Print article JUNEAU Rep. Ben Carpenter, R-Nikiski, has proposed new legislation that would forbid businesses, local governments and the state from requiring COVID-19 vaccines. If House Bill 175 becomes law, businesses could not require employees to be vaccinated, and unvaccinated people could not be forbidden from accessing “an area or service that is open to the public.” Similar ideas have been approved by Texas, Missouri, Florida and several other states with Republican-controlled legislatures. Surveys indicate that Republicans are much more reluctant to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Carpenter’s bill was introduced Wednesday, after Bering Straits Native Corp. the parent company of Alaska Industrial Hardware said it would require all 2,100 employees to be vaccinated. Some small cruise lines operating in Alaska also require their employees to be vaccinated.
Print article The calls for a boycott started as soon as word got out last month that Alaska Industrial Hardware was requiring workers get vaccinated for COVID-19. The business is a fully owned subsidiary of Bering Straits Native Corp., where the board of directors in mid-March voted to mandate vaccinate for all employees unless they are approved for medical or religious exemptions. Officials say the board’s decision reflected the disproportionate toll the virus is taking on Alaska Native people, particularly elders. AIH employs 200 people in eight locations across the state four in Anchorage and Eagle River that sell everything from work gloves and Xtratuf boots to air compressors and power tools.
Movers and Shakers for Feb. 14
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Alaska USA Federal Credit Union announced the selection of six new executives and two promotions.
Elizabeth Rense
Pavlas has been promoted to chief operations officer. Pavlas has more than 10 years of experience with Alaska USA in positions of increasing responsibility, most recently as executive director, Retail Financial Services.
Patrick Cosgrove has been selected to fill the position of chief lending officer. Cosgrove joins Alaska USA Federal Credit Union with more than 25 years of credit union experience. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Dickinson College in Pennsylvania.
Shannon Conley has been promoted to executive director, Retail Financial Services. Conley has worked for Alaska USA for more than 15 years and most recently held the position of senior vice president, branch administration.
Print article Even the main players in a new, business-leaning COVID-19 nonprofit admit it seems like a strange time to form a group with a mission centered on staying safe during the coronavirus pandemic. Two vaccines just got rolled out. Alaska’s daily case counts have dropped to lows not seen since October. Hospitalizations of people with COVID-19 are down. That’s just why the Conquer COVID Coalition is important now, says Jared Kosin, who heads up a statewide hospital association and serves as a co-chair of the new group. “This is a critical point in the pandemic. We all, for the first time, have a sense of hope,” Kosin said Tuesday, the same day Anchorage officials announced that the city would relax some pandemic restrictions on businesses starting Friday. “It’s really easy to become complacent right now because it doesn’t feel like COVID is as scary, it doesn’t feel as threatening.”
Movers and Shakers for Dec. 27
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Alaska Industrial Hardware, a Bering Straits Native Corp. subsidiary, announced the hire of
Thuy Vo to the position of controller and the promotions of
Tim Larson and
Josh Sieler. Vo has more than 18 years of accounting experience with a boutique public accounting firm that specializes in Alaska Native village corporations, tribal councils and small businesses all over Alaska. A recipient of the University of Alaska Scholar’s award, Vo graduated from the University of Alaska Anchorage with a bachelor of business administration degree in accounting. Larson has been promoted to director of Sales for the outside and inside sales operations of AIH and General Hardware Distributors. Larson has been with the company for nine years in outside sales focusing on key accounts and helping to grow new product lines. Prior to joining AIH, Larson worked in production at Anchorage Sand &Gravel. Larson graduated from UAA in 2001 with a bachelor