Daily Briefing – 146
Cuomo: Over 9 Million COVID-19 Tests Conducted to Date In New York State
Governor Cuomo yesterday announced over 9 million diagnostic tests for COVID-19 have been conducted to date in New York State, and that the number of positive cases yesterday — 0.98 percent — was below one percent for the 34th day in a row. The Governor also confirmed 757 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 441,911 confirmed cases in New York State.
NAM/ Industry Week Q3 Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey
Manufacturers reported a boost in optimism—up from 33.9% in Q2, the lowest reading since the first quarter of 2009. The survey also found significant use of many of the federal liquidity programs the NAM advanced early in this pandemic to support manufacturers. The data shows:
- 72 percent of manufacturers that faced negative cash flow impacts due to COVID-19 used the Paycheck Protection Program, Main Street Lending Program or other liquidity program.
- Nearly 92 percent of manufacturers that used federal liquidity programs said those funds were helpful in keeping their business afloat, retaining workforce or meeting other necessary expenses.
- 66 percent of manufacturers are positive about their company’s outlook, a great improvement from the Q2 results. Still, the outlook remains below the historical average of 74.4%, and,
- 62% of manufacturers expect their firm’s revenues will not get back to pre-COVID-19 levels until 2021 or later.
JOLTS Report -US Job Openings Beat Forecasts, Over 400k Mfg Job Openings
US job openings increased by 617,000 to 6.6 million through the month, according to Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, data published Wednesday. The reading beat all estimates from economists surveyed by Bloomberg and marked a third-straight month of improvement. According to the survey, the manufacturing industry saw 408,000 manufacturing job openings in July—an increase of more than 60,000 jobs since the prior month and the best result since February, before widespread COVID-19 restrictions came into effect.
Some of the survey’s data revealed weak points in the labor market’s recovery. The pace of hires sank to 4.1% in July from 5.1%, bringing it barely above pre-pandemic levels as millions of Americans remained jobless. The overall number of hires fell by roughly 1.2 million to 5.8 million.
Unemployment Claims Held Steady Last Week
The number of people seeking and collecting unemployment benefits has remained at historically high levels in recent weeks, a sign the labor-market recovery is losing steam six months after the pandemic struck the U.S. Unemployment claims were unchanged at 884,000 last week, the Labor Department said Thursday. Claims fell steadily for weeks after hitting a peak of about 7 million in March, but the pace of descent has slowed and claims remain above the prepandemic record of 695,000.
Continuing claims increased to about 13.4 million at the end of August.
Global Economic Report: Manufacturing Activity Gains Steam Worldwide Even as Challenges Persist
The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI expanded in August at the fastest pace since November 2018, and the sector continues to bounce back even as challenges persist worldwide due to COVID-19 and the severe worldwide recession. In August, sentiment among the top 10 markets for U.S.-manufactured goods improved in every economy except France. Six markets expanded — the same pace as in July and up from one (China) in May.
Global Manfuactuirng Economic Report 0910 2020
More EEOC COVID-19 Guidance: Testing, Screening, Managers, Confidentiality, and Telework
Jackson Lewis reports that since March of this year, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has released guidance on a near-monthly basis addressing various FAQs concerning COVID-19 issues. The guidance has focused on disability-related inquiries, confidentiality, hiring, and reasonable accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as issues under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). In its latest FAQ update posted yesterday, the EEOC covers some more practical questions employers have on several COVID-19 issues, such as testing, telecommuting, and sharing employee medical information.
Don’t Let New York’s Sick Leave Law Catch You Off Guard
New York State’s recently enacted paid sick leave law requires all private New York employers to provide their employees with paid (or unpaid) sick leave in varying amounts. The law takes effect on September 30, 2020, and employees begin accruing leave on this date, but employers are not obligated to allow employees to use accrued leave until January 1, 2021. Employers must ensure that their paid time off policies incorporate the requirements of this new law and allow employees to take all the sick leave to which they are entitled.
NYSPHSAA Moves Football, Volleyball, Competitive Cheer Seasons to March
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) announced on Wednesday that “high-risk” football, volleyball, and competitive cheer fall seasons will be postponed until March 1, 2021. “We’ve spent two days speaking with nearly 500 athletic directors across the state and it’s clear that administering high-risk fall sports during the COVID-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge for our member schools,” said NYSPHSAA executive director Dr. Robert Zayas.
The football, volleyball, and fall competitive cheer seasons will be referred to as “Fall Sports Season II” in March.
Dutchess County Ranked Among Top Ten in Nation for Innovative Technology Use During COVID-19 Response
Dutchess County Government is the number two ranked mid-size county government in the nation for its use of technology in the 2020 Digital Counties Survey conducted by the Center for Digital Government (CDG) and the National Association of Counties (NACo). Dutchess County’s ongoing commitment to use technology to best serve residents was amplified in the efficient and effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring residents had up-to-date information and the County’s workforce could continue serving residents despite the challenges of stay-at-home directives.
The Council of Industry has been proud to work with Dutchess and the other county governments in the region in their COVID response.
