Politics & Government

Blog of the GOP Jobs Tour Stop in Attleboro

State senators and representatives talked about jobs in the region in the Attleboro High School on Monday.

The 2011 GOP Jobs Tour is a House Republican Caucus initiative that the Senate Republican Caucus supports. The program, announced back in September, provides forums for residents and business groups to address the issues that block employment growth including taxes and health care costs.

6:20 p.m. Introductions from State Representatives George Ross, Betty Poirier and Steven Howitt, Jay Barrows and Sen. Richard Ross. The state officials talk about being small business owners who know the pains and challenges of growing a small business.

6:30 p.m.: United Regional Chamber of Commerce President Jack Lank says the biggest concern he hears from his members is that there is poor communication. Lank said the chamber hosted three different breakfast meetings with officials and business owners and were told three separate things on the same issue. "They're frustrated," Lank said.

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6:40 p.m.: Minority owned business owner Paul Belham from North Attleboro, who employs several Rhode Islanders, is not happy with the how health insurance regulations vary from Massachusetts to Rhode Island.

7:00 p.m.: Michael Thompson of Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership: These are people who have worked hard and there is nothing left. We need to bring them back he said of individuals (who are in their 50s) losing jobs. Nobody works harder. No one is more honest.

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7:10 p.m.:

Linda Ailes of the Mass Small Business Development Center: We are hearing a lot about jobs right now and are familiar with many small businesses that want to hire. These companies not getting ready to hire still have an uncertain economic future. They don't know if they can hire one person or three people. They just don't know. People can't take part-time jobs because they will lose their benefits.

Rep. Steven Howitt: Howitt said people on unemployment who also work a part-time job make more money then they would with a full-time job. Many people start with part-time jobs that become to full-time jobs. Whole aspect of how unemployment works is a disincentive more than an incentive, he said. 

Linda Ailes: If you hire one person. If we could make it easier for people to make incremental hires.

Bill Vernon, director of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB): We don't have enough sales. We don't have enough business to support hiring. If the business owner does not have enough business to support salary. We represent small business that have historically been job creators who create 2/3 of the jobs each year. They haven't been. The cost of doing business is too high. Whatever your legislation is coming up what is that going to do to the cost of doing business?

7:15 p.m.:

Bill Vernon: Long-term unemployment is a social problem that all taxpayers should be involved in and to help solve. We have some of the highest mandates in the country. Costs are so high for small businesses that they are not going to be able afford it anymore. We need choice and we need different kinds of plans and tiered networks.

Rep. Poirier: All of these mandates passed by the legislature. It is a house of cards and it will all cave in if we don't do something about it.

Bill Vernon: We passed healthcare reform in Massachusetts in 2006 but we did not address cost. If you lower cost of one entity you increase it for someone else. We really need to look at whole mandate issue going forward.

Rep. Dan Winslow: A lot of us are looking at electric costs. Have you heard about those concerns?

Bill Vernon: We believe that renewable energy and wind energy is very important and can be provided at a reasonable cost. We have to be careful about how we do it and hydro-power from Quebec is a less expensive renewable source.

Rep. Winslow: Are we getting less bang for our buck.

7:20 p.m.:

Larre Nelson, manager of Rika Denshi America Inc. in Attleboro: Says it's the top feeders that count not the small feeders. Have the Raytheon's get the big contracts to spill out to the people. Have the Patriots win the Super Bowl to build more restaurants.

Larre Nelson: A venture funder only gets one out of 10 that works big and they have nine failures.

Rep. Jay Barrows: If those venture guys did not hit one out of 10 we should make the odds better. We have our challenges to come up with something.

Jack Lank: We are in the process of filing with the state to become one of those groups to buy in bulk. That would help the small businesses in the area a whole lot.

Rep. Jay Barrows: One of the thing about healthcare people need to remember is 2/3 of the cost is about labor 66 % is labor cost. We are going to take the hatchet to healthcare cost. We are going to take the hatchet to labor. While we are talking a good game at the statehouse...it will be interesting to see what happens to labor.

Larre Nelson: The cost of running Medicare or a VA Hospital is 10 percent of the cost.

Rep. Jay Barrows said people need to support local business.

Paul Belham: You must buy in America unless cost justify. In 2004 I moved from Attleboro to North Attleboro and were doing 6,000 vending machines a year. That was $2.6 million in revenue that I lost because a new company in Massachusetts is sending it offshore. You need a domestic made policy.

7:45 p.m.:

Susan Blais: During the good times I had 7 appraisers and an office assistant. Now, it's just me. It is difficult times. No matter what you do today, two years ago or four years ago it would not have affected my business. It's just the economy. It's the luck of the draw. I want to thank you, thank you for coming. The thing that bothers me most is when people say no one listens. I know for a fact all of you have open door policies in Boston. I don't think people understand that you have that open door policy. In Attleboro recently we came up with a new ordinance that buy gold. I spoke with a friend of mine who owns  and this has given her so much paperwork and she's confused. They made a new ordinance that was never needed before...now wasn't the time.

Rep. Dan Winslow: Are you aware of projects that are ready to go? Are you aware of whether permitting has anything to do with that?

Susan Blais: As much as some businesses complain, I don't see that as an issue.

Larre Nelson: Nelson gave an example of and the fact that it has been dealing with permitting issues to move an electric box and utility pole out of the way to provide access to its driveway.

Rep. Poirier asked whether the permitting problems were local or state. Poirier went on to say that people are reluctant to ask for help. "It's our job to guide you through the maze of government."

Noelle D'Intino of Scribbletime in North Attleboro: There is a need to support us and not over regulate. Legislation of adding seven sick days. That will cost my business $18,000. I recall that 70 percent of employees call out on Mondays and Fridays. The language in the bill says sick days and also states that it will even out the playing field. It's my job as a business owner to recruit and retain good talent. She also brought up language of House Bill 1671: based on low morale, low wages and demand for respect. Those issues are her responsibility as a business owner, she said. D'Intino plans to testify at the Massachusetts State House on the use of vouchers.

Rep. Poirier: Noelle, I'm very happy you will testify. Your testimony is much more powerful.

Rep. Barrows: What we eluded to before is we will agree we don't need government to tell us we need 7 sick days. The point is that is me making a decision not the government leveling the playing field. I agree with you on both counts. The consequences of some of these bills that are filed is less childcare, less quality and less jobs. We are the highest cost in childcare in the nation. We are the highest in healthcare and it goes on and on and on.

8 p.m.:

Dave Swithers of Patrol PC in North Attleboro: We created a new product ruggedized tablet PCs for police cars. We are also unique in that we design and manufacture it in Massachusetts. We have done over $6 million in sales this year. Bad news is $4 million were in New York, about 1/2 million in New Jersey. We cannot get on state contracts in Massachusetts. I'm also a disabled veteran. When you bid on a contract there is a line item that gives you extra points for being a minority or woman but nothing for veterans or disabled veterans.

8:10 p.m. Conclusion.

"This tour provides a great opportunity for constituents and local business owners to inform the legislature of the issues they are dealing with related to employment and the economy,” said Senator Richard Ross. “Businesses, particularly small businesses, are the drivers of the economy. Any insight they provide us will be an excellent resource as we look to improve the job climate in the Commonwealth.” 


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