Economy

States Order Nonessential Businesses to Close

March 21, 2020

Editor’s note: Various states, counties and cities have issued some form of “shelter-in-place” or “stay-at-home” orders including California, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Oregon, Ohio, Connecticut and Illinois, as well as cities such as St. Louis, Kansas City, New Orleans and some counties in Colorado, Georgia and Idaho, among others. The list grows by the day. This article focuses on two states and is not intended to be comprehensive.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf ordered all non-life-sustaining businesses in Pennsylvania to close their physical locations as of 8 p.m. Friday, March 19, to slow the spread of COVID-19. Life sustaining business include grocery stores, gas stations, farms, and transit systems.

Due to the high volume of waiver requests, enforcement actions against businesses that do not close physical locations following the deadline have been delayed until 8:00 a.m., March 23. The order remains effective until further notice.

“To protect the health and safety of all Pennsylvanians, we need to take more aggressive mitigation actions,” said Gov. Wolf. “This virus is an invisible danger that could be present everywhere. We need to act with the strength we use against any other severe threat. And, we need to act now before the illness spreads more widely.”

Under the governor’s order, primary steel and aluminum mills may remain open. All fabricated metal product manufacturing, however, is closed down.

A partial list affecting the metals industry is below and the entire list may be accessed here.

Open:

Primary Metal Manufacturing

Iron and Steel Mills and Ferroalloy Manufacturing
Steel Product Manufacturing from Purchased Steel
Alumina and Aluminum Production and Processing

Machine Manufacturing

Agriculture, Construction, and Mining Machinery Manufacturing
Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing
Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing
Engine, Turbine, and Power Transmission Equipment Manufacturing
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing

Transportation

All except charter bus and sightseeing

Closed:

Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing

Forging and Stamping
Cutlery and Hand tool Manufacturing
Boiler, Tank, and Shipping Container Manufacturing
Hardware Manufacturing
Spring and Wire Product Manufacturing
Machine Shops, Turned Product, and Screw, Nut, and Bolt manufacturing
Coating, Engraving, Heat Turning, and Allied Activities
Other Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing

Machine Manufacturing

Industrial Machinery Manufacturing
Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial
Metalworking Machinery Manufacturing
Other General Purpose Machinery Manufacturing
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
Motor Vehicle Manufacturing
Motor Vehicle Body and Trailer Manufacturing
Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturing
Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing
Railroad Rolling Stock Manufacturing
Ship and Boat Building
Other Transportation Equipment Manufacturing

Construction

Residential Building Construction
Nonresidential Building Construction
Utility Subsystem Construction
Land Subdivision
Highway, Street, and Bridge Construction
Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction
Foundation, Structure, and Building Exterior Contractors
Building Equipment Contractors
Building Finishing Contractors
Other Specialty Trade Contractors

California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a similar executive order on Thursday asking all Californians to remain at home except those designated as “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers.” The essential designation includes, among others, primary metals manufacturing and manufacturers in the energy sector and transportation equipment.

“This order is being issued to protect the public health of Californians,” said Newsom. “The California Department of Public Health looks to establish consistency across the state in order to ensure that we mitigate the impact of COVID-19. Our goal is simple, we want to bend the curve and disrupt the spread of the virus.”

The order will be enforced by the state, but Newsom believes social pressure will be the driving force behind compliance.

As of Sunday, March 22, non-essential businesses have also been closed in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Illinois, Ohio and Lousiana and residents have been asked to stay at home or shelter at home. Due to the large populations in these states, it is now estimated that nearly one quarter of the U.S. has been asked to remain home during this crisis.