2023 WILL SEE PUSH FOR FINANCIAL WELLNESS

Soaring inflationary pressures and mounting recession fears have combined with pandemic and employment concerns to create a heightened level of financial stress among employees. For employers, this represents both a dilemma and an opportunity. The employee benefit portfolio that may have worked well in the past may not adequately address these needs going forward.  By investing in planning and some resources, however, business owners can both demonstrate their concern for employees and solidify if not increase worker morale and productivity at the same time.  Here are a few programs employers can implement to show their support:

Emergency Savings Accounts

By creating an emergency savings account (ESA) for employees, business owners can help workers save for financial emergencies by allowing deposits of after-tax dollars from their paycheck into a savings account.  Workers can then withdraw the funds as needed via a debit card or electronic transfer. An ESA eliminates the need for workers to have the discipline and time to manually save the money.  As a bonus, employers can offer incentives to employees, such as a matching deposit (up to specified limits).

Lifestyle Spending Accounts

Lifestyle Spending Accounts (LSA) provide a method for employers to assist their employees in paying for health, wellness expenses and even other costs that are not typically covered under a group health insurance program. Many business owners like LSAs since they can decide which expenses are reimbursable and how much each employee receives. Unlike flexible spending accounts, employers fund the LSA with money that is taxable to the employee after it is spent.

Student Loan Assistance

Companies can design programs to either make tuition payments to the loan servicer or directly to the employee.  Eligible candidates can be required to have been working for the company for a specified minimum period of time or have successfully completed a degree.  Typically, an employer matches annual payments made by the student and can set a lifetime cap. As an example, a company can match annual payments up to $2500 per year and/or a lifetime cap of $10,000.

Financial Guidance Resources

These programs, sponsored by an employer, can provide access to resources and tools focusing on assisting employees in their effort to gain financial literacy.  The business owner may utilize a wide range of options, including a partnership with financial consultants that can provide workplace seminars, speaking with employees concerning their financial needs and educating the staff on budgeting, saving, investing and managing debt.

The Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership offers its members access to My Benefit Advisor as a solution for employee benefits, including voluntary offerings. For more information about My Benefit Advisor, visit our website at erc.mybenefitadvisor.com or contact Deborah Evans at (800) 377-3539.

Addressing the Shift in Workplace Dynamics

It’s quite evident that the past few years have seen drastic shifts in the country’s workplace environment.  Today’s workforce has taken on a look different from that of the past, with employee demographics more diverse than ever before, including an ever-widening range of ages, racial groups and ethnic backgrounds.  Many of these groups, notably including women, are commanding a greater sphere of influence and power.  Furthermore, the employees of today are demanding new approaches to work culture, looking for employers to recognize their personal needs and value, both in the workplace and in their home life.

Business owners, aware of these shifts and the dynamic changes between employer/employee relationships, have taken notice and are reshaping their workplace practices and benefit portfolios to avoid any potential turnover in their workforce.

As a result, employers are offering more competitive pay, enhanced health benefits and flexible work-from-home arrangements.  But more than just competitive pay, employees have demanded racial, gender and pay equity.  Employers have recognized that creating an inclusive culture is important to the success of their company and its long-term growth and profitability, since today’s employees are quick to begin searching for new employment if they feel their needs are not being met.

The Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership offers its members access to My Benefit Advisor as a solution for employee benefits, including voluntary offerings. For more information about My Benefit Advisor, visit our website at erc.mybenefitadvisor.com or contact Matthew Bricker at (800) 377-3539.

Cultivating a Constructive Culture in the Hybrid Work Environment

Most businesses today have come to the realization that the traditional 9-5 in-office workday has permanently transitioned to a hybrid environment where employees work from the office some days and from home other days.  Although for many firms this transition began over the past several years, the COVID-19 pandemic only served to hasten the process.

Employers and their employees, however, are finding that although there are many advantages to the hybrid work environment, there are also a few challenges. 

Aside from the technical and logistical challenges of creating a hybrid workforce (which have largely been addressed at this point), many business owners and HR professionals are now focusing on rebuilding policies and processes to maintain employee engagement and a unified culture. As many business owners will attest, a sound culture is critical to any company’s success with the payoff showing in revenue growth, retention and increased operating income.

The Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership offers its members access to My Benefit Advisor as a solution for employee benefits, including voluntary offerings. For more information about My Benefit Advisor, visit our website at erc.mybenefitadvisor.com or contact Glynis Roberts at (800) 377-3539.

Meet the Candidates is an annual education series to connect the business community to citizens seeking public office in Erie County. Candidates were invited to complete a brief questionnaire; answers appear as provided by the candidate. The views expressed below are not those of the Erie Regional Chamber. We invite you to get to know the candidates and mark your calendars to vote in Pennsylvania's Primary Election on Tuesday, May 18th. 

Meet the Candidate: Shawn Wroblewski
Erie County Executive

Current Employer(s)
Perry Hi-Way Hose Company
East County EMS
Butler County Community College

About Shawn
I have lived in Erie my whole life. I started serving the community in 1986 as a volunteer firefighter and quickly found a passion for helping people. I have been working as a paramedic since 1994 when I started at EmergyCare eventually, I left EmergyCare to pursue a Management position with Perry Hi-way Hose Company. Currently, I am Working on a Ph.D. in public service leadership with a concentration on emergency management, working part-time at Perry Hi-Way and East County EMS. I live in the City of Erie with my wife, Jessica.

Why did you want to run for Erie County Council?

I want to serve the people of Erie County.


What are your top three priorities you wish to work on if elected?

Recovery of family business and communities from Covid 19, Public Safety system, Address the inequalities of residents in Erie County.


How would you be an advocate for key education initiatives such as the Erie County Community College, K-12 education, and early education as they relate to workforce development?

As an academic, I am aware of the importance of education. We have four universities/colleges already promoting critical thinking and advanced degrees. Erie needs more education for skilled trades such as welding, nursing, and machinists. We need to work on keeping the current and future students interested in learning. With all the distractions and decrease in after-school activities, I have seen firsthand how uninterested in learning that most current students are. I want to be a positive force for change in this and help the students focus on the future early in their primary education and develop resources for their learning to make informed decisions about their future career and how they navigate life and obstacles to obtain their dreams.


How will you work to advocate for the modernization of public health infrastructure and encourage public/private partnerships to address deficiencies in our public health system? 

My life has been about emergency service, specifically the pre-hospital field. Many different programs promote increased public health and healthcare infrastructure. However, obstacles have been met by services promoting change by various laws and legal issues. I want to actively work with the local hospitals and agencies to make Erie a model of change for our community's health care infrastructure. I plan to advocate at a state level for the tools and legislation needed to assist our agencies in positive change. I plan on using the resources of primary schools and education sources to address the needed information and conversations to promote a positive change within the Erie Community.


According to TrackTheRecovery.org, Erie County is estimated to have lost over 28% of small businesses. How would you work to encourage financial stability within local and state governments without overburdening the small business community?

According to most researchers, the loss of business during the recovery phase of any major incident will worsen. One of the biggest problems is no planning for unforeseen problems. The theory has always been there's less than a one percent chance of that happening, so why should I worry. This pandemic is my area of specialty. We can not do much about the closed businesses, but we may be ready to discuss the need to plan for unforeseen problems in the future. Throwing money at the problem will not solve it until we sit down and discuss the plan for moving forward. We need to tighten our wallets and focus on the areas that will promote growth and increased development, delay the things that will cost money, and expend resources we could put towards other areas of growth.


Our community is expecting a total of $225 million or more in American Recovery Plan funds.  As a community leader, how would you prioritize this funding?

Now is the time we need to take a critical and educated look at what the money can be utilized for and how we can best utilize these funds to invest in Erie County. First, we must stabilize the local government and ensure that we will be able to move forward safely. Secondly, we need to prioritize our responses that we do not impact and new taxes upon our communities or the citizens. Reduce needless spending and focus our efforts on infrastructure and regrowth without impacting our already fragile impoverished communities. We need to match jobs with people and promote self-growth with community investment projects to rebuild and develop a stronger workforce committed to growth.


Pittsburgh has seen success with tools such as Tax Increment Finance and Transit Revitalization Investment District to spur their City’s revitalization.  Are you willing to make long-term investments in economic development?

There has been a lot of success with many different revitalization programs not only in Pennsylvania but also around the country. Erie is very different than Pittsburgh. We must look at what programs have worked with similar communities to Erie. These communities must be as economically and culturally diverse as Erie is for an accurate comparison. Erie must commit to a long-term plan to grow all of Erie County's assets from industry to tourism. We need to capitalize on our history, move forward with past successes, and develop our short-term and long-term goals that everyone in the community can get behind. More importantly, we need to continue developing our infrastructure and programs for Erie County's future long after any county official or public servant is out of office. We, as a community, need to work together to develop a plan for tourism, manufacturing that incorporates all aspects and begins a new direction for the future that will secure Erie County's position for the future. As I do not have an ingrained knowledge of all Erie County's current business and infrastructure, I will be seeking the counsel of the past leaders and business groups to ensure the best course of action for the county's future.

Meet the Candidates is an annual education series to connect the business community to citizens seeking public office in Erie County. Candidates were invited to complete a brief questionnaire; answers appear as provided by the candidate. The views expressed below are not those of the Erie Regional Chamber. We invite you to get to know the candidates and mark your calendars to vote in Pennsylvania's Primary Election on Tuesday, May 18th. 

Meet the Candidate: Tyler Titus
Erie County Executive

Current Employer(s)
Hugh Lane Wellness Foundation
Journeys
Self-Employed

About Tyler
I was born into poverty when my parents were teenagers. My grandfather was the president of the Steelworkers local and my grandmother was a union school teacher. My parents worked incredibly hard just to provide me and my 11 siblings with the bare necessities. Growing up in a rural area, I saw many around me struggle, often with drug addiction. I watched my foster siblings face unimaginable challenges, as my parents tried to meet the needs of kids who had been neglected their whole lives.

My outlook changed completely when I realized I was not alone—that so many others around me were experiencing similar pain. Seeing their pain motivated me. It made me unafraid to stand up, to take the heat, to fight for a better future. These are lessons I carried with me into adulthood. They are lessons that only deepened when I married Shraddha Prabhu, an Assistant Professor at Edinboro University, and became the parent of two phenomenal children. I want to be a part of creating a future that is safe for my children, and yours.

Over the past 15 years, through my work at the Erie County Office of Children and Youth, as a full-time therapist for youth in the foster system, and as the president of the Erie School Board, I developed a nuanced understanding of how intergenerational poverty, neglect, abuse, and violence impacts families and communities. As a therapist in a residential facility, I worked every day with young men who the system had tossed aside—who had no one in their corners. That’s why I became an advocate at the state level for ensuring these kids had someone to lean on. Working as a mental health professional, and specifically with those experiencing suicidality, has exposed me to how severely broken our healthcare system is. I believe deeply in quality healthcare for all, an economy that puts working families first, and an education system that gives every child a chance.

Finally, as a small business owner, I know the challenges of building a successful future in Erie County. As a former county employee, I know the gaps and inefficiencies in the system. We deserve an Erie County that is healthy, safe, and equitable—where everyone has a chance at success. I’m ready to get to work so that we have an Erie County that we can be proud of.


Why are you running to be Erie County Executive?

Growing up poor in a rural area, I saw firsthand the failures of a system that leaves so many behind—that left me and my family behind. Seeing the pain of those around me motivated me to dedicate my life to fighting for a better future for all of us. Over the past 15 years, through my work at the Erie County Office of Children and Youth, as a full-time therapist for youth in the foster system, and as the president of the Erie School Board, I’ve worked toward an Erie that is healthy, safe, and equitable. I’m running for office because I’m ready to bring that vision to county government. I envision a government that is connected to and representative of the people it serves, regardless of who they are, where they're from, or what they have. I have seen up close that in order to have a successful and prosperous economy, we need a healthcare and education system that puts people first. I’m ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work to build an Erie County where no one is left behind.


What are your top three priorities you wish to work on if elected?

My top three priorities are healthcare for all, economic justice, and a quality education for every child.


How would you be an advocate for key education initiatives such as the Erie County Community College, K-12 education, and early education as they relate to workforce development?

For the past four years, I’ve worked at local, state, and national levels to address inequities in public education, and to hold elected officials accountable to ensure all students have access to quality education. As the president of the Erie School Board, this has been central to my work and would be a significant focus of my administration. In Erie County, we need to invest in our education system—both traditional K-12, but also in trades education and apprenticeship programs that actually meet the needs of local employers.


How will you work to advocate for the modernization of public health infrastructure and encourage public/private partnerships to address deficiencies in our public health system? 

As a mental health professional, I see every day how life-changing access to quality care can be. No one should have to go into debt to receive the care they need. Our healthcare system is fundamentally broken—to the point where you can determine life expectancy based on the zip code where someone lives. But when a county is healthy, people are able to build living fulfilling lives. It affects their family, their friends, and our entire community. Healthy community members are connected to each other, able to support each other, and reinvest in the community around them.

As county executive, I will be deeply committed to making this a reality by investing in a community health model. This means embedding healthcare professionals within the communities they serve—including with health clinics in schools and satellite offices in rural parts of the county. I will fight for meaningful public-private partnerships that bring quality healthcare options here in Erie County, so that no one has to leave for Pittsburgh, Buffalo, or Cleveland to receive the care they need.


According to TrackTheRecovery.org, Erie County is estimated to have lost over 28% of small businesses. How would you work to encourage financial stability within local and state governments without overburdening the small business community?

As a small business owner myself, I completely share the stance of the ERCGP that tax burdens should never fall disproportionately onto small businesses. We have major needs in this county—for changes that cost significant amounts of money—but small businesses should always be viewed as a partner in that change, not its funders. When proper investments are made, and the ultra-wealthy and large corporations are made to pay their fair share, we can afford to make the changes we need while including, attracting, and uplifting local businesses.


Our community is expecting a total of $225 million or more in American Recovery Plan funds.  As a community leader, how would you prioritize this funding?

As Kathy Dahlkemper has said, this is our “moonshot moment.” We have an extraordinary opportunity to use this money to transform the future of Erie County. I believe we should focus on utilizing the funding to address the areas the budget was not able to address. A few of the high-priority areas include: infrastructure around broadband internet throughout the county, investing in creating good-paying jobs through renewable energy development, and instituting a community health model that ensures that those who serve our communities know and understand them.


Pittsburgh has seen success with tools such as Tax Increment Finance and Transit Revitalization Investment District to spur their City’s revitalization.  Are you willing to make long-term investments in economic development?

I am willing to make long term investments that create equitable opportunities for all Erie County residents, especially those who have not had the same access to resources in the past. We need to invest in renewable energies and green infrastructure in order to keep our water, air, and land safe for our residents and future generations. I do support Opportunity Zones and Tax Increment Finances when they are equitable and not implemented in a way that encourages gentrification.