Tag: Incentive

Bipartisan Michigan Bills Aims to Restore Tax Incentives for Business Development

The Center Square
Mark Tisdel and

A bipartisan bill aims to revive a killed business subsidy incentive that they say will spur new job creation in Michigan.

State Reps. Mark Tisdel, R-Rochester Hills and Angela Witwer, D-Delta Township, introduced House Bills (HB) 5425 and 5426 that aim to form the Michigan Employment Opportunity Program (MEOP) to provide incentives for business developments similar to the Good Jobs for Michigan (GJFM) program, which expired in 2019. 

“The Michigan Employment Opportunity Program will form a public-private partnership to bring good jobs to our state,” Tisdel said in a statement. “Government can make it easier for businesses to invest in our communities and support more Michigan workers, bringing economic growth – and the revenue that comes with it.”

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Minnesota County Will Now Pay People up to $100 to Get Vaccinated

Admin

by Rose Williams   Hennepin County is giving out $50 Visa gift cards as an incentive to get the COVID-19 vaccine. According to a press release, the county is offering $50 per dose between July 1 and August 15. Anyone who receives both doses in that time frame at county-sponsored vaccine events is eligible to get $100 in Visa gift cards. There appear to be six vaccine events scheduled at various locations in the county, at which attendees who receive the vaccine will be awarded a $50 gift card. The gift card is also available for those who visit the Hennepin County Public Health Clinic to get their shot. By offering these incentives, leaders in the county hope to “raise the overall vaccination rate in our county and the state, while closing the vaccination gap within communities and neighborhoods hardest hit by COVID-19.” The county is committed to addressing “vaccine disparities” that exist for certain races and neighborhoods in the county, a press release states. While 65% of Hennepin County residents have received at least one dose, 19 zip-code areas have a vaccination rate under 60%, and five zip-code areas in Minneapolis and Brooklyn Center are under 50%. “Hennepin County is offering COVID-19…

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New Interim Teacher Certification Program Aims to Provide More Teachers of Color in Schools

The Center Square
State Superintendent Dr. Michael Rice

The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) has approved the New Paradigm for Education program to promote alternative teacher certification in the state.

New Paradigm will offer a residency-based alternative route to teacher certification to recruit, train, and retain high-quality educators, particularly teachers of color and male teachers of color.

“We continue to work beyond conventional methods to help address the gaps in the teacher workforce,” State Superintendent Dr. Michael Rice said in a statement. “There is a substantial teacher shortage in Michigan, which is even more acute for teachers of color.”

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Some Minnesota Businesses Report Hiring Problems, Citing Enhanced Unemployment Benefits

The Center Square
Job fair booth of Atlas Staffing

With more relaxed restrictions and the promise of warmer months ahead, businesses are struggling to find employees to come back to work, even after raising wages and offering flexible hours.

Some blame generous unemployment benefits.

Atlas Staffing Inc has 241 open jobs on their site for locations across Minnesota, but Minneapolis office manager Alison Barge says it’s “next to impossible” to fill positions right now.

It’s not a skills gap, Barge said. Most of the jobs are entry-level positions, and some employers are even offering a $3/hour incentive, boosting pay to $17 an hour, flexible scheduling, part-time availability, but people just “don’t want to work.”

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