Nashville-Based Beacon Center of Tennessee Sues the U.S. Department of Labor

The Nashville-based Beacon Center of Tennessee filed a lawsuit on behalf of two freelance journalists against the U.S. Department of Labor’s Independent Contractor Rule on Wednesday.

The think tank is representing Tennessee freelance journalists Margaret Littman and Jennifer Chesak in the suit, arguing that the department’s updated rule “threatens to destroy the livelihoods of freelancers” by “forcing freelancers into employment relationships that they neither want nor need.”

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Expert: Georgia Should Alleviate Burdensome Licensing Requirements

Eliminating licensing requirements for some professions in Georgia could help businesses and bring more people into the workforce.

“We did a national ranking in terms of occupational licensing, and we had Georgia coming in at 32nd with first being the worst,” Edward Timmons, director of the Knee Regulatory Research Center at West Virginia University, which recently rebranded from the Knee Center for the Study of Occupational Regulation, told The Center Square.

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Commentary: No Jobs for White Men

A recent Bloomberg investigation reported on a shocking development: “The year after Black Lives Matter protests, the S&P 100 added more than 300,000 jobs — 94% went to people of color.” While only 6% of jobs at these top companies went to whites, white people make up 77% of the total U.S. workforce and about 60-65% of the adult population.

This means that after 2020’s summer of rioting for “racial equity,” all whites, and particularly young people seeking entry-level positions after college, were deprived of employment by large institutional employers on a massive scale.

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Nearly Four in 10 Georgians Out of the Workforce

While state officials continue to tout the state’s low unemployment, numbers show nearly 39% percent of Georgia’s working-age population isn’t participating in the workforce.

On Thursday, state officials said Georgia’s August unemployment rate was 3.3%, a slight increase from July’s revised 3.2% rate. The state’s rate is lower than the 3.8% national unemployment rate.

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Energy Sector Sees 88 Percent Increase in ‘Nonbinary’ Workers from Last Year

The number of people who identify as “nonbinary” in the energy workforce has skyrocketed by more than 88% since last year, according to data from the Department of Energy. 

The agency’s annual employment report (USEER), showed that last year, there were 22,723 individuals in the energy workforce who don’t identify as male or female (nonbinary). As of June 2023, that number had increased to 42,810—an 88.4% surge. 

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Commercial Vehicle Manufacturer Announces $25.2 Million Expansion Project in Middle Tennessee

McNeilus Truck and Manufacturing, Inc., an Oshkosh Corporation [NYSE: OSK] company that manufactures purpose-built commercial vehicles and equipment announced Wednesday that it will invest $25.2 million to expand its manufacturing presence in Middle Tennessee.

According to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD), the company plans to expand operations at its current Parkway Place facility in Murfreesboro to fabric and weld custom vehicle components.

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Plastic Manufacturer Announces $6.9 Million Investment Project in Georgia’s Washington County

PVS Plastics Technology Corporation officials recently announced that the company will invest $6.9 million to establish its second U.S. facility in Johnson City.

PVS, which describes itself as an “environmentally friendly plastics company,” is based in Niedernhall, Germany. The company specializes in manufacturing electric motor and fan components for the automotive and commercial HVAC industries.

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Electric Vehicle Parts Manufacturer Announces $18 Million Investment in Dublin-Laurens County

Woory Industrial Company, Ltd., an automotive parts manufacturer, recently announced that it will establish a new manufacturing facility in Dublin as its first U.S. manufacturing location.

Woory is a Korea-based company that develops and produces HVAC auto components for all types of vehicles, including electric and internal combustion engine vehicles, and eco-friendly and hydrogen-fueled cars.

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Hospitality Job Fair to Host 48 Employers at Nissan Stadium on Tuesday

The Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp, in partnership with the Greater Nashville Hospitality Association, is hosting a hospitality industry job fair at Nissan Stadium on Tuesday. The job fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Central Standard Time) and will host 48 regional employers – some with current job openings ready to hire on the spot.

The hiring event comes as the hospitality industry in Nashville continues to grow. The city has 273 hotels, with an additional 2,544 rooms under construction, according to data by the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. In addition, 66 new restaurants opened in 2022, with 765 restaurants and bars opening since 2015.

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Fourth Quarter 2022 Business Filings in Tennessee Recorded as Second Highest in the State’s History

Data from the Tennesse Secretary of State’s Office shows that new business filings in Tennessee for the fourth quarter of 2022 were the second highest in the state’s history.

In the fourth quarter of 2022, 16,780 new entities were filed in the state, bringing the total number of business entities operating in the Volunteer State to 485,995, according to the Tennessee Quarterly Business and Economic Indicators report.

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