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Contractors’ witness urges preserving 26 weeks of unemployment, backs phased employer contribution
Summary
A contractor representing the Ohio Contractors Association told the Public Insurance and Pension Committee that keeping 26 weeks of unemployment insurance is critical for retaining seasonal construction workers and backed a phased employer contribution to stabilize the fund.
Mandy Gerken, an executive with Gerken Companies and an executive-board member of the Ohio Contractors Association, told the Public Insurance and Pension Committee on Oct. 11 that the construction industry supports contributing more to Ohio’s unemployment insurance trust but wants to keep the 26-week benefit and phase in employer increases.
Gerken said her fourth-generation, Northwest Ohio family business employs about 655 people, with more than 400 of them seasonal, and that the 26 weeks “provide financial stability” for workers between April and November construction seasons. “We support the employee contribution,” she said, and added that contractors are willing to pay more into the fund if…
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