Remembering Inclusion in the time of COVID-19

As we experience unprecedented challenge due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I felt compelled to share a few thoughts on how inclusion principles are at the heart of the support and empathy we should strive to extend to those around us, even as we practice social distancing. Crises like this pandemic unduly affect those among us who are most vulnerable either financially or from a health perspective. Given this backdrop, we should bear in mind how others may be experiencing this difficult situation. For example, the CDC has shared that those who have underlying health conditions are the most at risk, and we know that many of our colleagues care for loved ones including children with disabilities, the elderly and other family members. So if a colleague or neighbor bears this responsibility, let us not forget to ask how they are doing and offer an encouraging word.

Employers can help too by anticipating particular challenges presented by this situation. At TIAA, dedicated teams are working to understand and address, proactively, collateral impacts through a range of support options, including sick leave, caregiving benefits, care packages for quarantining associates, guidance for expectant mothers and communications to associates now working from home who need disability-related job accommodation. We will also be providing sessions and resources on mindfulness to help associates cope and focus in these difficult times. We also know that our associates want to be involved in helping, so we launched a Virtual CSR Community Dashboard for associates to continue community engagement and giving during C19 crisis. 

 In addition, we can find ways to continue to support the broader community. In particular, food and housing insecurity are very real side effects of this pandemic. At TIAA, we increased our matching benefit to $1,000 for associates wishing to give to nonprofits serving communities most vulnerable to the pandemic. We also hosted a virtual food drive in early March to benefit food pantries at 12 colleges and universities, resulting in more than 13,000 pounds of donated food – it is good to know that that food will particularly benefit students in need who remain on campus during this crisis. In addition, we sponsored catered meals at a local men’s shelter and are increasing our support of food banks. We also pulled together more than 27,000 medical supplies such as masks and gloves from our vast TIAA and Nuveen real estate properties, plus thousands of hygiene supplies such as hand sanitizers from our company store, that will be donated to healthcare clients that are in need.

This crisis is testing us in ways hard to imagine a short time ago, but employers and employees can still stand together and support each other through inclusion and service to help make this incredibly difficult time just a little bit better.