October 19, 2001—A new poll conducted jointly by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and eePulse indicates how companies responded to the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, and how they think the workplace will change as a result in the future.
The SHRM/eePulse poll, “HR Implications of the Attack on America,” included the responses of 5,673 human resource professionals. When asked what changes they predicted as a result of the tragedies, 66% of HR professionals said that employees would be more caring toward one another. 56% of respondents said organizations would put higher security provisions in place, and 52% felt that employees would not consider travel as glamorous. An additional 37% said that business travel would be curtailed, and 35% said workers will be more wary of working in high-rise buildings.
Sixty percent of the survey respondents felt their companies were either not prepared at all to deal with the aftermath of the attacks or were only prepared to a small extent. Only 8% felt they were prepared to a great or very great extent. According to SHRM, one of the most important results of the attacks should be that employers and employees work together to set in place a crisis management plan. As rare as such attacks are, SHRM noted that catastrophic events can also come in the form of natural disasters, workplace violence, accidents, or other critical emergency situations, and companies should be prepared to respond.
With slightly more than half (54%) of respondents indicating their organization had a disaster plan in place, many organizations responded off the cuff to helping employees cope. The majority (83%) allowed employees to watch TV or listen to the radio at work, 51% allowed employees time off if they needed it, 50% collected money and/or supplies to be sent for aid, and 49% offered Employee Assistance Program services and encouraged its use.
The SHRM/eePulse poll was conducted through eePulse’s Web-based Measurecom (measurement and communication) system. The report is available online from SHRM (.pdf format) or from eePulse.
