Olympia Business Watch

More Suspected Cases of Flu in Washington

Seven more people in Washington state are suspected of having the H1N1 virus, bringing the state's total this afternoon to 13. Health officials say all seven of the new cases are in the Seattle-King County area.

If there is good news to be found, Dr. David Flemming, director of public health in Seattle and King County told reporters that while he expects an increase in the number of cases in our state, "to date, the level of severity has been closer to the more typical influenza virus you would see circulating during normal influenza season."

The Washington State Emergency Management Division has updated its disaster Web page with information for the private sector about the flu outbreak.

And, if you're looking for interesting displays of data about the outbreak, be sure to check out Google's H1N1 world flu map. 

The CDC has also set up its own channel on YouTube with videos on an array of flu-related topics, ranging from symptoms of the illness to instructions for the use of disposable respirators.

Finally, if you're trying to communicate about safe coughing and hygiene habits, be sure to check out this video created by OtoRhinoLounsburgology Productions. Could be a light addition to an upcoming staff meeting.

Six probable H1N1 virus cases in Washington state

Last night, public health officials announced that there were six probable cases of the H1N1 virus in Washington state: three in King County, two in Snohomish County and one in Spokane County. Health officials said it will take a few days for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control to confirm the test  results.

It's worth noting that the name of the illness has changed slightly, and is now referred to as the H1N1 virus. Health officials are recommending that the outbreak be referred to by its scientific name, H1N1 virus. Pork producers questioned whether the term "swine flu" was appropriate, given that the new virus has not been isolated in samples taken from pigs in Mexico. People were questioning whether it is safe to eat pork products (the National Pork Producers Council says it is). The U.S. Chamber of Commerce actually has a somewhat humorous post about the new name - if there is humor to be found in any of this.

Yesterday, the World Health Organization raised its alert level from Phase 4 to Phase 5, indicating that a pandemic is imminent. According to the New York Times, Phase 5 had never been declared since the warning system was introduced in 2005 in response to the avian influenza crisis. Phase 6 means a pandemic is under way (see WHO chart below). WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for the United Nations system. The Times also developed this updated online flu tracker with global details.

Businesses and individuals should remain vigilant about good hygiene practices, especially handwashing. The Department of Health has excellent online prevention resources that are available in multiple language formats and large print, too. The CDC recommends these four simple tips to stay healthy all year long:

• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
• If you get sick stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

 

Keeping Tabs on Swine Flu

Although there are no reported cases of swine flu here in Washington state, it is an issue that employers should be monitoring as a preventative step.

AWB is involved in the state's emergency management system as the business liaison. That means you can count on us to provide you with the latest news and information about issues like the swine flu and ways you can protect yourself, your employees and their families. Here's how we're rolling out that information:

• On the AWB Web site: We have added links to the Emergency Management Division, Centers for Disease Control and the Washington State Department of Health to our own Web site (cleverly listed under "Links and Resources").
• In AWB's e-newsletter, Fast Facts: Each Monday, members receive this e-newsletter and we'll keep you up to date with current news and resources about the flu in that publication.
• On this blog: Watch for updates and additional links and resources in Olympia Business Watch as the situation changes and develops. 
• Action Alerts: AWB will e-mail members special alerts on the topic, should they become necessary.

The state's DOH has great fact sheets online in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Russian, Vietnamese and large type. And while there are no cases of swine flu so far in Washington state, it's just good practice to put preventative measures into effect to keep workplaces as clean and germ-free as possible.

Washington's Worker Memorial Day Reminds Everyone That "Safety is Job ONE!"

Today, families and friends from 81 Washingtonians killed on the job in 2008 gathered for the annual Workers Memorial Ceremony at the Washington Dept. of Labor and Industries (L&I) in Tumwater.  It is a solemn and somber ceremony which helps to ease the pain of a lost one knowing that others care and remember.

Give labor unions credit. They established the first Workers Memorial Day in 1989. April 28 was chosen because it is the anniversary of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the day of a similar remembrance in Canada. Every year, people in hundreds of communities and at work sites recognize workers who have been killed or injured on the job. Trade unionists around the world now mark April 28 as an International Day of Mourning.

In Washington, it is a day when employers and government workers join union members in remembering Moms, Dads, Sisters, Brothers, Aunts, Uncles, Grandfathers, Grandmothers, Nieces, Nephews and just friends who lost their lives while working.  It is also a day when we remember people seriously injured on the job.

Speaking at the ceremony were Gov. Chris Gregoire; Judy Schurke, Director, Dept. of Labor and Industries; Don Brunell, AWB President; Rick Bender, Washington State Labor Council President; and Bill Johnson, President of the Washington Self Insurers Association.

The ceremony is a living reminder that "Safety is Job ONE!"

A Flawed Approach to Delaying Paid Family Leave

OBW readers are well aware of Washington's paid family leave program, the controversial 2007 law that is set to begin this October but, given its shaky political support, has never been funded or implemented.  Finally in the last week of session, the Legislature is looking at a bill to push the program out to some unspecified point in the future.  But as this white paper points out, that approach has some serious flaws that need correction. 

The biggest of the flaws -- continued linkage of the program to the workers' compensation trust fund, a linkage which, if acted upon, would trigger a tax increase on Washington employers and workers in the middle of a recession -- absolutely needs to be stricken as this bill goes forward.

Olympia Business Review - Episode 19: Brunell’s view on Washington aerospace study.

Don Brunell, president of the Association of Washington Business, gives his perspective on the Deloitte Consulting aerospace competitiveness study. According to the findings, aerospace investments are bypassing Washington state for the more cost-competitive states like the Carolinas, Kansas and Texas. The study cites strikes, high workers compensation and unemployment insurance costs, a lack of coordinated worker training and education programs and infrastructure as the main reasons why aerospace companies are not coming to Washington state.

Key words: aerospace, economy, unemployment insurance, workers compensation, competitiveness, worker training, education, unionization, union relations.

To subscribe via iTunes, click here. 

To subscribe to the RSS feed, click here.

To download this podcast, click here.

Hydro is Renewable Power! Nine of 10 Northwesterners Say So

According to a recent Northwest RiverPartners poll of 700 registered voters in Washington, Oregon and Idaho, 88% identified hydro as a renewable source of electricity which is very similar to how they view wind and solar.  More over 93% of those polled believe hydro power is an essential and important use of the Columbia and Snake rivers

Despite those overwhelming numbers, most hydro DOES NOT qualify as a renewable energy source in Washington under I-937--the state's so-called renewable portfolio law. Washington's congressional delegation and state legislators ought to note that 79% of those polled support designating hydro as a renewable resource.  So the question for Washington lawmakers is "Why Not change state law to recognize hydro completely as renewable?"

Two-thirds of the votes in the Pacific Northwest oppose breaching dams on the lower Snake River viewing dam removal as an extreme measure to improve salmon runs on the Columbia and Snake rivers.  Removing those dams would be eliminating 1,100 megawatts of non-greenhouse gas producing electricity which is enough to power a city the size of Seattle.

The poll was conducted by Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc., Portland.

Green Stimulus Money Costs More Jobs Than It Creates, Study Shows

This article is from CNSNews.

President Obama uses Spain’s green initiative as a blueprint for how the United States should use federal funds to stimulate the economy. His economic stimulus package,which Congress passed in February, allocates billions of dollars to the green jobs industry. 

But the author of the study, Dr. Gabriel Calzada, an economics professor at Juan Carlos University in Madrid, said the United States should expect results similar to those in Spain.  Every “green job” created with government money in Spain over the last eight years came at the cost of 2.2 regular jobs, and only one in 10 of the newly created green jobs became a permanent job.

According to Dr. Gabriel Calzada, an economics professor at Juan Carlos University in Madrid, the United States should expect results similar to those in Spain. 

"Spain’s experience (cited by President Obama as a model) reveals with high confidence, by two different methods, that the U.S. should expect a loss of at least 2.2 jobs on average, or about 9 jobs lost for every 4 created, to which we have to add those jobs that non-subsidized investments with the same resources would have created,” wrote Calzada in his report: Study of the Effects on Employment of Public Aid to Renewable Energy Sources.

The study shows the high cost of electricity due to the green job policy tends to drive the relatively most energy-intensive companies and industries away, seeking areas where costs are lower.

Before we move ahead full steam with replacing traditional sources of energy generation with wind, solar and biomass, we ought to look at experiences in other countries around the world.  Build upon what is working for them, improve what is working for us and collectively move forward with proven technology which factories, businesses along Main Street and families in our neighborhoods can afford.

Don C. Brunell, President (DonB@awb.org)

 

The U.S. Postal Service: Is "Service" the Operative Word?

Picture what use to be:  On April 15, postal workers would stand outside the post office collecting tax return envelops and post marking them for April 15 so taxpayers could get their tax returns mailed on time. Cars would lined up for blocks in some cities especially the closer the clock got to midnight. It really became somewhat of a festive atmosphere with people actually coming into the post office to by stamps and mail their returns. Outside people would thank the jovial postal worker for saving their bacon.

It use to be a classic "WIN WIN" for the U.S. Postal Service and taxpayers.  It is what customer service is all about.

Fast forward to last night:  I arrived at the post office in Olympia just after it closed (roughly 6 p.m.).  A postal worker was posting signs on the doors and mail boxes telling people if they had a postage stamp on their envelops and dropped it in the mail slot, they would not be postmarked until APRIL 16---one day beyond the IRS deadline.  In response to questions from a gathering stunned crowd, the worker said budget cuts prevented the post office from providing its traditional April 15 service and the only alternative was to drive 30 miles to Tacoma or go to the postage metering machine and buy a 42 cent postmark.

So people started lining up at the machine and pealing off postage stamps from their envelops. You can only imagine the satirical comments which ensued.  The machine ran at a snail's pace and people using credit cards had a minimum $5 purchase.  After a half hour and having some kind Samaritan give me one of her excess 42 cent postmarks, I mailed my return with the April 15 postmark on it.  Yahoo! But by this time the line was now outside the building and people were getting a little testy.  That was 6:45 p.m.  I can only imagine what it was like between 10 and midnight.

If the recent switch in service at the U.S. Post Office is any indicator of what is to come with government, brace yourselves.  What the postal service proved last night is government runs on government's schedule and in government's way.  "Cut the budget and we'll whine and curtail service until we can get enough money to operate in our usual and customary way.  As for the customers?  Tough luck, we're in control here!"  Obviously what they forget is that extra money they want comes our taxes and does anyone have to be reminded of what a dent government takes out of our paychecks, during income tax season?

If elected officials and bureaucrats really want to focus on people's priorities and needs, they would reverse the paradigm and look at service from a "CUSTOMER'S NEEDS" point of view.  If that would have happened last night, can you imagine the attitude shift when the U.S. Post Office asks for yet another hike in postage rates?

Is it any wonder that UPS is beating the socks off the U.S. Post Office? 

Don C. Brunell, President (DonB@awb.org)

Employers urge Senate to return to original unemployment bill

Today, AWB joined more than 80 business associations, businesses and individuals in urging the Senate to reject House amendments to Substitute Senate Bill 5963. Read the letter sent to members of the Washington State Senate here.

Last Friday, lawmakers in the House altered the bill, which had originally gained the support of the broader business community in a deal that would have brought the state's unemployment insurance system back into conformity with federal law. The resulting amendments would increase insurance rates for businesses and give unemployment benefits to those who voluntarily quit their jobs.

As the letter to lawmakers points out, now is not the time to increase the stress on private employers, which are the backbone of our economic recovery.Washington businesses pay one of the highest unemployment insurance tax rates in the country -- a major factor in cost competitiveness.

Today's Yakima Herald Republic has a strong editorial on the UI issue, as well.