WRA participates in Seattle reusable bag effortAssociation members urged to distribute reusable shopping bags
This week WRA Vice President of Government Affairs Mark Johnson participated in a reusable bag meeting convened by the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce. Johnson was joined by WRA member Rebecca Siegmund, Vice President of Marketing for Bartell Drugs.
The meeting was attended by several interested parties including the NW Grocers and Washington Food Industry. Also in attendance were representatives for the Mayor's Office and Seattle Public Utilities.
The event focused on the benefits of reusable bags. These include fewer plastic bags in the waste stream, company savings from lower bag costs and a cleaner environment. Siegmund described her company's industry-leading efforts that include ads in newspapers, "bring your bag" reminder stickers, and seasonal designs on the bags.
WRA encourages members to get involved by offering reusable bags and encouraging customers to bring them. Together we can educate and condition shoppers to use fewer plastic bags.
The City of Seattle and the Chamber of Commerce are looking for retailers with customers in the greater Seattle area to partner with them on their reusable bag program. They are hoping partners will pledge to promote the use of reusable bags, make them visible and available for purchase, establish signage to remind customers to bring their bags and participate in providing low-income customers with free bags. In return the retailer will be featured in city press releases, public utilities mailings, and city and chamber of commerce websites.
If you are interested in participating, please contact Anne Maria Jacobson, Greater Seattle Chamber, annemariaj@seattlechamber.com or call 206-389-7220 at your earliest convenience in order to be listed in the publications and press releases. Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels is planning a press conference May 20 to launch the program.
WRA will continue to work with the City of Seattle and other municipalities on creative, pro-active ways to increase the use of reusable bags and promote the recycling of both paper and plastic bags.
Coalition meets about immigration reform
A coalition of business organizations interested in immigration reform met this week to update members on federal and state legislation related to the topic.
Dan Fazio, lobbyist for the Washington Farm Bureau, reviewed three bills discussed during the 2009 Legislative session:
*SB6183, calling for the quicker deportation of illegal aliens, could be a subject of a special session, if one is called later this year.
*HB1896, calls on the Employment Security Department to establish an essential worker program. The Legislature did not pass the bill this session.
*SB 5850, a bill to protect foreign workers from human trafficking, was approved by the Legislature and sent to Gov. Gregoire for her signature.
The Immigration Reform Coalition is working toward creating a legal and stable workforce to protect against staff shortages in industries ranging from high technology to farming. Like the coalition, the Washington Retail Association agrees that a labor shortage would imperil the national economy in several industries including retail and hospitality.
The Obama administration, which has announced that immigration reform will be a priority, is expected to announce the details of its plans by September of this year, said John Wyss, an employee of Gebbers Farms, a major apple and cherry grower in Brewster, Wa.
During this week's meeting, the coalition reviewed a new U.S. Department of Homeland Security policy to crack down on employers who knowingly hire illegal workers. This policy represents a shift from the Bush administration that tended to focus on illegal workers rather than employers.
According to a New York Times report last month, Immigration and Customs Enforcement believes employers are not deterred from hiring illegal employees if only their employees are prosecuted.
"Enforcement efforts focused on employers better targets the root causes of illegal immigration," the new federal immigration guidelines say.
Coalition members are concerned that this policy shift will increase potential liability for employers that are prosecuted with falsified documents.
The coalition has scheduled its next meeting in July.
Sources include The New York Times
Tri Cities meeting to discuss Legislative session
Business and political leaders are scheduled to meet in Kennewick on Wednesday, May 13 to review the results of the 2009 State Legislature session.
Enterprise Washington is sponsoring the noon discussion at Ice Harbor Brewery, 350 Clover Island Drive in Kennewick.
Sen. Jerome Delvin, R-Richland, and Reps. Larry Haler, R-Richland and Brad Klippert, R-Kennewick, are expected to attend the event, titled: "Working together in support of effective private sector political engagement."
The meeting is open to the public with no admission. A no-host luncheon will be available.
The Northwest real estate market may be showing early signs of recovery, according to the latest Northwest Multiple Listing Service sales reports.
Pending sales were up 11.4 percent in April compared to the same month a year ago, the MLS reported this week. The multiple compiles sales reports from 19 western Washington counties.
In the Puget Sound region including King, Pierce, Snohomish and Kitsap counties, April pending sales totaled 5,372, the highest monthly total since the 5,580 pending sales in August of 2007.
The recession has dropped home prices nearly 13 percent compared to a year ago. Low prices, record low mortgage interest rates, improving consumer confidence and an $8,000 first-time buyer tax credit have combined to spur sales, Realtors said. They cautioned that they would need to see several months of improved sales to declare a market recovery.
"We need several months of sustained growth to demonstrate a recovery in housing," said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors.
Regardless, a spring surge in home sales should be what retailers watch for because homebuyers typically follow home purchases with related retail purchases in decorating and landscaping.
To read more about the latest home sales results in the region, click here.
Source: Northwest Multiple Listing Service
Fewer CEOs pessimistic about economic recovery
There's a bit more confidence among corporate CEOs recently polled about their views on a recovery from the recession.
The percentage of those who expect business conditions in their industry to deteriorate in the next six months has dropped from 53.5 percent in January to 17.6 percent, a poll released this week showed.
"Dim as it might appear right now, Business Council members may finally see some light at the end of the recessionary tunnel," said Jamie Dimon, chief executive and chairman of JPMorgan Chase & Company. "While there are definitely challenging and difficult times ahead...the bottom may have been reached."
The Business Council is an association of CEOs who join the group by invitation. To learn more, click here.
New state IT director named
Gov. Gregoire has named Tony Tortorice, an executive with California Information Technology, as he state's new director of Information Services.
Tortorice, who begins work on July 1, will be paid $147,000 a year. He brings more than 25 years experience in the public and private sectors.
In her announcement, Gregoire said Tortorice would be instrumental in helping to streamline state government while maintain service levels for taxpayers.
Don't miss the opportunity to be a part of WRA's safety loss prevention network
Washington Retail Association is still allowing members to sign up for the Safety Loss Prevention Network.
The association is arranging a meeting date late this month in the Seattle area. These meeting locations will change to allow members from all areas to participate.
In the meantime, please contact Tammie Hetrick, Vice President of Retail Services, at tammie@retailassociation.org to sign up and become part of the networking. The meeting will be an opportunity to meet other professionals and discuss issues happening in your stores.
WRA urges on-the-job training
The Washington Retail Association is encouraging employers to provide on-the-job training (OJT) to injured workers.
Several potential benefits are available to employers who offer on the job training:
*Labor & Industries may offer training fees to compensate employers for the time they invest in OJT. This is true if L&I has approved the training as part of a worker's training plan.
*OJT allows employers to evaluate a worker prior to making a decision about making a permanent hire. A recent vocational survey has shown that employers tend to retain employees as permanent after they offer them training.
*If employers hire trained workers who are granted Preferred Worker status by L&I, the employer is exempt from paying workers' compensation insurance premiums for three years. Also, the employer is protected from insurance risk for three years if the worker re-aggravates an injury or experiences a new work-related injury or illness.
On-the-job training offers employers a chance to increase the skills of workers while offering the employer financial benefits.
If you are interested in learning more about the benefits of providing on-the-job training, contact Nancy Barnes at nancy@retailassociationservices.com or contact Nancy at 360-943-9198, Extension 17.
More retailers offer deals to make sales
Hyundai's offer to make car payments for customers who lose their jobs has encouraged other retailers to ease the nerves of consumers during the recession.
Read more about this retail trend by clicking here.
Source: New York Times
Wal-Mart business with women, minorities expands 25 percent
The recession has not dampened Wal-Mart's business with minority and women-owned firms, the company reports.
Last year, Wal-Mart spent $8.1 billion with minority and women-owned suppliers, an increase of 25 percent, it announced. The numbers were verified by CVM Solutions, a third-party enterprise supplier management company, Wal-Mart said in its announcement.
The Washington Retail Association, WRA, is a 501 C 6 trade association formed to advocate for Washington State’s retailers at the local, state and national level. Since 1987, the WRA has protected Washington's retailers from unreasonable taxes, fees, regulations and legislation. The efforts of the WRA benefit all Washington state retailers and help fuel statewide economic growth.
