October 7, 2014
HOW ARE WE DOING? - How likely are you to recommend Chamber membership to another business person? Let us know right now through this one question survey.
BRIGHT SPOTS - Check out what your friends and neighbors have to say about our community in the "this is MUSKCO" video. Learn about this and other bright spots in our community by visiting our Zanesville & Muskingum County BRIGHT SPOTS website, and check back frequently to see new content.
HR ASSOCIATION - The monthly meeting of the Muskingum Valley Human Resource Association will be held on Wednesday, October 8 from 8 am to 9 am at the Chamber. The program will be provided by Valerie Smith from Muskingum University and the topic is "Diversify, Diffuse and Delight: Tips to Succeed in a Multicultural Workplace". Chamber members are welcome to attend. The fee is $10 per meeting for non-MVHRMA members.
WAGE SURVEY - We need YOUR participation in the annual wage and benefit survey for Muskingum County employers. To participate please go to www.zmchamber.com and follow the link for the wage survey. Participation helps you know where your compensation stands in comparison to other employers, and it helps us provide a valuable service to both existing and prospective new businesses.
CHAMBER EXPERTS - Please consider submitting to the new "Chamber Experts" section of our website. It will feature instructional articles and columns written by members about topics in their areas of expertise.Audio and video recordings are welcome, too. This service provides members with a way to establish their expertise in their professional field and promote their business. It also provides other Chamber members with a valuable resource they can use to improve their own business and enhance their personal knowledge. To submit a column or how-to article of approximately 500 words (or a video or audio file of about 2 minutes in length), email tpoorman@zmchamber.com.
HUMAN RESOURCES - The Ohio Chamber of Commerce offers free webinars on human resources topics through its HR Academy. All webinars take place on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The webinars are free, but you must register online. Upcoming topics include:
October 8 - FMLA Leave for Military Families presented by Lisa Whittaker with Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP
October 15 - Managing the ADA and FMLA presented by Todd Sarver with Steptoe & Johnson PCCL
October 29 - Prescription Drugs in the Workplace presented by David Riepenhoff of Fishel Hass Kim Albrecht LLP
November 12 - Which is Riskier: Hiring criminals or running background checks on job candidates presented by Roland DeMonte of Fisher Phillips
MINIMUM WAGE - The minimum wage in Ohio will increase to $8.10 per hour from $7.95 an hour effective January 1, 2015. The minimum wage for tipped employees will increase to $4.05 per hour from $3.98. Workers at Ohio companies that have annual gross receipts under $297,000 are covered by the federal minimum wage, which is $7.25 per hour. The Ohio minimum wage is set by an amendment to the Ohio Constitution passed by voters in 2006 and it is tied to the increase in the Consumer Price Index. More information and a poster for your workplace are provided by the Ohio Dept. of Commerce.
EVENTS EMAIL - You can opt in to our weekly email listing upcoming events, titled "What's Happening". If interested send an email to kashby@zmchamber.com to be added to the distribution list. Or, if your inbox is already full, you can find this same information in our online calendar of events at www.visitzanesville.com. Please know that this email and calendar are produced for tourism development purposes and are therefore edited to include those events that would be most interesting to visitors to our community.
SALES MESSAGE - Geoffrey James, at www.inc.com, talks about "The 2 Sentences That Engage Customers." According to James, a strong sales message answers the two questions that are foremost in the mind of a potential customer: Why would I buy what you're selling? Why should I buy it from you? Read more.
BILLION BACK - The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) is issuing $1
billion in rebates to private employers and public-taxing districts. BWC's Board of Directors approved Another Billion Back on Sept. The rebates, made possible because of BWC's recent investment returns, are approximately 60 percent of the amount eligible employers were billed during the last policy period; for private employers, that's July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013, and for public-taxing districts, it's Jan. 1, 2012 to Dec. 31, 2012. Checks will be distributed beginning in October. Employers eligible for the rebate will automatically receive checks in the mail. Employers are eligible if they pay premium into the State Insurance Fund and have active, up-to-date policies.
