COSE Update - September 2008 - (Page 4)

Memo a monthly publication of the council of smaller enterprises threatening mandate could spell Disaster our business is threatened everyday. Could a fire happen? Yes. Could data disappear? Yes. Could a key player in your business die? Yes. So we’ve dedicated this entire issue to motivating you to create a business interruption plan, a plan that can help you take care of business even if the business is burned to the ground, blacked out or snowed in. But those aren’t our only threats. Actually one is aimed at all of you right now, scheduled to hit November 4, Election Day. It’s Issue 4, mandated paid sick leave (or the so-called Ohio Healthy Families Act), requiring Ohio employers to provide seven paid sick days to employees. Although it applies only to businesses with 25 or more employees, the economic consequences will hit everyone hard. In fact, a recent study says Ohio could lose 75,000 jobs and would cost the state’s employers billions of dollars. And even Ohio’s Gov. Ted Strickland has publicly opposed the initiative saying, “it’s unworkable, unwieldy and would be detrimental to Ohio’s economy.” So we’ve taken this threat head on. And with your help, we can stop this issue in its tracks. Here’s what you can do: 1) Get involved in our statewide fight against the issue by making a financial contribution to Small Business for a Better Ohio. 2) Start writing letters to the editors of local papers and the offices of elected officials. Tell them what it would do to your business and the jobs you create. 3) While we believe we can defeat the issue, prepare now for the possibility that it could pass. Review your employee leave policies and make any changes before Election Day, or you may be forced to add seven days of additional paid time off to your current leave policies. Help us avoid one of Ohio’s largest economic disasters—get informed and take action. We can’t afford not to. Get everything you need to get informed and take action at cose.org/mandatedsickleave. council oF sMaller enterPrises Steve Millard president and executive Director smillard@cose.org Randy Carpenter senior Director marketing and public relations rcarpenter@cose.org Katie Fete Director of marketing kfete@cose.org Lauren Sable manager, public relations lsable@cose.org Jennifer Frimel editor jfrimel@cose.org Kristen Hampshire contributing editor kristen@kristenhampshire.com Sarah Shoaff senior manager, advertising and sponsorship sshoaff@cose.org Kerry Flood advertising and sponsorship coordinator kflood@cose.org General coMMents or iDeas update@cose.org contriButors nicki artese, thomas Gilbride, Kevin J. Goodman, John hammond, bruce hennes, Ginny hrindle, laura leggett, amanda marko, claire Walker cose.orG Wise Group Design & production services wisegroup.com Amanda Horvath Natasha Fletcher Crystal Madrilejos Stacy Vickroy art Directors Andrea Jager proDuction manaGer Toby Shingleton cover photoGraphy y Tim Reynolds, Tribute Inc., COSE Chairman treynolds@tribute.com Find out first hand why mandated paid sick leave is bad for Ohio at the COSE Small Business Conference, Thursday, Oct. 23, from 10:45 a.m. to Noon at the IX Center. 4 • cose update • september 2008 COSE Update (issn 1068-137X) is published monthly by Wise Group communications, 812 huron road, suite 201, cleveland, ohio 44115, (216) 523-1212, faX (216) 241-5458. periodicals postage paid at cleveland, ohio (subscription $50 per year). postmaster: please send address changes to: COSE Update, attention: customer service, the higbee building, 100 public square, suite 210, cleveland, ohio, 44113. permissions: portions of this publication may be quoted or reprinted with the written permission and proper attribution. contact editor. http://cose.org http://wisegroup.com http://cose.org/mandatedsickleave

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of COSE Update - September 2008

COSE Update - September 2008 Contents Memo Upfront Vision Tech Business Interrupted The “Bigness” of Small Business What’s the Plan? People Telecom Advocacy Communications Health Pipeline Connect Arts My Cause Plugged In

COSE Update - September 2008

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