Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The UVM Medical Center and Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals resumed contract negotiations Monday with an additional federal mediator. The two sides are also meeting Tuesday. The nurses went on a two-day strike July 12 and 13 and have been working without a contract since July 9. The union represents 1,800 nurses at the Burlington hospital.

by John McClaughry Enviros are furious at a Trump Administration rule change to freeze the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFÉ) requirement for model year 2020 passenger cars at 37 miles per gallon, instead of increasing it to the 54.5 mpg by 2025 set by the Obama administration in 2012. It would also revoke California’s power to set vehicle carbon dioxide emissions standards and mandate sales of zero-emission vehicles, which 12 other states (including Vermont in 1996) have adopted.

When the EPA released its proposed rule changes on August 2, California ‘s governor and attorney general immediately declared all-out war to defeat the changes in the courts, backed up by the attorneys general of 19 other states, including Vermont.

When Congress enacted the CAFÉ statute in 1975, it sought to push the automakers to build high-mileage vehicles to defend against serious fuel shortages and skyrocketing pump prices caused by the Arab oil embargo of 1973.

Vermont Business Magazine US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) called on the University of Vermont Medical Center Board of Trustees Monday “to take a more active role in the contract negotiations between management and the nurses’ union.” In a letter to Allie Stickney, the chair of the Board of Trustees, Sanders said, “The primary responsibility and obligation of any non-profit board is not to management, but to the organization, and that includes providing oversight and guidance on issues related to the organization’s workforce.”

Vermont Business Magazine On Friday, August 10, Co-Founders of Runamok Maple, Eric and Laura Sorkin, were joined by Governor Phil Scott and US Senator Patrick Leahy at their new facility in Fairfax. The husband and wife duo were presented with a grant certificate awarded to the town of Fairfax. Runamok Maple, which specializes in infused maple syrup, is one of the 14 northern Vermont organizations who will benefit from $2.8 million in federal grants from the Northern Border Regional Commission.

In particular, this grant will allow Runamok Maple to expand, giving them the opportunity to hire over 50 new employees. The town of Fairfax will receive $263,000 for water and wastewater infrastructure for the maple company’s new facility.

by Sarah Kaeck, Owner/founder of Bee's Wrap This summer, we saw two studies about Vermont that appeared in contrast: One rated Vermont as one of the best places to live. The other paints Vermont as a hard place to find employees and run a business. As a business owner and employer, I know both are true, but I believe a crucial piece of the conversation is missing: Why is it hard to recruit employees and, once we recruit them, what structures are in place to keep them here and help them thrive?

I own Bee’s Wrap, a sustainable food storage company, in Bristol. Bee’s Wrap began in my kitchen six years ago and has grown into a thriving small business.

Our growth has been organic, but substantial. We doubled our sales numbers each year until 2017, when they tripled. We invested in machinery, rented new production and administrative space, and our staff increased from two to nine to twenty-four.

Vermont Business Magazine Connecticut Governor Dannell Malloy, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo, and Vermont Governor Phil Scott today issued the following statement related to ISO New England and affordable electricity. ISO-NE is charged with maintaining electric supply and reliability in New England. New England, as a region, has the highest electric rates in the nation (though not the highest electric bills, largely because of efficiency). Maine Governor Governor Paul LePage did not sign the statement.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Governor Phillip B Scott and Québec Premier Philippe Couillard signed a Joint Declaration Sunday, aiming to strengthen their long-standing cooperative ties in a variety of sectors to foster economic growth and job creation. The signing ceremony came at the conclusion of the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers conference hosted by Scott in Stowe. This Joint Declaration builds upon the Cooperative Agreement between the governments of Québec and Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine The UVM Medical Center and Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals will resume negotiations on Monday, August 13 and Tuesday, August 14 with the assistance of a federal mediator. Monday marks the 25th bargaining session since talks began in late March.

“Our goal from the outset of negotiations has been to present thoughtful proposals that address the concerns nurses have raised while balancing our commitment to providing high quality, affordable health care in our community,” said Eileen Whalen, MHA, RN, president and chief operating officer of the UVM Medical Center. “We are hopeful these next two sessions with the mediator will lead to the fair resolution we are all seeking.”

Vermont Business Magazine Ship-builder Austal successfully completed acceptance trials on the US Navy's Burlington, Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF 10), last week, in the Gulf of Mexico. Burlington is slated for delivery to the U.S. Navy in the Fall and is the tenth ship in Austal’s 12-ship portfolio valued at over $1.9 billion.

“Another trial completed for the incredibly successful EPF program,” Austal USA President Craig Perciavalle said. “I am so proud of our dedicated workforce and how they keep achieving these milestones staying on schedule and budget.”

The ship was christened in February 2018 by Marcelle Leahy, wife of Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy.

Sister ship (EPF 10) USNS Brunswick. US Navy photo.

Vermont Business Magazine Lamoille Housing Partnership (LHP) recently hosted the inaugural Summer Harvest for Housing to benefit the affordable housing non-profit’s mission in Lamoille County and Hardwick. On a steamy Friday evening in Johnson, more than 60 folks gathered under a large tent at Legion Field to enjoy a community style dinner, with live music and lawn games to benefit Lamoille Housing Partnership. The Summer Harvest for Housing fundraiser benefitted the local non-profit’s mission of “creating and preserving affordable housing for low and moderate income residents of Lamoille County and Hardwick.”

Saint Michael's College The members of the Society of Saint Edmund, founding religious order of Saint Michael’s College, will conclude their 175th Anniversary year of celebration with a Mass at Saint Anne's Shrine, Isle La Motte, Vermont, on August 15, 2018, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, at 11 am.

by Jack Hoffman, PAI There’s a case to be made that this year’s budget showdown in Montpelier was lot of high drama with little substance. After all the drama, the budget that was finally approved created one problem that the Legislature will have to address next year and ignored another that should have been addressed long ago.