04/14/2020

A Message from JobsOhio's President & CEO

Ohio's business leaders are making a difference

As one of Ohio’s foremost business leaders, I thank you for all you have done to help Ohio’s economy thrive. Thank you as well for all you are now doing to keep those in your community and your workforce safe — and as prepared as possible — during the COVID-19 crisis.

In the face of adversity, we are all proud of the leadership of Gov. Mike DeWine, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted and Director of Health Dr. Amy Acton — seeing that Ohio has demonstrated its resiliency and innovative spirit to the nation. It’s inspiring to witness daily examples of collaboration, charity and courage to help all Ohioans through these challenging times.

Along with our business and economic development partners, JobsOhio wants to ensure that Ohio's businesses and workers remain safe and have the resources they need to continue operations. We hope to make the lift just a little lighter for the important work happening across the state.

To do so, JobsOhio and the JobsOhio network partners have taken immediate action to:

• Help keep workers on company payrolls with the forgivable, interest-free Workforce Retention Loan Program. This program, aimed at eligible JobsOhio client businesses, will help keep thousands of Ohio workers employed.
• Establish with key partners across the state a PPE (personal protective equipment) database in order for companies to find the supplies or suppliers they need.
• Offer a six-month deferral of loan payments without principal or interest for nearly 50 JobsOhio client companies. These are businesses that have committed to a total of 9,150 jobs and $521.7 million in payroll for the people of Ohio.
• Provide a $2 million growth fund loan to Appalachian Growth Capital aimed at supporting small businesses in southeast Ohio.
• Give bar and restaurant owners the opportunity to return liquor products, which has resulted in more than 910 refund requests and $1.2 million going directly back to Ohio businesses.
• Work with local distilleries with a goal of producing 15,000 bottles of hand sanitizer for distribution to 12 Ohio food banks.
• Launch the Ohio Safe. Ohio Working. landing page as a source for information about these programs from JobsOhio, our partner businesses and Ohio's nine core sectors.

These are just the initial steps JobsOhio has taken to address the changing needs of our businesses and people during this crisis. We will do more. In the meantime, I encourage you to reach out to me about any specific ideas or business needs you see during this time. We look forward to hearing from you, and we will keep you updated as we all tackle this crisis together. #InThisTogetherOhio

Stay safe, stay healthy,

J.P. Nauseef
President and CEO
JobsOhio