MEMBER CONNECT
May 26, 2020
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Greetings!
Here is this week's
Member Connect
e-newsletter featuring informative and useful content and a responsive interface accessible to you anywhere, anytime. Enjoy!
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Business Bootcamp LIVE
TOMORROW, Wednesday May 27
Virtual Zoom Webinars - FREE for Members
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Join us THIS WEDNESDAY for Session 3 of Business Boot Camp
LIVE!
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THIS WEDNESDAY:
Session 3 - Mental Health and Wellness, a Discussion for Businesses
Presented by Roger Brubaker, Sr .Community Health Analyst, Lane County
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Join the Springfield Chamber for the 2020 Business Boot Camp. Session three will feature Roger Brubaker, Sr. Community Health Analyst with Lane County. In his role with the county, Roger collaborates with community partners to eliminate suicide, reduce mental health stigma and promote positive mental health for all Lane County residents. Join us for a discussion of mental health and wellness resources for businesses.
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University of Oregon Webinar Series
Voices of Innovation and Impact: Thursday, May 28th, 6:00-7:00 PM
Learn how the University of Oregon is helping solve some of society’s biggest problems.
How different will our world look after COVID-19? The UO is pioneering research into how architecture and city planning can change to better protect public health and safety. Join the Institute for Health in the Built Environment’s expert panel for a dynamic presentation and conversation about how buildings and communities can adapt to be healthier. Associate Professor Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg, Research Assistant Professor Mark Fretz, and others will present cutting edge research on the intersection of biology and architecture.
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Back to Business
A Guide to Re-Opening
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In partnership with the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce, we've put together this guideline for re-opening businesses - it contains valuable information for specific industries to follow Governor Brown's guidelines and helpful tools for employers and the general public in an easy-to-follow format.
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We've compiled a list of relevant links related to Reopening Oregon, including a document from the Governor's office, Lane County's blueprint for reopening, guidelines by sector and category, and more. You can locate them under the tab "Reopening Oregon" in our Business Resource Hub COVID-19:
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Looking for a local source of safety gear or Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to meet COVID-19 safety measures in your workplace?
The Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce has created this resource to help facilitate member to member exchange of safety gear and PPE. Whether you are manufacturing certified PPE, sewing masks at home, or have any other safety gear at your disposal, we invite you to use this platform as a way to purchase, sell, and/or donate safety supplies.
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PPE For Farm Workers & Agriculture
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PPE for farmworkers and agricultural producers will be available on May 28th at the Lane County Fairgrounds from 9:00am-4:00pm.
Governor Brown has directed approximately 1 million KN95 masks and 5,000 gallons of hand sanitizer for farmworkers and agricultural producers. This PPE is available at no cost to the agricultural community to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
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Legislative Advocacy
Your Business. Your Community. Your Voice.
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Liability protections needed to shield employers from litigation abuse during COVID-19
Join Chambers of Commerce in support of timely, temporary, and targeted protection for employers who are working to follow public health guidance.
Submit Your Testimony to Oregon Federal Delegation
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Congress should provide a safe harbor that holds truly bad actors accountable, but that protects those employers working to follow state and federal guidelines. Specifically, temporary protections should remain in place for the duration of the pandemic crisis and response that cover:
- Businesses that work to follow government guidelines against COVID-19 exposure claims.
- Healthcare providers and facilities on the front lines of the COVID-19 response.
- Manufacturers that repurposed production and distribution to provide PPE, sanitizers, and other needed countermeasures.
- Companies that have donated their stock of supplies to hospitals and medical professionals.
- Public companies that could face securities lawsuits, including those driven largely on stock price drops resulting from the global pandemic under the spurious assertion that management failed to warn investors.
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Government Issues & Economic Development Committees
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As the COVID-19 response continues to move rapidly at the local, state, and federal levels, we have moved our Government Issues Committee meetings to a weekly occurrence. We invite you to join us 8am Tuesday mornings via Zoom to stay on top of local, regional, and state issues of impact on business and community.
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Upcoming Government Issues Committee Meetings
Tuesday, June 2nd, 8:00am, Zoom Conference
Please email Max Molzahn (max@springfield-chamber.org) or Dani Thompson (dani@springfield-chamber.org) for more information and an invitation to the Zoom Meeting.
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Education & Talent Development
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Upcoming Education Meetings
June 18th, 4:30pm - 5:30pm
If you would like to join this committee meeting or if you have any questions please email our Director of Development and Talent Initiatives Paige Sharpe (
paige@springfield-chamber.org
)
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Open for Business
Stay Safe | Support Local
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As we enter Phase 1 of re-opening,
make sure you
update or add your listing
on our
Open for Business
page!
Update your listing by filling out this form:
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The Chamber Community has been stepping up, leaning in, making tough decisions, surviving, innovating, hiring, pivoting, and is deserving of support and acknowledgment. Check out some of these important updates from our Chamber members:
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Last week,
J
ohnson Crushers International
donated 6 thermometers to Bridgeway House, a local non-profit agency that serves children and their families affected by autism! For more information on donating, purchasing, or listing safety gear available, please visit our
Safety Gear Exchange page
.
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Greenhill Humane Society has received a $25,000 grant from PetSmart Charities to help keep pets with their families even through the most challenging of times, such as domestic violence, medical or housing crises. Unfortunately, in the last 6 months of 2019 99 animals needed sheltering and in the first 4 months of 2020, the shelter cared for another 59 animals in crisis situations – bringing the total to a staggering 158 pets, and the number is expected to rise at a faster rate given the current COVID-19 crisis that is impacting both people and pets.
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During these uncertain times, we recognize the strength and resiliency of the Springfield Chamber community. Thank you to those who have shared your story. To all our members, please help us share yours. Contact Elora Kelsh,
elora@springfield-chamber.org
for more information.
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Travel Message: Stay Local and Spend Money
As lockdown restrictions ease, tourism agencies encourage day-trippers and local residents to kick-start the travel sector’s recovery.
The decline was dramatic and deep. Gov. Kate Brown’s March order barring nonessential travel and the federal ban on international travelers from Europe and Asia shut down an entire tourism industry that had seen strong growth in Oregon over the past several years.
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Lane County Unemployment Insurance Claims Climb Sharply
Measures taken to curtail the spread of COVID-19 have caused unemployment insurance claims to rise sharply. For the week ending May 9, 2020, the Oregon Employment Department received 14,100 initial claims for unemployment benefits, down from the previous week’s 19,600 claims and well down from the all-time weekly initial claim high of 88,600 the week ending March 28. The Employment Department has received 396,000 claims since COVID-19 businesses closures began in mid-March. There were roughly 4,000 claims per week leading up to mid-March. This is an unprecedented increase in demand for unemployment insurance benefits that has overwhelmed the system in place to deal with claims. In response to the increase, the Employment Department has increased the number of workers trained to process initial clams, going from 105 on March 8 to 690 by May 3, greatly increasing the ability to process claims.
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Willamette National Forest Welcomes New Forest Supervisor
Dave Warnack has been selected as the new forest supervisor for the Willamette National Forest effective April 26, 2020. He previously served as the deputy forest supervisor on the Umpqua National Forest for five years and is now responsible for leading a 1.8-million-acre forest with nearly 400 permanent and seasonal employees. Tracy Beck, the former forest supervisor on the Willamette National Forest, retired in April 2020.
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Member Connect | Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce
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