You $hould appreciate this post, especially since it was not written for me.
Related: Doing the Bare Minimum For This Post
Trying to make up for it.
"Some fast-food chains find an edge in paying premium wages" by Steven Greenhouse and Stephanie Strom | New York Times
CONCORD, N.H. — The handful of restaurant chains companies’ founders that deliberately pay well above the federal minimum wage were intent on paying their workers more than the going rate partly because they wanted to do the right thing, they said, and partly because they thought this would help their companies thrive long-term.
“The number-one reason we pay our team well above the minimum wage is because we believe that if we take care of the team, they will take care of our customers,” said Randy Garutti, chief executive of Shake Shack.
The nation’s fast-food restaurants, which employ many of the country’s low-wage workers, are at the center of the debate over low pay and raising the federal minimum wage — fueled by protests demanding that fast-food chains establish a $15 wage floor.
McDonald’s was pilloried last year for a hotline that advised employees how to seek food stamps and public assistance for heating and medical expenses.
During the lunchtime rush at the Boloco here, four workers showed impressive teamwork....
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Sunday Globe would rather eat somewhere else:
"Berkshires aspires to be food mecca" by Frank Olito | Globe Correspondent July 06, 2014
About a dozen restaurants in the Berkshires are exclusively farm-to-table, getting nearly all the meats, vegetables and other products on their menus directly from nearby farms....
Where did they have them slaughtered?
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The Berkshires, of course, are not exactly obscure. The area is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which plays at Tanglewood in Lenox. It has a thriving arts scene, including the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, and Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in North Adams. It offers a variety of outdoor activities, including hiking, canoeing, and camping, not to mention the state’s highest peak, Mount Greylock.
But all these attractions can cause problems in establishing a brand by creating a message that is muddled, said Phillip Davis, a branding specialist at Tungsten Branding in North Carolina.
Why did the newspaper just spring to mind?
The key to establishing an effective regional brand is to hone in on one aspect and promote it, he said. Other attractions might be included marketing efforts, but effective branding requires a focus.
Why did the newspaper just spring to mind?
“It is more like a recipe,” Davis said. “You have to have a main ingredient, but it’s not that the other ingredients go away. If everything is equal, it’s tasteless and nothing stands out.”
You can $erve your$elf, if you get my meaning.
Someone is being branded in the Berkshires!
Building a regional brand, Davis added, also requires the participation of the entire community, including the government, organizations, and residents. “There are components, like-minded people, a common vision, a common goal, and a little bit of magic,” he said.
I'm ready for a war.
Finding that magic is important for the Berkshires economy, which relies heavily on tourism.
Not a good thing to base it on.
The Berkshires first became a popular vacation spot during the Gilded Age of the late 19th century when wealthy families built summer mansions.
And we have now returned to such times!
Also see: Gov. Patrick's Party Palace
Finally, breathing space!
Today, some 2.5 million visitors come to the region every year, generating more than $600 million in economic activity, according to state and local tourism statistics.
Restaurants, hotels, and other tourism-related industries account for 1 in 7 jobs in the region, compared with about 1 in 10 statewide, according to the Labor Department.
The Berkshires area, however, has struggled to develop a clear, recognizable brand, local businesses say. Slogans that try to capture the variety of the region’s offerings — such as “Come for the scenery and culture. Stay for the food” — can lead to a somewhat confused identity.
“There’s an issue where either people heard of the Berkshires but are not sure where it is, or what it is, while others never heard of it at all,” said Richard Proctor, who, with his wife, Clare, owns the 16-room Briarcliff Motel in Great Barrington.
The idea for promoting the region as a food destination first emerged after Angela Cardinali, founder and director of Berkshire Farm & Table, a nonprofit that highlights food culture in the Berkshires, noticed small businesses that depend on tourism struggling after the peak summer season.
Related: "nonprofits provide new ways for corporations and individuals to influence"
The paper is of, for, and (wanna)by them, folks.
All of a sudden I'm no longer hungry.
By promoting meats, cheeses, beers, ciders, and seasonal produce, as well as the chefs that incorporate local ingredients to create unique dining experiences, Cardinali believed the region could attract more tourists in the traditional off-season.
She began Berkshire Farm & Table as a way to start a discussion about the role of food culture in the region and its tourism-based economy. The Berkshire Visitors Bureau, the official marketing organization for the region, joined the effort this year by launching a campaign called TasteBerkshires, promoting culinary tours and cooking competitions.
To further help build the brand, Berkshire Farm & Table helped open the Berkshire Farms Market at Terminal B at Logan International Airport featuring farm-to-terminal food, including Berkshires chocolates, syrup, and granola.
Related: Newly renovated Terminal B opening at Logan
“That Berkshire [product] may end up on the lap of someone going across the United States,” Cardinali said. “It may have a longer-reaching impact economically, which we are all hoping for.”
It may also mean more business for small farmers like Laura Meister, who grows vegetables and herbs on 3 acres in Sheffield that she leases from Equinox Farm.
Looks like 21st-century sharecropping to me.
Meister, 46, who calls her operation Farm Girl Farm, said restaurants, including the Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, account for 90 percent of her sales. “Tourists are going to be eating incredibly clean and incredibly fresh grown foods,” she said.
Meister is not only a restaurant supplier, but also a customer. In a time when so much food is mass produced and shipped from all over the country and world, she said, she takes special comfort when she pulls up a chair at her favorite local restaurants....
Oh, believe me, I'm all for local than that corporate crap that is contaminated by who knows what.
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I don't know, folks; there is something I don't like about the promotion of "food tourism" when so many are hungry and starving.
"Long-term unemployed may be making some gains" by Michelle Jamrisko | Bloomberg News July 06, 2014
WASHINGTON — Employers who added 288,000 jobs in June showed they might be taking a more serious look at resumes from the long-term unemployed, who last month accounted for the smallest proportion of US jobless ranks in five years.
Those out of work 27 weeks or longer made up 32.8 percent of unemployed Americans as the overall unemployment rate dropped to an almost six-year low of 6.1 percent, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.
‘‘You’ll see more and more businesses start to hire the longer-term unemployed and that’s going to put some downward pressure on wages as well,’’ said Ryan Sweet, senior economist at Moody’s Analytics Inc. in West Chester, Pa.
The share of long-term unemployed remains more than twice the historical average of 15.1 percent in data going back to 1948. Other measures of labor market health, including underemployment and participation rates, haven’t returned to prerecession levels, according to a dashboard of indicators that Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen has said she monitors to judge the economic outlook.
About half of the drop in unemployment in the past year is due to the decline among the long-term jobless. Overall unemployed fell by 2.27 million, which included 1.24 million of those out of work for 27 weeks or longer. That progress includes a drop in the long-term share over the past six months that matches a stretch in 1993 for the biggest decrease since 1962.
While some of those job seekers are back at the office, others might have contributed to the 676,000 who in June reported being too discouraged to look for employment.
We won't count those.
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Hey, look, rate went down!
And look what went up:
"Earnings season gets into high gear
The Dow topped 17,000 last week, another in a string of records for the index that has lifted portfolios in a five-year bull market. The gain pushed the Dow past its first 1,000-point milestone this year. The record came after another day of good news for the economy: The US reported robust job gains in June, underscoring a trend of stronger hiring and healthy manufacturing. Also helping stocks are solid corporate earnings and support from central banks. Looking ahead, Alcoa is expected to open the earnings season with its results after the market closes on Tuesday. And on Friday, selected chain retailers are set to release June sales comparisons."
That calls for a celebration!
