“This is a moment in time for Americans to move past our divisions to come together and reach our full potential as a nation,” Ken Frazier, the chairman and CEO of Merck and a OneTen founder stated. “Our country’s workforce of the future will be an increasingly diverse one,” Frazier proclaimed.
The Southern California Virtual Business Center (SC-VBC) is an online facility designed to prepare business owners to scale and grow through the emphasis of corporate and government contracts. The SC-VBC hosts different programs for entrepreneurs at different stages of their business, through the program’s curriculum, resources, and mentorships.
Starting Dec.1 at 8 a.m., California small businesses that have hired new employees during the COVID-19 pandemic can begin applying for up to $100,000 in tax credits. The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) has set up a portal on its website to receive the applications.
An analysis from the American Petroleum Institute (API) revealed a mostly positive outlook for African Americans and Hispanics in the oil and natural gas industry. The 2019 study noted that, with the right policies, African Americans and Hispanics could hold 166,000 of the new oil and natural gas jobs created by this year. That represents 31 percent of the projected 525,000 new job opportunities.
“It is not surprising that voters overall rate the economy as the most important issue impacting their vote for president this year given the fragile state of the U.S. economy and their tendency historically to prioritize it and other issues such as national security and education,” Gallup pollsters observed.
Last week, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1244, authored by Senator Steven Bradford (D-Gardena). This bill authorizes state-licensed cannabis laboratories to test samples of cannabis or cannabis products for a state or local regulatory, law enforcement, or prosecuting agency. SB 1244 was sponsored by Los Angles City Attorney Mike Feuer.
There is no way around it—California’s Assembly Bill (AB) 5 has been a disaster for our state. The so-called “gig economy” legislation passed last year has been a short-sighted and dangerous attack on nearly ten percent of our state’s workforce. What’s worse—businesses continue to be attacked on all sides from attorneys looking to exploit the vague “ABC test.” And all this is peaking during the worst health crisis in a century, when millions of Californians remain jobless and small businesses are struggling to survive.
Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced $13 million in U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) grants to support 11 Trade Adjustment Assistance Centers (TAACs) that help manufacturers affected by imports adjust to increasing global competition. The TAACs, which each service multiple states, are located in California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington.
Ridesharing app Lyft announced an initiative that would provide 1.5 million rides to make transportation accessible to underserved communities. The company joined forces with 11 organizations including The National Urban League, Black Women’s Roundtable and the NAACP.
The age-old adage “A good Job can save a life” rings especially true during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Millions of people across Los Angeles have lost their jobs while thousands of people have lost their lives. COVID-19 continues to threaten the health and economic vitality of South Los Angeles neighborhoods. The need for secure permanent employment is heightened even more as California grapples with mountains of requests for unemployment benefits.
Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43), Chair of the House Financial Services Committee (FSC), announced that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) provided grants to each of the three transit agencies that serve her congressional district. The grants were funded by the CARES Act, a $2 trillion economic security package that included several provisions drafted by Congresswoman Waters in her capacity as the Chair of FSC.
Through Wells Fargo’s new Open for Business Fund, the company will engage nonprofit organizations to provide capital, technical support, and long-term resiliency programs to small businesses, emphasizing those that are minority-owned businesses.
Over the last month, several corporations have stepped up to fund the Black community.
Local community partners will have a role in this initiative, President of Greater Los Angeles Raul Anaya stated, “We are looking to potentially partner with philanthropy and other large businesses in L.A., because our goal is to create a program ideally that is sustainable with long standing impact.
In response to Brotherhood Crusade’s COVID-19 Community Rapid Response Fund, The California Wellness Foundation donated a $20,000 grant to help Los Angeles community youth, young adults and families during this critical time. The funds are designed for the most under-served communities that are being adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. During this period when schools and the Brotherhood Crusade YouthSource Center are closed, these funds will directly assist with basic living, academic and household needs and assist students until it’s safe to reopen the Center. “We’ve seen numerous examples across California about how COVID-19 is devastating communities of color,” said Alex Johnson,