How the economic crisis has affected Dayton’s top employers — who’s cut jobs, who’s hiring

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

Some Dayton-region employers, such as LexisNexis and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, have weathered the COVID-19 pandemic without layoffs so far.

Others launched a hiring spree — Kroger is bringing on more than 1,200 new employees to its Dayton-area stores .

And still others, like Honda, have seen normal operations essentially cease.

A now-lifted ban on elective procedures hit local hospitals hard, putting even trained health workers on the sideline.

SEE MORE: Answering key questions about the economic crisis: Have we hit bottom yet? 'Far from it'

The Dayton Daily News examined how the top Dayton region companies, ranked by number of employees, have fared in the past seven tumultuous weeks.

Employee numbers are based on the most recent available data from the Dayton Development Coalition and Ohio Development Services.

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

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1. Wright-Patterson Air Force Base

30,000 employees

“There have been no U.S. government or military job losses at Wright-Patterson,” James Mitchell, a Wright-Patterson spokesman, told the Dayton Daily News. “Throughout this pandemic, the workforce has been engaged and making a difference in the Air Force mission while teleworking. Air Force and installation leadership has and continues to provide enhanced communication infrastructure and capabilities to enable the remote workforce and ensure their continued safety and well-being.”

RELATED: 5 things you may not know about Wright-Patterson Air Force Base

Miami Valley Hospital FILE PHOTO

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2. Premier Health

12,425 employees

Some Premier employees have been furloughed or taken unpaid time off, but the company didn’t say how many.

“In some targeted areas, we have temporarily released (furloughed) some employees (non-essential, non-clinical employees and partners who are not providing direct patient care due to the COVID-19 pandemic),” a Premier representative said. “Given the rapid pace of change that is occurring, we may recall employees quickly as business needs warrant.”

Some furloughed employees already have returned as elective procedures have been restored in the week, Premier said.

DETAILS: Coronavirus: Outbreak slashes Ohio hospital revenue

Kettering Health Network has completed a multimillion dollar renovation of Grandview Medical Center near downtown Dayton. LISA POWELL / STAFF

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3. Kettering Health Network

9,319 employees

The health network did not provide a number of laid-off or furloughed employees, but said it offered employees paid time off, voluntary leaves of absence and remote work.

“As elective procedures have resumed, over the last week we are flexing back up to match that volume increase,” said Tim Dutton, the network’s chief human resources officer and executive vice president.

The Montgomery County Administration Building. TY GREENLEES / STAFF

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4. Montgomery County government

4,284 employees

The county has made budget cuts but those haven't include furloughs or lay offs.

“Many of our staff have been working remotely, some have taken leave, and others have still been working in the office or in the field,” said Brianna Wooten, a spokeswoman for Montgomery County government. “As we return to normal operations gradually in the coming weeks, some staff will be returning to their normal work location and others will continue to work remotely.”

Starting March 23, 2020, Kroger stores in the Cincinnati-Dayton division will dedicate the first hour of operation, 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, solely to seniors 60 and older and other higher-risk customers. STAFF FILE PHOTO

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5.Kroger Co.

4,030 employees

Kroger has added workers — plenty in fact.

In late March, Kroger announced it had recently hired more than 23,500 employees nationwide and planned to hire about 20,000 more in coming weeks.

Coronavirus: Kroger adds ‘hero bonus’ for employees

“Kroger has been hiring steadily since the beginning of the pandemic,” Erin Rolfes, Kroger corporate affairs manager said last week . “In our Dayton-area stores, we hired 1,218 new associates. This number includes both full- and part-time hires.”

Miami officials have made nearly 16,000 phone calls to the departed students to let them know though they are away, they are not far away from the thoughts of school leaders. Miami University faculty and staff members including Miami President Gregory Crawford and his wife Renate - have been engaged in the telephone campaign to personally call all of Miami s undergraduate students, not only those who attended the main Oxford campus but those from regional campuses in Middletown and Hamilton. (File Photo/Journal-News)

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6. Miami University

3,800 employees

Miami University already had planned to eliminate some staff positions effective July 1. About 60 employees have been affected.

"Before the coronavirus, Miami recognized significant changes coming in higher education and last year identified budget re-allocations to ensure student affordability through investment in scholarships and new academic programs that are aligned with the interests of tomorrow's students," a university representative said in a statement.

7. Cintas Corp. 

3,600 employees.

Cintas has made cuts but declined to say how many employees were let go or furloughed.

“Due to the ongoing uncertainty as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic, Cintas has made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce to account for the lower work volume currently demanded by our customers,” a spokeswoman for the company said.

8. Cincinnati Financial Corp.

3,350 employees

“We’ve maintained full employment and benefits for all associates,” spokeswoman Betsy Ertel told the Dayton Daily News.

RELATED: Coronavirus: Will workplaces ever be the same?

Today, more than 95% of Cincinnati Financial employees work from home. And the company said it has maintained full pay for employees who couldn’t do their jobs from home or who were needed to care for family members.

ajc.com

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9. Dayton Children's Hospital

3,341 employees.

About 400 staff members were furloughed with full base pay for a period of six weeks, the health care company said.

“Just last week, we announced we would continue to pay furloughed staff at 80 percent of their base pay through the end of June. Furloughed staff still are accruing benefits,” Dayton Children’s said.

Coronavirus: How area hospitals are preparing for the ‘new normal’

“Now that the state mandate on surgeries and clinic visits has been lifted, we are focused on our recovery plans with our outpatient surgeries to restart on Monday, May 11,” the hospital added. “We are very hopeful that during this recovery period, many of our furloughed staff will be called back to work as our volumes return.”

Honda Accords are assembled in the Honda manufacturing plant in Marysville, Ohio Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012. Staff photo by Bill Lackey

Credit: Bill Lackey

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Credit: Bill Lackey

10. Honda of America

3,200 jobs

Honda has had all of its Ohio production employees, including its Anna workforce, on furlough since late March. A small number of employees are working on ventilator parts at the company’s Marysville complex.

The automaker confirmed late last week that production will gradually resume in Ohio and across North America starting Monday.

Sinclair College resumed classes online and through distance learning on Monday after classes were delayed due to coronavirus concerns.

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11. Sinclair Community College

3,163 employees

A Sinclair representative said the college is freezing hiring, suspending travel and asking some employees to consider retirement “to help close gaps in the college’s budget.”

“Sinclair is working to avoid employee pay reductions, furloughs and layoffs as much as possible. As the community works to recover from the coronavirus pandemic and rebuild our economy, Sinclair’s talented faculty and staff will be needed more than ever to train the workforce and provide high-quality and affordable education,” the college said.

ajc.com

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Coronavirus: $3.2M in cuts for WSU, $1.9M for Sinclair

12. University of Dayton

3,028 employees

In April, UD leaders said the university had furloughed nearly 450 employees and laid off an additional 60 employees.

The LexisNexis campus in Miami Twp. FILE

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13. (tie) LexisNexis 

3,000 employees

CareSource 

3,000 employees

LexisNexis and CareSource, two very different companies, find themselves in similar situations.

“At LexisNexis Legal & Professional, we feel very fortunate to say that there have been no Dayton-based lay-offs or furloughs as a result of COVID-19. Our Dayton employees are currently working from home and the site is open to essential personnel only,” said Alyce Clark, executive vice president of global human resources at LexisNexis Legal & Professional.

“CareSource has not had to make any staff reductions or furlough employees due to COVID-19,” said Dan McCabe, chief of staff for CareSource. “We continue to hire for certain positions within the organization, especially those critical for providing high-quality care and supporting the well-being of our members and the needs of our health partners.”

CareSource’s brand new, six-story Pamela Morris Center officially opened in Downtown Dayton in April 2019.

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