U.S. payrolls continued to grow in March as the unemployment rate edged down to its lowest level in two years. According to the latest Department of Labor estimates, nonfarm payrolls increased 216,000 and the monthly unemployment rate slipped a tenth of a percent to 8.8 percent. That’s the lowest jobless rate since March 2009. Labor […]
Here’s a preview of a breaking story that will appear in the next edition of The Business Times. The full story will be available on April 7 when the print edition hits the news stands, and online later that day. Efforts are under way to hire executive directoras at both the Fruita and Palisade chambers of […]
Scott Fasken, vice president of Colorado Document Security in Palisade, has been elected president-elect of the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID). Fasken was elected during the national convention of NAID, an international trade association for companies providing information destruction services. Fasken will assume the presidency in 2012, becoming the first person from a rural […]
Half of a dynamic duo who turned an ice cream shop into an ice cream empire and became household names in the process will share his experiences at an annual Grand Junction event celebrating entrepreneurship. Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s Homemade, will deliver the keynote luncheon address at Entrepreneurship Day April 20 at […]
A monthly measure of consumer confidence has dropped on far less optimistic expectations for business and labor conditions over the next six months. The Conference Board reported that its Consumer Confidence Index fell nearly nine points to 63.4 in March. While consumers’ assessments of current conditions improved, a measure of their short-term outlook tumbled more […]
David Miller quickly dispels what he considers the myth that green business practices aren’t good business practices. Efforts to save energy, water and other resources also save money, Miller says. Moreover, businesses that strive to protect the qualify of life of the communities in which they operate engender customers who feel the same way and […]
Sales and use tax collections continue to climb in Mesa County, but lodging tax collections dropped after three straight months of increases compared to last year. According to a City of Grand Junction report for February, sales and use tax collections totalled $3.68 million. That’s a 15.5 percent increase over the February 2010 report. Year-over-year […]
The monthly unemployment rate in Mesa County slipped in February from a seasonal peak, confirming assessments that local labor conditions have improved since the beginning of the year. Gilbert Lujan, supervisor of the Mesa County Workforce Center in Grand Junction, expects the jobless rate to keep trending downward. “I think it will continue with the […]
Kristin Hoaglund has received a jump start on career development as the youngest member of a local chapter of an association for administrative professionals. “It’s been a great benefit,” said Hoaglund, a credit administrator and 24-year-old president of the Book Cliff Chapter of the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP). Hoaglund said she’s gained knowledge […]
As the new director of economic development in Colorado, Dwayne Romero doesn’t expect to wave a magic wand and instantly create jobs. Romero likes the symbolism, though, of working what he calls some “new magic” through creativity and collaboration in the face of limited resources. That’s why he’s brought a magic wand he borrowed from […]