New vision needed for Ventura County
Editorials, Latest news, OpinionYou might call it the Ventura County conundrum. By many measures, Ventura County has recovered nicely from the recession with relatively low unemployment at 5.3 percent, steady job growth and a nascent boom in the travel and leisure sector. But a deeper dive shows some disturbing trends. Jobs have not recovered to their pre-recession peak, Read More →
Judge’s block of federal overtime exemption rule great for California employers
Columns, Latest news, OpinionIt’s a rare event when a federal rule sets a higher pay standard than worker-friendly California. That’s part of the reason why I wondered whether a Department of Labor mandate to sharply raise the level for overtime exemption to $47,476 a year on Dec. 1 amounted to a war on small businesses. On Nov. 22, Read More →
Widening Highway 101 will reduce traffic woes
Editorials, Latest news, OpinionConstruction on Highway 101 from Casitas Pass Road to Cabrillo Boulevard through Montecito is causing havoc for commuters trying to navigate from Ventura into Santa Barbara. The project will continue into 2020 as Caltrans-funded upgrades to the 101 are incorporated into widening for high occupancy vehicle lanes through a transportation corridor that’s absolutely crucial to Read More →
Presidential election creates Central Coast winners and losers
Columns, Latest newsAfter euphoria comes reality. The stock market rally that accompanied the election of Donald J. Trump as the nation’s 45th president has flattened out amid the reality that governing is complex and so is the economy. With Trump’s election, the slow growth predictability of the Obama years has been replaced with something new. But aside Read More →
Small business backlash fueled Trump’s victory
Editorials, Latest news, OpinionWhen the Business Times asked Labor Secretary Tom Perez last spring if the Obamacare mandates, new overtime rules and other new regulations amounted to a war on small business, he dismissed us with a wave of the hand. “Predictions of disaster amount to exactly that,” he said. On Nov. 8 the disaster arrived. And it Read More →
Dubroff: Status quo carries the day in Tri-Counties
Columns, Latest newsThe political earthquake that upended national politics triggered few aftershocks on the Central Coast. That’s the easiest way to summarize the results of races up and down the ballot in the tri-county region, where outsiders dreaming of an upset funneled millions of Democratic and Republican dollars into races for Congress and the Assembly. A number Read More →
Dubroff: Politics aside, only U.S. can lead world out of trade crisis
Columns, Latest newsThe intersection of business and politics is a busy place, especially in an election season that’s defied conventional wisdom right through to the end. From the shock of the Brexit vote to the rise of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, 2016 has been different from anything we’ve seen in recent memory. And my gut tells Read More →
