Plea to CEOs: Keep your employees working

Add comment February 24th, 2009

In light of an item I posted last week about a CEO that I know who has gone without a paycheck for three months so he can keep his business going and his employees working, I thought this e-mail that I just received from Michelle Abril, associate vice president of New York-based PR firm Quinn & Co., was worth sharing.

“Steven Korman, CEO of Korman Communities, is making a bold plea to other CEOs to keep employees working.  And he’s putting his money where his mouth is by taking out ads to underscore the importance of dealing with real people, not just profits.  A copy of the letter/ad is below.  This has run in the Philadelphia Inquirer and The New York Times. He has received overwhelmingly positive feedback since the campaign launched last week with emails from nearly 100 people thus far.

“Steven’s efforts go beyond this bold ad campaign. He is taking a grassroots, aggressive approach and sending similarly themed letters via Fed Ex to over a dozen CEOs at major corporations whose stock he owns (the likes of Apple, Exxon Mobil, GE, Google, Oracle, etc.)

“This campaign and outreach comes from the heart.  Steven is someone who cares about people.  For 17 years he personally funded and staffed a van that drove around Center City Philadelphia to feed the homeless. On Christmas Eve each year Steven goes to a toy store in an underprivileged neighborhood to see who is struggling to buy gifts and hands over cash to make opening gifts on Christmas morning a reality. 

“Would love to hear any and all feedback you may have on this initiative.”

Dear CEOs:
I have listened to the executives of many companies say that they are eliminating thousands of jobs to “improve the bottom line.”

I own stock in many of these companies and would prefer that the company make a smaller profit and the stock fall, in the short term, rather than affect the lives of our neighbors and their families as jobs are lost.

Please join me in reminding all CEOs that we are not just dealing with numbers and profit, but with real people and real families who need to keep their jobs.

Please keep your employees working.
Steven H. Korman
CEO and Chairman of the Board
Korman Communities
Kormancommunities.com