Coronavirus: Boise State suspends events through July 5, Idaho companies cut workers
Boise State University announced Wednesday afternoon in a press release that it will suspend all events on campus and all summer camps through July 5.
The suspension applies to any events scheduled for the Student Union Building, Special Events Center, Alumni and Friends Center, Stueckle Sky Center, and most other campus venues and event spaces.
ExtraMile Arena and the Morrison Center on BSU’s campus — the sites host concerts, theatrical works and comedy shows — are working with the groups that have contracted to lease those spaces, and ticket holders should watch for individual decisions and announcements, BSU said.
All summer classes and university business will continue to be conducted remotely, according to the release.
University staff members are working with event organizers to try to reschedule events and to convert planned in-person gatherings into remote events, the release said. The university will review public health guidelines and recommendations in early June, and will announce an update on the status of remaining summer events on June 11.
More Idaho companies issue layoff notices
Three Idaho companies have notified the Idaho Department of Labor that they’ve laid off a combined 549 workers.
Idaho Health and Fitness, which operates six Crunch Fitness gyms in Boise, Meridian, Eagle, Nampa and Caldwell, laid off 328 workers, according to a notice filed under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act.
Fitness centers were ordered closed as part of Gov. Brad Little’s March 25 stay-home order, and he has extended the order through April 30.
First Student, which provides bus services for the Boise School District, laid off 178 employees.
The Treasure Valley YMCA, which operates fitness centers in Boise, Meridian and Caldwell, laid off 43 workers at its headquarters gym at 1177 W. State St. in Boise.
Generally, when companies with 100 or more workers shut down or have mass layoffs, they must file WARN notices.
The Department of Labor has now received notice of 793 layoffs statewide because of the coronavirus pandemic. Three other companies, Nashua Homes, Denny’s and ALSCO, earlier announced layoffs of 244 workers.
Nez Perce County death toll matches Ada’s
Despite having only 20 confirmed coronavirus cases, the number of deaths reported in Nez Perce County (9) matched the death total in Ada County, which had 531 confirmed cases as of Tuesday evening.
Idaho has confirmed community spread in 13 counties: Ada, Bingham, Blaine, Bonneville, Canyon, Elmore, Gem, Jefferson, Kootenai, Madison, Payette, Teton and Twin Falls.
At Your Service apparel to benefit service industry
A Boise couple has created a line of apparel to help bar and restaurant workers make ends meet.
At Your Service — atyourserviceindustry.com — launched recently with shirts, tote bags and more. Fifty percent of profits go to service-industry workers. Kevin and Francine Hopper of Capitol Bar, 6100 W. State St. in Boise, created At Your Service.
“Kevin and I come from a publishing and graphic design background,” Francine Hopper said in a news release, “and we wanted to find a way that would help not just our bartenders make ends meet, but all service-industry workers.”
T-shirts have a logo that reads, “I Support the Service Industry,” with a fork and spoon crossed in front of a martini glass. Hospitality workers sign up at the website and receive a unique code. For every item sold with their code, they get 50 percent of the profits from the sale, paid at the end of each week.
Shirts are typically shipped within five to seven days after ordering.
“We are hoping that industry folks push the sale of these products through their contacts, friends and regular clientele via link sharing and social media channels,” Kevin Hopper said, “so that they can start generating immediate revenue for themselves. Hopefully, this won’t go on too much longer, but this is a small way they can make some money in the meantime.”
This story was originally published April 15, 2020 at 10:38 AM.
