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Quest Means Business
Virus Cuts Off Lifeline For Many Of World's Poorest; Zurich Insurance Projects $750M In 2020 Claims; Clorox Ramps Up Production As Demand Spikes By 500 Percent; Quest Gets Homemade Haircut As NY Salons Remain Closed; Millions More U.S. Workers File For Jobless Claims; Jamaica Preparing Plans To Restart Tourism Sector; Dubai Airport CEO Says Operating At Low Capacity Will Not Be Sustainable. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired May 14, 2020 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:18]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS ANCHOR: We have an hour left of trading on Wall Street as we take a look at the markets, hoping to break a losing
streak over the last few days.
And it's a good strong gain of just over a half a percent. It started down, now it's higher. With that sort dynamic, I'm not sure which way it's going
to go, but those are the markets and these are the reasons why.
A fifth of the American workforce is now claiming some form of benefit and relying on some form of government assistance as claims move higher once
again.
Top insurers are bracing for a barrage of claims of one sort or another. I'll speak to the Chief Executive of Zurich in a moment.
And a top U.S. senator surrenders his phone, his mobile to the F.B.I. over trades he made before the stock market crashed. We're live in New York. It
is Thursday, it is May the 14th.
I'm Richard Quest, and, of course, in the living room, I mean business.
Good evening. The numbers on the economy and the jobless just keeps getting worse. Two month into the U.S. standstill and the pain is mounting for
those who still have not or have not found work or are waiting for their companies to reopen.
New jobless claims, three million of them in the last week or just shy of three million.
The pace is slowing, but if you add it all up, 36.5 million workers are now on the payroll if you'd like -- have left the payroll and are now claiming
some form of jobless benefit, and they are depending on unemployment checks for their livelihood.
Not surprisingly, it is those who are poorest who got hit hardest. Not only because there's was frequently the jobs that went first, but of course, the
unemployment benefit won't cover their costs.
If you look at the numbers, the new Fed study says 39 percent of jobs paying less than $40,000.00 a year are gone -- 39 percent, and that
compares to 13 percent paying over 100K.
Working from home is divided by education. Twenty percent of those with a high school degree, 63 percent of people with a college degree.
It sort of makes sense when you look behind the numbers and you understand the reasons and the rationales, but it doesn't make it any easier.
Let's go to Kentucky, for instance. In Kentucky, one in three workers have been laid off. It's where Vanessa Yurkevich now reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS REPORTER: How tight are things for you right now?
GERIKA HORN, HAIRDRESSER, WINCHESTER, KENTUCKY: Right now, things are -- I am to my like last $100.00.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): In Kentucky, one in three workers are out of a job right now. Gerica Horn is one of them, a hairdresser from Winchester. She
says she has been waiting six weeks for unemployment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (on camera): Could unemployment be a game-changer for you and your family?
HORN: Oh, my god, yes. Like anything, I would be thankful for, just so I can have a peace of mind like I've got this money to fall back on, to at
least my groceries.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): Kentucky's workforce now has the highest shares of unemployment claims in the U.S. according to the Labor Department.
One reason, Kentucky's Governor Andy Beshear told people to file and early.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ANDY BESHEAR, (D-KY): Apply for benefits.
I ask people every day when I have an update to sign up for unemployment. I actually encourage them to do it. We were one of the first and most
aggressive states in opening up unemployment to independent contractors to small business owners, trying to make sure that everybody that was truly
harmed could get help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): But encouragement from state officials alone does not account for high jobless claims. Kentucky's leading industry,
manufacturing plays a role.
It is nearly 13 percent of the state's workforce, higher than the national average.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL CLARK, CENTER FOR BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC RESEARCH, UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY: Those workers, it's much harder for them to work remotely, as
you can imagine. So that may not be an option for a lot of the employers in Kentucky.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): And two of the state's biggest employers, Toyota and Ford are shut down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (on camera): When the auto industry shuts down, what does that mean for you?
GREG RISCH, PRESIDENT AND CEO, GIBBS DIE CASTING: That means that they don't need my parts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): Gidds Die Casting supplies the big three auto makers with parts. Greg Risch became CEO just seven weeks ago. His first
action, furloughing 670 of his 800 employees.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RISCH: There's no work available, so they're obviously filing for unemployment and getting all the aid that's been available from the states
as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[15:05:11]
YURKEVICH (voice over): Also on hold, the Kentucky Derby, a huge economic driver now postponed until September, leaving businesses without $400
million in tourism dollars.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLARK: You know, we are seeing reduced demand for their products and so their employees are being affected as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): Parts of Kentucky's economy are reopening with a phased approach, but slower than its neighboring states.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BESHEAR: What's going separate states in what their economy is going to look like by the end of the year is how well they reopen.
If you go too fast and you have a spike and you have to shut down again, that's going to cost more long term damage than doing it gradually and
doing it right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): Despite the new safety protocols for reopening, Horn is eager to start seeing clients again on May 25th.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HORN: I'll be working longer hours because of the time in between clients, but it will be worth it, you know, just to have a flow of money coming in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH (voice over): Vanessa Yurkevich, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Christy Hoffman is the General Secretary of UNI Global Union. She joins me from Geneva. Let's break the discussion down, if you'd like, into
two distinct groups if we may, Christy.
The first, of course, is what I described as the developed world, those countries like the United States, the European Union where there are
benefits in place, but there have not been enough.
And in other parts of the world, we'll talk about where there simply isn't the social safety net. Let's talk about the developed world first of all.
When we look at the number of people who have been put out of work in the United States, many of whom will not get their jobs back again, what can be
done?
CHRISTY HOFFMAN IS THE GENERAL SECRETARY OF UNI GLOBAL UNION: Well, first, Richard, thanks for having me on your show again. It is indeed, you know, a
shattering life experience for the numbers of people who have lost their jobs no matter if it is developed or developing.
The numbers in the U.S. are staggering. You know, we have to say -- I just want to make a contrast with Europe where workers haven't really lost their
jobs. There's been a temporary unemployment scheme put into effect so that they stay employed, but the state subsidizes the job.
So, it's a bit less of a cut. It might be the same question. They're out of work. But they are still linked to the employer in a more specific way, and
I think that's what's lacking in the U.S.
People are feeling more insecure. Their unemployment -- you know, healthcare is often linked to their employment, which makes the situation
worse.
So, it's a good thing there's the supplement to unemployment. It stays in effect until July. That's a good thing. But I think people living on the
edge there, it's very precarious, and as I said, it can be life-shattering go through this insecurity.
QUEST: And there's also a lot of falseness in the numbers, probably on both sides of the Atlantic, but if you take the U.S. for example, the
airlines, well, they have not laid people off because they're not allowed to under the bailout plans that they all signed up to.
And then if you look at PPP, well, they were under a government scheme like in Europe to artificially keep people on the payroll.
HOFFMAN: Right.
QUEST: But when that runs out, they may get laid off. In the same case with the U.K., though, Christy. When the job retention scheme comes to an
end, if it's not extended, people will be fired or laid off there, too.
HOFFMAN: Right. We don't know what's going to happen in the next few months as the economies reopen. So, presumably, some of these people will
go back to work and we are seeing that now.
We're seeing some of the countries in Europe gradually reopen, and in our sectors in retail, some are slowly going back. So that will address some of
it.
In the long-term we need long-term investment in infrastructure, green jobs and so on. We need a long-term recovery plan that's not just going to be
patchwork holding things together.
Right now, you know, we've got these schemes in place as you say in both sides of the Atlantic that should shoulder the worst shock.
QUEST: Now, if we then look at what's happening in the developed world, the problem here is of course, so much of the developing world requires
either by raw materials or partly finished goods or to provide services on strong economies in places like North America and in Europe.
If those economies are not succeeding, well, there's really only China who is an engine of growth and the developing world is going to suffer really
badly.
HOFFMAN: Right. We're seeing already the developing world is suffering terribly. I mean just two weeks ago -- or this week, in fact, a big
security -- private security company laid off 800 workers in Peru just like that. No severance pay.
They don't have an unemployment scheme. The unemployment levels are enormous already, but more so, but they just don't have the safety net. So,
they're not getting unemployment insurance anywhere near to replace their wages.
You've got thousands and thousands of workers out of the two million migrant workers in Qatar without any income whatsoever. They're only
getting food. So, it's already quite a catastrophe in many countries.
QUEST: Right. Christy, I promise you one thing, we will continue to watch and we will continue to cover and we promise to have you back as this
develops so we can have your perspective on this. I appreciate it. Thank you.
HOFFMAN: Thank you.
QUEST: In just a moment, we'll be in Jamaica. The Prime Minister of Jamaica to talk about how the country is hoping to restart at a time when
nobody seems to want to travel and even if you do want to travel, are the airline seats available that you'd want to take.
In a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Welcome back to QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. Jamaica is making plans to reopen and start welcoming tourists again.
There will be new safety measures at the airports, seaports, and resorts. Visitors might need health certificates or some form of health passport or
however that will work isn't clear.
The travel and tourism is only a third of GDP for Jamaica, and the sector outpaces the island's overall growth at seven percent for the sector's
growth.
The recovery is contingent on external factors, but here is the really important point. Nearly two-thirds of the visitors come from the United
States, and that raises a whole host of issues.
Joining me is the Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, the Prime Minister of Jamaica. Prime Minister, thank you, sir, for joining us.
I read your statement or your speech to the nation last week, and you were very blunt, and you were very brutal about it. You said that there's a
reality that we keep dancing around, and the reality is we must ensure our economy gets as close as possible to full capacity. But how realistic is
that, Prime Minister?
[15:15:10]
ANDREW HOLNESS, PRIME MINISTER OF JAMAICA: It's a very realistic proposition, Richard, and let me invite you to be one of the first tourists
to come back to Jamaica.
I keep telling the Jamaican people that I have two priorities. Priority number one is their health and safety, and priority number one is their
livelihoods.
So, I don't see a tradeoff between health and economy. I don't see the two things as mutually exclusive. You need healthy people to make the economy
work and a working economy gives you healthy people.
So for us, as a government, we are trying to ensure that we balance these two very critical objectives and tourism plays a very important role in
that as you outlined in the figures.
We depend heavily on tourism. Tourism is our number one foreign exchange earner accounting for over 50 percent of the foreign exchange that we earn.
So, we have to start planning for now for the reopening and recovery of the industry.
QUEST: Okay, so taking that onboard, Prime Minister, you also say Jamaica does not have the luxury of other economies with large savings.
Jamaicans have to live with the COVID pandemic, but you're not going to be able to create the so-called travel bubble or travel corridor, are you,
with the United States where in many cases the COVID levels are much higher than you would experienced, and the last thing you would want is to import
coronavirus?
HOLNESS: Precisely. So, we have to plan in advance and anticipate when our largest tourism market would be ready for us. What we would want is for the
United States to be ready, Canada to be ready, Europe to be ready, and we're not.
So we are preparing. You know, the tourism industry is very susceptible to global shocks. This would not be the first global shock that our tourism
industry would have, and indeed within the Caribbean countries, we are already very much aware and sensitive toward these global shocks, so we are
resilient.
Part of being resilient is to plan for it. So, what we're doing now is to ensure that we have the protocol. And as you have said, we are already
figuring out ways how we can have controlled corridors of entry, how to move our tourists safely from airports to hotels so that they can enjoy our
lovely beaches and our lovely people.
We're already training our workers because that is key towards providing the kinds of service that people would need in the post-COVID environment.
QUEST: And this idea of some form of travel certificate or health passport, you're not the only country that's working around this idea. It's
very difficult to see how it works. It's a great idea in principle, but if you bear in mind it could be out of date the next day, unless you're like
myself who have already had COVID, and even then, you're not sure if you can catch it again.
HOLNESS: Well, I think it's the information that is important. One, you want to have at least some health profile understanding of the visitor that
is coming and that process itself helps the visitor to be aware of the protocols that they would have to follow.
And then we would begin to be able to see whether or not -- you know, determine the risk profile of the visitor who is coming and the measures
that would have to be in place on the Jamaica end to ensure we can cater to any needs that those risk profiles would throw up.
QUEST: Prime Minister, thank you. I look forward to you and I continuing the discussion preferably and hopefully on one of Jamaica's beautiful
beaches. Thank you, Prime Minister.
HOLNESS: Well, I'm looking forward to that. Let me know when you're coming.
QUEST: Thank you. Now, the largest and busiest airports in the world of course barrels backwards and forwards between Dubai and Beijing, 86 million
people went through Dubai's airport in the last year or so.
The CEO of Dubai Airport believes that a vaccine is really the only answer to travel getting back to where it was. CNN's John Defterios reports from
Dubai.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL GRIFFITHS, CEO, DUBAI AIRPORTS: What we've had to do is reconfigure the airport to conform to all the social distancing rules. So, the check-in
has been segregated. We've got barriers separating people.
We've got stickers on the floor to make sure that people don't breach the social distancing distances, and, of course, we'll have our staff protected
in masks and various hazmat accessories to make sure they that can direct people. Plexiglas screens in front of check-in desks.
And all the way through the entire airport process, people will have to observe those social distances.
[15:20:26]
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN BUSINESS EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: It is amazing though because you can't live off of whether it's an airport or an airline, 30 to
50 percent capacity and that's what is required at this stage, is it not?
GRIFFITHS: That's correct. And in fact, it is not going to be economically sustainable for many industries to operate with that sort of capacity
restriction.
If an airline leaves the ground with 30 people on it, with a capacity of 200, then you've still got the same level of fuel burn, you've still got
the staff costs and everything is the same.
At the end of the day, if you then have to put that into ticket prices, people will be paying three or four times the current ticket prices. I
don't think that's going to be a sustainable position which is why we need a longer term solution that doesn't involve social distancing.
DEFTERIOS: You didn't mention onsite testing. The false negative results are scaring people. It doesn't rebuild confidence. You're not confident in
them.
GRIFFITHS: Well, I think -- the thing is, there are two problems with it, the false negatives and the reliability of it, and also, the time it takes,
and whether it is scalable.
The difficulty is you might be able to operate some form of pre-flight testing using the current techniques with a limited number of passengers.
But if each of those passengers needs to wait ten minutes before the result, is there -- again that's the thing that limits on our capacity.
I think there are techniques being developed which will take that pre- flight testing to a much, much quicker result. Now, if we get that and it's not so intrusive, that actually might be quite a good way to go.
DEFTERIOS: Three-quarters of capacity in two or three years, what does that feel like right now? What do you think you can get to?
GRIFFITHS: Very difficult to say, because of course, the he thing is that it is going go very much driven by those bilateral arrangements country to
country.
You see what's happened between Australia and New Zealand where they've got, I think now, the virus very much under control and they are confident
enough to open their borders between the two and create that Tasman Bubble.
I think what's going to happen around the world, governments that have taken early action such as the UAE government and have got the virus under
control will be in a very good position to negotiation bilateral relationships with other countries that are in a similar position and then
at that point, those markets will start to open up. We expect to be on the front foot.
In terms of capacity, we expect to be back to hopefully delivering 90 million to 100 million passenger.
In terms of capacity, we just hope the demand will actually follow and enable us to operate at that level at some stage in the future.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Paul Griffiths of Dubai Airport talking to John Defterios.
Now, the Republican Senator Richard Burr is stepping down as Chairman of the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee because of a scandal involving
shares that he sold earlier in the crisis.
It comes amid an investigation into his stock trades. The Justice Department says Burr has now surrendered his cellphone to F.B.I. on
Wednesday.
The senator and his wife sold as much as $1.7 million worth of stock in the days leading up to the market downturn.
Evan Perez is our senior U.S. Justice Department correspondent and joins me from Washington. Well, I suppose he would say he is innocent and he needs
to spend all of his time looking at this and this that and the other.
But why is he stepping down even temporarily from the Intelligence Committee?
EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR U.S. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, what he says is that he knows that this is a distraction, and the Intelligence Committee
has a lot of important work to do, and he doesn't want this issue to be a distraction.
But Richard, it is clear that this is a real investigation. It is a serious investigation. The F.B.I. coming to his home to pick up his cellphone after
delivering a subpoena to his lawyer is not something that is done very lightly.
This is something that had to have the approval of the highest levels of the Justice Department. The Attorney General Bill Barr would have to have
been involved in that process.
It goes beyond just the $1.7 million in stock that Burr and his wife sold. If you remember, this all goes back to February 13th is when they sold the
stock.
On the same day Burr sells his stock, his brother-in-law sells about $280,000.00 in stock as well. And so, the F.B.I. and the Justice
Department, the prosecutors who are looking at this have developed information that leads them to believe that there is more here than just
meets the eye.
At the beginning here, we all thought that perhaps, this was about looking at the stock sales of not only Burr, but other Members of Congress who had
briefings.
[15:25:20]
PEREZ: Keep in mind that Burr had a briefing on the coronavirus on February 12th, which is a day before he made the stock sales, before his
brother-in-law makes these stock sales.
So that's the key issue here, whether or not he used information that he received as a member of the Intelligence Committee to make those decisions
to sell.
QUEST: Evan, so this briefing -- this is the heart of it. The briefing obviously basically says, things are much worse than we're saying publicly.
He then goes out and says everything is okay, meanwhile he is selling stock he claims he was going to sell anyway.
PEREZ: Right. He is retiring from Congress, so he says that he was going to -- he was going to be selling the stuff anyway.
It's just the timing of this, Richard that has raised all of these questions. Again, it's comes after he has received this classified
briefing, this information that the rest of the public doesn't have.
And again, for prosecutors to be able to charge someone with insider trading or his brother, for instance, they have to be using information
that the public does not have that they knew they had a fiduciary responsibility not to disclose.
Again, that's the law here in the United States, so we'll see whether the prosecutors and where the investigation goes here, but it's clear they have
additional questions, which is why they got the cellphones.
And also, Richard, they went to Apple to get his iCloud information to use for this investigation -- Richard.
QUEST: Evan, thank you. Please watch this very closely for us at the moment.
Now, Lloyd says there will be dire predictions for the losses that are going to be paid out as a result of coronavirus. We need to understand who
and why. The CEO of Zurich is with me after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:30:00]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, I'm Richard Quest. A lot more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in just a moment. We'll hear from the CEO of Zurich
Insurance about the sort of losses and claims that we're -- they're expecting to see as the insurance company takes a beating. And Clorox is
cleaning up, literally, the numbers are quite staggering about the percentage increase. We'll have a CEO to talk about that, too, in just a
moment. After all of that of -- or before all of that, I should say, it's after I have updated you on the news headlines. Because this is CNN, and on
this network, the news always comes first.
The number of people who have died from Coronavirus worldwide has now passed 300,000. According to Johns Hopkins University, more than 4.4
million cases have now been recorded. It's believed though, however, the true numbers could be far higher. And it comes amid WHO warnings that the
virus may never go away. The whistleblower who served as director of a key U.S. vaccine agency, has testified before Congress. Dr. Rick Bright said he
was fired for posing drugs touted by President Trump. He claims the White House lacks a workable plan and says Americans need to retell the truth,
the warning of disaster if that doesn't change. President Trump says a vaccine will be there by the end of the year and says that the U.S.
military is already mobilizing to help with distribution. Experts are calling that timeline unrealistic.
The World Bank is now claiming that the pandemic is cutting off the lifeblood and opportunity for the world's poorest migrant workers are
amongst those most heavily losing their jobs, their families back home are back being heavily affected, because of course, they can't pay for basic
needs. CNN's Ivan Watson reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: When Maria Cristina Y Baolos got fired from her job as a live-in domestic worker in Hong Kong
last month, she was also made homeless.
MARIA CRISTINA Y BAOLOS, DOMESTIC WORKER IN HONG KONG: I'm sitting on the floor. All my luggage there. This the life of helper.
WATSON: Maria Cristina used to send a third of her income back home, around 200 U.S. dollars a month to support her family in the Philippines. Four
sons, a husband out of work, and a sick mother.
BAOLOS: But my mom is sick. You know, it's very hard for me.
WATSON: She says Hong Kong will extend her visa for a month as she tries to find another job. It's the first time in 15 years she's been laid off.
Does your family know you got fired?
BAOLOS: No.
WATSON: Why?
BAOLOS: I don't want to give her another problem to worry.
WATSON: Maria Cristina and her family are not alone. Migrant workers around the world are being laid off as the Coronavirus' prices triples economies.
The money these workers earn provides a lifeline to their families paying for food, housing, and school for their children. Now, that lifeline is
being cut off. The World Bank predicts these sorts of payments will fall by 20 percent this year, globally.
DILIP RATHA, LEAD ECONOMIST, MIGRATION AND REMITTANCE, WORLD BANK: The kind of fall that we are expecting in remittances is unprecedented in history.
WATSON: Dilip Ratha from the World Bank says governments need to do more to support migrant workers and their families.
RATHA: We should not ignore the plight of this huge part of humanity.
WATSON: These workers often treated like second class citizens are facing the triple threat of job losses, lockdowns, and the risk of virus outbreak
in cramped housing. Saiful Islam was working in Bahrain as a construction worker for four years and sending his half of his income home before being
laid off a few months ago. The Bahrain government says more than 7,000 migrant workers have lost their jobs due to COVID-19 and says they're
providing them with free food and a visa amnesty.
SAIFUL ISLAM, BANGLADESH MIGRANT WORKER (through translator): Now, that I can't send money back home, my family is also suffering and cannot buy
food. And my old parents cannot get any good medical treatment.
WATSON: His family back in Bangladesh say they're now struggling to survive.
ROKEYA BEGUM, MOTHER OF BANGLADESHI MIGRANT: My son has stopped sending the money because he doesn't have a job since everything closed due to the
Coronavirus. So, I've had to take a loan for survival with very high interest.
[15:05:02]
ISLAM (through translator): When I speak to my parents, they don't even ask me for money anymore, as they love me so much. And they know I'm in this
bad situation, too.
WATSON: Migrant workers long operating on the fringe of societies, now hidden victims of a global economic crisis. Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: The issue of remittances, which goes to the heart of the global economy. After the break, the insurance companies are being hit hard. It's
difficult to always have much sympathy for an insurance company. But when you look at the situation, you're realizing maybe your view will change in
just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Welcome back. Lloyd's of London projects that the losses could be the biggest on record for insurance as a result of Coronavirus. The
industry could face more than $200 billion in losses, and the Lloyd's CEO says the full impact may not be known for two years. Zurich financial --
Zurich Insurance says COVID-related claims could total $750 million this year. Already paid is 200 million in the first quarter. The stock remains
flat as they had results down less than one-tenth of one percent on the day. Mario Greco is the CEO of Zurich Insurance. He joins me now. When we
talk about the losses that you're going to be paying, where are the losses coming from? Is it this property and casualty? Or how -- where are your
losses? Is it business interruption insurance? What's the claims about?
MARIO GRECO, CEO, ZURICH INSURANCE: Yes, the great majority -- First of all, good afternoon to all of you. The great majority of the losses is
about business interruption, which is part of the property policies. Yes.
QUEST: And yet, many people have found in many cases, that that business interruption insurance didn't cover this, either because it didn't have a
pandemic clause, or there's been some other way. Do you think the insurance industry -- I mean, I know you're not obligated to rush out with your
checkbook, but there are many people who found that their policies haven't covered the very thing they thought they were covered for.
[15:40:05]
GRECO: So, first of all, we have been helping as much as possible, customers by waiving conditions, which could be discussed or not clear and
giving them the best interpretation. The problem is that, especially in the United States, the standard policies for property typically have two
exclusions, one exclusion pertains to physical damages. So, you will be reinforcing only physical damages to properties. And the second one is an
exclusion for viruses. And the two together represent a very strong exclusion of these consequences. Still, I mean, we have enough policies
without these characteristics. And on all these policies, we will immediately pay or we have paid already the damages to the people in need.
And this is where more than roughly 60 percent of our 750 billion are.
QUEST: Now, I just want to turn to sort of one other area because Zurich is -- you got a -- you're a large company with a large number of employees. As
we look to the future, are you going to be allowing people to work from home more? And do you see working from home as being a significant change
in the workplace of the future for your employees?
GRECO: Absolutely, Richard, and since the beginning of this pandemic in Asia, early on this year, we closed offices there. And we asked all
employees to start working from home. We tested early January, our technologies, and they responded incredibly well. So, when the virus moved
closer to Europe and then U.S., we just follow that. We immediately closed offices well before government indicated that as a corporate policy. And we
asked the people to work from home. And we're very, very pleased so far with that people are working well. Technology is responding. We discover
with that a new way of working, which will remain with us for a long time. Actually, we have no rush to go back to offices at this time.
QUEST: Yes, I'm sure you'll be looking whether you need all that office space, that expensive office space around the world. And the, you know,
Twitter is now saying -- Twitter is now saying, if you want to work from home, you can. And I get the sort of feeling that there is a societal
revolution underway when it comes to an employee's relationship to their employer. When you've got 50,000 employees, are you feeling the same?
GRECO: I think this is a revolution. I think it is a very good one. You know, the impact it is having on the planet is very positive. It's not just
that you don't travel to go office, you don't travel around the world. I mean, we have cut significantly to the point that we eliminated the travel
budget for the rest of the year. And we think that this is very sustainable. And we think that frankly, this is for better for the people
who traveled, traveling was heavy on their bodies and for the planet. And so, you know, among the many consequences of the virus, this is a very good
one.
QUEST: Thank you, sir. I appreciate it. Let's talk again in the future. I appreciate it. Now, I guarantee you one thing, everybody's cupboards and
closets are full of this sort of stuff. Clorox this, Clorox that. We'll have the Clorox CEO after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:45:00]
QUEST: Welcome back. Now, we've all got a ton of this of one description or another. Clorox disinfecting wipes kills Staph, E. coli, MRSA, salmonella,
and onwards. But what about Coronavirus? Clorox workers have been growing over time to keep up with nearly 500 percent increase in demand. Ramping up
production, simplifying stock line, the shelves still flying of -- the products flying off. Benno Dorer is the CEO of Clorox Company. He joins me
from San Francisco via Skype. And good to have you. I mean, I fully understand that you would not have wished this on anybody, this epidemic,
but if you've got it, then I suppose you are at a crucial point in helping us deal with it.
BENNO DORER, CEO, CLOROX COMPANY (via Skype): Yes, good afternoon. Good evening, Richard. It's good to be with you. You're completely right that we
would all prefer not to have pandemic, and our hearts go out to everybody affected by it and their families. But this is a time for our company to
live our values. This is our time to be in service of public health. We have a proud history of serving public health since 1913, which is when our
company was founded. And that mission was never more important today. We're serving a lot of incremental consumers today without disinfecting products,
but also other products that people need, whether that's food products or trash bags, water filtration products, people stay at home more so they
need our products more. So, in some ways, the most gratifying thing here is that we're able to serve so many more consumers at this time.
QUEST: Did you nearly have a conniption fit? Or when you heard the President talking about injecting bleach and the like as a disinfectant as
a way of it -- I mean, you -- I know you put your and all the others put statements out but when you heard it, what did you think?
DORER: Well, you know, the most important thing I'd say to that is that safety is so, so important and we dedicate ourselves to making products
that are safe for people to use. I think it's obvious to all of us that injecting or ingesting disinfecting product, any disinfecting or cleaning
products is wrong, and we want to make sure that all your viewers know that, please, please, please stay safe, and please do not do that. We have
put a statement out that's very important. We're also working with Facebook and other partners online to get misinformation off of social networks,
etc. Because this is so important and I can't emphasize this enough.
QUEST: How do you keep up with demand because you've got everything going like the clappers, you've got your staff on overtime, and yet, and yes, I
did to a certain extent here in New York, the shelves are now filling up again. But as quickly as they fill, they empty.
[15:50:14]
DORER: Yes, we do see, especially our disinfecting products, but several of our categories are pretty much scooped up right away. We are shipping every
day to stores. But as soon as it's gone, whether that's brick and mortar stores or online stores, it's pretty much as soon as it arrives, it's
pretty much gone. So, what we're doing is, first of all, we are speeding up our production lines. You said this in your intro, and we're doing that by
simplifying which means fewer changeovers, which means we can run them faster. We're also bringing additional third-party suppliers online, one
additional supplier every month between now and December, so we're expecting meaningful improvements by this summer.
More long term, we have started to make aggressive investments in the ongoing supply of our volumes. So, we certainly want to be more prepared
should the pandemic reoccur, or should we see what we expect, which is an ongoing increase in how consumers engage with disinfecting products. As
countries will open up or attempt to open up, we think that disinfecting products will be important for people and we're preparing ourselves to meet
that demand.
QUEST: And you're absolutely right, Benno, as we go -- as you -- it's almost like we planned you to say that. Thank you for that because our next
guest is the "VOICE OF THE CRISIS," and will be using a ton of your project. Benno, thank you for joining us.
Our next guest, Danish hair salons are seeing brisk business since they've been allowed to reopen again. Now, the Zenz Salon reopened two weeks ago.
They says clients called in the middle of the night for appointments; they're working much longer hours. The hours have been extended to maintain
distance. And products galore, I'm sure. Sidsel Riisberg is of the -- a hairdresser at Zenz Salon, she joins me now. My guess is that once you've
got wielding those cutters and clippers again, everything has to be sanitized. Everything has to be made ready, but you really needed -- but
you were delighted to get back.
SIDSEL RIISBERG, HAIRDRESSER, ZENZ: Yes, definitely. Hi, by the way. Yes, I was super delighted to be back. It was nerve wracking to be on a lockdown
for a month for us and for some people longer. And so, when finally coming back to your clients and even though it was a little bit of hassle to get
everyone rebooked and figuring out how do we make time for everyone, we obviously have some requirements that we have to fulfill in terms of
distance and sanitizing everything and how many people can we be in one room and what are we allowed to do? But once getting over this, it is a
pure joy to welcome clients again.
QUEST: So, pure joy. Now, where were you three weeks ago, two weeks ago, when I had to have my hair cut. And I didn't realize, I mean, we've got
some pictures of me having my hair cut, which is a truly -- this is what my partner who decided to -- I refused to let him -- I refused to let him use
clippers and I insisted that we use a bit of scissors and things like that. But I believe you were doing tutorials on how to shave your hair.
RIISBERG: Yes, yes. So, in the meantime, while we were on a lockdown, we try to be a little bit creative with what can we do in this meantime, can
we help our clients in any way, can we go on social media and do some tutorials? What about the girls getting long here? They are maybe getting a
big regrowth. Should they wear a scarf? Is there any nice way you can put a scarf on your head? Can you put your long hair up. And for the guys, is
there any tutorials you can use? Is there any way you can style your hair better, we still had a webshop open, so it was important to let our clients
know that we were still there and we're still present, even under lockdown.
QUEST: So, I must ask you (INAUDIBLE) you're glad to be back. I understand you are also expecting, and you're cutting hair and you're wearing face
masks, and you're sanitizing, but it must be good to be back at work.
RIISBERG: It is, it's amazing being back. Doing social media and everything, that's fun and everything, but I am a creative person and I
need to be with my handcraft, and be with my clients. So, I've been super happy that I can finally cut people in the store.
[15:54:59]
QUEST: All right. So, finally, I don't know whether you can see -- I'm not sure whether you can see me or not, but I think he did an -- he did an OK
job on my hair. What do you think?
RIISBERG: I'll say I can't really see you. I don't have the best view of you, but yes.
QUEST: The best. That's why -- there you go.
RIISBERG: But maybe you can --
QUEST: It's even -- it's even got it. Go ahead. We'll leave it there. Good to see you. Thank you for joining us. We will have a "PROFITABLE MOMENT"
after the break. The amazing part is Chris and I were still speaking to each other after it was all finished. And after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's "PROFITABLE MOMENT," it was so refreshing and wonderful to hear. Sidsel laughing in a salon and talking about how good it is to be
back at work today. Because that comes on the same day that another 3 million Americans are now known to have lost their jobs or claiming
unemployment benefit, taking the number to 36 million. And that's widely believed to be undercounting by some considerable measure.
There is -- for those of us still in work and pulling a paycheck, we need to just stop and remember how lucky we are. I know you and I talked about
this before and the privilege of just being in this position. But when you think about the worry and the despair and the anguish and the angst of
having the bills coming in, not being able to pay them, not knowing whether your furlough is going to come to an end, I think it puts it all into
perspective. This crisis is not going to disappear anytime soon, which is why it is nice, and we will continue to not only tell you how bad it is,
but also, of course, meet people like Sidsel who are back at work.
And there's plenty more. Richard.Quest@CNN.com. Please send me your picture of you WFH-ing, working from home, and we'll put it in tomorrow's program.
Of course, we're working from home. And that's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in New York. I like my hair. Whatever you're up
to in the hours ahead, I hope it is profitable. Here's the closing bell. Good night, everybody.
END
