Introduction

After COVID-19’s mammoth impact on the global business economy, there’s no denying that workplace crises and emergencies will continue to remain an inescapable reality for businesses of all types in today's fast-paced, interconnected world. 

Apart from the pandemic, government data shows there were 18 different weather and climate catastrophes in 2022 that caused at least $1 billion in damages in the United States. Based on this total, 2022 is tied for third place with 2017 and 2011 as the years with the most billion-dollar catastrophes in just one calendar year, following only 2020 and 2021.

Natural catastrophes are only one example of the kinds of unexpected occurrences that may have far-reaching effects on a company, putting lives and the company's image in danger. In the years 2019–2022, 96% of businesses had at least one incident of outage and downtime. 

Studies reveal that 78% of businesses name security breaches as the primary reason for downtime.

While daily on-the-job safety is a top priority for the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) department of any organization, EHS teams also play a crucial role when an internal or external disaster hits and puts the workplace in a state of emergency.

EHS has taken on new relevance in this ever-changing context by broadening its focus to include proactive crisis and emergency preparation as the core of EHS management is to look out for people, keep the environment safe, and take legally and ethically right actions.

EHS professionals, as gatekeepers of safety, are in a prime position to aid with crisis and emergency planning as they are responsible for anticipating dangers, developing thorough plans of action, and providing the company and its employees with the resources to bounce back quickly from the crisis.

This whitepaper explores the role of EHS in crisis management and how it can contribute to crisis and emergency planning. From risk analysis and emergency response planning to stakeholder participation and cutting-edge technology, we'll examine how EHS and crisis management go hand-in-hand.