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Almanac
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Business New Haven
7/13/1998
By: BNH
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It's Official:
The labor shortage in Connecticut has now evolved from rumor to reality. A new survey by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association (CBIA) reveals that fully 90 percent of responding businesses say they are having difficulty filling available jobs or anticipate having difficulty in the coming year. Some 17 percent said they had already lost workers to competitors. “A strong state economy has placed workers - especially skilled workers - at a premium,” says CBIA economist Peter Gioia. Of respondents, more than 43 percent said they were having trouble filling vacant jobs, and nearly a quarter said they were experiencing difficulty finding workers for newly created jobs. The survey also revealed that employers' outlook for both the state and national economies was largely stable.
Stop the Presses:
Connecticut motorists are paying too much for auto insurance. That's the conclusion reached by state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who says auto insurers should lower rates by from 5.9 to 15 percent. A new study, commissioned by the AG's office and conducted by insurance analyst Robert Hunter, reveals that Connecticut is the fifth most profitable state in the nation for auto insurance underwriters, yielding returns 40 percent higher than the national average. In the year to date, rates have declined just 1.2 percent - “far short of the appropriate level for rates in Connecticut,” quothe Blumenthal. The state's top lawyer recommends that rates be based to a greater extent on individual driving records and experience and less on place of residence. He also recommends that the state's Insurance Department review the issue and conduct hearings to determine how rates might be lowered.
Reach Out:
The Shubert Performing Arts Center earlier this month received a $100,000 grant from the Minneapolis-based Carolyn Foundation for the Shubert Family Club, provides tickets to Shubert performances and educational activities to New Haven families at no charge. The family club is an outreach initiative designed to offer educational and cultural activities to inner-city families who might otherwise not be able to afford them. The grant, the Carolyn Foundation's second to the Shubert, will pay for tickets to distribute to qualified families, an additional staff person for the outreach program, and development and production of educational materials in English and Spanish related to performances.
Speaking of the Arts...
: The symbiotic relationship between business and the arts will be the subject of a day-long forum July 26 at Tanglewood in Lenox, Mass., entitled “The Importance of the Cultural Industry to New England.” Sponsored by the New England Council, the nation's oldest regional business organization, in conjunction with the New England Foundation for the Arts, the gathering will feature a keynote address by Boston Pops Laureate Conductor John Williams as well as a panel discussion including Paul Collard, director of New Haven's International Festival of Arts & Ideas. The New England Council has even reserved a block of tickets to afternoon and evening Tanglewood performances by the Boston Symphony Orchestra and pianist Andre Previn. Find out more by calling 617-437-0304.
Layer Upon Layer:
The state's Department of Environmental Protection last month took the wraps off a new division created, it said, to enhance outreach and assistance efforts. The aptly named new Division of Environmental Assistance & Outreach (DEAO) within the DEP commissioner's office combines communications, outreach, environmental equity and technical assistance functions within one office. The new division will encompass the existing Office of the Ombudsman, the Small-Business Assistance Program, the Office of Urban & Community Ecology & Environmental Equity, Office of Affirmative Action, Office of Communication & Education, and Office of Environmental Review. The DEP has also introduced a new Web site (http://dep.state.ct.us) which it hopes will provide improved access to permitting and other environmental information.
More Colorful
Anray Lithographers Inc. located in Milford since 1971 has now added a Komori four color printing press in response to greater demand for four color printing.
Anniversaries:
Transwitch Corp. of Shelton celebrates its tenth anniversary July 15...Autotote Enterprises marked its fifth year as the owner and operator of the Connecticut Off-Track Betting System July 7 at Sports Haven...Business New Haven turns five next month.
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