NOVEMBER 2022

IN THIS ISSUE

Upcoming Events/Seminars

VOTE- November 8

Budget Analysis

Annual Meeting Nominations

October Highlights

Save the Dates

WSA New Business Panel

Fast Pitch-Extended to Nov. 4

DOL- New Rule

Business Briefs

New Members

Member Renewals

Member Matters is sponsored by Stellar Blue Technologies.

Watch 54th Assembly District Candidate Forum between Lori Palmeri and Donnie Herman here.

An analysis of the City of Oshkosh Budget, reviewing revenue and spending trends, was recently completed and is being released. The Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce commissioned a study to take a thirty-year (1990 – 2020) look back at City long-term spending and staffing trends.

There are clear patterns to the changing major revenue sources for Oshkosh: 

• State shared revenues increased by 5.8% between 1990 and 2020. 

• Total funds collected via the local property tax increased by 344.8% between 1990 and 2020, or about 11.5% annually. 

• User charges for services increased by 468.7% between 1990 and 2020, or about 15.6% annually. 

• Funds collected via licenses, permits, and fines increased by 282.3% between 1990 and 2020, or about 9.4% annually. 

Based on the Oshkosh Chamber Board discussion, they concluded the following recommendations should be considered by the City Council: 

Conclusions & Recommendations

• Annual prioritization of city services to identify options for service/program cuts.

• Regular cost/benefit analyses for contracting out of services.

• Advocating uniform application of the provisions of Act 10 to all represented city

employees.

• Capping of ERU rates for the Stormwater Utility or indexing rate increases to inflation.

• Reducing the property tax levy for increases in Stormwater Utility fees.

• Removing Stormwater Utility costs from all property owners that do not contribute storm

water runoff to the City’s conveyance system.

• Applying Stormwater Utility fees to City-owned properties.

• Implementing a fee-for-service approach to garbage and recycling that removes garbage

and recycling from the property tax levy.

• A property tax credit for businesses paying property taxes but not receiving garbage and

recycling services.

• Zero-based budgeting techniques that include 2% to 3% department-level budgetary

reductions targets, flat budgets, and 2% to 3% increase targets.

UPCOMING EVENTS

November 9 | 7:45-9:00AM

November 10 | 8:30-9:30AM

November 15 & 29, December 13| 8:00-9:00AM

November 17 | 12:00PM

November 17 | 4:30-6:30PM

We are changing it up this month! Business After Hours will go from 4:30-6:30PM rather than the typical hours of 5:00-7:00PM. 

OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS

Business After Hours at EAA's Youth Education Center

October's Business After Hours was held at the new EAA Youth Education Center. Attendees were able to network while enjoying food and drinks from LaSure's and Fox River Brewing Co. They were also able to experience the new state-of-the-art education facility, which included flying in a Redbird simulator. 

Thank you to EAA and their team for hosting such a wonderful, well-attended event! 

SAVE THE DATES

The Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce and Board of Directors invite you to celebrate the achievements of the past year at our 115th Annual Meeting and Recognition Program. 

This year, we will be welcoming the NEW Dueling Pianos as the entertainment for the evening, courtesy of Bank First.

We appreciate the support of the following Corporate Sponsors: 

Amada Marvel

Amcor

Associated Bank

Baker Tilly

First Business Bank

Fox Communities Credit Union

FVTC

Girbau North America

Horicon Bank

Network Health

Oshkosh Corporation

Oshkosh Marine Supply Co. 

Rhyme

SMART-IS

Stellar Blue

TDS

US Bank 

vonBriesen & Roper

There are still Corporate Sponsorship opportunities available! If you are interested, please contact [email protected]

Our Annual Meeting will be taking place on Thursday, January 19, 2023 at the Oshkosh Convention Center. Part of the evening's program includes an awards ceremony. We are accepting nominations for Small Business of the Year and Milestone Anniversaries. If you know of a small business deserving of this recognition or someone celebrating 25,50,75, 100... years, please reach out to [email protected]

UPCOMING PROPEL EVENTS

Morning Mingle

at Elsewhere Market

November 10 | 7:30AM

Holiday Parade Volunteering

Downtown

December 1 | 4-7PM

To register for any of these events, click below.

Check the Propel website and Facebook page 

for information about upcoming events!

FAST PITCH CONTEST DEADLINE 

EXTENDED TO NOVEMBER 4

OSHKOSH SEPTEMBER 2022 JOBLESS RATE INCREASES SLIGHTLY

The unemployment rates for Oshkosh and Winnebago County remained consistently low in September along with other areas in our region as reported by the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD).     

CITY OF OSHKOSH EMPLOYMENT DATA

The data indicated that the unemployment rate for September 2022 was 3.2%, up from 2.7% in September of 2021 and up only slightly from 3.1% in August of 2022.  There were 33,386 Oshkosh City residents working this year in September vs. 34,010 last year, for a loss of 624 workers year over year.   This trend also follows the reduction in total labor force numbers in September from 34,950 in September 2021 to 34,473 in September 2022.     

WINNEBAGO COUNTY EMPLOYMENT DATA

The Winnebago County unemployment rate for September 2022 was 2.9%, up from 2.6% in September of 2021 and down slightly from 3% in August of 2022.    

There were 89,243 Winnebago County residents working this year vs. 90,910 last year, for a net loss of 1,667 workers.  Winnebago County’s labor force also declined in September from 93,328 in September 2021 to 91,890 in September 2022.            

WISCONSIN and US EMPLOYMENT DATA

The Wisconsin September 2022 unemployment rate was 3.2%, down from 3.3% in August of 2022, but up slightly form 3.0% in September of 2021.   In September there were 2,992,262 statewide residents working this year vs. 3,045,873 last year, for a loss of 53,611 workers.  The 3.2% statewide unemployment rate remains below the national average of 3.3%.         

Please contact Rob Kleman, Senior VP of Economic Development at the Oshkosh Chamber at [email protected] or 920-303-2265, ext. 14 for more information or any questions relating to this data.    

The Department of Labor (DOL) proposed a new rule changing the test to determine independent contractor status. This rule would replace the January 2021 rule that was adopted by the Trump administration to clarify and simplify the multi-factor test to determine if a worker was an independent contractor or an employee. There were five factors under that test, with two labeled as “core factors” – the worker’s nature and degree of control over their work and the worker’s opportunity for profit or loss. The Biden administration delayed the effective date of the Trump era rule and then withdrew it. The courts vacated the delay and withdrawal of the rule and said it was effective March 8, 2021.

The Biden administration is arguing that the 2021 rule does not comply fully with the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA) as interpreted by the courts. Their proposed rule would rescind the 2021 rule and replace it with, “a totality-of-the-circumstances analysis of the economic reality test in which the factors do not have a predetermined weight and are considered in view of the economic reality of the whole activity.” This rule is similar to the standard that was in place under the Obama administration.

The proposed rule would, “affirm that economic dependence is the ultimate inquiry for determining whether a worker is an independent contractor or an employee.” An independent contractor would only be a worker that is, “in business for themselves.” They lay out that other income streams earned by the worker or the amount earned does not factor into economic dependence. The proposed rule has a six-factor test for determining if the worker is economically dependent.

• Opportunity for profit or loss depending on managerial skill. 
  • An independent contractor would be a worker that “exercises managerial skill that affects the worker’s economic success or failure in performing the work.”
• Investments by the worker and the employer. 
  • “Investment borne by the worker must be capital or entrepreneurial in nature to indicate independent contractor status.”
• Degree of permanence of the work relationship. 
  • “An indefinite or continuous relationship is consistent with an employment relationship, but a worker’s lack of a permanent or indefinite relationship with an employer is not necessarily indicative of independent contractor status if it does not result from the worker’s own independent business initiative.”
• Nature and degree of control. 
  • Employer’s control includes whether or not the employer sets the worker’s schedule, supervises the performance of work, limits the worker’s ability to work for other, uses technological means of supervision, reserves the right to supervise or discipline worker, places demands on a worker’s time so they are unable to work for others, control over prices or rates for service and marketing of services or products provided by the worker. The more control exerted by the employer favors employee status for the worker.
• Extent to which the work performed is an integral part of the employer’s business. 
  • “A worker who performs work that is integral to an employer’s business is more likely to be employed by the business, whereas a worker who performs work that is more peripheral to the employer’s business is more likely to be independent from the employer.”
• Skill and initiative. 
  • “The worker’s use of specialized skills in connection with business-like initiative indicates that the worker is an independent contractor instead of an employee.”

The proposed rule is open for public comment until November 28, 2022. This proposed rule will limit the cases were a worker can be classified as an independent contractor. 

Read More

BUSINESS BRIEFS

Community First names Gloudemans as Senior VP of Finance- President/CEO Cathie Tierney recently announced that Gloudemans, who joined Community First in 2001, has been promoted and has joined the credit union’s Senior Leadership Team with expanded responsibilities for accounting/finance, investments and more. Read More

DAV Chapter 17 receives donation from Teriyaki Madness- Nathan Krohn, Oshkosh franchise owner of Teriyaki Madness presented a $1500 donation to DAV (Disabled American Veterans) Chapter 17 Ray H. Fuller Winnebago County. On hand to accept the check was Laura Felten, United States Navy Veteran. Nathan is a 9-11 Veteran plus a member of DAV Chapter 17. Nathan’s generosity is truly appreciated. Both Teriyaki Madness and DAV Chapter 17 are members of the Oshkosh Area Chamber of Commerce. Together we make a difference in the lives of Veterans.

Davis|Kuelthau combines with Chicago firm, Smith Amundsen as of November 1- – The law firms of SmithAmundsen LLC and Davis|Kuelthau s.c. announced that they will formally combine on November 1, 2022 to form Amundsen Davis, LLC. Read More 

GKM WI, Import/Export Intermodal Panelist Forum Returns- GKM WI Global Supply Chain, LLC will present their first in person Import/Export Intermodal Panelist Discussion since 2019. Read More

Honkamp , P.C. Business News- On November 1, 2022, Honkamp, P.C., a Top 10 Midwest CPA and business advisory group, will acquire Vaassen, Pluemer CPAs, LLC, a local accounting firm in Platteville, Wis. Read More

Joe Fazio joins Bristol Morgan Bank Board of Directors- Bristol Morgan Bank welcomes Joe Fazio to the Board of Directors. Fazio brings over 35 years of banking leadership experience, most recently as CEO and Founder of Commerce State Bank, which he started in 2005 and grew to over $800 million in total assets. Read More

Kiwanis celebrated impact of 100+ iPads for Autism- An iPad can help a child with autism to overcome communication and learning challenges, transforming the child’s ability to interact with their families and the world around them. Oshkosh Mid-Morning Kiwanis presented iPads to three families during their Oct. 21 event, bringing the total distributed by the club to 110. Read More

M3 Insurance News- Nezih Hasanoglu Jr. has been named the first chief growth officer of M3 Insurance.

Tiffanie Courtney, CIC, CISR, CRIS senior account manager for M3 Insurance has been awarded the most prestigious honor available to insurance customer service representatives: National Outstanding CSR of the Year by the National Alliance for Insurance Education and Research.

Old National Bank- Earnings release from Old National Bank Read More

Wipfli acquires Kentucky-based business consulting firm- Wauwatosa-based accounting and advisory firm Wipfli announced this week it has entered into an agreement to acquire Louisville, Kentucky-based Oliver Group. Read More (Subscription required)

ThedaCare and Froedtert Health Announce Joint Venture

Earlier in October, ThedaCare and Froedtert Health announced a new joint venture. As a part of the joint venture, the partner organizations will be creating two health campuses that include hospital and outpatient care services in Fond du Lac and Oshkosh to expand convenient access to care for those living in the region. Care will be collectively delivered to patients through the joint venture, and coordinated between ThedaCare and the Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin health network providers. 

Read More

NEW MEMBERS

Hotel Retlaw

1 N. Main Street, Fond du Lac

Web Page

Fat Mama's

616 Ohio Street

920-385-4654

Web Page

Oshkosh Dock & Lift

4310 County Road S

920-289-0326

Web Page 

Popeye's Louisiana Kitchen

1734 Oshkosh Avenue

479-409-6252

Web Page

GKM WI Global Supply Chain LLC

101 S. Main Street, Green Bay

630-338-7963

Schmick Agency

312 S Webster Avenue, Omro

920-410-2320

Gretchen Herrmann/Primary Colors

1458 Maricopa Drive, Oshkosh

920-379-3245

Web Page

CHAMBER MEMBERS SAVE WITH...

CHAMBER MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS

The Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce would like to thank the following members who renewed their memberships during the month of September.

ACCU-TECH AGAIN

ALRO STEEL CORPORATION

AREA WATER PROOFING & CONCRETE

ATW APPLETON AIRPORT

BADGER MILL SUPPLY CORP.

BASLER FLIGHT SERVICE

BLACKSTONE METAL WORKS

BRICKHAM STAMPING CO., INC.

CESA-6

CROWN

D.R. HANSEN PLUMBING

DIVERSE OPTIONS

DUBLIN'S IRISH PUB

ROX RIVER BREWING COMPANY

GKM WI GLOBAL SUPPLY

GO-HNI (GREATER OSHKOSH HEALTHY)

GRETHEN HERRMANN-PRIMARY COLORS

INTEGRITY SAW & TABLE

KWIK TRIP

LEECO STEEL 

LOURDES ACADEMY

MAMA'S NOODLE BAR

MULTICIRCUITS

Advertise in our newsletters - Call to learn more!

Contact Us

120 Jackson Street

Oshkosh WI 54901

920.303.2265, ext. 12

[email protected]

www.oshkoshchamber.com