Extreme weather and environmental volatility are emerging workforce risks that directly threaten productivity, learning continuity, and long-term capability, yet remain largely absent from most learning and development strategies.
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As companies race to prepare their workforces for rapid change, most learning and development (L&D) strategies focus on familiar risks like skills gaps and digital transformation. But a growing body of evidence suggests another workforce risk is already reshaping productivity and performance.
In a new article, “The Workforce Risk L&D Isn’t Talking About — But Should Be,” David Leathers, Director of Climate and Extreme Weather at the Health Action Alliance, and Victoria Salinas, Climate Leader in Residence at Duke University, examine how extreme weather and environmental volatility are quietly undermining workforce capability. They also make a case for why learning leaders need to treat climate-related disruption as a core business risk, not a peripheral safety issue.
Drawing on findings from the National Commission on Climate and Workforce Health report, The Increasing Risks to Our People-Powered Economy, the authors highlight a growing disconnect inside organizations: Senior executives increasingly rank extreme weather among the top threats to long-term business performance, but the teams responsible for training, workforce readiness, and talent development often rate these risks as low priority or outside their remit.
Salinas and Leathers explore the impacts of this disconnect, share real-world examples of how weather disruptions are already affecting workforce capability, and offer recommendations for ways that learning leaders can help their organizations gain a competitive edge by building resilience now.
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The National Commission on Climate and Workforce Health is a group of business, health, and climate leaders who share a mission to protect workers from the health risks posed by extreme weather.
The Commission was created by the Health Action Alliance in partnership with Mercer and with strategic input from the CDC Foundation. Additional support for the initiative is being provided by The Hartford. Learn more at ClimateHealthCommission.org.
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