TUE AM News: Sentry survey finds higher expectations for workers among health executives; State rolls out $1.7M in funding for telecoms

May 19, 2026

— A recent survey by Sentry Insurance in Stevens Point found healthcare leaders are placing greater expectations on their workers than other executives.

The insurance company yesterday released the results of its 2026 C-Suite Stress Index, conducted late last year by Wakefield Research, a Virginia-based market research firm. The survey tapped 1,250 executives across the country, including 111 who lead healthcare organizations.

Of that segment, 88% of respondents said they’re asking their workers to “work beyond current expectations,” authors wrote.

The survey found 63% of healthcare leaders are requesting employees either work longer hours or take fewer breaks, compared to 51% of executives in the broader surveyed group that includes other sectors.

At the same time, 54% of the healthcare leaders in the survey said they’re asking workers to take on tasks outside of their established roles. That’s compared to 44% across the total survey group.

Plus, 44% of the healthcare leaders said they’re “shortening training cycles” to speed up the onboarding process, the survey found. Sentry did not provide the comparable percentage for the full survey group.

Jean Feldman, director of managed care for the insurance company, says “these factors are especially startling” when considered altogether. Feldman notes healthcare employees generally are working until they’re older, taking on longer hours with fewer breaks.

“Many of them are being asked to perform tasks they’re unfamiliar with,” Feldman said in a statement on the findings. “At the same time, they’re seeing increased demand for their services — and their time — from an aging population.”

Meanwhile, the survey also found 63% of healthcare executives are concerned about the potential for greater risk of workplace injuries tied to greater demands on this workforce. Seventy-seven percent said they plan to boost worker safety investments this year.

The survey tapped executives with a minimum of 10 employees, including business owners, CEOs, chief financial officers and chief risk officers. It was conducted Dec. 4-16 with an online survey platform that invited participants to respond by email.

See more results here.

— State officials have rolled out $1.7 million in funding for telecommunications upgrades, helping to cover the cost of new telehealth equipment and more.

Gov. Tony Evers and the state Public Service Commission yesterday announced the funding, including 29 grants being provided through the Nonprofit Access Grant Program, the Lifeline Outreach Grant Program, and the Telemedicine Equipment Grant Program.

The first segment of grants includes $500,000 going to nonprofit groups working to expand related services for eligible households and people with disabilities, with individual awards ranging from about $15,000 up to $63,000.

Meanwhile, the PSC is providing $1 million to 10 nonprofit medical clinics and public health agencies, funding the purchase of specialized telemedicine equipment for rural and underserved areas as well as people with disabilities. Individual grants range from under $7,000 to about $240,000.

The final $244,000 will fund four projects aimed at boosting participation in the Lifeline Program, which offers discounts for phone, cellphone and internet services for eligible households. Each of the recipients is getting between $48,000 and $68,000.

“Staying connected in this day and age is a vital part of daily life, but we know that there are still far too many folks, families, and communities who don’t have access to services that meet their basic needs,” Evers said in a statement.

See the release.

— Cargo shipments through the Port of Green Bay in March and April were well below the same period of the last two years, as heavy rainfall in the region this spring has led to shipping disruptions.

During those two months, a total of 40,782 tons of cargo moved through the northeastern Wisconsin port. That’s compared to 100,003 tons in March and April of last year, and 204,695 during the same period of 2024.

Just two commodities have moved through the port so far this shipping season, including about 10,000 tons of cement and about 31,000 tons of petroleum products. Four vessels have delivered cargo to the port, compared to seven at the same point in 2025.

Port of Green Bay Director Dean Haen attributes the “slow start” to the temporary disruption of vessel navigation and port operations.

“Safety is our top priority, and these elevated flow conditions present real challenges,” he said in a statement. “We are working closely with vessel operators and monitoring conditions continuously to ensure that operations resume based on real-time river conditions.”

In an interview last week, Haen told WisBusiness.com the water flow issue disrupting shipping was expected to diminish by the end of last week, opening the backed-up port up to normal operations. But he foresaw further congestion as delayed shipments are delivered, noting “everyone’s going to be chomping at the bit” to the port.

Listen to the full podcast interview with Haen.

See the release and more cargo data from the port.

Editor’s note: The following is an excerpt from the latest WisBusiness column by manufacturing expert Buckley Brinkman.

— How many times do you reach the end of a day — or a week, or a month — exhausted and wondering what you actually accomplished? It’s a frustrating feeling, especially when you worked hard and gave everything you had.

You’ve fallen into the Whirlwind: the convergence of daily tasks, responsibilities, and expectations into one giant cloud of chaos. No process, plan, standard, or skill at your disposal can fully protect you from the real world and its demands. Getting the day job done is hard enough. Creating the innovation and transformation these times require can feel impossible.

But there is a way out. And as the leader, breaking free is your job.

Read the full column here.

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