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Minimum wage effort tries again Sunday, Jan 8, 2006 By Roby Brock Give Arkansans a Raise Now (GARN), the coalition of proponents of a minimum-wage increase, has re-submitted its proposed constitutional amendment for a ballot-title review. Attorney General Mike Beebe rejected the group's first submission two week's ago, pointing out confusing language in different areas of the measure. If the new ballot title is approved, GARN can begin to collect the required 80,570 signatures needed to qualify the proposal for the Nov. 7 general election. The proposal would raise the state's minimum wage by $1 to $6.15 per hour and provide a review of the rate periodically. Health care effort could come to Arkansas Labor unions announced Thursday they would pursue legislation in 31 states this year to require large employers, including Wal-Mart, to spend more on health care benefits or contribute to Medicaid. The campaign push is called the "Fair Share Health Care" campaign. Arkansas will not hold another regular legislative session until 2007, but state AFL-CIO President Alan Hughes says that his legislative affairs committee is looking at the proposal. A decision to pursue legislation could be reached by the end of the month. Maryland lawmakers passed legislation last year that required companies with more than 10,000 employees to spend at least 8 percent of payroll on health care. Maryland's governor vetoed the bill. Cross-selling controversy at Wal-Mart Wal-Mart is shutting down the system that creates movie recommendations on its shopping Web site after it linked a "Planet of the Apes" DVD to films about famous black Americans, including Martin Luther King Jr., singer Tina Turner and boxer Jack Johnson. Wal-Mart is looking into the mapping software that drives walmart.com and has shut down the cross-selling reference links at its web site. Wal-Mart sales up, profit may disappoint Wal-Mart confirmed that its fourth-quarter profits would likely reach the low end of its earnings per share forecast. A disappointing December has translated into a 2.2 percent sales gain at U.S. Wal-Mart stores open at least one year. The company says it expects profits will be near the low end of its forecast of 82 cents to 86 cents per share. Total company sales for the five-week period that ended Dec. 30 rose 6.3 percent to $40.8 billion. Dillard's sales climb Dillard's reported December sales of $1.27 billion, a 1 percent increase for total and same store sales over last year. Year-to-date sales for the Little Rock-based upscale retailer have topped $7 billion, up $15 million over last year's 48-week comparison. AERT reports huge sales increase Advanced Environmental Recycling Technologies (AERT), the Springdale-based manufacturer of composite building materials, announced sales for the quarter ended Dec. 31 were $24 million, up 55 percent over last year. For the year, AERT sales have topped $89.6 million, up 37 percent from a year ago. Acxiom partners with high-tech leader Acxiom has a new $30 million partner. EMC Corp. and Acxiom announced a technology and distribution partnership that allows the two firms to jointly develop and market new products to customers. Massachusetts-based EMC is a major storage and information management company. Under the $30 million agreement, EMC has purchased information grid software from Acxiom, and over time, EMC and Acxiom plan to integrate systems, software, services and data from both companies to serve potential clients. Beverly date is set Beverly Enterprises (BEI) will hold a special stockholders' meeting at Feb. 14 at 10 a.m. at its Fort Smith corporate headquarters to approve the previously announced merger agreement between BEI and Pearl Senior Care, an affiliate of Fillmore Capital Partners. The Beverly board of directors has fixed the close of business on Friday, Jan. 13, as the record date for determining shareholders entitled to vote at the special meeting. Fillmore Capital Partners, a private investor group, is paying $1.8 billion for Beverly after a previously announced agreement with high bidder North American Senior Care unraveled. State economy superior in region The Mid-America Business Conditions Survey polls supply managers and business leaders in nine states, including Arkansas. The overall index ranges between 0 and 100. A figure higher than 50 indicates an expanding economy over the next three to six months. Arkansas' business conditions index of 70.9 for December was a sharp rise from November's 61.9 and October's 55.2. The survey found strength in new factory orders, production, inventories and employment. The forecast also predicts that 2006 will be even stronger for the state due to improving national and international business conditions. Arkansas' economic improvement is stronger than all other states in its region, including Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Oklahoma. New project in Jonesboro MBC Holdings, the development company of Peabody Hotel partners Bruce Burrow and Marty Belz, announced the firm's latest retail development in Jonesboro. The $15 million retail center will be anchored by a 70,000-square-foot Kohl's department store. When completed, the Fairpark center is expected to create over 175 new retail jobs for the area. Burrow says that "negotiations are under way with other national retailers considering the additional space." The Fairpark project is expected to open in late 2006. Camden plant to shed 300 jobs Beginning this month, the ARC Automotive unit of Sequa Corp., which manufactures components for airbag inflators at a plant in Camden, will transfer production from that facility to plants in Mexico and China. The move will eliminate about 300 manufacturing and administrative jobs in Camden. Forty employees will remain employed at the plant. ARC has operated in Camden for more than 20 years. Russell to leave State Chamber Ron Russell, president and chief executive of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce-Associated Industries of Arkansas, will retire from the post after a replacement is found or by the end of 2006, whichever comes first. Russell has served in the post for 15 years. The State Chamber/AIA is one of the most visible and powerful lobbying groups at the State Capitol and in Washington, D.C., representing the interests of Arkansas business and industry on legislation, regulation and public policy issues. ------- Roby Brock, a freelance journalist based in Little Rock, writes weekly for the Arkansas News Bureau. His weekly television program airs at 10 p.m. Sundays in Central and Northwest Arkansas. His e-mail address is roby@talkbusiness.net; his Web site address is www.talkbusiness.net. |
