Employer Response to the Coronavirus Webinar, Pre-Apprenticeship Program Survey & Much More!

Combating the Coronavirus Toolkit

Guidance for Employers - Click here to download guidance for employers to plan and respond to the Coronavirus.

Workplace Tips - For workplace tips and resources for employers to combat the virus, please click here .

Corporate Aid Tracker - Click here to view our corporate aid tracker for details on how businesses are helping nationwide.

Survey on Business Impact - To view business impact survey results from the American Chamber of Commerce in China, click here .

Resilience in a Box - If your business needs help putting a plan in place, click here to use the U.S. Chamber Foundation's toolkit created in partnership with the UPS foundation.

More Resources - For more resources, including consolidated, business-specific guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), please click here .

Click Here to See More Tools.

Employer Response to the Coronavirus Webinar

Employers across Pennsylvania are inquiring about the practical and legal considerations in responding to the Coronavirus, and labor and employment law attorneys are receiving a wide variety of questions and calls on this worrisome topic. In response, the Pennsylvania Chamber Educational Foundation is presenting a free 1 1/2 hour webinar as a public service to review the facts, legal aspects and the many employment considerations that surround the potential of employee exposure to the Coronavirus.

Webinar Highlights

We will cover two important areas of information for employers. First, Dr. Rachel Levine, Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Health will explain the facts about Coronavirus and how realistic it is that the United States, and Pennsylvania, could have a pandemic, as well as how the state is preparing. Then top employment law attorney Johnathan Segal, Partner of Duane Morris will present the legal perspective on what employers need to do to prepare, and if different rules apply to employment laws should a pandemic occur. We will discuss:

The facts: the symptoms of Coronavirus, how is it spread, what healthy habits employers should be advising their employee to follow, how Pennsylvania is preparing should a statewide epidemic be announced.
What employers should be doing now to prepare and to protect their employees - travel restrictions, reporting requirements, employee education, and more.
Actions employers should take if an official pandemic is announced - protocols for employees working from home, temporary workforce reductions, and more.
Employment laws that may be modified if an official pandemic is announced - employers still need to comply, but modifications and new rules may apply to the Family Medical Leave Act, ADA and other laws during a pandemic.
Best Practices - employers need to follow to prepare and to protect their workers.

The speakers will open up the last few minutes of the webinar to answer questions from participants.

Click here to continue reading about the webinar.

Click here to register for this webinar.

Pre-Apprenticeship Survey Reminder

You are being invited to participate in a research study on pre-apprenticeship programs. This research study is being conducted by Tony Payne, Executive Director, Huntingdon County Career & Technology Center (HCCTC) and in conjunction with completion of a Doctoral program for California University of Pennsylvania. The objective of this research project is to attempt to connect meaningful technical training with an offer of employment upon release. It is being conducted at HCCTC over the course of the 2019-2020 school year. The interview and/or survey is being conducted between Tony Payne and potential business sponsors.

There are no known risks if you decide to participate in this research study, nor are there any costs for participating in the study. The information you provide will help me understand how best to satisfy the needs of students and businesses such as yours. The information collected may not benefit you directly, but what I learn from the study should provide general benefits to current and future students and/or businesses participating in pre-apprenticeship programs here at HCCTC and across the the Commonwealth.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TVBKFRG

By clicking the survey link above you are choosing to participate in this survey. Your information, unless indicated will remain anonymous and be used strictly for this research project. Listed below is the IRB information pertaining to this project.

IRB #18=085

Date of IRB Approval - 11/24/2019

Expiration Date - 11/23/2020

Thank you for your participation,

Tony Payne

New Studey Reveals PA Loses Billions in Revenue Due to Inadequate Childcare

A study by the U.S. Chamber Foundation, which was unveiled last week at an Early Education Summit at the U.S. Chamber, shows that Pennsylvania loses an estimated $3.47 billion annually for the state's economy due to childcare issues that include a lack of access to quality childcare. This number includes an estimated $591 million annual loss in tax revenue as well as an estimated annual loss to Pennsylvania employers of $2.88 billion on absences and employee turnover as a result of childcare breakdowns.

PA Chamber President Gene Barr attended the summit and engaged in conversations about the report's findings, which focused on childcare issues in Pennsylvania, Idaho, Iowa and Mississippi. Titled "Untapped Potential," the report aims to not only show the challenges each state faces in this arena but also details opportunities in each state to unlock economic potential for states and employers.

To continue reading this article, please click here .

2020 Youth Leadership Conference

On Friday, March 6 we hosted our annual Youth Leadership Conference at the Huntingdon County Career & Technology Center. We had students from Huntingdon Area High School, Huntingdon County Career & Technology Center, Juniata Valley High School, Mount Union Area High School and Southern Huntingdon County High School participate in the conference.

We started the day with a welcome from Tony Payne, Executive Director, Huntingdon County Career & Technology Center. We then did an activity to learn more about the students. Jermey Crouse, Planet LoveJoy and Jennifer McMullen, Live, Laugh & Bath presented on Creating Your Own Opportunities. They had the students break into groups and discuss what they felt are issues in their communities. They were responsible for identifying solutions to those issues. Next our Business Leadership Panel consisting of Matthew Bender, MDB Drafting & Design, Tony Payne, HCCTC and Candy Price, Huntingdon County CareerLink answered questions about their careers and how they got to their positions. They also took questions from the students about the workforce, college and about advice for their futures. Tammy Stuber, Juniata College gave a presentation on the importance of networking. The students had to practice networking with each other and find unique connections. We ended the day with Jeremy Crouse and Matthew Price, Huntingdon County Visitors Bureau talking about For the Love of CommUNITY. The students took the issues they identified earlier in the day and their solutions and made plans to take action. They are planning clean-up days within their communities and ways to work with and help the younger generation in their school districts.

Partners In Excellence

Platinum

Fulton County Medical Center

Gold

Stern Insurance Agency

Silver

Community State Bank

Mutual Benefit Group

Bronze

Bumgardner & Flasher Oil, Inc.

Orbisonia Hardware, Inc.

Royal

Ace Fix-It Hardware

BottomLine Pros LLC

FirstEnergy Corporation

Helpmates, Inc.

Jeff Tate Paving, Inc.

Juniata College

Keller Engineers

Lincoln Caverns, Inc. and Whisper Rocks

McDonald's

MDB Drafting & Design

Stiffler, McGraw and Associates, Inc.

Interested in learning about becoming a Partner in Excellence?

Contact Yvonne at [email protected] or 814.643.1110

Packages range from $125 to $1,000.

Featured Benefit

Members can login to their profile on www.huntingdonchamber.com and add Hot Deals, which are deals offered to the community and Member to Member Deals, which are offered only to other Chamber members. Members can post job openings, update their company information, pay bills and more. If you don't know your login, contact [email protected].

Click here to register.

After your free trial period expires you qualify for a special discount because you are a member of the Huntingdon County Chamber of Commerce. If you prepay for six months, you receive a 20% discount. Prepay for a year and save 25%! There's no better time to try email marketing.