COVID-19 Resources
REOPENING: Temporary Capacity & Gathering Limits (12/26/20 – 1/10/21)
– As of December 13, 2020, Massachusetts is at Phase III, Step 1
– Sector-specific protocols and best practices
– Support Massachusetts businesses & attractions: My Local MA
– Discover when you can get the COVID-19 vaccine in Massachusetts
Federal Resources
– Workforce GPS “Pathway to Recovery Resources”: Quick Start Action Planner to help workforce system stakeholders plan and prepare for economic recovery.
– Disability focused resources
– COVID-19 Fact Sheets in 35 different languages
Commonwealth Resources
- Pandemic Unemployment Assistance
- Unemployment Insurance Benefits & Returning to Work: Guide for Employers (access info)
- Massachusetts unemployment: County-by-county
- MEMA COVID-19 public resources map: Zoom in on specific regions to find local resources
- Volunteer opportunities: “MA Responds”
- State House News Service Coronavirus Tracker
- Mass.gov COVID-19 Update Page
- Mass.Gov (including Mass.Gov/COVID19) available in 13 different languages
- Text alerts regarding Massachusetts’ response to COVID-19: Text COVIDMA to 888-777
- Massachusetts COVID-19 Workforce Measures
Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA)
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- Unemployment Information webinar
- Spanish language resources:
- Applications available in Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Chinese, Vietnamese, and more languages.
- Contact Request Form (if you have difficulties filing online)
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City of Worcester Resources
- Coronavirus information & hotline (508-799-1019)
- Support “Worcester Together”: Visit webpage or text “worcestercovid19” to 243725.
- Coalition for a Healthy Greater Worcester COVID-19 Community Resources
- You, Inc. Family Resource Center: 508-796-1411 (M-F, 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM)
MassHire Central Region Workforce Board Resources
- Manufacturing jobs through ReMAke 4.0
- Social media: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn
- MCRWB newsletters: Free training, hot jobs, career development resources, and more
COVID-19 Job Seeker Resources
Job Seekers: Register with JobGet! (free)
- Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA): Federal program provides up to 39 weeks of benefits to self-employed workers, independent contractors, gig economy workers, and people with limited work history who can’t work as a direct result of Coronavirus.
- Find a job:
- MassHire JobQuest (use Chrome)
- Virtual Tutorial (courtesy MassHire Metro North) YouTube
- JobGet (free mobile app)
- MassHire JobQuest (use Chrome)
- HOT JOBS:
- MA DUA hiring job service representatives (remote work). Read job description and apply.
- Personal Care Attendant (sign up with the Massachusetts PCA Directory)
- Worcester area:
- REMAKE 4.0: Jobs in manufacturing
- City of Worcester jobs
- Manufacturing Supervisor & Technician jobs (FLEXcon, Spencer)
- Imperial Distributors
- Commonwealth Corporation jobs (statewide)
COVID-19 Resources for Employers, Businesses, & Partners
- Employers!
- Use JobGet to connect quickly with job seekers (referral code ‘mhcentralhire’ (no punctuation) gets you a free six-month trial)
- Help stop the spread of coronavirus in your workplace:
- Download posters from UMass Memorial Health Care to send inform staff and customers.
– Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General: Small Business Relief Partnership Grant Program
- Small businesses may use grant funds to help address fixed debt, payroll, accounts payable, lost sales, lost opportunities, and other working capital expenses. Apply here.
– U.S. Chamber of Commerce Save Small Business Fund offers $5,000 grants for small businesses:
- To qualify, a small business must: 1) Employ between 3 – 20 people, 2) Be located in an economically vulnerable community, and 3) Have been harmed financially by the COVID-19 pandemic.
– NCMDC Offers Emergency Loans:
- The Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce and the North Central Massachusetts Chamber are offering emergency loans of up to $20,000 to small businesses negatively impacted by COVID-19
- To qualify for the emergency loan, businesses must provide two years of tax returns and demonstrate a direct financial impact of Coronavirus on the business. Contact: Sandie Cataldo or Brendan Hannen.
- Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program: Up to $2M in low-interest loans to small businesses and nonprofits severely impacted by COVID-19. Small business owners in all U.S. states are eligible to apply for a loan advance of up to $10,000.
- Express Bridge Loan Program: SBA Express Lenders may provide expedited SBA-guaranteed bridge loan financing on an emergency basis (up to $25,000) for disaster-related purposes to small businesses who have applied for and are awaiting long-term financing (including EIDL). General info.
- Find an Express Bridge Loan Lender: SBA’s Lender Match Tool
- Names and contact info for all SBA lenders in Massachusetts
- Mass Workforce Association COVID-19 Info Sheet (flyer) for businesses to customize, post, and share.
- Coronavirus Small Business Issues and Solutions Guide: Small business Q&A