Mission Statement:
"We are an organization that supports our business community. We provide resources for our members to stimulate their growth and make our business community a better place to conduct business"
Vision Statement:
"The Chamber is a recognizable and sought after resource for businesses in the New Berlin community"
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Business of the Year Nominations are Now Open |
The Great Resignation? More like The Great Renegotiation
January 25, 20226:30 AM ET
There's been much hubbub in recent months about what's been dubbed "The Great Resignation." The popular phrase refers to the roughly 33 million Americans who have quit their jobs since the spring of 2021.
Some — pointing to the difficulty of businesses in recruiting workers and spectacles like the immense popularity of the "Anti-Work" thread on Reddit — have gone as far as to suggest this record-breaking trend is a movement of young, able-bodied Americans rejecting work altogether.
But it's pretty clear that, at least for the vast majority of Americans quitting their jobs, that's not the case. Americans are not en masse rejecting consumerism, moving off the grid, and living off the land.
Most still need money. Some of those quitting are older workers deciding to retire early in large part because their finances have been buoyed by surging stock and housing markets.
Others are secondary earners who have stayed home because they have had to take care of kids while schools have closed due to COVID-19 — or because, more simply, working face to face during a pandemic sucks.
Quitting to get better pay or treatment isn't unusual
However, most Americans quitting their jobs merely seem to be aiming to get better jobs.
While we are living in a bizarre pandemic economy with countless strange trends, this isn't necessarily one of them; it's pretty standard to see a swell of workers quitting their jobs for greener pastures when the job market is strong and there are lots of shiny opportunities available.
When the stars align as they're aligning now, workers gun for better pay, perks, flexibility, and treatment. Bargaining power has shifted in their favor.
That's why we at Planet Money think it might be better to call what's going on "The Great Renegotiation".
We coined this term in a recent episode called "No shortage of labor stories." In that episode we spoke with Karin Kimbrough, the chief economist of LinkedIn. Kimbrough approved of our rebranding, and she pointed us to her company's treasure trove of data to back it up.
"There are twice as many jobs on our platform as there were a year ago," Kimbrough said. With lots of open jobs, workers have greater power to negotiate a better position.
As for why the labor force participation rate remains significantly smaller than before the pandemic and it's still hard for employers to fill open jobs, Kimbrough said: "I think that the workers are there, but the terms haven't yet drawn them off the sidelines.
They are hesitating or being more choosy for a variety of really good reasons. They may say, 'I don't want to take the risk, and in order to make it worth my while to go out there and work again, you need to actually pay me a little bit more.'"
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Weren't able to join the 2022 State of American Business virtual event this week? Or, just want to watch it again? Click here to view the recording of the event and continue reading below to find links to recordings from key speakers.
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Annual State of the City - County, & State Legislative Briefing
Featuring - Ethan Hellier U S Chamber of Commerce
Join Us for the Changing of the Guard as I pass the Gavel to your incoming President CEO Tina Conley. With my Retirement at the end of February, this will be my final time officiating a chamber event. I hope you can join us in my last time at the podium, and to welcome Tina as she officially begins her time as your President CEO.
Hear our panel of elected officials preview what's to come for our City, County and State in 2022. Two years into the Covid pandemic, how will legislative and financial issues impact our New Berlin Business Community? What projects, issues and concerns will the city address in the upcoming months. What is the National perspective on issues effecting Businesses? Hear Ethan Heiler describe the US Chamber position on a variety national issues and initiatives.
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Hello My Friends,
This edition of the weekly Newsletter will be my last, as I hand off that responsibility to Tina, your new editor and chamber president. It's been an incredible ride for me and I'm so grateful for the kind words and encouragement I've received from members over the years.
This weekly Newsletter (rare for a local chamber to produce weekly) has evolved greatly over the last ten years. Looking back at issues from years past, including pre-digital issues, it has morphed to include more timely and usable information beyond reminders of upcoming events.
Over the years as I visited with members, I encountered people that didn't have the time to attend meetings, or their schedule didn't allow them to attend, but said they relied on the weekly updates to keep them informed.
There have been times when members have said they shared certain stories or editions with other in their business and sometimes with friends in other businesses.
Not being an English or Journalism major, I realize that there are at times - typos, miss spellings and capitalizations. And at times my thoughts run on rather than being brief and to the point. Occasionally I would receive an email from sharp-eyed readers pointing out the error of my ways and my two-finger typing.
But it was ALL GOOD.
Perhaps it is fitting, it's certainly personally rewarding, that our last week's edition had an open rate of 47%! That's 17% higher than our industry average and actually among our highest open rates I can remember.
I've enjoyed the time spent reading and researching stories and useful resources to share with you in our weekly updates. I hope that you occasionally found information that was useful and informative. Please enjoy this week's edition.
I've closed each week by telling you how much I appreciate your time in taking a few minutes to stay up to date. I am very grateful for the time you invested in reading, and your interest in our chamber.
Here's wishing you all the best for the future!
Sincerely Yours,
Ed Holpfer
Outgoing President CEO
New Berlin Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau
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Featured Stories:INSIDER
US wages rose less than expected in the fourth quarter as the labor shortage charged into 2022
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Pedestrians walk by a "Now Hiring" sign outside a store on August 16, 2021 in Arlington, Virginia. Olivier Douliery/AFP/Getty Images
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- The Employment Cost Index rose 1% in the fourth quarter, missing the 1.2% estimate.
- The print marks a slowdown from the third quarter's historic 1.3% surge.
- The fourth quarter saw job openings hover near all-time highs and quits hit new records as the labor shortage lingered.
Wages in the US boomed yet again through the fourth quarter – just not as much as expected – as the labor market remained unusually tight and businesses clamored over a limited pool of workers.
The Employment Cost Index – a popular measure of nationwide wage growth – rose 1.0% in the final three months of 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced Friday morning. That came in below the median forecast of 1.2% growth from economists surveyed by Bloomberg and marked a deceleration from the prior quarter's 1.3% jump.
The print still shows wages continuing to shoot higher at an extraordinary pace as firms scrambled to rehire. The 1.3% gain in the third quarter marked the strongest wage growth in data going back to 2001, and the fourth-quarter reading is still much higher than levels seen before the pandemic.
Fourth-quarter wage gains were largest for retail workers, with the group enjoying a 2.6% jump in pay. Workers in the trade, transportation, and utilities sector saw wages rise 1.9%, as did those service occupations.
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Featured Stories: INC.
How Emotionally Intelligent People Use the Mark Twain Rule to Become Exceptionally Persuasive Let me get to the point.
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GettyImages-1337281084_493667_k7espo.jpg |
Let me follow my own advice by giving you the bottom- line up front.
There are a few common ways that otherwise smart people undermine their own goals and betray a lack of emotional intelligence when they want to persuade others to help them achieve something.
- First, they fail to articulate their exact objectives.
- Second, they get so focused on what they want to say, they neglect to consider how their message will land on other people's ears.
- Finally, they muddle directions and meander as they talk, so that it winds up being unclear exactly what they hope other people will do.
The whole thing is a recipe for confusion, even when everyone has the best of intentions. So, emotionally intelligent people learn to embrace a deceptively simple habit that helps them overcome all three pitfalls.
That habit is brevity.
Let's use Twain's contribution to illustrate. It comes from one of his most famous quotes outside of his literature -- specifically from a letter he supposedly wrote to a friend more than 150 years ago.
The popular version of the quote:
If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter.
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Webinars for Small Businesses
Hearing All Voices IRS Small Business Workshop and Listening Session 2022
IRS is hosting Zoom meetings for small business organizations and owners in February and March, especially those that conduct business in languages other than English.
These 2-hour events will include presentations from IRS leadership from Examination, Collection and Taxpayer Advocacy covering the top tax issues affecting small business owners regarding income, deductions, employment taxes and recordkeeping.
We’ll also cover getting ready for the 2022 filing season, tax scams targeting small businesses and how the IRS is reorganizing to better serve small business taxpayers. We also want to hear from you! So, these events will include a listening session to hear your concerns, feedback and suggestions. How can we improve your IRS experience as a small business owner?
Please join us and our sponsoring small business organizations on one of the dates below for what is sure to be an informative and worthwhile meeting!
March 9, 2022 - Great Lakes Area: IL, IN, KY, MI, OH, MN, WI
Time: 11:00 a.m. (EST)
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Wisconsin Headlines:
Sen. Johnson meets with business owners in Chippewa Falls: 'They can't hire enough workers'
U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson toured a Chippewa Falls plastics manufacturer Tuesday morning and met with more than a dozen business owners from western Wisconsin. Johnson said it was a good business roundtable to review the challenges businesses are facing today. “It’s the same thing I’ve been hearing for a while,” Johnson said at the conclusion of the event. “They can’t hire enough workers. Inflation is roaring, and they can’t get the goods.”
MKE Tech Hub Coalition’s impact report shows nonprofit is bringing talent to Milwaukee
The MKE Tech Hub Coalition is one of a handful of local organizations seeking to increase the amount of tech workers in our region. The coalition’s newly released 2021 impact report highlights how much closer they are getting toward their ultimate goal: to inclusively double the tech workforce in southeastern Wisconsin. “In 2021, we grew to (a) sustainable 110+ member organization, collaborating to grow the MKE Tech Ecosystem,” said Kathy Henrich, chief executive officer of the MKE Tech Hub Coalition. “Collectively, we multiply each other’s efforts and developed solutions that can scale.”
TEKsystems aims to train more local IT workers through registered apprenticeship
TEKsystems, a Maryland-based IT staffing firm with two Milwaukee-area offices, has joined Wisconsin’s Registered Apprenticeship program to train more workers for entry-level tech jobs. “Expanding the state’s Registered Apprenticeship programs in tech was one of the coalition’s first major initiatives. We have seen proven success in other parts of the country so we know it will work in southeastern Wisconsin,” said Laura Schmidt, chief talent development officer for the MKE Tech Coalition.
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BUSINESS & FINANCIAL HEADLINES:
Industry experts share predictions for 2022 at Economic Trends Event
Three industry experts and an economist this morning shared their outlooks for 2022 at the annual BizTimes Milwaukee Economic Trends Event. Jonas Prising, chairman and chief executive officer of Milwaukee-based ManpowerGroup, acknowledged that the ongoing workforce shortage has taken longer than expected to correct itself and said things will not get easier for companies looking to hire new employees in an extremely tight labor market. “We (in Wisconsin) are staring at this talent shortage at a record low unemployment rate, so this is not about to get easier in terms of our ability to generate supply in terms of workforce,” Prising said.
COVID-19 Continued Impact on Talent/Total Rewards Strategies Pulse Survey
COVID-19 continues to impact employers in many ways, including remote and hybrid work policies, vaccination requirements, and total rewards strategies, to name just a few. To help understand the impact of these changes, we invite you to take a pulse survey designed to capture current HR trends and upcoming developments related to compensation and workforce management.
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That's all for this week. As always, I appreciate your taking a few moments to stay up to date. Have a great week!
Ed Holpfer
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NEW REVIEW!
2021-06-17
"The New Berlin Chamber of Commerce is SO helpful in getting your business name and service out to the community. Why would you NOT want to support and be a part of your local Chamber? The benefits are wonderful!"
— Cindy Haupt
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Shebesta Piano -John Shebesta
"I’m semi retired now but the New Berlin chamber of commerce has always been very helpful and easy to contact I wish I could plug-in more often"
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"Great group of people that genuinely car about the business's and people in our community."
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"Has been a great experience being a member of New Berlin Chamber of Commerce. Very helpful getting connected in the community and staying in the loop!
"
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"The New Berlin Chamber of Commerce has made me feel very welcome as a new business in the community. They are very polite, professional and knowledgeable. Thank you"
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"Didn't know the importance of being a chamber member till I joined, but wow is it critical, especially if you own a business in New Berlin!
I get a lot of value out of their timely, important updates but also from the chamber member community and meetings.
Strong connections with state and local representatives, local business leaders and the local community.
Everything you need to know and who you need to know are all here at the chamber!"
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Burt Robertson
"When we moved our Business to New Berlin the Chamber was one of our first stops. They have not failed to deliver. For answer questions, helping us meet other business owners, opportunities to help us get exposure, the Chamber has been a huge help.
Even through Covid the chamber was constantly proving timely information and help to our business about regulations, rules, shutdowns and financial assistance opportunities for many places.
We are so happy to be members of the chamber and regularly recommend it to others... If you are a Business owner/manager you should learn more, it doesn't matter if you are a homebased direct sales business or a owner/CEO of a large factory or store... there is something for you at the chamber.
If you are new to the area and are looking for help getting around and find places to shop, eat, have fun... check out the community guide book the chamber has it is really nice.
These pictures are from when we had the opportunity to be the business of the week at the Farmers Market...
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"They are a Great Chamber of Commerce that helps businesses in the community" ******.
Sherry Ament, Herculift
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