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Managing the Employee Factor through Cycles 199

additional training and certification to temporarily move to
other work places, as needed.

Second, the company moved in October to a “shared work
program” of three 10-hour days a week as a way to cope
with the downturn. While workers keep their jobs, the lost
10 hours each week is nonetheless enough for them to be
eligible for state unemployment benefits in Missouri, where
Megavolt is located. The Missouri program also does not
restrict unemployment benefits for people who take on part-
time jobs, Roth says. And within the shared work program,
companies can soften the blow to people who are laid off.
In that situation, the state stipulates that the employer give
the volunteers a specific recall date – generally, anywhere
from one to six months out, according to Roth. The company
also maintains health benefits for employees and defers their
contribution to the premiums. “It’s one thing to have lost a
job completely, but it’s quite another to be able to look for
work and know you have got something else behind you,”
Roth says. “It’s a good program.”

In the end, companies need to balance what’s best for
their employees while making sure the company remains
viable in tough times.

For example: Cisco Systems in 2001, after the tech bubble
and before 9/11, allowed employees to take sabbaticals
while they were paid one-third their salary. “The reason was
that at one-third pay, you couldn’t survive forever, but it was
enough money that you wouldn’t necessarily be looking for
another job” in the meantime. Cisco saved both money and
talent.

Managing a fast recovery

During economic contraction and recession, even if busi-
nesses use these alternative strategies they might still have