News and Analysis
House Leadership Working on Bill to Address Vaccine Mandates
September 24, 2021At the Ohio Statehouse, more COVID-19-related bills have been introduced — all with varying employer impacts.
As previously reported, House Bill 248 — OMA-opposed legislation that would restrict employers’ rights with respect to vaccination policies — has captured most of the attention. But after hours of hearings, the bill has stalled, even after its sponsor, Rep. Jennifer Gross (R-West Chester), attempted to bypass the committee process and force a floor vote. (Now it’s reported Gross is being removed from the House Health Committee for her actions.)
House leadership is working on its own legislation addressing vaccine requirements. It could be introduced within the next week, so stay tuned as OMA staff remains engaged with policymakers. 9/23/2021
Ohio Jobless Claims Spike Once Again
September 24, 2021Ohio’s first-time unemployment claims surged last week with 12,952 initial applications for jobless benefits — up 4,118 (47%) from the previous week.
Ohioans filed 159,776 continued traditional unemployment claims last week, representing a significant spike of 35,343 more claims compared to the previous week.
Here’s a county-by-county look at unemployment rates across Ohio. 9/23/2021
$15 an Hour Is New Reality for Some Employers
September 17, 2021Although the federal minimum wage is still $7.25 ($8.80 in Ohio), the norm for many employers has become $15 an hour, according to LinkedIn. The AP writes that at ZipRecruiter, the number of $15-an-hour job postings on the site has more than doubled since 2019. Meanwhile, “many of the unemployed, buoyed by stimulus checks and expanded jobless aid, feel able to hold out for higher pay.”
Bloomberg Businessweek notes the pay increases are happening without legislative battles as some employers like Amazon are “boosting starting pay to $18 an hour.” The publication notes that “if it persists, the upward pressure on wages may wind up feeding into consumer price inflation.”
About half of small businesses reported raising prices since June, according to an August survey by the National Federation of Independent Business. 9/16/2021
Labor Shortages Lead List of Manufacturers’ Concerns
September 17, 2021According to the Q3 survey conducted by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), more than 80% of NAM members surveyed said the workforce shortage was the biggest drag on their economic outlook. Other prominent concerns were supply chain disruptions (78.6%), increased costs (69.8%), and rising COVID-19 cases (47.6%). 9/16/2021
Attracting, Keeping Talent With Financial Coaching
September 17, 2021Providing financial guidance may be a key to retaining and attracting talent, according to a new survey by the Society for Human Resource Management. EHS Today reports the survey revealed that large percentages of Millennials and Gen Xers said they value financial planning assistance offered by employers. Workers who are Black (63%), Hispanic or Latin (61%), or other races and ethnicities (65%) were more likely to value financial coaching than workers who are White (48%). 9/15/2021
Webinar: Attracting and Retaining Top-Tier Talent
September 17, 2021Join OMA Connections Partner RSM at noon Thursday, Sept. 23 for a complimentary webinar to discuss current challenges related to workforce; strategies to optimize your business’ talent and organizational structure; and steps your business can take to mitigate risk. Register here. 9/16/2021
13 Key Questions Raised by Biden’s COVID-19 Plan
September 17, 2021OMA Connections Partner Frantz Ward has compiled 13 key questions employers are asking while they wait for the release of OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) — requested by President Joe Biden — to require private employers with 100-plus employees to vaccinate workers or require weekly tests.
The firm writes: “Although the White House has indicated more guidance will be forthcoming by Sept. 24, the ETS is not expected for at least a few weeks,” and no effective date for the ETS or deadlines for vaccination have been offered. “Legal challenges are also being weighed that may delay, stay, or vacate the rule once it is issued.” 9/14/2021
End of COBRA Subsidy Notice Is Due
September 17, 2021Under the most recent COVID-19 relief law approved by Congress, assistance eligible individuals (AEIs) were made eligible for a COBRA premium subsidy between April 1, 2021 and Sept. 30, 2021.
In this update, OMA Connections Partner Vorys reports that plan administrators (or their third-party COBRA administrators) are required to provide a notice of the expiration of the premium subsidy at least 15 days before an AEI’s subsidy expires. For AEIs who will lose the subsidy due to the end of the subsidy period on Sept. 30, the notice was to be provided by Sept. 15. 9/14/2021
Biden Issues Vaccine Mandate for Companies of 100-Plus Employees
September 10, 2021President Joe Biden has announced that the U.S. Department of Labor is preparing a rule to require employers with 100 or more employees to ensure their workforce is fully vaccinated — or require their unvaccinated workers to produce a negative test result on a weekly basis before coming to work. OSHA will soon issue an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) to implement this requirement. Employers that do not comply will face fines of nearly $14,000 per violation.
Biden’s plan includes several other actions aimed at slowing the spread of the virus.
The Wall Street Journal (subscription) reports that most Democrats and public health leaders praised Biden’s efforts, while many Republicans are questioning the president’s legal authority to issue the mandate. Legal challenges are expected, experts say.
National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons reacted by saying: “We look forward to working with the administration to ensure any vaccine requirements are structured in a way that does not negatively impact the operations of manufacturers that have been leading through the pandemic to keep Americans safe. It is important that undue compliance costs do not burden manufacturers, large and small alike.”
For more details, check out the following resources:
- Reuters’ summary and Axios’ summary of the Biden plan.
- The White House’s detailed summary.
- Analysis of the plan by OMA Connections Partner Dinsmore.
The OMA will provide more details as they become available. Members should watch for the next OMA COVID-19 Update.
Only 63% of Americans aged 12 and over are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC, as COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations continue to rise in Ohio and nationwide.
Ohio has averaged 582 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents over the past two weeks. Here’s the county-by-county breakdown, as well as the number of reported “breakthough” cases (compared to hospitalizations and deaths of Ohioans who weren’t fully vaccinated). 9/10/2021
Manufacturing Job Openings Hit Another New High
September 10, 2021U.S. manufacturing job openings hit another record high, up from 880,000 in June to 889,000 in July, according to Chad Moutray, chief economist for the National Association of Manufacturers. It was the fourth straight month that postings exceeded 800,000.
Overall, U.S. private-sector job openings rose to 10.9 million in July, a new record. There were 0.80 unemployed workers for every job opening. Approximately 4 million workers quit their jobs in July. 9/8/2021