Ask the Advisor: Can We Reduce Pay Because of an Economic Slowdown Due to COVID-19?
March 24, 2020Ask the Advisor: What’s the Difference Between a Furlough and a Layoff?
March 25, 2020Ask the Advisor: Can We Reduce Pay Because of an Economic Slowdown Due to COVID-19?
March 24, 2020Ask the Advisor: What’s the Difference Between a Furlough and a Layoff?
March 25, 2020By Nathan Christensen, CEO
In a matter of weeks, COVID-19 has profoundly changed the way we live and work. Its impact has been especially severe for small and mid-size businesses, and the people within them. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and communities, and in these challenging circumstances, employers, like their employees and their families, feel isolated and overwhelmed in figuring out how to move forward.
Our numbers indicate an urgent need for advice. Last week alone, our team of certified HR Advisors personally consulted with more than 6,000 of these employers, helping them get clarity on their options and responsibilities in a time of unprecedented uncertainty. Another 25,000 employers attended one of our live webinars.
Over the course of the week, I read through hundreds of questions our team received from our clients. It was in many ways a grim picture: business after business facing decisions they thought were unimaginable just weeks ago. But I also saw something encouraging buried within the questions: courage and compassion in the way employers are facing this crisis and caring for their employees as best they can.
I couldn’t be more proud of the support our HR Advisor and Content teams are providing to our valued partners and clients in this moment of crisis. We have seen unprecedented levels of customer activity, and our teams are leaning in, true to our core value “We’re in this together.”
We know, however, that the impact of COVID-19 goes far beyond the 300,000 employers we currently support. Small and mid-size businesses across the country, just like our clients, are struggling and looking for trusted, clear guidance. And as we watched the situation continue to escalate, it became clear to both our team and to me that we had an opportunity and responsibility to do even more.
Today we are launching a COVID-19 Crisis Response Center. The Center will provide essential COVID-19 tools and guidance to help employers nationwide navigate this crisis. Today it includes a resource library with white papers, templates, and webinar recordings, a database of essential FAQs drawn from the most common questions we’re receiving from clients, and a guide to state and federal resources.
If you are an employer, we are here to help you through this. All of these materials are available to you and your teams immediately. If you are a vendor, advisor, or supporting organization for employers, we invite your partnership in continuing to expand this Center and making sure all employers know that it is available to them. If you are an existing ThinkHR or Mammoth partner, please contact your representative to learn how we can work together to make sure you and your clients are getting the support they need.
As a country and business community, we’ll get through this crisis. And the more we work together to do so, the faster we’ll get there. #wereinthistogether