Dive Brief:

• According to a recent BLR HR poll, almost one-quarter (23%) of HR industry respondents agreed that this past winter was really a nightmare for them.

• However, about two-thirds (62%) of those surveyed said the frigid temperatures and record amounts of snow in some areas of the country did not really affect their workplaces.

• 15% of respondents said that they were affected, but the number of location closings was about average.

Dive Insight:

While the poll didn't offer a geographic breakdown of the responses, certain areas of the country fared the worst.

Employers in the Northeast probably had the worst winter, with Boston enduring the snowiest season since records were kept (108.6 inches), as well as the snowiest month in February (64.8 inches), and normally frigid Syracuse NY had the coldest winter since 1903.

Yes, miserable winter weather can negatively impact the workplace, but HR leaders should take a collective breath before moving on to looking at upcoming summer challenges, including vacation scheduling conflicts and more weather-related problems (tornadoes and flooding).