Black Chamber of Commerce Opposes Labor Actions

The National Black Chamber of Commerce will hold a working lunch to express its opposition to a number of pro-labor initiatives the group says will hurt African-American businesses.

The lunch will take place February 25 at the National Press Club and will include a panel discussion hosted by Harry Alford, President and CEO of the chamber. The speakers will discuss how the Employee Freedom of Choice Act and other issues will impact minority-owned businesses.

US Chamber Says NAFTA Net Gain for US Workers

The US Chamber of Commerce released a posting on its web site which states that the North American Free Trade Agreement is a net gain for US workers.

The posting, NAFTA at 15: Assessing its Benefits, states the continuation of NAFTA is more important now than ever. The author, John G. Murphy, Vice President of International Affairs at the chamber offers the following statistics:

1. US employment increased from 110.7 million in 1994 to 138.9 million in 2007, a 25 percent expansion of the number of working Americans;
2. Export revenue averages out at approximately $25,000 for every American factory worker. The average factory workers earns $37,000 a year. Murphy makes the case that US businesses could not afford these wages without the export revenue.
3. The current rise in unemployment during this rough stretch in the economy has nothing to do with NAFTA. Unemployment during the period of NAFTA’s implementation averaged 5.1 percent while averaging 7.1 percent during a comparable period prior to NAFTA.
4. The states which have seen an increase in exports to Canada and Mexico are Texas, California, Ohio, Illinois, New York, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Washington.
5. Canada and Mexico account for one-quarter of US merchandise business from small and median-sized businesses.
6. Canada and Mexico account for 37 percent of the total increase in agricultural exports since 1993.

Murphy concludes NAFTA should continue as the foundation for future efforts to strengthen the economy.

Briefing on Impact of Economy on Hispanic to be Held in March

The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will hold a public briefing to discuss the impact the current state of the economy on Hispanic businesses.

The briefing will occur prior to the chamber’s legislative conference which will be held in Washington, DC March 9-11. The USHCC is surveying its members across the country to get their views and perceptions of the economy. These findings will be distributed publicly at that event.

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