Protecting Businesses against Unpredictable Risks
Cases of well-reputed companies failing to meet vendor demands and unable to maintain financial stability have been doing the rounds for the past few years. Whether it was the deteriorating financial position of Kingfisher, falling production in the Reliance KGD6 unit or Infosys losing its sheen with investors—we have heard it all. As a business owner, whether a small or a big company, one is always worried about such an unwanted black day in the life of their business.
Business shutdowns are common and need not be over emphasised, in case there has not been an appalling instance of poor governance. But what about the slowdown of a well-established or a fast-growing business? There can be multiple reasons for the slowdown of a business, but as an employer, one needs to take sufficient safety measures to protect his business against all odds. Every businessman aims to see his organisation grow at a fast pace and the first step towards it is to meet the demands of those who work towards its success—the employees.
Let’s have a look at some of the circumstances that an employee might face while at work which might also affect the output of the organisation:
1. Accident while working
Imagine a construction manager loses one of the limbs at the site as a large block of limestone falls on him from a height. Now, he cannot supervise some of the projects whose deadlines are quite near. The delay in the completion of a project will now lead to possibly a large loss to the business. In case no workmen compensation is provided, the employer may also be held responsible under law for not offering the mandatory compensation under the Workmen Compensation Act, 1923.
2. Professional liability on part of employees:
Professional Liability Insurance is an important scheme provided by insurers, which protects a group of employees from any legal repercussions due to any mistake done in their professional position. Any unintentional mistake on the part of directors can hold the company legally at fault and may also lead to a complete shutdown. Similarly, one wrong decision taken as a doctor can lead the patient to lose his life, even though the decision had been taken unintentionally.
This insurance is a must for organisations like hospitals, law firms, consultancy firms and construction companies to protect their employees from legal lawsuits and to maintain their reputation.
3. Health hazards requiring hospitalisation:
If a manager of a key project suffers a heart attack and is unable to lead his team, the company might face losses for losing out on all the projects/ may have to employ another person in case the person dies. It will also be responsible to pay huge hospital bills which might not be affordable in case it is a small-scale company. It is, thus, better to have a back-up plan in the form of a group health insurance policy to cover such expenses for the employees.
4. Travel accidents:
Trip delays, loss of baggage and health problems while one travels for work are quite common. Any such problems to an employee in a work-related trip may lead to delay in the fixing of an important deal leading to deterioration of company business and reputation in the market. With corporate travel insurance scheme, 24*7 travel assistance can be sought in such cases.
5. Personal accidents of employees:
In today’s competitive world, it is difficult to get talented employees. Employee safety, thus needs to be on the priority list of all the organisations. With rising road accidents, which are estimated to be approximately 400 every day in India in a recent survey, it is better to provide a group personal accident cover to cover the treatment expenses.
Employers may not have much control on the volatile business conditions that they might face due to dissatisfaction of investors, corruption and other such things. But, the least they can do is to ensure protection to their valued employees through group insurance policies which can maintain the position of their business in the global world.
