Desperate for employees
PENN TWP — Businesses continue to wrestle with issues resulting from the coronavirus pandemic, many of which were addressed by a diverse panel of experts Thursday morning.
Human Resources and Legal Impacts of COVID-19 in the Workplace invited various business owners and organization leaders to the Butler Country Club for the breakfast meeting.
Keith Graham, chairman of the Butler Chamber of Commerce board of directors, asked questions of each panel member that related to their area of expertise.
Graham asked state Sen. Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, and state Rep. Marci Mustello, R-11th, about their experience at the state government level regarding the pandemic and the concerns they've heard from their constituents.
Mustello said via video feed that she has been peppered with concerns from business owners about the lack of employees available to fill positions in all industries across the board.
“A lot needs to be done to change that and bring people back into the workforce,” Mustello said.
Hutchinson agreed, saying at the beginning of the pandemic there was an awareness that many employees would not be able to work due to the restrictions on public gathering that were instituted to stem the spread of the virus.
The state unemployment system soon was inundated with claims, and the federal government added a stipend onto the income of those furloughed during the pandemic, which Hutchinson said has resulted in employees being paid more to remain at home than they would at their jobs.
“The time has come for people to have an incentive to go back to work,” Hutchinson said. “If there is work available, we should be encouraging that.”
He said normally, those on unemployment must prove they actively are looking for work, but that requirement has been waived during the pandemic.
Hutchinson said the requirement should be phased back in over the next few months, so employers can fill their empty positions.
Lisa Bruno-Guard, owner of Specialized Staffing, said employers who contract with her are desperate for employees due to the unemployment compensation situation.
She said it's not that furloughed employees have a poor work ethic, but the unemployment and stipends represent an increase in income for them.
Bruno-Guard said many parents are choosing to stay home with their school-age children who are attending classes remotely, or to save on childcare costs during the summer.
Other employees remain concerned about contracting COVID-19 in the workplace.“I've been a recruiter for 25 years, and I've never seen anything like this,” Bruno-Guard said.Delays in manufacturing also are occurring because factories that make components are short-staffed, she said.Bruno-Guard said she was at an airport where no food was being prepared due to the lack of employees to staff restaurants.“You could get a turkey sandwich that was wrapped up,” she said.Bruno-Guard said the onus is going to fall on employers regarding filling empty positions.“People aren't incentivized to go to work right now,” Bruno-Guard said. “Employers must make their offer more compelling than staying home with the kids.”Hutchinson said education and training for jobs in construction trades, health care and other fields that do not require a college degree should be made readily available, so a job-ready workforce is always available.He said many training programs are available at Butler County Community College for jobs that could sustain a family.Another panelist at the forum was Tom Breth, an attorney at Dillon McCandless King Coulter & Graham.Graham asked Breth about the legal implications for employers during the pandemic.Breth said it would be difficult to trace an employee's exposure to COVID-19 if they sue, claiming they contracted the virus on the job.He also believes that employees are not eligible for unemployment compensation if their job returns and the employer asks them to return.
Graham asked Breth if employers are required to pay for COVID-19 tests if a negative result is required for a return to work.Breth said the employer is required to pay for the test as well as the time the employee uses to get the test.Regarding any liability a company faces if it requires COVID-19 vaccines, Breth said employers must consider any pre-existing conditions an employee might have that could be affected by the vaccine, or whether they have a religious objection to receiving the shot.He said asking employees who are not working with patients in a medical setting or teaching students with physical impairments to get the vaccine could be a problem.“You could get into all kinds of civil liberty questions,” Breth said.Jeff Howard of Howard Insurance Agency, who also sat on the panel, said workers' compensation pays medical bills and death benefits for COVID-19 patients.He said business owners have been asking if they can use their various insurances to supplement their income during the shutdown or reduced capacity mandates, but most insurance companies developed virus or communicable disease exclusions in past years.Howard said more employers are opting for cyber liability insurance because so many employees are working at home during the pandemic.He also said overall insurance rates could increase due to the cost of claims during the pandemic.Theresa Hewitt, chief operating officer at the Center for Community Resources in Butler, said she is seeing more-experienced employees choosing to stay home right now, so the focus has shifted to training new hires or those with less experience.“We have gravitated toward the younger employees right now,” Hewitt said. “Looking for employees with a willingness to learn is so big right now.”She cautioned that employers should remain consistent with all employees regarding their requirements during the pandemic.Remaining flexible, finding ways to motivate a remote or on-site staff, having protocols in place to keep employees safe and communicating with remote employees also are important during the pandemic, she said.She said CCR has a program in which employees with extensive paid time off can donate it to coworkers who need time off.Those who attended the forum said they found it informative.“They all hit good points from their different perspectives,” said Janet Painter of the Butler County Community Development Corporation.She finds it frustrating that employees are opting to stay home and collect unemployment benefits instead of returning to work.“My personal thought is if you need a job, you should go out and get a job,” she said.Cory Werth, controller at International Quality Consultants in Butler, said the forum was interesting.“It's great to hear that everyone is coming together and solving issues,” he said.Tom Graham, owner of Frames & Pixels in Butler, said he was unaware that worker's compensation will pay for COVID-19 bills.He also found the forum extremely interesting.“It's good to talk about issues, so we know how to handle them going forward,” Graham said.
