with local community foundations, in order to fund short and long-term recovery expenses;
• Distributed Visa Gift Cards and Home Depot cards which can be used at the discretion of the employee;
• Helped to restore employee’s homes to a safe condition;
• Assisted employees with temporary housing and/or relocation;
• Hosted educational workshops on a variety of topics, including:
  • Insurance claims and processes;
  • FEMAFederal Emergency Management Agency assistance and grants;
  • Applying for State assistance and home rebuilding grants;
  • Managing stress and anxiety; and
  • How to talk to children about the disaster (loss of their home, transfer to a new school, being separated from their friends, etc.).
• Assisted employees with securing psychological counseling.

The following are examples of innovative practices and grants that philanthropic organizations have supported, developed and/or implemented related to employee support.

Comprehensive employee disaster assistance programs can benefit both the employee and the organization.

The following are some examples of employee support from the Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s COVID-19 Response Fund:

• The National Domestic Workers Alliance received $125,000 to provide direct cash assistance to those in critical need and to support domestic workers with information, other resources and personal protective equipment so they can continue to work safely.
• Restaurant Workers Community Foundation was awarded $100,000 to provide the Restaurant Workers Community Foundation (RWCF) funding to support workers in crisis and small business owners with the Restaurant Workers COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund. RWCF will provide 50% of funding for direct financial assistance to individual restaurant workers who have lost their jobs or wages/hours due to the pandemic through their partnership with Southern Smoke. An additional 25% will fund nonprofit organizations that are serving restaurant workers in crisis. The remaining 25% will provide zero-interest loans for restaurants to get back up and running once they are allowed to open.

Also associated with the COVID-19 pandemic are the following grants:

• The State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company donated an additional $300,000 to the company’s Employee Assistance Fund responding to the urgent and growing needs created by the pandemic.
• The John T. Vucurevich Foundation donated $5,000 to both the County of Pennington and the Black Hills Area Community Foundation as employee assistance flexible funds for first responder personnel.
• Bacardi & Company Limited Contributions Program pledged $3 million in financial aid and other support to help the people on the frontlines of the bar and restaurant industry.
• The Community Foundation of Greater Memphis awarded a $30,000 grant to Welcome to Memphis to award emergency grants to restaurant and hospitality workers.
• New York Life and Cigna have partnered to create the Brave of Heart Fund, dedicated to providing health care workers and their families with peace of mind. The Fund is designed to provide financial support in the form of charitable relief grants to support the families of health care workers who lose their lives to COVID-19. In addition, Cigna Behavioral Health will provide emotional support and services.

Other grants related to Employee Support include:

• In 2019, the Dollar General Employee Assistance Foundation donated $2,000 directly to an employee to support the rebuilding of their home after it was destroyed by a natural disaster. CDP has not included the recipient’s name to protect their privacy.
• The Greater New Orleans Foundation offers three ongoing Employee Assistance Program Funds: one for the Fidelity Bank, one for the Commander’s Palace and a third for the service and hospitality industries.

1. When a disaster strikes, employees need immediate relief and long-term recovery assistance.
2. Disasters can impact individuals and communities for many years.
3. Foundations and corporations understand the importance of protecting and helping their workforce.
4. Employee Assistance Programs must include strategies, programs, resources and finances dedicated for helping employees in times of disaster. These programs need to be comprehensive and on-going.
5. Company productivity, morale, and employee turnover are dependent upon employees’ expedient return to normal life.
6. Organizational Disaster Preparedness Plans should include training on how employees can protect themselves and their families and mitigate damage and loss of life in the event of a disaster.
7. Preparedness training is essential and can reduce the need for robust assistance post-disaster.

• Planned Giving Design Center: Emergency Assistance Funds for Employee Hardship and Disaster Relief: Legal, Tax and Design Considerations
• See Guides and Materials to download the Emergency Assistance Foundation’s white paper: An Environmental Scan of Disaster Relief & Employee Hardship Funds