DBusiness Daily Update: JVS Human Services Begins Hiring Blitz for 45 Direct Care Personnel, UWM to Host Oakland County COVID-19 Vaccination Site, and More

Our roundup of the latest news from metro Detroit and Michigan businesses as well as announcements from government agencies, including updates about the COVID-19 pandemic. To share a business or nonprofit story, please send us a message.
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map of Michigan coronavirus cases by county
Courtesy of Bridge, as of March 20

Our roundup of the latest news from metro Detroit and Michigan businesses as well as announcements from government agencies, including updates about the COVID-19 pandemic. To share a business or nonprofit story, please send us a message.

JVS Human Services Begins Hiring Blitz for 45 Direct Care Personnel
Southfield-based JVS Human Services is launching a hiring blitz to secure 45 new employees for positions working with individuals with disabilities.

Twenty-five of these positions will be summer staff employed to work as job coaches for high school students with disabilities who have internships in the metro Detroit area. These positions could be suitable for college students interested in human services, social work, or psychology, or teachers off for the summer. Other new staff will be employed in in positions in Southfield and Detroit where they would be working with participants with disabilities in various skill-development, employment, and engagement programs.

The need for additional staff is due to more in-person programming restarting at the agency’s centers. Full time employees are eligible for a $500 bonus after 90 days employment, and summer job coaches are eligible for a $200 bonus, depending on reliability. Full-time employees receive a competitive benefits package including medical and dental insurance. Starting pay begins at $12 an hour.

“If you have the heart for working with people who are on the path to employment and community inclusion, this is an outstanding opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives,” says Aubrey Macfarlane, COO of JVS Human Services.

Preliminary interviews on Zoom will be conducted on Thursdays at 4 p.m. or 4.30 p.m. on March 25, April 1, April 8, and April 15. For the Zoom link, a detailed job description, or to complete an application, visit here.

UWM to Host Oakland County COVID-19 Vaccination Site
United Wholesale Mortgage in Pontiac will host an Oakland County Health Division COVID-19 vaccination site at its UWM Sports Complex beginning April 2.

The county expects to vaccinate between 1,000 and 3,000 residents per day at the site, which has the capacity to scale up to 5,000 appointments per day if adequate vaccine supply becomes available. Vaccinations will be by appointment only. The county health division will pull appointments from the county’s Save Your Spot list, which currently has about 600,000 registrations. To sign up for the Save Your Spot list, visit here.

“We’re humbled at the opportunity to help our community in Oakland County,” says Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of UWM. “The vaccine is the light at the end of the tunnel, and we’re proud to do our part in ensuring community members have easy access to get vaccinated and play a role in protecting themselves and their loved ones.”

Oakland County selected the UWM Sports Complex because of its large and highly visible indoor space along with the fact it is centrally located in the county with access to major freeways.

As of March 17, more than 284,000 Oakland County residents have received over 440,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine. In addition, nearly two out of every three Oakland County seniors 65 and older have received at least their first dose.

United Wholesale Mortgage purchased the UWM Sports Complex, previously called Ultimate Soccer Arena, in November 2020. The 378,400-square-foot holds four soccer fields, with one currently being transformed into a training space for UWM team members, and the other three remaining intact for community use.

Eaton’s Vehicle Group Launches Toyota Aftermarket Products
Eaton, the power management company based in Galesburg (east of Kalamazoo), has launched an aftermarket ELocker differential for Toyota Tacoma midsize pickup trucks with manual transmissions, model years 2016 to present with an 8.9-inch ring gear and 32 spline axle.

It’s one of 14 aftermarket new differential part numbers for a variety of late-model vehicles from Eaton.

In addition, Eaton introduced 11 other ELocker differentials in the past year that fit Toyota 4Runner, FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser, Tundra, and older Tacoma models.

“We heard requests from Toyota truck enthusiasts and went to work to fulfill their needs,” says Corneliu Bogdan, director of aftermarket product strategy for Eaton’s Vehicle Group North America. “We’re glad to introduce new products that help them enjoy their outdoor lifestyle.”

The Eaton ELocker is an electronic locking differential designed for drivers that want full control and traction on demand. It features net-forged gears for the strength and durability needed for off-road and recreational driving. Electronic controls provide driver-selectable operation and added reliability over similar air-controlled products. By simply pressing a dash switch, drivers can conveniently engage their differential to a 100 percent locked position and back to an open position.

In addition to the new Tacoma ELocker application, Eaton’s Vehicle Group recently introduced Detroit Truetrac differential applications for late-model RAM 1500 V-6 and V-8 pickups, General Motors 1500 pickup trucks with V-8 engines, and 2015 and newer S550 Ford Mustangs with 2.3-liter EcoBoost I-4, 3.7-liter V-6 and 5.0-liter V-8 engines.

Sterling Bancorp Sells Washington Branch to First Federal of Port Angeles
Southfield-based Sterling Bancorp Inc., the thrift holding company for Sterling Bank and Trust, has agreed to sell its Bellevue, Wash. branch to the First Federal Savings & Loan Association of Port Angeles, a Washington state-chartered bank.

The transfer is targeted for completion in the first half of 2021. It includes deposit accounts with a total current approximate balance of $77.7 million and all branch premises and equipment. The agreement provides that the buyer intends to offer employment to all associated staff.

“The pending sale of our Bellevue, Wash. branch represents another step in our strategy to exit ancillary businesses and focus on our core markets, says Thomas M. O’Brien, CEO of Sterling. “We are confident that our deposit customers in the Bellevue office will be very well served by the team at First Fed. Additionally, I believe that the local presence of First Fed along with its opportunities for growth in this market will present significant career opportunities for our very talented staff.”

Virtual Panel Addresses Water Affordability at 4 p.m. Today
We the People of Detroit joins the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights and Fresh Water Future to host a virtual event today at 4 p.m., featuring speakers from the front lines of the national struggle for access to water.

The panel will discuss lessons learned from successful implementation of water affordability structure in U.S. cities and an exploration of the relationship between water access and structural racism in the U.S.

Panelists include Jason Stanley, professor of Philosophy at Yale University; Coty Montag, senior counsel for NAACP LDF; Nadia Gaber of We the People of Detroit: Community Research   Collective; Mary Grant, director of the Public Water for All Campaign; Rianna Eckel, senior organizer for Food and Water Watch; of Robert Ballenger of Community Legal Services of Philadelphia; Monica Lewis-Patrick, president and CEO of We the People of Detroit; and Peter Hammer, director of the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights.

Tiana Starks of We the Youth of Detroit will moderate the discussion.

To register, visit here.

Yes We CNA Health Care Training Facility Opens in Grixdale Neighborhood
Yes We CNA, a health care training facility, opens today at 2 p.m. in Detroit’s Grixdale Neighborhood after a delay caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Kevin Johnson, president and CEO of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp.; and Samania Peterson, owner of Yes We CAN, are scheduled to participate in the grand opening at the 18820 Woodward Ave. facility.

Upon completion of classes at Yes We CNA, students receive a certificate that qualifies them to work in a number of health care-related positions at hospitals and in-home care settings. Students are enabled with the knowledge and skills to care for individuals who are unable to care for themselves or who need assistance with the activities of daily living.

Yes We CNA received a $30,000 is a Motor City Match Round 15 grant and is among several Black-, female-, and Detroit resident-owned businesses receiving support from MCM, the city of Detroit and the Detroit Economic Growth Corp.