Dear ABC Central Ohio Member
On Tuesday, March 10, the ABC Central Ohio board of directors, at my recommendation, voted to suspend all apprenticeship training activities through the end of March. An official communication was distributed to member participants and was subsequently posted to our website and various social media outlets. Today I am writing to all member companies to provide the following information:
- On Monday, March 16, the ABC Central Ohio administrative offices will be closed through the end of March. Staff will work remotely so that the day-to-operations continue without interruption. Phone calls will be redirected to each staff person’s mobile telephone, and all ABC and government regulatory databases that we use are accessible to us online. Additionally, we have established remote server access so that we can operate normally. You will not notice any change but for the fact that you will not be able to physically visit the office to meet with staff.
- Appropriate building security measures have been implemented to make sure all activity at our facility is properly monitored and recorded while closed.
- All meetings currently scheduled at our facility during the month of March – including our Project Management Course – have been temporarily postponed.
- The Board of Directors elected not to send any representatives to the scheduled ABC National conference in Nashville during the week of March 23.
During the next two weeks, ABC Central Ohio will develop options that can be used in the event we must remotely conduct our apprenticeship training; our single most used member benefit. This includes use of recorded instructional content – we have hired a videographer to tape instructional activities during the next two weeks – along with Q&A remote conference options that allow students an opportunity to review and discuss the information presented by video with their instructors. More information will be shared directly with those members who use our apprenticeship program as it becomes available.
The ABC Central Ohio board of directors is scheduled to meet again via emergency conference call on Thursday, March 27. At that time, the Board will determine our best course of action moving forward. Decisions will be made with input from the Ohio Department of Health and the Governor’s Office; we are closely following what The Ohio State University is doing as well.
By all accounts, the next 30-days have the potential to be stressful and disruptive. We recognize that many in our industry do not have the same ability to shift operations to a remote format. With that in mind, a Toolbox Talk covering issues surrounding the COVIS-19 virus is attached to this communication. We hope this will be a useful resource to you. For our part, to secure the safety of our staff and our students, we are taking these actions to help prevent the possible spread of the COVID-19 virus; this is our attempt to help “flatten the curve.”
Questions related to these decisions may be directed to Barton Hacker at 614-597-3591 or by email at bhacker@centralohioabc.org.
Sincerely,
Barton Hacker, CAE
President
