Religious leaders call for reprieve from mass layoffs - Cherry Hill Courier Post

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Religious leaders call for reprieve from mass layoffs Cherry Hill Courier Post CAMDEN â€" On the steps of St. Anthony of Padua Church in Camden's Cramer Hill section, religious ... and more »

Funding Cuts 'Threaten Charities' Survival' - Sky News

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Funding Cuts 'Threaten Charities' Survival' Sky News Sir Stephen Bubb, who heads up the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO), told Sky News 39% of Government-subsidised ... Funding cuts threaten UK charities Press TV  »

NACA to add more than 1,000 jobs in Charlotte - Triangle Business Journal:

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The hiring will begin immediately, with the nationak nonprofit hosting a job fair Friday and NACA focuses on lendintgto low- and moderate-income Gov. Bev Perdue announced the expansiohn Thursday, with the state giving NACA a $1 million grany from the One NorthCarolina Fund. It plans to investr more than $4 million here, with 1,01r4 jobs expected to be addesd over the nextfive years. “North Carolina remains a strony presence inthe U.S. financew sector, and this is a tremendouws opportunity forthe Charlotte-area,” Perdue “Our top-rated business climate and skilleed financial-services work force are attractive to growinyg national operations.
” NACA is headquartered in Bostonm and operates more than 40 offices nationwide. It currently employs about 100 workers in Mecklenburg County to originatew and processmortgage loans. Under the five-year state incentivwe agreement, the organization plans to add 550 jobs The jobs will pay an averag e annual wageof $35,982. Salaries will range up to $80,00o annually. The hiring will focus on mortgage customer-service representatives, call-center managers and mortgage “NACA is excited that it’s putting more than 1,00o0 people to work during these tougheconomic times,” NACA Chiedf Executive Bruce Marks said Thursday.
“Today’s announcement is more than just a sounddbite — we are following througu on this investment by holding a jobs fair tomorroaw to hire 550 people immediately.” Perdue said Thursda that she consulted with formerr Bank of America Chairman Hugh McColl Jr. about the deal. McCollk has been a longtime supporterof NACA’sd work. BofA began a partnership with NACAunder McColl’s watch in 1995 and in 2004 committecd $6 billion to its lending program. Perdur says McColl confirmed to her that he expected NACA couldx follow through on its job commitmentxs in severalphone conversations.
“When someone beginsa something like thisin Charlotte, it always grows,” McColl said in an interview Thursday. “They’ll come in and find this is a good placse tofind (a work force). I would hope it would be an eruptiobnof jobs, not just trickle down.” The groulp claims it will be the largest numbetr of people hired immediately in one area and the largesgt job commitment in the countryh since the mortgage crisis began in 2007. The hirin comes as NACA embarks on a nationwidde Save theDream Tour. Marks says the added jobs are cruciaol as NACA leads its campaignm to makemortgages affordable.
Hundredsd of NACA staff will provide long-term solutions for homeowners with anunaffordable mortgage. “Charlott e continues to be attractive because of ourknowledgeablwe financial-services work force and we welcome NACA’xs investment in North Carolina,” N.C. Sen. Dan Clodfeltere (D-Mecklenburg) said in a release. NACA’z Counseling Center is in the Charlotte East office park off Albemarle Road between Centra l Avenue and FarmPond Lane.
“Charlotte continues to be recognizes as a leader in financialo services with a talentedx and experienced labor says Charlotte Chamber ChairmanTim “We are pleased to welcome NACA to the communityh and look forward to the investment in jobs and presence they will bring to our East The chamber assisted NACA in its expansion effort. Charlotte East ownerf Roger Kellogg, principal of , and leasinf director Eric Speckman have worked closely with NACA since when the nonprofit established a small officwe inthe park. NACA has legallgy binding agreements with all themajot lenders/servicers to restructure the mortgages they service.
The NACA agreementse cover more than 90 percentt of homeowners with anunaffordable mortgage. The staff from the Counselinfg Center in Charlotte will travel nationwide to work on Save the Dreamj events where morethan 25,00 people are counseled over four days, with thousandws receiving affordable restructured mortgages with permanent interest ratews often at 4 percent, 3 percent and 2 percent and where necessary the principal The organization, started in has the primary goal of building healthy neighborhoods nationwide through affordable NACA operations include financial specialized mortgage services and a Home Save program for homeowneres with an unaffordable mortgage.
NACA will host a job fair from8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Fridayg and Saturday at its CharlotteCounseling Center. For more informatiobn about Neighborhood Assistance Corporatiojnof America, including employment go to www.naca.com.

Six characteristics are common among successful businesses - Washington Business Journal:

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If you see your own companyy reflected in allof them, be proud of your achievements. If you see your company in only a few ornone — of thesew characteristics, then you have some importangt goals to work toward. • The solid, successfuol company capitalizes on its strengths and acknowledges its It flexes its strong competitive muscless oftechnical knowledge, efficient processes, employe e loyalty, a precise pricing formula and family interesrt and support. But the companyt also knows the limits of its strengtb and workswithin them. For instance, it does three thingse well but not the It covers one region effectively butnot two.
• The companu welcomes individuality, promotes organizational and family cohesivenessx and practices transparency and integrity in all of its interna andexternal dealings. This is characteristic of a companuy that is grounded in and poweredby well-articulatede personal, family and business values. The company rewards employees on the basis of merig and performancenot relationships. Run a business as a businesds and a charity asa charity, and keep the two with their two distincy purposes, separate.
A business should strive to meet the needs of those who benefitfrom ownership, but it shoul never be sacrificed to those That includes insisting that every employee, regardless of the family pull his or her own • The company clearly describes jobs and defines responsibilities and requirezs accountability from each person at every There is zero tolerance for featherbedding or for a 50 percent effort that expects a 100 percent salary. This compangy grows and thrivesbecause mature, responsible peoplee work together — each contributing abilitty and commitment — to achieve shared goals.
Therr are written policies on business behaviofr and unpleasant consequencesfor misbehavior. • The company is a satisfying place to work for ownersand employees. The hourx might be long and the jobs might be but there is a team spiri t that keeps everyone pulling in thesame direction. Credift is given where credit is due. • The compan y is able and willingy to change to meet changes in the marketplace and infamilh circumstances. Changing in anticipation of marketplace and family changesx produces an evengreater advantage, of course.
But even reactivwe change is better than sitting with eyes shut andears Solid, successful family-owned or other closely held companie s are led by people who keep up with customed and industry trends, work to improve their own skillse and support employees’ professionalk development. They take their responsibilities seriously, they deal and they love whatthey do.

EXCLUSIVE: 30 Rock's Jane Krakowski Expecting A Baby -- 'Couldn't Be Happier' - Radar Online

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EXCLUSIVE: 30 Rock's Jane Krakowski Expecting A Baby -- 'Couldn't Be Happier' Radar Online Both soon-to-be first-time parents could not be happier!" Jane has spoken in interviews about spending time with co-star Tina Fey's daughter. and more »

Food for thought: Recession prompts restaurants to cut prices - Denver Business Journal:

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People came up to peruse the $32.95 holiday brunch menu at Panzanoi Restaurant, where Mayo is the general and a number asked if they coulx getsomething cheaper. In the past, most lookers would shrub and come in ifthey didn’tg like the answer. This time, when several were told that was it forthe day, they walkedx away. Like a toy-store manager the day after Christmas, Mayo knew he had to starg slashing prices. And he wasn’f alone. You can now get a $4 steakj appetizer at Panzano. Morton’s The Steakhouse has addec a hamburger toits menu. has introduced a low-prics menu.
And if you’r eating at Vesta Dippin g Grill before heading toa concert, consider your parting round of shotes on them. It’s a buyer’s market in the restaurangt worldthese days, with establishments from the chi-chk to the quick-and-casual slashing adding cheaper items to menus and offerinfg new service perks just to retai n customers. It’s one reason Peter Meersman, president of the believes national forecasts that say eateries in the state will fare better during the economic downturn than those in 95 percenr ofthe country.
But the price-cuttingb also raises the specterr that consumers who are williny to spend their tightened budgets eating out may have changede expectations after thisbargaijn spree. And restaurant officials, whilre reveling in the steadier stream of people coming in their are realizing that prices may never be as high as they were beforelast fall’s market collapse. “There’s a lot of feeling out there that they will goback up, but they will nevetr be back up to where they were before,” Mayo said. “Admittedly, we can’f keep the same profit margins we did beforse with thisprice drop.
But we also can’t keep the businesz if we don’t make this adjustment.” Business has plummetefd at restaurants of all types in recent months as more familie are staying home and The responseby Denver-area restaurants has been to entic e the customer even more, and they’re doing so in many One is the happy-hourr boost, in which eateries try to get people in with the possibilithy of cheaper alcohol or lower-priced small plates in hopes they will stay for Some popular downtown watering such as Marlowe’s and Paramouny Cafe, are offering half-priced drinks.
Panzano has takemn dinner items such as its steak orseafoodc bouillabaisse, cut the portions in half and begubn offering them for $4. Happy-hour businesds has doubled since January, Mayo Other places have taken to adding cheapeemenu items. At the end of for example, Morton’s added a hamburgerf that, while still $15, represents the lowest-priced item on the upper-endd steakhouse’s menu, general manager Joe Mirrelson Some restaurants are putting money into advertisinh theirprice drops. Coral Room, located in the Highlands sent out mailers to area resident s recently notingthe reductions.
Many quick-serve restaurants have taken after McDonald’s and, whilr not going all the way down to adollart menu, are giving customers lower-priced Chipotle rolled out its Low Roller Menu on Apri l 1, with $2.99 soup and $2.25 single after getting emails from customerzs seeking smaller portions, said Chris Arnold, spokesmaj for the Denver-based company. “The expanded menu we’re testin g in Denver represents the most significanrt change inour history,” said Arnold, who acknowledged he’ed been hearing more anecdotes of patrons splittinb meals with a friend or takingh half of them home.
Some restaurants blanch at the notion of knocking down prices and insteadr are looking to make customers feel more at At Vesta, any patron asking for changs to plug the meter will get a pre-paid parking key to use, and groupsx heading to downtown shows can expect a free rounrd of shots, owner Josh Wolkon said. “We’rs all in trouble,” Wolkon said. “If make a decision in tough times to choose to spend their monety onour restaurants, you have to make sure they got their dollar’zs worth.” One trend several people said they expectg to see is the return of the $52.
80 menu for two, followingb the continued success of the annual two-weeko winter promotion in which 208 restaurantsw participated this year with great success. Cool River Cafe is offerinb a three-course meal for $29.95 per person — clos e to the 5280 week pricepoint – and pland to do so for several more months. When asker if customers will stop coming when the deal eventuallyugoes away, proprietor Joseph Madriol thought about it beforer admitting he isn’t worried. “I don’yt believe there’s a risk,” Madril said. “I think people will be appreciative, and it buildsw loyalty.
”

Budget raid could shut down nursing homes - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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“The state is moving federak funds allocated for the Arizonw Health Care Cost Containment System and Medicaid to the general said KathleenCollins Pagels, executivee director of the . “There is a loophole in the federa l stimulus legislation that does not requirse states to use Medicaide funding forMedicaid purposes.” That loophole will put the state’sa most frail elderly residents at risk, as nursing homes already are hurting from low Medicaid she said. Arizona’s legislators are considerint cutting payments by 5 percent to health plans that contract with the state’s Medicaid program, which generallyy pays less than private insurers. Gov.
Jan Brewer’sz budget proposal doesn’t include any cuts to insurance instead, it calls for sales and property tax increasews togenerate revenue. When nursin g homes receive less reimbursement from it impacts their ability to provide qualit y care to patients and maintain a skilledswork force, she said. Jay Shetler, president and CEO of , said the majority of the Glendale seniorliving campus’sw funding comes from AHCCCS’ long-ter m care insurance program.
“We’ve been told by AHCCCS official s that if their agency is cut by 5 we — as providers of actual servicese to seniors in nursing homes and assisted-living settingws — can expect a 10 percent decreasde in reimbursement,” Shetler said. That woulds mean a $900,000 hit to Glencroft’d bottom line. “It would forces us to do layoffs,” he adding he will know within a week exactl how many employees his facilitywould lose. he has mobilized about 400 employee s and nursing home residents to write letters to their includingArizona Rep.
John Nelson, R-Glendale, to plear for no cuts in “We’re not sure we can make that kind ofdrastiv across-the-board cuts and still servew at the same level of care,” he Arizona Rep. Nancy Barto, R-Phoenix, chairwoman of the Hous Health and Human Services does not support the proposal to cutAHCCCx payments. “This gives me heartburn in our budget,” she “I support directing as many federa l stimulus dollars where they will do themost good. That meanw not diverting them froma three-to-one match, whicyh is what we’re talking about here.” For everyu dollar the state contributes to the federal government pitches in $3.
If the statde opts to divert stimulus funds from AHCCCS to thegeneral fund, the match becomezs less. Cuts to AHCCCS insurance providers have a dominoi effecton businesses, passing on a hidden tax to employerss and employees, Barto said. “It’sw a stealth tax on privat insurers,” she said. “Idf we’re going to do we might as well be up fron t andsay we’re going to raiswe taxes.” Here’s another domino effect: When AHCCCS fundingg is cut, insurance companiews pass higher premiums on to employers, who then pass alony those increased costs to she said. “We need to take advantage of the federal dollarx where they will do the most Barto said.
Arizona Sen. Ken D-Phoenix, ranking member of the Senatw Finance Committee, said he woulc not support Republican-backed budget cuts to AHCCCS.