Tuolumne County Chamber of Commerce
Chamber News Newsletter
LARGEST BUSINESS ORGANIZATION IN TUOLUMNE COUNTY
February 2016 #23
Winning the War for Talent: The Best Companies Use Training
information from someone who knows a lot. After the employee feels comfortable, brand loyalty. Getting your staff on board If you haven't invested in training your they can be shadowed by the stronger staff is just as important as getting customers on team in a while, then it is time to re-think member. board. your strategies. Companies are focusing * Find Qualified Experts to Teach- you more time and energy on advancing their It Benefits You to Have Highly Trained need to find actual industry experts for employees education. Why is that? Staff training events. Be sure you aren't bringing Not only is it valuable for the individuals People Want To Be Invested In in self-proclaimed experts. Look for those Just like you work hard to add value to but it benefits you as well. that are authorities on the subject. You your customer's lives, you need to put If you want to keep up with your want to be sure that your staff is getting focus on your staff as well. They are competition or bridge the gap between accurate information. people, just like the ones you serve. Finding yourself and major corporations, you need * Set up Individual Training Sessions- it ways to add value to their lives will keep to have solid training for your staff. may make sense to have certain parts of When your employees have the knowledge them loyal to you. training done in groups. However, It is the same principles you would use for they need to take their performance to the individual training sessions are important at keeping your customers happy and coming next level, it benefits you. The more they times as well. When you get one on one back. There is so much that goes into know, the better your company can with someone, they will be able to ask the function. questions they need to without feeling What Types of Training Work Best? weird around the group. Find ways to Maybe you understand how valuable invest in each person individually. training your staff is, but you aren't sure Investing in the education of your staff is how to go about it. Here are a few methods very important. Education efforts should that work well. be a priority to ensure your staff is able to * Shadowing and Hands On Training- handle your industry and help the company sure, digital training has its place, but hands succeed. on training is very valuable. Having one employee shadow another can provide For questions or more information please great information. It allows the employee feel free to contact or send your comments to ask real time questions and get more to Barney Kramer, 209-444-6549 or barney@smra1.com, www.smra1.com.
Fire fee could soon be a thing of the past! Courts finally deliver some good news. Courtesy Sen, Tom Berryhill Finally… some good news on the effort to eliminate the annual CalFire fire tax. This week a Superior Court judge ruled in favor of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association’s (HJTA) lawsuit claiming the $150-a-year ‘fire fee’ is in fact a tax and therefore illegal. A tax requires the support of two thirds of the legislature – something this tax did not have when passed. What does this mean for those of us forced to pay the fee? This ruling means that anybody paying the fee will be included as class action defendants (there is a choice to opt out) and could be eligible for a refund if HJTA continues to prevail in court. In the meantime, property owners can still protest their bill by filing a petition for redetermination within 30 days of the billing date. Information on how to appeal can be obtained at www.calfirefee.com/appeal.
MISSION - To provide leadership for a healthy and vibrant business environment and encourage responsible economic growth that respects Tuolumne County’s quality of life.
California Must Address Our Uneven Recovery Allan Zaremberg - © 2016 California Chamber of Commerce Governor Jerry Brown has proposed a state budget brimming with new revenues, but carefully socking part of the surplus away for a future economic downturn. He understands the impermanence of recovery. In fact, California has been the source of recent national fluctuations, from the dot-com bubble 15 years ago to the more recent housing bubble. Many Economies California is a single state, but many economies. The recovery of the entire state obscures the struggles of many regions and industries. Geographically, our economic divide has worsened. We have wealthy coastal enclaves and poor inland communities; a booming high technology sector and low-wage service businesses. Nearly a quarter of Californians still live in poverty. We can agree on some of the long-term solutions, especially increasing educational opportunities for children in at-risk families. More immediate, however, is developing entry-level jobs for adults living in and on the edge of poverty, and higher-wage employment to open the doors to the middle class.
California is a magnet for investor capital, with a highly talented workforce for certain industries. In these areas, startups will blossom and may eventually create successful businesses. But the issues for mature industries can be quite different. How can they control costs, and afford rent, energy and employment expenses? Can their employees afford to live near the workplace? Common Concern: Costs California’s wide diversity of businesses and industries spawns a broad spectrum of concerns about the business climate. But the common thread is cost. If a company is labor intensive, it cares about complex labor laws and excessive litigation. A housing developer cares about costly delays from abuse of the California Environmental Quality Act. Energy-intensive manufacturers care about the costs of energy. The distribution of the California economy is vastly different than it was before the downturn. While all industrial sectors have restored some jobs, construction and manufacturing have lagged, regaining only four-fifths of their previous job levels. The state’s economy continues to be driven by information technology, life sciences and tourism—industries focused in San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles.
Recovery California is blessed with a strong and diverse economy. Since the recession, we’ve created new businesses faster than the rest of the nation. We’ve also outpaced the nation in job creation over the past couple years. The unemployment rate has dropped by more than 6 percentage points to just under 6%. After six years of recovery, California has gained back all the jobs lost, and then some. Our per capita personal income is 14% higher than the pre-recession peak. But success has a price. In coastal California, the cost of housing has skyrocketed, commutes are longer, and competition for a skilled workforce is more intense. Gentrification is driving poorer residents to outlying areas with fewer services. Inland/Rural Areas Lag But other regions can only wish they had these problems. Many communities in the Central Valley would likely accept higher housing prices if the tradeoff was more robust employment and higher-paying jobs. While coastal and metro California has grown the job base by more than 4% since the recession, job growth in inland and rural California has lagged. 2
Sustaining Recovery A stable, productive economy for all Californians is good not only for California, but also for the country. To sustain the recovery enjoyed by some industries and regions and broaden economic opportunity across the entire state, policymakers should aim to increase certainty and reduce competitive disadvantages for job creators and investors. Broadening our economic base will help hedge against future downturns and budget shortfalls.
Allan Zaremberg is president and CEO of the California Chamber of Commerce. This commentary first appeared in The Sacramento Bee.
UPCOMING EVENTS
FEBRUARY MIXER February 18, 2016 Safari Learning Center (opp. Junction)
MARCH MIXER
March 17, 2016 Tricia Thompson Design Main Street Jamestown
VIETNAM VETS EVENT March 25, 2016 Black Oak Casino Resort
Congratulations to all the Raffle prize winners at our January Mixer
Hosted By: STAGE 3 THEATRE Raffle Prize Host Prize — Four (4) Theatre Tickets Host Prize — Four (4) Theatre Tickets Host Prize — Four (4) Theatre Tickets Ste. Michelle Chardonnay $25 Runway Exchange Gift Certificate Wine, Chocolates and Teddy Bear Eagle Castle Winery Zinfandel One Month’s Identity Shield Bling Bag of Wine The Works Oil Change Package Tupperware Pieces Dinner for 2 at Seven Sisters Half of the Evening’s Raffle Proceeds
Donated By
Winner
Stage 3 Theatre Company Stage 3 Theatre Company Stage 3 Theatre Company Nancy Gottschall/Let’s Go! Travel Runway Exchange Three B's Event Planning Randy Hanvelt Legal Shield Jan Watson/Jazz It Up Iron-on Sparklers Sonora Ford Kecia Entriken Black Oak Casino Resort Chamber Ambassadors & Our Guests
Janis Huckaby Ofelia Ontiveros C. Reed Steffanie Kaiser Thilo Bendix Amelia Harrison Amelia Harrison Gloria Hanvelt Arnie Brockmire Sally Chenault Amelia Harrison Jenny Arnold
Website Member Business Spotlight Umpqua Bank Thank You To All Who Attended Brandon Russell—4th Dimensional Marketing My name is Brandon Russell and I've been with the Chamber of Commerce for over 6 years. I have been an Ambassador for four years and serve as the East Sonora Representative on the Board of Directors. It has been very rewarding to be an Ambassador of the Chamber and because of being with the Ambassadors I was offered chair of Special events in 2015 and helped create the new Annual Luau. I have really enjoyed being a part of the growth of the Chamber and helping make the events more profitable and fun for the community. I enjoy helping with all the mixers and helping them run smoothly and effectively. Working close with certain members of the Chamber has taught me a lot for my future goals and their council has been rewarding. I've made more friends and contacts than I ever thought possible. My business 4thDMC Graphics & Web Design has enjoyed the fruits of the Chamber and all they can do for a business. As long as I'm a business owner I will always be part of the Tuolumne County Chamber of Commerce. If you are thinking about getting more involved with the Chamber, being an Ambassador is one of the best ways to do it. Become a member, get on a committee, help your Chamber and watch how it can help you and your business.
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Federal Unemployment Insurance Taxes: California Employers Paying More California employers can expect a higher federal unemployment insurance (UI) tax bill when it arrives this month. This year will be the sixth in a row that California will have been in debt to the Federal Unemployment Trust Account (FUTA). Each year that a balance is owed to the FUTA, California employers pay a higher tax that goes to pay down the debt and the state must pay interest on the outstanding debt. By the end of 2015, the state will have paid almost $1.3 billion in interest to the federal trust fund. The federal tax on employers increases $21 per employee, per year until the debt is eliminated. The federal UI tax to be paid by employers in California for 2014 was $126 per employee (1.8% on a $7,000 tax base, which includes an additional 1.2% on top of the normal 0.6%). The
maximum tax for 2015 is $147 per employee, and in 2016 it is projected to be $168 per employee (see table). FUTA taxes are due January 31 of the year following the year in which the taxes are applied. The federal UI tax is in addition to the state UI tax (maximum 6.2% on the first $7,000 of wages per employee), and goes directly to pay down the state’s debt to the fund. California’s UI program is funded exclusively from taxes on employers, with the exception of temporary federal grants for administration and certain emergency and extended benefits paid by the federal government. The state of California administers its UI program through the Employment Development Department (EDD) within the guidelines established under federal and state law.
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California employers pay annual taxes on the first $7,000 in wages paid to each employee. Each employer pays a tax rate based in part on the amount of benefits that have been paid to former employees so the tax is partly experience rated. During good economic times, employers that have fewer claims generally are rewarded with a lower tax rate. Because the California UI Trust Fund has been facing financial difficulties for some time, all employers in California are paying taxes under the highest rate schedule allowable under state law, plus a 15% solvency surcharge, which makes the highest state UI tax rate 6.2%, plus the higher federal UI tax that goes to pay down the debt Read More Online at http://goo.gl/ PFXQDY Courtesy CalChamber Alert
January Mixer at Stage 3 Theatre
L-R: TCCC Chair Teri Brockmire with Mixer Hosts, Rocky Rhoades & Kimberly Simmons CLICK HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS