Ohio’s job market remained neutral in February, better than falling like the national figures, according to analysts.
The new numbers from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services bucked a trend of rising unemployment in the state that covered six months.
Read More
Despite remaining below the national average, Ohio’s job market dipped in October.
According to figures released by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, the state’s unemployment average increased from 3.4% to 3.6%, while the labor force participation rate fell from 62.1% to 62%.
Read MoreOhio Governor Mike DeWine announced he is nominating Kara Wente as the new Ohio Department of Children and Youth director.
Prior to this nomination, Wente (pictured above) worked as the governor’s Children’s Initiative director since January 2023. Wente served as the chief operating officer of Future Ready Columbus before her hire.
Read More
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt.Governor Jon Husted have launched a new statewide online portal for Ohioans to inquire and apply to become foster or adoptive parents.
According to DeWine, this online portal will help make the foster care and adoption certification process easier and more accessible to prospective families.
Read More
A bipartisan group of Ohio lawmakers introduced a bill to modernize and streamline the adoption process across the state.
House Bill (HB) 5, known as The Adoption Modernization Act, sponsored by State Representatives Sharon Ray (R-Wadsworth) and Rachel Baker (D-Cincinnati), aims to provide financial support for expecting mothers, expedite kinship care, and clarify Ohio law to help streamline the adoption process.
Read More
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed an executive order on Friday to launch the Ohio Adoption Grant Program, which provides up to $20,000 to parents adopting a child.
DeWine signed the Ohio Adoption Grant Program as part of House Bill (HB) 45 into law in January. It gives parents a grant who adopt children under the age of 18. It includes adoptions that are privately planned as well as adoptions made through a public children services agency, including adoptions made by foster parents and family members. It excludes adoptions conducted by a stepparent.
Read More
Ohio will soon receive an influx of federal funding intended to improve kindergarten readiness.
According to a statement from Governor Mike DeWine’s Office, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services will receive a total of $48 million over three years to support and increase access to quality early childhood care and education as part of the Preschool Development Grant Birth to Five from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families.
Read More
Ohio lawmakers gave final approval Thursday, on a Republican-backed bill that aims to cut down on unemployment fraud by revising and updating the state’s unemployment compensation system.
Senate Bill (SB) 302, sponsored by State Senators Bill Reineke (R-Tiffin) and Bob Hackett (R-London), looks to tighten the rules for verifying the identity of applicants for unemployment benefits in the state.
Read More
Ohio businesses can get up to $25,000 from the state to cover the costs of apprenticeship training dating back to 2020, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
The money comes from a federal grant the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services received in 2020 to expand apprenticeships, Gov. Mike DeWine announced recently as part of National Workforce Development month.
Read More
Ohio added more than twice as many private-sector jobs in March than it did in February, and the state’s unemployment rate fell slightly, according to recently released figures by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
Overall, the state’s unemployment rate for March of 4.1% was down slightly from February’s 4.2% but higher than the national average of 3.6%. Also, Ohio’s labor participation rate rose to 61.7% from 61.6%, below the national average of 62.4%.
Read More
Ohio’s unemployment rate rose slightly in July, but the number of people in the workforce increased.
The state’s unemployment rate inched up from 5.2% in June to 5.4% in July, but the state’s labor force participation rose from 60.2% in June to 60.5% in July, a positive sign, said Rea Hederman Jr., executive director of the Economic Research Center at The Buckeye Institute and vice president of policy.
Read More
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A report released Thursday night contains information on a 911 call and reveals two police reports linked to Ma’Khia Bryant’s foster care home – one stating that Ma’Khia’s younger sister, Janiah Bryant, threatened to kill someone if she wasn’t removed from the home.
A Columbus Division of Police report completed on March 28 states that Janiah called 911 and told the dispatcher she wanted to leave the home and return to Franklin County Children Services.
Read More
David DeVillers is the former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio who secured an indictment against then-Speaker of the Ohio House Larry Householder and four others in an alleged $60 million bribery scheme.
While Mike DeWine was Attorney General in 2018, he awarded DeVillers the Mark Losey Distinguished Law Enforcement Service Award.
This week the Republican Governor announced DeVillers will be joining a public-private partnership between the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) and a select group of talent on loan from a few of Ohio’s largest businesses.
Read More
Wednesday, U.S. Senate candidate Josh Mandel (R) called on Ohio Republican Governor Mike DeWine to remove all COVID mandates and re-open businesses 100 percent.
“Mike DeWine and Amy Acton have done a horrible job handling the COVID response and completely trampled on the freedoms, liberties, and livelihoods of everyday Ohioans. Today I call for Ohio to fully re-open and allow Ohioans to get back to work, get their kids back to school, and remove our statewide mask mandate,” Mandel said.
Scammers took nearly all of the $330 million in reported improper payments the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services made with Pandemic Unemployment Assistance funds, Director Kimberly Henderson said earlier this month. That amount was funneled, in part, through 56,000 fake claims which were identified in December. There were also overpayments on legitimate claims.
But there may be more fraud – much more – that is not yet reported.
Whether the $330 million is from misappropriation that happened in December alone, or is a pile of results spanning several months, is unknown. Henderson said total losses will likely be pinpointed at the end of February.
“They should be able to pinpoint the amount weekly, or monthly,” said Ohio State Representative Derek Merrin (R-Monclova). He continued, “we need to get checks and balances in place to ensure money isn’t stolen in the first place.”
One Ohio State Senator told The Ohio Star the Director has signaled to him that the amount of money lost in ODJFS processing is likely in the ballpark of $1B.
Read More
Around 48,000 Ohioans were notified they received an overpayment of unemployment benefits during the pandemic and must repay the state, The Associated Press reported.
That’s about 6% of the nearly 800,000 Ohioans who have been paid regular unemployment benefits since the start of the pandemic in March, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
Read More
The Ohio House unanimously passed House Bill 614 on Thursday, which seeks to reform the state’s unemployment compensation system.
In the bill proposed by state Reps. Mark Fraizer (R-Newark) and Tracy Richardson (R-Marysville), it looks to modernize a system that was not prepared for the onslaught of unemployment claims this year.
Read More
If Ohio is adding record numbers of new businesses as a top official recently announced, where are the jobs? Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose two weeks ago announced 11,920 new entities filed to do business in Ohio in October, allowing Ohio to reach 113,272 new businesses in the…
Read More
The question has to be asked: With such high unemployment in the state, is JobsOhio more concerned with growing its bureaucracy or with creating jobs in the private sector?
Read More