A major winter storm is barreling toward the East Coast. While Winter Storm Fern is forecast to bring record snowfall to parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, it could also churn out dangerous ice across the South, including regions lacking the infrastructure to handle the crisis.

With more than 200 million in the path of the storm, next week’s weather will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the American workforce and their employers, some of whom will need to revisit time off and remote work policies, safety regulations and strategize for connecting affected workers to support.

Yet, many employers likely aren’t prepared.

See also: How to avoid the ‘winter blues’ becoming a real threat to employee wellbeing

Policies, procedures and preparedness

According to a survey by Fusion Risk Management, more than one-quarter of employees say their organizations are unprepared to handle emergencies like weather-related natural disasters. Globally, about 80% report their organization has a written emergency plan in place, yet that figure drops slightly to 76% for American employers.

That is a clear first start for organizations wanting to prepare for natural disasters and reduce liability, according to the report.

“Having no plan in place means that you will be caught off guard by the next disruption, and your employees and operations will be likely be impacted, so having no plan is no longer an option,” they write.

Chief among those plans should be details for how the...

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