STAT OF THE DAY According to research from the Harris Poll, “84% support leaders speaking out against police brutality, as well as Americans’ right to free speech and peaceful protest. And 75% agree business leaders should champion diversity and inclusion and denounce racism.” COVID-19 UPDATE At the time of reporting, The New York Times showed 3,588,462 cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and 138,268 deaths. Bing’s COVID-19 Tracker reported 3,533,905 cases in the U.S. and 138,358 fatalities. The White House’s coronavirus task force has recommended that 18 states in the “red zone” should roll back re-opening to stem the surge of new cases, leaked documents reveal. Economists are fretting over what will happen when the extra $600 in federal unemployment payments run out July 26.
Should you require customers to wear a mask? Here’s how some brands are taking a stand—and why companies might want to get more comfortable in taking action ahead of government mandates.
How should brands respond to the BLM movement? Professors of communications and PR share their top tips for meeting this cultural moment. Communicators must step up during the current crisis. Here’s how one agency pro is adapting to the pandemic, WFH and more—and the tools that help keep him sane. Keep your comms brief and tidy. During these difficult times, being able to keep messages succinct and contained are essential. Simplify as much as you can with these tips. Cisco fires employees for racist comments during diversity town hall. When the company hosted a forum to discuss the aftermath of the death of George Floyd, some workers posted comments like “All Lives Matter” and more to the comments section. Cisco chose to end its relationship with a handful of those employees. Bloomberg News reported: Cisco said 237 of 10,400 comments made during the June 1 videoconference objected to what was being presented or disagreed that the meeting should even be taking place. …“I just felt sad to see it,” Francine Katsoudas, Cisco’s executive vice president and chief people officer, said in an interview. “I felt a ton of empathy. I knew that for the African-American and Black employees that were in the meeting, that it was heartbreaking to see that.” “The Ellen Show” addresses employee claims of “toxic” culture. Former employees say the culture on the show was not inclusive and minorities faced micro-aggressions and discrimination. Buzzfeed reported: "Over the course of nearly two decades, 3,000 episodes, and employing over 1000 staff members, we have strived to create an open, safe, and inclusive work environment," [executive producers Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly, and Andy Lassner] said. "We are truly heartbroken and sorry to learn that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience. It’s not who we are and not who we strive to be, and not the mission Ellen has set for us. A third of U.S. workers want to swap their commute for permanent WFH. Many workers say that the current crisis made working remotely a more enticing option. Here’s how your workers might be weighing the pros and cons. American Airlines CEO calls for customers to take flights. The company is still struggling as COVID-19 has severely impacted the travel industry. Without more customers, the company warns that layoffs are inevitable, but CEO Doug Parker is sending a hopeful message. MarketWatch wrote: “Let’s go fly, for God’s sake,” CEO Doug Parker told The Wall Street Journal. [The Wall Street Journal shares common ownership with MarketWatch.] “If it doesn’t work, we’ll pull it back,” he added, as it’s easier to cut flights than to add them. Publix joins companies imposing mask requirements in stores. The company, which operates many of its store in the Sun Belt, has joined others like Walmart, Starbucks and Kroger in requiring face masks within its stores. The Orlando Sentinel wrote: “With the number of coronavirus cases continuing to grow and current CDC guidance indicating face coverings can help slow the spread of COVID-19, we believe requiring face coverings in our stores is another way we can do our part to help protect our communities,” spokeswoman Maria Brous said in the news release. Tesla responds to report of workers with positive COVID-19 diagnoses. The electric car maker had resisted orders to send workers home, and now says that despite a few positive cases, there was no widespread transmission of the virus in factories. CBS wrote: “Nearly all — more than 99.99% — of these occurrences were not cases of virus transmitted at work,” [Laurie Shelby, Tesla’s vice president of environmental, safety and health] wrote in the email. “Most of the positive cases resulted from an individual living with or traveling with someone with COVID-19 and have returned to work after recovering from home.” Virtual Conference Alert Join us for Ragan’s Remote Employee Engagement &Culture Virtual Conference on Tuesday, July 21 to learn internal comms strategies and best practices to meet the challenges of the new reality. Join our Crisis Leadership Board Ragan’s Crisis Leadership Board is the resource you need before, during and after the crisis. As a Board member, you have access to all back issues of this newsletter—as well as research, data, case studies, checklists, tip sheets, articles and other resources—plus a peer-to-peer discussion board and an all-access pass to the annual Crisis Management Conference. Sponsorship/Advertising Opportunities Contact Hannah Lavelle at [email protected] with sponsorship and advertising inquiries. Pitch Us Have a great story to share about crisis communication or your own take on current best practices? Contact Editor Ted Kitterman at [email protected]. Sign Up Subscribe to Ragan’s Crisis Daily newsletter today. | 