I'm pretty discouraged by how my employer handled this storm, but wanted to see how others did before I get too dramatic.

I received an email on Sunday right after 7p that our offices were open on Monday with normal work schedules. Talk to your supervisor if you can't make it due to safety. i.e. if you don't make it, you will be using vacation time. This was the NHC advisory at the time.



Radar I captured at 7:45p that evening.



I receive an email on Monday morning at 7a that the office is open, but doesn't have air conditioning. No mention of don't come in. Radar at the time.



I receive an email at 8:30a that the building lost power and to not come until power has been restored. Nothing about winds, flooding, people captured on TV stranded and how stupid it is to be driving, the mayor telling everyone to stay home.

I receive an email on Tuesday that the building still does not have power, but you can retrieve your laptop to work from home. I already had my laptop, but did not have power or internet at home.

Wednesday morning I receive an email that the building still does not have power, but another office has power, but no internet. All of my work is on network drives and I can't do anything without internet. That evening I receive an email that internet has been restored at that office. I get a text from my supervisor to plan to come to that office on Thursday. The main office still does not have power.

So I came to work on Thursday. I received an email this morning (Friday) that employees may charge to overhead for Monday and Tuesday if you were not able to work. For Wednesday and beyond you charge to vacation if you were not able to work.

The messages received on Sunday evening and Monday morning made me consider looking for another job, but using vacation for Wednesday is putting me over the edge. But maybe this is normal?

That's awful.

My direct report, who lives out of state told me to take care of my family, friends, pets and house and worry about work next week.

Guess I'm fortunate.

No that's not normal. You work for a **** company.

I'm our site leader for the two sites in the Houston area. We handled our response VERY differently. First and foremost no one, at any level, at any time has mentioned use of PTO.

Sunday night - Site closed Monday out of abundance of caution. Stay safe, don't drive into water, don't touch downed powerlines, keep an eye out for company emergency text/email/call system after the storm checking on employees status

Monday - Site closed, both sites no power, but one had emergency generator for data room, if anyone needed it they could come charge devices. Hope every is ok, if anyone needs immediate assistance or is displaced, please contact manager so the company can assist.

Tuesday - Still no power, We're bringing in a solar microgrid to set up at our main site for charging, water purification, providing food, water, respite - Bring your families. Will be ready tomorrow. (Company owns a division that manufactures microgrids...)

Wednesday - Microgrid at Houston location is active. Webster office has power, tomorrow we're supplying fridge full of food, water, sodas, snacks, power, AC, internet and showers in the locker room. Bring your family and hang out.

Thursday - Webster office opens for employees to use and bring families.

Friday - Houston office got power back. Setting up similar hospitality at Houston office, considering bringing in some kind of entertainment for families with kids.

Presumption of resuming normal business Monday.

You tell me... Seems different.

If you are willing to not have that job...bill Wednesday and tell them you worked. Most companies have no soul and should be cheated on b/c they cheat on you.


If you value your job ... bill PTO and realize you did not work. No matter how petty and stupid the communication was, it is not worth losing sleep over 1 day of pay.

You work for a ****hole company. Please share who they are so I can make sure we never do business with them. Find another job. Most companies tell there employees to use their judgment and be safe.

Apparently Texas children's was encouraging patients to come in for Monday's scheduled elective procedures Sunday night, told employees it was business as usual around 6am on Monday, and didn't cancel anything until like 11 (after we were through the worst of the storm). People are big mad. Or so I've heard

MAROON said:

---

No that's not normal. You work for a **** company.

---

Yep. Time for a new job. Your company's leadership sucks ass.

Our email that went out this morning:

The Houston office is ready to welcome, and offer some relief, to the local (company name removed) Houstonians who need a place to cool off, get some refreshments and use the internet. Power has been restored, HVAC is operational, and the site is open for business. The hospitality team has ordered food and refreshments for employees and their families to enjoy. You and your family are welcome to come charge your phones/laptops/electronics, work from the office, take care of personal email/calls, enjoy the HVAC and refreshments. If you have a CURRENT Houston office badge, you can come in any time (even afterhours and weekend).

As of 10am this morning we are happy to provide relief for those without, by stocking the fridge with deli meat, condiments, bread, and sodas. The pantry will also be stocked with snacks, breakfast bars, and fruit. We ask that employees and their immediate family members use as needed and be considerate of others needs as well.

If you know of another Houston based employee in need, feel free to forward to them

My employer:
Sunday - Office closed Monday, look for update Monday Afternoon
Monday - Office closed Tuesday, look for update Tuesday Afternoon
Tuesday - Office Open Wednesday, if you are able to work from home (i.e. you have power) stay home, otherwise the office is open if you need it the rest of the week.

My employer is pretty flexible and understanding, so long as your work is getting done no issues. I cannot complain.

And a letter from our SVP this morning:

Dear Houston Team,

I'd like to start by expressing my deepest concern for your well-being and that of your loved ones as we navigate the aftermath of the recent hurricane. The significant power outages across the region, including our Houston location, have undoubtedly caused disruptions to our daily lives.
I was just notified that Houston has had power restored this morning. The local facilities team is enroute to the site to review and open it for operations as soon as possible, potentially this morning.

• The local team will be working quickly to establish a "Hospitality" center at Houston much like we have already done at Webster. This will provide some relief to the local (company) Houstonians who need a place to cool off, get some refreshments and use the internet.
• We have a solar micro grid up and running at Round Up and are beginning to marshal resource for our planned partnership with Footprint to construct and deploy mobile power solutions to the local community. With the recent support from the (company) Foundation and the Leadership team, we will be able to build an additional ten trailers. We are utilizing both technical volunteers from the Micro grid team based in Houston as well as many others less technical but invaluable support.
• Finally, the local team with support of others, are looking at ways we can continue to support employees and families without power. The evolving crisis around the damage to the electrical infrastructure continues to unfold and it may be many days before all parts of Houston get power back.

Please watch out for updates from your site leader. For now, our top priority is ensuring your safety and the safety of your loved ones. Once that is secured, we will work together to begin the process of returning to normal life and operations.

If you or a family member has been affected by the storm and needs assistance, please don't hesitate to reach out to your manager or your HRBP. We are here to help in any way we can.

Please stay safe, and let's work together to support each other during this challenging time.
Sincerely,

My employer encouraged people to work from home but welcomed people and families to come to the office to cool off abd use internet if needed. They also offered a disaster recovery plan of several thousand dollars, if needed for uncovered cash costs, and later asked if people needed any disaster recovery supplies. Working for a company that cares is invaluable.

Sound like you work for the Alliant Group.

From a technical standpoint, an employer is not obligated to pay you for time the office is closed for a natural disaster. They can can tell you to charge PTO or pound sand if they want.

That being said, the initial communications about business as usual for Monday show a gross disregard for employee safety and puts employees in a position where they may have to decide between taking PTO they might not be able to afford to take or literally risking their lives. That is a really bad look for an employer, and if an employee had died on the way into work during the storm, the employer is potentially facing a huge ****storm.

If there is a legit fiscal concern for the impact of paying employees without charging PTO, the employer should consider the safety and well-being of employees first and sort out the fiscal issues after the storm passes. Any employer doing business in Houston should have a contingency plan in place that deals with theses types of issues, since it typically happens at least once a year, whether a hurricane, seasonal flood, freeze event, etc.

My company sent an email on Monday saying that the office was open starting Tuesday, but said everyone should absolutely do what they need to do, and the only ask was that you keep your supervisor posted on your plans and stay in contact as best as you are able.

They also offered up a block of hotel rooms for employees without power, paid for by the company.

That's how you do it.

My office was closed on Monday. Message was for everyone to hunker down and take care of their families.

Monday night we got an email that the office had power and you could come in if it was safe for you to do so, but use your own judgement. Same message all week.

Also, we got the message to please bring your families to the office if you were without power, so they could enjoy A/C and internet.

We are only in the office mandatory two days a week. I've been here Tue-Friday because I don't have internet at home right not.

There is zero chance anyone here is getting charged vacation for not coming in this week.

My boss called and offered me and our family a place to stay at his house or the office (out of town) if we were stuck. Said see you Thursday.

OP I'm interested to know where you work.

Damn. In y'alls exit interviews, you need to tear these companies a new ******* about how little they care for their employees well-being.

Hell, my prospective employer called to check on me before my actual employer did, and I hadn't even accepted at the time.

Cromagnum said:

---

Damn. In y'alls exit interviews, you need to tear these companies a new ******* about how little they care for their employees well-being.

Hell, my prospective employer called to check on me before my actual employer did, and I hadn't even accepted at the time.

---

Sadly, employers who don't care that much about what you think while you're working for them care even less about what you think when you don't. Most exit interviews are for show.

Work for a small company. Told from Sunday to work from home if we can, if not just let management know if you need any help with your house or situation. Boss had some extra generators he brought over to some employees that requested. Got email Wed that we will all have a little extra in the coming paycheck to help with unexpected expenses. Office still out of power. One of management is asking if he can deliver any needed goods (food, ice) to employees that need them.

Also, been living out of hotels since monday. Boss told me the company will reimburse some of that cost since I couldn't have worked without going to a hotel.