May 21, 2020

The Response from Business to COVID-19

Adapting in times of a public health crisis

Please note that ReadyNation business leader members join our network as individuals.

All across the country, individual ReadyNation members and/or their respective companies are responding to the public health crisis and taking steps to positively impact their communities. To highlight the great work that companies are doing, ReadyNation has put together the listing below, which is continually updated with inspirational activities, as well as company products and/or services offered in response to COVID-19.

If you would like to share what you, as a business leader, or your company is doing – from donations and volunteering to creative employee support and product/service realignment – please email us a brief summary at jnaylor@readynation.org.

PNC

PNC Financial Services has committed $30 million to support local COVID-19 relief efforts. The funding will be coordinated by the PNC Foundation, with each PNC regional president identifying grant opportunities in the areas of early education, food insecurity, and shelter.

Eastern Bank

Eastern Bank is a donor and administrator of the Massachusetts COVID-19 relief fund, which will serve essential frontline workers and vulnerable populations across the state facing homelessness, food insecurity and loss of critical services as a result of the COVID-19 public health crisis. Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation has also committed $10 million to aid individuals and families, small businesses and nonprofit organizations impacted by the pandemic.

Ecolab

Ecolab contributed $1.7 million in financial support and in-kind product donations in response to COVID-19. Ecolab Inc. also provides expertise and guidance for how different businesses can help combat the spread of COVID-19 and keep their employees and customers safe. Ecolab’s webpage provides a variety of resources for employers including videos, webinars with Ecolab experts, educational blogs, and downloadable infographics/posters. The company has taken further initiative by launching a pay protection program for its employees whose pay is impacted by the pandemic in light of reduced customer demand.

Contec, Inc.

Contec, Inc. has created a resource center which includes videos, blogs, articles, and FAQ’s pertaining to the COVID-19 situation. The company has also launched a virtual training tool sensitive to social distancing and created a “Heroes to Zero” podcast, which shares stories of everyday heroes and everyday actions that have been taken or can be taken to reduce the transmission of the coronavirus.

DSM North America

DSM North America President and General Counsel Hugh Welsh personally delivered a donation of 10,000 pieces of the company’s own immunity product, WellStix, to police departments in Parsippany and Cranford, New Jersey. The company has also donated thousands of pieces of PPE to front-line health care workers and communities that are most vulnerable.

US Bank

US Bank has created two new programs to support its employees and communities in response and recovery efforts during these unprecedented times. A Premium Pay Program will provide critical front-line employees with a temporary 20% hourly wage increase, while a new $30 million commitment to human services organizations and local nonprofits will support COVID-19 recovery efforts in communities across the country. US Bank also maintains a dedicated website to stay up to date with how they are responding to COVID-19.

Campbell’s

Campbell’s has contributed over $4.8 million to-date in financial support and food to local food banks, pantries and community organizations across the country. The company is also dedicating production runs in their plants to assist local food banks until the pandemic subsides and is extending premium payments to approximately 11,000 front-line employees who make, sell and distribute products to retail customers around the nation. Finally, the Campbell Soup Foundation awarded 35 Community Impact Grants totaling $620,000 and in March the Foundation informed grant recipients that the funds were unrestricted, allowing the organizations to use the funding to address needs brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kellogg’s

To date, Kellogg and its charitable funds have now donated more than $11.5 million to global COVID-19 hunger relief efforts.

Kellogg Video

Patagonia

Patagonia CEO Rose Marcario announced that all employees would receive pay while the company temporarily suspended its operations. Patagonia has also worked hard to put in place a number of measures to protect both employees and customers.

Humana

Humana announced that it will be waiving consumer costs for coronavirus treatments and has joined Far From Alone, a partnership to promote understanding of social isolation and to offer simple suggestions for staying connected, even while minimizing physical contacts. The Humana Foundation also contributed $500,000 in support of communities, which will provide access to nutritious foods, utilities, and COVID-19 screenings.

Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente donated $1 million to 10 leading public health organizations in collaboration with the CDC Foundation to strengthen the public health infrastructure and contributed an additional $1 million to increase capacity for preventing and treating COVID-19 cases in the nation’s homeless population. The company also launched an ad campaign and has joined forces to establish Protecting People Everywhere, an initiative that matches personal protection equipment donations with hospitals that need them the most.

Kaiser Permanente Video

Toyota

Toyota has taken several steps to address the public health crisis, including: (i) organizing a livestream benefit event that raised more than $40k for MusiCares’ COVID-19 Relief Fund; (ii) producing and donating more than 295,000 personal protective equipment (PPE) for first responders and hospitals throughout the country; and (iii) partnering with the CDC and BET to shoot a PSA. In addition, Toyota Motor North America, Inc. (TMNA) has committed to the fabrication and donation of 500,000 commercial-grade face shields through June to help meet the PPE supply shortfall. The Toyota USA Foundation also donated more than $2 million to support organizations on the front lines providing food assistance as well as e-learning programs.

Pepsi Co.

In addition to being a member of the COVID Acton Platform, Pepsi Co. launched a $7 million initiative to provide increased medical and economic aid to communities of color across the country and has committed $16 million in aid which has gone towards providing meals to rural communities, PPE for healthcare workers, and increased testing support services.

Coca-Cola

The Coca-Cola Foundation has awarded $13.5 million in grants to not-for-profit organizations responding to the coronavirus in the U.S. and Canada and donated $250,000 to the United Services Organization (USO) to provide COVID-19 relief to communities across the country. Coca-Cola has also donated nearly 4 million beverages to support community organizations, food banks, frontline responders and is donating 100,000 pounds of plastic sheeting to make face shields. Globally, the company has pledged more than $100 million to support relief efforts.

Procter & Gamble

In addition to producing 45,000 litres of hand sanitizer per week to supply hospitals, health authorities and relief organizations, Procter & Gamble has also committed contributions of product and in-kind support exceeding $15 million.

Johnson & Johnson

In March, the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies and the Johnson & Johnson Foundation committed $50 million to help support frontline health workers by providing them with meals, PPE, additional training and mental health support. This commitment is in addition to the $250 million multi-year commitment made earlier this year to support those at the frontlines. The company also established the Johnson & Johnson Institute COVID-19 Community Hub, which provides access to COVID-19 information and related trainings, and created “The Road to a Vaccine,” an educational video series that examines the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BancorpSouth

BancorpSouth offers several resources for customers who experience severe financial hardship as a result of COVID-19 through their BancorpSouth Cares program. The company has also created a resource center, which offers business owners useful information on adapting to a public health crisis.

Read More About

  1. Business Engagement