When tragedy strikes, the impact on your employees, and your entire organization, can be profound. This may be true even if the crisis isn’t directly related to your workplace.
A crisis might be anything from a natural disaster to workplace violence to a personal tragedy to—as with our recent collective experience—a global pandemic. It can be any life-altering event that disrupts life, work, or well-being. Crises can trigger feelings of anxiety, grief, loss, and stress for employees trying to reclaim a sense of normalcy and get back to work.
In the aftermath of a crisis, leadership should be able to provide authentic, genuine support and demonstrate compassion to maintain morale, trust, and long-term retention. Read on to learn how to support staff at work after a crisis.
1. Acknowledge the impact of the crisis
A large part of an organizational crisis management recovery plan is openly addressing and acknowledging the effect a crisis is having on your workforce. Empathy and understanding are critical throughout the process, as is understanding that every employee’s experience can be different, even if they’re reacting to the same trauma.
Factors like proximity to the event or their connection to the crisis often come into play, making mental health inclusion more important than ever. Recognizing there can be a range of responses is key to ensuring all employees feel validated in their pain as they heal.
Start by compassionately addressing the specific nature of the event. Encourage employees to express their feelings and concerns if they need an outlet. Creating a safe space shows respect for each employee’s experience and helps foster a true sense of community they can rely on.
2. Provide immediate resources and support
Employee well-being should be a key priority when developing a crisis management plan. Immediately offering resources will help employees regain control as they process their emotions and come to terms with what they’ve gone through. Support is invaluable in helping them learn to manage stress and begin the healing process.
Employees should always have access to mental healthcare, whether that’s through counseling, an employee assistance program (EAP), or crisis hotlines. Partnering with mental health service providers can be pivotal in times of crisis. Offering therapy for employees can provide quick access to resources and reduce feelings of isolation.
3. Encourage self-care
Self-care is a crucial part of mental and physical health during trauma recovery. Encourage employees to prioritize self-care and give them grace and patience as they work through the healing process. Self-care practices can be different for everyone, but as an employer, you can facilitate options by providing company-sponsored activities and benefits.
Initiatives like those below will remind employees that you care about their well-being and that your organization supports them. Consider the following self-help opportunities for employees:
- Mindfulness sessions: You can offer guided meditation or mindfulness exercises through apps or in-person sessions. Mindfulness helps people ground themselves during uncertain times, and research shows it can be beneficial for coping with trauma.
- Wellness challenges: Try implementing employee wellness ideas that focus on both physical and mental well-being. Fitness, mental health, or nutrition challenges can encourage employees to focus on themselves and offer a distraction from the pain they’ve experienced.
- Paid time for self-care activities: Granting employees additional resources and time off specifically for self-care can do wonders for the healing process. Whether it’s a day for mental health, rest, or personal time, your kindness will go a long way.
4. Prioritize transparent, consistent communication
Clear, consistent communication is how you can support staff after a crisis. Having a transparent crisis communication policy reassures employees, reducing anxiety and providing them with helpful information about resources available to them. Communication can come in different forms, whether it be providing frequent updates, resources, or reminders.
Avoid speculation in your messaging — it can make anxiety worse. Stick to facts and make sure the information is concise and clear. To establish a supportive structure, keep the lines of communication open and consider the following tips:
- Offer regular updates: Try sending email updates or holding weekly check-ins to keep employees informed and connected, especially if they’re not able to come to work regularly.
- Host Q&A sessions: Hosting sessions where employees can openly voice concerns or ask questions can manage staff with anxiety. Sessions can be a platform for direct communication that addresses any uncertainties.
- Use empathetic messaging: Reassuring language conveys understanding and compassion. For example, you might say something like, “We know these times are challenging, and we’re here to support you.”
5. Foster a culture of empathy and flexibility
It’s important to create a culture of flexibility and empathy. In fact, it’s fundamental to supporting employees during extremely challenging times. Leadership should make every effort to engage with employees thoughtfully.
Flexibility demonstrates an understanding that everyone recovers at their own pace and no one type of support will work for everyone. In turn, your efforts will encourage employees to feel comfortable in expressing their needs.
To foster a culture of empathy and flexibility:
- Actively listen to needs
- Proactively make adjustments to workloads
- Alter deadlines as needed
- Offer to update schedules
- Use open-ended questions
- Show honest and genuine concern
6. Offer structured long-term support
The effects of a significant crisis almost always linger long beyond the immediate aftermath of the event. It’s common for survivors of any trauma to struggle with anxiety, stress, or grief, which is why long-term support is so paramount. Providing resources past a difficult time shows you have a sustained commitment to an employee’s healing.
Try to implement structured, ongoing support that helps employees regain their mental well-being while moving forward. Use some of these long-term support options:
- Offer regular mental health days: Offer designated, penalty-free days off so employees can focus solely on their mental well-being.
- Ensure ongoing access to counseling: Continue providing (or subsidizing) access to counseling and therapy services beyond the initial period after the crisis. Therapy isn’t an overnight cure — it takes work, and accessibility and consistency are necessary for a successful outcome.
- Provide resilience training: Offer training sessions designed to focus specifically on building resilience and teaching effective coping skills. The goal is to ensure employees can handle challenges better in the future.
- Continue to support: Being fully committed to employee well-being means being willing to offer long-term support. There’s no timeline for grief or healing after a crisis, so ensuring resources will always be available is essential.
7. Create a crisis-preparedness plan for future resilience
While you want to be prepared to adequately respond to a current crisis, it’s just as critical to prepare for future crises. If your organization has recently undergone a crisis response, whether it was company-wide or a single employee, use the experience to better prepare for the future. Putting together a crisis response plan means you’re ready to empower employees, offering them a sense of security and predictability should the unthinkable ever happen.
It’s a good idea to involve employees in the planning process as you create a crisis management plan so it’s comprehensive enough to respond to a wide range of needs and perspectives. Review the plan regularly and update it as needed. Proactive planning can help build resilience, and it demonstrates your commitment to employee well-being, even in the darkest hours they face.
When creating a crisis-preparedness plan, consider the following key elements:
- Risk assessment
- Employee involvement
- Communication protocols
- Roles and responsibilities
- Emergency contacts and resources
- Mental health support
- Training and simulation
- A secure method for feedback
Supporting staff through every step: How Talkspace can help
Knowing how to support staff after a crisis is an ongoing exercise that takes dedication and commitment. Talkspace can play a vital role in developing and maintaining your organization’s support system. Offering access to mental health services that are convenient, confidential, and affordable allows employees to seek help at a pace that works for their needs.
Talkspace offers online therapy and support so your employees have the tools and resources they need to overcome trauma caused by a crisis. If you’re ready to make a positive impact on your workplace’s crisis response plan, request a demo of Talkspace today to learn how our mental health resources can support your team in times of need.
Sources:
- Kachadourian, Lorig K, Ilan Harpaz-Rotem, Jack Tsai, Steven Southwick, and Robert H Pietrzak. 2021. “Mindfulness as a Mediator between Trauma Exposure and Mental Health Outcomes: Results from the National Health and Resilience in Veterans Study.” Psychological Trauma Theory Research Practice and Policy 13 (2): 223–30. doi:10.1037/tra0000995. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8500672. Accessed November 14, 2024.