Work goes on despite dangers

Workforce, June, 2003 by Maureen Minehan

Organizations with international operations are scrambling. First it was the war in Iraq. Next came SARS. Now, it's the threat of renewed terrorism. Just as the war was winding down in the Middle East, news broke that an unidentified virus was causing illness and death in China, Hong Kong, Canada, and several other countries. For international companies, that meant stepping up efforts to protect expatriates, business travelers, and local nationals.

In May, new attacks and new terror alerts led to additional corporate action. Finns with significant operations in vulnerable areas are adjusting their procedures to increase employee safety. But at the same time that they must protect employees, they also must find ways to maintain their operations. Richard Chaifetz, chairman and CEO of ComnPsych, an employee-assistance and crisis-management firm, says education is crucial in this environment. '"Whether it's SARS or terrorism, there is a paucity of information in many of these locations, and employees are relying on people in the United States to give them accurate facts."

One large multinational telecommunications company provides daily country-specific security updates to international employees through an internal security Web page. Others use the Web as a communication tool. Business travel bans are another risk-management instrument that experts say companies should continue to use. Six out of 10 companies surveyed by the Business Travel Coalition already have banned at least some travel, and a similar number require employees who have traveled to SARS areas to work from home for a period of time before rejoining the workforce.

While most companies restrict travel to prevent transmission of SARS to their employees, Andrea Elliott, practice leader for Global Visa Solutions, offers another compelling reason to uphold travel limitations. Several countries are banning individuals who have traveled to SARS-affected regions within the past four months. That means that even if a person who has traveled in a SARS area is healthy, he still may be denied entry into other locations where his company has business interests.

Bruce McIndoe, chief executive officer of travel risk management firm iJet Travel Intelligence, advises companies to establish alternative means of accomplishing work. Options include teleconferencing and shifting work to safer regions. "Some companies are even setting up parallel operations so that if anything happens to one location, the other can keep operating."

Through a combination of these practices, companies so far have avoided major shifts in international workforces. A survey sponsored by Cendant Mobility, the National Foreign Trade Council, and the U.K.-based Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development reports that only 9 percent of participating organizations have instituted a mandatory evacuation of employees from areas of potential danger zones. An even smaller number--7 percent--have brought employees home or placed them in another country.

Ultimately, whether it's SARS, terrorism, or some other geopolitical crisis, the same advice applies. "Prepare your candidates and employees. Provide preventative training. Keep employees informed. Have an emergency evacuation plan," Elliott says. "And be ready to carry out work in alternate locations."