Oklahoma Secretary of Commerce and Workforce Development Sean Kouplen said there is currently a “healthy tug-of-war” in Gov. Kevin Stitt’s administration between businesspeople, who want the state to reopen immediately, and the health experts who say to wait.
“The numbers are so stunning, there’s nothing to compare it with historically. I just wouldn’t feel safe to characterize it as this is high as it’s going to go,” said Lynn Gray, economic research and analysis director for OESC.
There have been at least 51 deaths in Oklahoma so far connected to the novel coronavirus, but Sauz’s death is an outlier — he was 22 years old, not in an age group considered most susceptible to the fatal effects of the virus.
The craft store chain announced it was ending emergency leave pay for employees and suspending the use of company-provided paid time off benefits during the furloughs in order “to allow our furloughed employees” to take full advantage of the pandemic unemployment benefits.
Oklahoma Secretary of Commerce and Workforce Development Sean Kouplen warned some employers may face difficulty rehiring lower-wage workers, since an upcoming increase in unemployment benefits could mean a significant income bump.
Asked whether the number of positive cases would be lower had the initial March 24 order extended to all counties, Stitt responded “I don’t think there is any way to speculate on that.”
Hobby Lobby employees told The Frontier that 32 employees in the company’s art and creative department were given notice on Friday that their jobs had been terminated.
On Wednesday, Oklahoma City employees were told the warehouse and corporate offices would be shut down for at least two weeks, according to employees.
