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 Mark Your Calendar
AIM/NORBIC
20th Annual Golf Outing.
9.21.10 White Pines
To reserve your spot call
Sharon Elders,
773-594-9292 ext. 6802
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| EVENTS COMING SOON! | |
July 27-29
National Minority Supplier Development Quarterly Meeting- Hyatt Regency
Sept. 21 2010
20th Annual AIM/NORBIC Golf Outing @ White Pines |
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JOIN NORBIC.....
Becoming a member of NORBIC will offer you a host of discounts, resources and opportunities. Our membership rate: $500 per year. Be part of an organization that can help you transform your business and believes that all manufacturers will be stronger if we stand together.
To learn more about membership and NORBIC and the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing. Please call Nisha Floyd at 773-594-9292 ext. 6804 or email at nfloyd@illinoismanufacturing.org.
We Stand Stronger Together.
Here and Abroad.
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| How to Manage Risk and Protect your Business- Recap | |
 Managing you business risk is a great concern for many small businesses. It is also a detail that our companies may not fully understand. At this workshop we had Joe Gagliardo Managing Partner at Laner Muchin reviewing topics on Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation Claims and recent employment law developments and labor laws that affect Illinois Employers. Joining him was Shelly Norman from Chartis Insurance reviewing Employment Practice Liability Insurance and Executive Liability Claims.
For more information on these matters please contact Joe Gagliardo at jgagliardo@lanermuchin.com |
| Lean Manufacturing Workshop- Recap | | |
 On May 12, Ara Surenian, President and Founder of Cadent Resources, provided a free educational seminar to our clients on the importance of supply chain management. There were representatives from 12 different manufacturing companies in attendance. Ara explained what tools and processes companies can use to effectively manage their supply chain and how this directly relates to the company's profitability. |
| Strategic Planning for Global Markets- Recap | | |
On June 9th The Illinois International Trade Center at the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing/NORBIC hosted the seminar entitled, "Strategic Planning for Global Markets" presented by Mr. Fabrice Bonvoisin of FB International LLC. The seminar resulted in high levels of participation as the group was presented with a product of a foreign company wishing to enter the US market. The group was asked to consider all aspects of the product, packaging, marketing material etc and recommend a strategy to the company. This exercise demonstrated the challenges faced by US companies trying to sell their products into foreign markets and the need to plan the entry accordingly.
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| My Bid-Match Event- Recap | | |
My Bid-Match Workshop
A joint event with the Federation of Women Contractors was hosted at AIM/NORBIC on Thursday June 17th, over a dozen companies were in attendance for a demonstration by our PTAC Director Jim Peters on the bid matching service we offer. This service searches 6 major data bases for federal subcontracting, large and small purchases as well as state and local government bid opportunities. It is a valuable marketing tool for almost any company that has government marketing potential. The service is provided free to our PTAC clients but would cost between $200-400 per month if the services were secured outside of our network.
For information on the bid match service contact our PTAC Center, Jim Peters 773-594-9292 6806
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| SBIF Deadlines | | |
The Small Business Improvement Fund (SBIF) is a city of Chicago TIF-based grant program designed to assist with building renovation for companies located within a TIF District. Grants of up to $150,000 with up to 75% of the rehab costs rebated make the program very popular and sometimes critical to a small company's growth sustainability.
DEADLINES FOR APPLICATIONS:
Addison South
Application Deadline: 7/9/10, $250,000 Released
GooseIsland Application Deadline: 7/9/10, $250,000 Released
70th Street Corridor Application Deadline: 7/12/10, $500,000 Released
Thirty days after the public roll out meeting applications are due. Demand for the funding may or may not result in a lottery for the funding. Applications are due by the end of business on the deadline date. Submit the applications by fax or e-mail and confirm receipt by contacting Kelly Collings at kcollings@somercor.com. |
Coming this Fall...
ALLIANCE BUSINESS ROUNDTABLES | | |
 As another member benefit, the Alliance intends to begin a new Alliance Business Roundtable Program. Initially, we will start with three Roundtables, Manufacturing Operations, Finance and Sales and Marketing. The Roundtables will meet quarterly - or more frequently (based on the chairs) and are self directed. The chairs develop agendas for meetings, (they can bring speakers, etc.) Chairman Ralph Keller, past President of AME and Board Treasurer, Ron Thompson from Shure have agreed to Co-Chair the Manufacturing Operations Round Table. The Financial Roundtable will be Co-Chaired by Mike Massaro from Porte Brown and Jerry Flynn, CFO for Bretford. The Sales and Marketing Roundtable will be Chaired by Craig Shields, President of Graymills Corporation. If you are interested in participating in these Roundtables, contact Nisha Floyd at nfloyd@illinoismanufacturing.org. If are interested in Chairing a subject matter Roundtable that we have not identified, please let us know. Companies can have staff attend one or all of the Roundtables. |
| Upgrade your Global Supply Chain | | |
 The Alliance has a new, free service for our clients who ship their products to international destinations.
With the hiring of Mr. Sander Hos, as the new International Transportation and Customs Director, we are now able to offer a comprehensive review of the international supply chains of Illinois companies at no cost.
Mr. Hos has 21 years experience in freight forwarding, air and ocean freight, customs clearance, export compliance and the evaluation of FedEx and UPS pricing agreements. The analysis of your current procedures, pricing agreements, and practices has three primary goals:
1. Lower your transportation spend.
2. Enhance compliance with US and foreign customs laws regulations (NAFTA,EEI,VAT)
3. Optimize your supply chain (i.e. shorten transit time, choose the right transportation mode, evaluate your current providers, etc.) Read more
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Illinois Entrepreneurship & Small Business Growth Association (IESBGA) Spring Conference- Recap
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The Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing/NORBIC's four Center Directors accompanied CEO Pam McDonough to the 2010 Illinois Entrepreneurship & Small Business Growth Association (IESBGA) Spring Conference held in Decatur on May 24th and 25th. In addition to center-specific training modules, meetings and informative seminars, Jill R. Mehrberg, Acting Deputy Director of Office of Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Technology addressed the attendees during the IESBGA Annual Meeting.
Mary Roberts, Interim Acting Director of the Illinois Office of Trade & Investment (OTI) was also present during the 2-day conference. With President Obama's goal of doubling exports in the next 5 years, the Illinois Office of Trade & Investment and the Illinois Entrepreneurship Network (IEN) will be more proactive in identifying and encouraging companies with high export potential. |
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Communicating with your Workforce | | |
Since 2000, approximately 80% of Chicagoland's population growth has been due to increases in the Latino population, and an average of one in every five Mexican workers is employed in the US manufacturing industry.
An increasingly multilingual and multicultural workforce presents a combination of challenges and opportunities for employers concerned about employee performance, accidents, engagement and retention. As the workforce continues to diversify, it's all the more important for employers to find ways of bridging the language and culture gap in the workplace. One way is by offering English as a Second Language (ESL) training on site. These classes focus on teaching the concrete English skills employees need to read safety signs, call-in sick and understand directives. These classes are appropriate for employees of all language backgrounds who need to improve their language skills and develop the confidence to use them. For those organizations with a large Spanish-speaking workforce, another approach is to offer your English-dominant staff the Spanish training they need to interview, hire and train Spanish-speaking employees, as well as to develop stronger relationships with them. Read More |
Green Recycling Initiative Coming to Hu-Friedy | |
 Hu-Friedy, the revered manufacturer of dental instruments will participate in the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing's Green Recycling Initiative in July. In addition to cell phones, the program will include previously used laptops, digital still and video cameras, mp3 players, GPS devices, and ink-jet cartridges. Speaking to the program, Pam McDonough, CEO of The Alliance commented, "Joining forces with local companies, we believe, provides a convenient opportunity for employees to recycle electronics that would probably sit unused in a drawer for years to come and, ultimately, end up in a landfill." The non-profit organization Recycling Fundraiser, the final recipient of the items, refurbishes the donated electronics that continue to have market value. The products that have surpassed their useful life are sent to a smelter to extract the precious metals contained within the electronics. The Alliance is paid an amount for each and every item sent and has become an important source of revenue with the added benefit of reducing the amount of waste being sent to landfills. |
| New Small Business Job Creation Tax Credit | |
 On April 14, 2010, Governor Pat Quinn signed Senate Bill 1578, the Illinois Small Business Job Creation Tax Credit. The new law provides a $2,500 credit to small businesses, defined as 50 or fewer employees, that hire new, full-time employees during a 12-month period beginning July 1st. This legislation was sponsored by Senator Michael Noland and House Speaker Mike Madigan. "Small businesses are essential to the Illinois economy and it's crucial that state government find fresh and creative ways of working with entrepreneurs, who will lead the charge toward economic recovery." according to Governor Quinn. "This tax credit will help our small business owners and operators to grow by creating 20,000 jobs over the next year."
Eligibility for the tax credit includes:
-New job sustained for one year
-Annual pay of at least $25,000
-50 or less employees - includes all locations and related businesses
Total amount of credits issued is capped at $50Million. Applications for the credit may be submitted as soon as new, full-time employees are hired. Companies can apply on-line for credit and will be issued a tax credit certificate beginning July 1, 2011. |
| HUBZone Set-aside Absolute | | |
Under the SBA's Parity policy and regulations, before letting a contract for small businesses, federal agency contracting officers may choose among SBA's procurement and business development programs 8(a), HUBZone, Service Disabled Veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) and Women-owned small businesses (WOSBs - currently being revised in SBA pending rules) without giving one preference over the others.
The SBA was sued in Mission Critical v. U.S. and the Court of Federal Claims held that the Small Business Act requires contract opportunities to be set aside for HUBZone firms whenever two HUBZone firms are available to perform the contract at a fair price. Apparently the SBA had two conflicting positions on this issue. Their practice is to offer the contract opportunity to all of the small business groups, not giving an absolute preference to the HUBZone company. The SBA plans to attempt to make changes to the Small Business Act, clarifying that contracting officers' can exercise discretion to treat SBA's programs equally.
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| MIDWEST CLEAN TECH 2010 | | |
In conjunction with the 2010 International Manufacturing Technology Show, the Global Midwest Alliance, The Midwest Research University Network and Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione are co-sponsoring the Midwest Clean Tech 2010 Brinks Innovation competition in conjunction with Midwest Clean Tech 2010. The one and a half day program will exhibit Midwest excellence in Clean Technology innovation, products and services. The Program will be held September 14 and 15, 2010 at McCormick Place in Chicago.
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| Affinity Insurance Program | | |
Stay tuned for new information on the Plexsus Affinity Program being launched for members on the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing.
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| National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) | | |
Please assist NCMS to develop the solution for providing SBE's with access to High Performance Computing resources by completing a brief 10 minute survey. For reference, NCMS is working with AMT/IMTS on folding this effort in with the MTConnect project introduced in 2008.
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| ComEd Case Study:
A Custom/Process Chiller Project | |  Read a Comed case study highlighting a chiller retrofit ay Armacell LLC in South Holland,IL Read More |
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State of the State
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As the economy takes its time to recover, the Illinois legislature again left Springfield without developing any Illinois Recovery Plan to begin digging the State out of our financial crisis. The Illinois House and Senate adjourned on Thursday, May 27, each chamber to return at the "call of the Chair." Conventional wisdom is that nothing significant will happen until after the November elections in terms of tax increases or other revenue enhancements to truly balance the State Budget. The FY2011 Budget and related legislation passed without Republican votes with the pension bonding/ borrowing plan left on the table. This $3.7-$4Billion issue is necessary to actually balance the budget. The Senate did not pass SB3514 which included this plan and the House failed to pass HB 543 which essentially legislated a "pension holiday" deferring the pension payment for another year. Although a cigarette tax was also in play it did not pass as a revenue enhancement. Again this year, the General Assembly passed a budget that is not in balance and gave extensive powers to the Governor to make the necessary changes to cut agency budgets. This shifts the responsibility for these decisions squarely on the Governor and not with individual legislators for any negative back lash. As this is an election year, the General Assembly did not want to shoulder this responsibility for fear of political repercussions. STATE SIDE: Several important business legislative updates: Governor Quinn signed the one-year extension of the R&D Tax Credit legislation, his Small Business Job Creation Tax Credit offering small companies with under 50 employees up to a $2,500 tax credit per new employee hired and retained for one year, the Telecommunications Re-write law encompassing wireless communication, and high-speed broadband internet, and a state tax credit for Angel investment offering the taxpayer a credit equal to 25% of the amount invested and allows the credit to be carried forward for 5 years was also signed into law. CITY SIDE: After several years of waiting the City Council approved a new Walmart in the Pullman neighborhood. Walmart will be investing $1.25B in the Chicago area for new super stores, neighborhood stores and some of their boutique stores over the next 5 years.  |
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Third Annual Mayoral Lunch | |  On May 21, 2010, the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing/NORBIC again welcomed Mayor Richard Daley as our keynote speaker for the Annual Mayoral Luncheon . Nearly 300 small and mid-sized manufacturers, elected and government officials and business service providers showed up in force, many showcasing their products, company services and capabilities as part of the networking/trade show component to the event. Each table show cased a gift box with green cleaning products, donated by the Portion Pac as part of the event's "Green Theme".
In opening the event, President/CEO, Pam McDonough indicated that this event celebrates one of Chicago's major business sectors, manufacturing. She presented a case study about the Howe Corporation's President, Mary Howe. Mary chairs NORBIC's Board and was part of the team that founded the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing. Read More |
Made in Chicago
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MAYOR DALEY PAYS TRIBUTE TO CHICAGO MANUFACTURERS
On April 19th , Alliance President was invited to participate in a press conference with Mayor Daley announcing "Made in Chicago" day, celebrating "Products, Innovations and the History of Chicago Manufacturing Companies". Hosting the event at the Daley Plaza, 20 Chicago manufacturers participated in the Made in Chicago Day events.
"Manufacturing has always been an important part of our City's history and today we are all still strongly committed to making sure the city remains a world premier manufacturing center," said Mayor Daley during he celebration on the Plaza. "Regardless of their size or industry, all the companies represented her today have one thing in common - they all chose Chicago as the place to establish and grow their businesses."
Read More |
MANUFACTURING KNOW "HOWE"
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|  When you first visit Howe Corporation of Chicago, you are welcomed to the conference room by what CEO Mary Howe refers to as the Hall of Dead Relatives. A fourth generation manufacturer founded in 1912, Howe produces flake ice equipment, plate heat exchangers, pressure vessels and compressors. Like many of our companies, this story of survival is based on creativity and strong partnerships.
One of Howe's claims to fame is a "blending" of Chicago signature companies. During the original marketing of the Berghoff Restaurant and their beer, Mary's father was a model and his image was on both the beer label and on the menu.
Read More |
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National Health Care Briefing | | |
On April 26th, the Alliance hosted a briefing on the new national health care law for a group of 40 at Colletti's Restaurant. With the passage of the Health Care Reform Law many small businesses are uncertain about the effect on their business. Attendees heard from three experts on the subject.
Mitchell Andrews, Partner at the Plexus Groupe served as the facilitator for the event. The panel presented three perspectives on the Health Care Reform Law:
What is the new law? Andrew Slobodien, Partner at Wildman, Harrold, Allen & Dixon expressed his views on the plan from a legal perspective. There are some general provisions in the new law that begin six months after enactment. No lifetime maximums on "essential health benefits"; no rescission or cancellation except for fraud, non-payment, termination of plan; offers public, self-funded long-term care program with payroll deductions; wellness incentives up to 50%; no pre-existing conditions - only children under age 19 until 2014; high-risk pool for pre-existing condition and uninsured for at least six months; employers pay expenses if incentives to switch to high-risk pool; coverage until age 26; no cost sharing for certain preventative services (well-childcare, immunizations, mammograms, pap smears, genetic counseling, osteoporosis screening; no annual limits on essential health benefits(2011 none in 2014); maximum waiting period for coverage 90 days (2014); guaranteed access and renewability (2014); fair premium ratings (2014); disclosure of value of each employee's health benefits on W-2's (2011); uniform explanation of benefits and coverage (2013); notification to current and new employees (2014). These are some of the highlights of the law. Read More |
GOVERNOR QUINN ANNOUNCES $1 MILLION "GREEN GRANT" TO S&C | | |
On June 17, 2010, S&C Electric hosted Governor Pat Quinn to announce a $1 Million grant in federal stimulus funds to manufacture products that improve distribution and transmission of electricity and to install a new green roof. These two projects are expected to create more than 300 jobs and retain 121 jobs.
"Investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency are critical to our efforts to create jobs, boost the economy and build a more sustainable future, " said Governor Quinn. "This funding will allow S&C Electric Company to expand its workforce and support the development of renewable energy."
The company's products will facilitate connection of renewable sources such as wind, to the electric system and facilitate development of smart grid technologies. "S&C is dedicated to improving the energy landscape in a green and efficient manner," said CEO Estey. "The ATC allows us to more speedily develop the solutions needed for grid interconnection of renewable and thus accelerate the country's move to a smarter, greener grid."
Director Warren Ribley, Director of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity stated," Our combined investment in Illinois manufacturing and the renewable energy sector is helping to ensure Illinois manufacturers can continue to prosper and helps to advance the state's green goals."
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| Key Access Point to International Markets | | |
 Global Midwest Alliance is a not-for-profit organization that seeks to bring together key stakeholders in the Midwest region in order to achieve sustainable economic growth in our business community. Created with a clear vision that regional cooperation and international engagement are key components necessary to achieve continued economic growth and prosperity for our communities, the Alliance creates common platforms to showcase our region to the world and encourages collaboration for greater competitiveness in the global marketplace. One of Alliance's many partnerships includes a unique relationship with the World Bank Group, the largest source of development project financing. The Alliance was named the first Private Sector Liaison Office (PSLO) to the World Bank Group (WBG) in the United States, becoming a part of the network of 100 business intermediary organizations in 80 countries around the world working to foster trade and investment between countries with the support of the World Bank Group's products and services. As the PSLO, Alliance's role is to facilitate companies' access to WBG business opportunities, services and knowledge, and act as the voice of the private sector in advising the WBG on how to better engage companies on development issues. The PSLOs also work among each other to create partnerships and establish contacts across the globe. With this partnership, Midwest companies now have direct access to $25 billion in procurement contracts that are funded annually by the World Bank and a variety of financial and risk mitigation products offered by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). A great number of these contracts are for manufacturing technologies and industrial goods. Those who are interested in learning more about international business opportunities, particularly in emerging markets, or are planning to travel abroad and need business contacts, are encouraged to contact Ms. Kasia Batorski, the Private Sector Liaison Officer to the World Bank Group, at 1-888-808-0462 or kbatorski@globalmidwestalliance.org. |
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| S&C In The Spotlight | | 
FWC Project of the Year Award for the ATC.
On June 3, 2010, the Federation of Women Contractors hosted their annual awards event. The Project of the Year Award was given to S&C Electric Company for their Advanced Technology Center. The Federation is a trade group for women-owned construction companies that has advocated for women in the construction industry for 20 years. The project of the year award is given to an owner that embraced minority and female participation as part of their project plan and aggressively included them in the construction of the project.
In 2008, S&C started construction on one of the most innovative facilities of its kind. The 43,000 sq. ft. Advanced Technology Center (ATC) is one of the most environmentally-friendly facilities of its kind in the world and the first industrial building in Chicago to be LEED Gold Certified. The ATC features a high-power testing laboratory that will enable S&C to test its Smart Grid products at home, accelerating the development and delivery of solutions critical to integrating renewable energy sources to the grid, particularly at the distribution level.
A number of FWC members worked on the ATC project, including, DeAngelo McDonough Construction Management, Roughneck Concrete Drilling & Sawing Co., Andersen Concrete Pumping, EE Bailey Building Material and Supply Co. and JADE Carpentry Contractors. In addition, last year's award winner, Bulley and Andrews, was the general contractor on the project.
Steve Mark, Director of Facilities Engineering & Maintenance at S&C Electric Company accepted the award. As project manager, Steve was committed to exceeding the project goals of 24% Minority and 4% Women. |
S&C Electric's R&D Facility in Chicago | |
| ILLINOIS CHAMBER EDIE AWARD | |
On June 18, 2010, S&C Electric was awarded the Illinois Chamber of Commerce Edie Award for Manufacturing for their Advanced Technology Center. Accepting on behalf of the company were Mike Moses and John Blumenshine. As the economic development organization nominating S&C, Alliance President, Pam McDonough also accepted the award.
The Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing and NORBIC jointly nominated S&C 's Advanced Technology Center for the 2010 Edies Awards. The project in addition to its innovative and strategic technological impact exemplifies outstanding economic and community development. An industry leader in electrical manufacturing, S&C chose to "anchor" its twenty year capital improvement strategies with a state of the art research and development project. The center positions S&C to expedite and control its technological advances from the laboratory to the marketplace more cost effectively. When many companies move operations out of the state or country, S&C has chosen to perform its continuous improvement and innovation efforts in Chicago.
Recognizing the diversity of the Chicago workforce and marketplace, S&C placed a high priority in exceeding the Minority and Female Construction goals for the project. A valued and involved community partner with its local residents, businesses and community organizations, S&C placed an equally important value on being environmentally friendly at this industrial campus. The ATC has achieved LEED Gold Certification, incorporating a Green/Energy Star roof making it one of the most environmentally friendly facilities of its kind in the world.
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| HSAs Part of Health Care Solution | |
What impact will healthcare reform have on your company this year? The current news isn't necessarily good. Increased coverage mandates on insurance carriers by the Federal Government in the short term are having a dramatic impact on the cost of health insurance for employer provided health insurance plans. While HSA clients of American Chartered Bank represents a small sample size, stories of group insurance plan renewals exceeding 20% to 30% are more the norm rather thanthe exception during in the past couple of months. With the cost of benefit plans more than doubling for many companies over the last five years, this issue is becoming an increasingly more important risk management problem due to the dramatically higher costs and uncertainties regarding the legislation, much of which has yet to be written.
So what can you do? Many employers over the last two years have done little or nothing regarding this critical issue, other than making adjustments to their benefit plans by changing deductibles, co-insurance levels and co-pays, with most of the cost containment of the company's benefit plan being shifted to the employees in the form of higher premiums. While this adjustment allows employers to continue to offer benefits, many employees in the company-sponsored benefit program are being financially stretched leading them to seek alternatives or opt out of coverage altogether. Read More
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| EIGHTEEN ALDERMEN INTRODUCE "LIVING WAGE" ORDINANCE | | On April 14, 2010, eighteen Aldermen signed onto a "Living Wage" Ordinance introduced in the Finance Committee, Chaired by Alderman Ed Burke. The national minimum wage law was increased to $7.25 on July 24, 2009. Illinois' minimum wage rate was $8.00 in July 2009 and is scheduled to increase to $8.25 on July 1, 2010. With the economy not showing any significant signs of recovery is it really the time to increase this wage to $11.03? This is what the proposed new Ordinance would require.
The world, country and the Chicago region are experiencing the worst recession that many indicate is nearly as bad as the Great Depression. Even with the various federal stimulus programs, few small businesses are seeing any relief or access to financing, in fact, many have lost their existing financial relationships, even without any negative financial history. Over the last year, Illinois payrolls were cut at a rate of 4.57%, higher than the 4.12% national rate.
Government is not paying its bills and as a result business is actually financing government operations. There are continuous increases in fees and fines and new ones are being created. There is no way for small business to anticipate costs for these many government requirements to manage their corporate cash flow. Again, is this the time to increase Chicago's minimum wage to almost 60% higher than the federal minimum wage and nearly 40% higher than the state minimum wage level?
Under the "Living Wage" Ordinance proposed in the Finance Committee, businesses with 50 or more employees that receive direct or indirect city subsidies will be required to pay a wage of no less than $11.03 per hour. Financial assistance means improvement to property, including lessees and TIF reimbursement or any other city funds.
If you would like a copy of the proposed ordinance, contact Nisha Floyd at nfloyd@illinoismanufacturing.org. If this ordinance would negatively affect your business make sure to communicate your views to your Alderman.
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