Saturday Stats

33%: Percent reduction in the child care workforce in the state since 2019. And these numbers will likely not improve anytime soon with the lackluster child care provisions in the state budget, including the most harmful changes that were snuck in at the end of the process with no opportunity for public input. Work and Wages Researcher Heather Smith’s new report explores the good, bad, and ugly budget outcomes for child care in Ohio. And if we want to look at policies that would actually benefit child care workers, as well as parents and employers, we should enact Free Child Care for Child Care Workers.

6,200: Number of Ohio jobs shed in September. According to the latest JobWatch, while unemployment fell 0.2 percentage points from August to September, the decline was driven by a second consecutive decrease in Ohio’s labor force, which could translate to slower economic growth in the future. This emerging trend marks a departure from strong growth in Ohio’s labor force seen earlier this year, with an average increase of 9,200 Ohioans entering the labor force each month between January and May.

21M: People enrolled in Affordable Care Act Marketplace health insurance in 2024. They will now be subject to steep premium cost increases due to H.R. 1 allowing ACA enhanced premium tax credits to expire at the end of 2025, with premium increases going into effect January 2026. Watch the recording from our recent town hall for information, resources, and tips for anyone with health insurance coverage through the ACA Marketplace, and read our analysis of federal budget impacts for more on how the megabill will impact Ohioans.

254:1: The ratio of what CEOs at Ohio’s 25 major employers were paid compared to their typical worker in 2024. Median pay was $15,631,028 for the CEOs versus $60,917 in annual pay for their typical worker. That’s according to this year’s CEO Pay Report, which also dives into ways to reduce the incentives that give CEOs a personal pay boost for corporate decisions that harm workers and consumers.

This will be the final edition of Saturday Stats in 2025. Happy Holidays from everyone at Policy Matters Ohio and we’ll see you in 2026!

Action items:

Sign the community support letter for Tanisha’s Law, which would establish a Department of Community Crisis Response in Cleveland, ensuring that mental-health crises are met with care, expertise, and dignity—not criminalization.

Register to attend Justice Unlocked: Record Clearing, Warrant Relief and Support Services on January 30, 2026 at the Cuyahoga Community College Metropolitan Campus.