Workforce Development is a top priority of today’s employers and it will be over the next 3-5 years. The Lorain County Chamber continues to develop strategies that will have a positive impact on the future workforce that our employers will need. We are joining with our partners at the Lorain County Growth Partnership to build new tools to meet the needs of the 21st Century workplace.

In the next 5 years the Department of Labor (DOL) will be spending billions of dollars to assist local communities in the training of the future workforce. The Lorain County Chamber, the County Commissioners, Lorain County Community College, Team Lorain County and Lorain County Joint Vocational School will be working on developing projects to be funded by DOL to meet the needs of Lorain County employers.

An early project that our team has developed is called “Project Hire”. This project will:
• inform Lorain County employers about Project Hire and Ohio Learning Accounts
• determine hiring and training needs of local employers
• connect employers with available jobs together with transitioning workers emerging from local training and professional development programs.
 

Finding the right job seekers is critical to your company’s success. We will show employers who participate in Project Hire how to utilize the program to identify qualified job candidates. They will be able to take advantage of the Ohio Learning Accounts (OLA), a funding source through Project Hire to support additional training needs and reduces absences, lower turnover and recruitment costs through talent identification and development.

Project Hire can help those companies that may be looking for qualified employees and the Lorain County Chamber of Commerce urges you to sign up for the Career Expo scheduled for April 1, 2010 that will be held a Lorain County Community College. For additional information please contact Dave Kuhner at dkuhner@lorainccc.edu or Don Graves dgraves@loraincounty.us. Contact them also to find out about Ohio Learning Accounts.

Lorain County Community College, The Employment netWork, and The Lorain County Joint Vocational School--Adult Career Center, invite your organization to participate in the 2010 CAREER EXPO.
The CAREER EXPO will give you the chance to:
• Meet your company’s employment needs
• Find qualified applicants to meet future employment needs
• Network with other professionals in the same field
The event will be held on Thursday, April 1st, 2010 at LCCC Spitzer Conference Center. For more information please contact Mari Welch at 440-366-4076.

The Lorain County Chamber of Commerce is continuing its partnership with The Lorain County Growth Partnership, LCCC, LCJVS and Team Lorain County on the Take Five Free Breakfast Series. Take Five began in September 2009 and will highlight Business Topics on a monthly basis through June 2010. The seminars focus on HR and Personnel Topics as well as Financial Resources Topics. These Free Breakfast seminars are co-sponsored by Ogletree Deakins, First Place Bank and Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP. We invite small and medium-sized business leaders to attend the next breakfast scheduled for March 30th on the topic of Wage and Hour Pitfalls. 

Future programs include:
March 30 – Wage and Hour Pitfalls
April 20 – Protecting your Business from Fraud, Pt. 1
May 25 – Protecting your Business from Fraud, Pt. 2
June 29 – Buy or Lease? Business Considerations when Establishing or Changing Spaces
The seminars are held on the campus of LCCC in the Entrepreneurship Innovation Center and RSVP’s are required: www.lorainccc.edu/takefive
 

Keep your eyes open for the mailing of the March edition of Inside Business Magazine. It will be shrink-wrapped along with our much awaited 2010 Membership Directory and Resource Guide . This year’s edition includes some changes to make the Directory easier to use and to find the member companies that you need to get your business working this year. An electronic version will also be featured on our website and will allow you to click on our advertisers and go directly to their website. There are more pictures in this year’s edition than ever before so be sure to look for someone you know! Thanks to Great Lakes Publishing for producing this quality piece for us every year. And as always, thanks to our advertisers, without whom we would not be able to produce this yearly directory. If you need extra copies, we will begin distributing them at our upcoming Chamber events.

Alternative discounts to consider when group rating isn’t an option

Over half of Ohio’s private employers will not be in a group rating program effective July 1, 2010. If you are one of these employers, you will have an array of alternative rating programs to consider. This article is part of a series designed to give an overview of these programs and help you decide which programs you should evaluate further.

One Claim Program (OCP) - Application deadline - March 31, 2010
A 40% discount is offered through this program that was designed to assist small employers removed from a group rating program. Employers qualify in 2010 when they have one significant cost claim that occurred in 2008 and no more than three other medical-only claims going back to 2005. Qualifying employers can participate from 2010 through 2013. To remain eligible, the total cost of the medical-only claims cannot exceed a limit that is set by BWC. The only additional requirement is for the employer to attend two, all-day safety training courses that are offered at no additional cost by BWC.

Group Retrospective Rating (Group Retro) - Application deadline - April 30, 2010
This program will be attractive for employers who experienced a brief period of high workers’ compensation claims costs in the past that is not reflective of their overall safety performance. Employers from similar industries and claims histories are grouped together. If new claim costs remain under predetermined limits for the group as a whole, rebates will be issued by BWC at 12, 24 and 36 month intervals after the policy year ends. Interested employers should fully understand the risk involved. If the group incurs higher than expected claim losses, each member will pay BWC an assessment.

Individual group retro employers continue to pay semi-annual premiums at their individual premium rates to BWC. Employers who maintain participation in the group retro program for multiple years can continue to get multi-year rebates. A well-administered group identifies poor performing employers and provides additional safety program support and cost control procedures.

CareWorks Consultants (CCI) is the third party administrator for the Lorain County Chamber Safety Council. For more information call CCI toll-free at 1-800-837-3200 and ask to speak to Bob Nicoll.

The City of Sheffield Lake just completed core-sample ground tests at the site of a proposed 100 kw wind turbine installation at the Shoreway Shopping Center. Mayor John Piskura has been a leader in using alternative energy technologies to lower energy costs and promote sustainable, environmentally friendly growth within the City. Last year the city installed two 1 kw wind turbines at the boat launch facility. These turbines demonstrated that the shores of Lake Erie are windy! Also, just a few weeks ago, Navigant Consulting released a report that estimates 275,00 direct jobs would be created, by 2025 if there was a 25% national Renewable Energy Standard (RES). This chart shows the distribution of the jobs created. The study also shows that ten states, including Ohio, will loose clean energy jobs without a national RES standard. Visit http://www.res-alliance.org/res-jobs-study for details.