Results of the first Pace Business Poll have been released and, despite mounting scientific evidence of the effectiveness of the Covid-19 vaccines and government efforts to promote their use, more than one-third of businesses surveyed reported they would not require their employees to be vaccinated.
The Pace Business Poll was developed at Pace University”™s Lubin School of Business in conjunction with The Business Council of New York State and The Business Council of Westchester. The poll is directed by professor Kathryn Winsted.
A total of 289 business leaders responded to the survey. About half managed businesses in Westchester, 40% were from businesses in New York City, largely Manhattan, and 10% were from Long Island. Pace students at Lubin”™s Center for Student Enterprise at the Pleasantville campus were involved in gathering and analyzing data.
More than half of participating businesses had 50 or fewer employees while 18% had more than 500 employees. Nearly half of the responding businesses had more than $5 million in annual revenue, while about a third had less than $1 million.
About 25% of the businesses responding said that they will require employees to be vaccinated in order for them to return to work, while 37% said vaccinations would not be required. Others said that they still were deciding what to do. Nearly 80% of businesses responding said that the business is now well-prepared for a possible pandemic in the future. The poll was conducted from April 21 through June 10.
Nearly 60% of the respondents said that they had negative financial effects from the pandemic. Just over 25% said revenues declined by more than 50%. About 20% indicated that their financial situation improved since the start of the pandemic. Government assistance was received by 60% of the businesses that participated in the poll. The poll found that 28% of the businesses had to shut down at some point because of the pandemic, with less than 20% having to close for more than six months.
There were layoffs or furloughs due to the pandemic at 39% of responding businesses, while 61% said that they kept their workforce the same or even increased it. Of those companies that laid off or furloughed employees, 19% said they would keep the positions empty for at least another year.
When asked about lessons learned from the pandemic, 22% of the respondents said that they have learned that remote work can be as productive as in-person and that they are planning to continue the practice. The importance of being agile and flexible was cited by 18%, while 10% said having to think outside of the box led to new procedures and ideas that ended up improving the business.
The poll found that 65% of respondents believed their businesses will be stronger than before the pandemic. Only 13% believe that their businesses are weaker than before the pandemic.
“The resiliency showed by many businesses during the pandemic was inspiring, and there is much to be gained by studying how businesses adjusted, adapted, and found new ways to make things work,” Winsted said. ”Many business leaders expressed growing appreciation for the need for work/life balance and the importance of employees”™ well-being.”
The poll results were released during the Sept. 15 meeting of The Business Council of Westchester”™s Board of Directors that was held in White Plains.
The second in what is planned to be a twice-yearly series of business polls by Pace is expected to cover topics such as the return to work as the pandemic fades, business sentiment, real estate, employee concerns and customer relations.
