The Business Perspective

Last Thursday, the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) was among three programs from the L.A. region awarded a Career Pathways Trust Grant to educate thousands of students through partnerships with businesses. LACCD received $15 million to support programming that blends academic and career technical education, cultivates business education partnerships, and trains students for jobs in high-demand fields, such as health care, advanced manufacturing, information technology, bio-technology and engineering. 

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Is there a long-term benefit to Los Angeles County and all of Southern California that can come from this brutal, historic drought? Yes, if the call by Gov. Jerry Brown to lower water use turns out to have a permanent, lasting effect. Lowering demand will allow the system to store more water in wet years so that sufficient water is held in reserve to meet the demands of future droughts. 

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The California economy received a potential shot in the arm on Friday, when the U.S. Senate voted to give President Obama greater authority in negotiating trade agreements with other nations. On a 62-37 vote, the Senate sent the trade promotion authority bill to the U.S. House of Representatives, where it is expected to be hard-fought as well.

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There have been times when the voice of business was a distinct minority on issues before the Los Angeles City Council. That was not the case during the five hearings on increasing the minimum wage that City Council held throughout L.A. this spring. Small businesses that urged the City Council to go slower with the minimum wage increase, carve out small business and non-profits and include tips in calculating the total compensation that their employees earn represented about half of the speakers at the hearings.

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Two weeks from today, 100 local leaders will travel to our State Capitol for the Chamber’s annual ACCESS Sacramento trip. The purpose of this day and one-half mission will be to advocate for legislation and policies that will invigorate the Southern California economy, create new jobs and deliver essential services for the people of California.

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Last Friday in Washington, D.C., the L.A. Area Chamber and UNITE-LA were invited to a White House Summit on Upskilling America. Nearly 400 leaders from business, labor, education, foundations and nonprofits from across the country gathered with Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez and Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker to share initiatives and big ideas on building a competitive business climate and a stronger middle class by investing in educational programs to better equip America’s workforce. 

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During the Chamber's ACCESS Washington, D.C. trip to our nation’s capital in March, increasing American exports through international trade was a high priority for the 190 representatives of business, government and the non-profit sector. Increasing exports gained momentum last Thursday when a compromise proposal to give President Obama Trade Promotion Authority was announced by key leaders in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

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The current drought requires all of us to be on the same team when it comes to conserving water. Whether your goal is reducing the water you use by 20 percent, 25 percent or more, every business and every household in Los Angeles County must carry its share of the load. 

Lawmakers, major water users and environmentalists have already started to blame someone else for our current water shortage. For a moment, let’s stop blaming someone else and look to our own ingenuity. We are in the fourth year of a drought, the snowpack in the Sierras is five percent of normal and we are running out of water. It is time for all of us to take action. 

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Employment for young adults continues to decline nationwide and 6 million young adults are neither working nor in school. Research shows that summer jobs encourage young people to graduate from high school and continue their education in a community college, trade school or four-year university. It is the goal of HIRE- LA’s Youth to give thousands of young people in Los Angeles County the opportunity to learn valuable life skills by earning a paycheck this summer. 

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In 1926, the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce sponsored a celebration of International Trade that became a predictor of the future. That celebration, World Trade Week, was intended to open the eyes of Angelenos to the international trade opportunities that awaited L.A. businesses. Other metropolitan areas soon followed our lead and in 1935 President Franklin Roosevelt declared World Trade Week as worthy of national recognition. On May 5, 2015, the Chamber will sponsor its 89th annual World Trade Week Kick-off Breakfast at the Beverly Hilton.

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