Feds, state reach agreement for Morro Bay offshore wind project
The U.S. Department of Defense gave the green light on May 25 to 3 gigawatts of offshore wind energy development off the coast of Morro Bay, culminating a years-long collaboration between state and federal regulators to advance the industry on the West Coast. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and California Gov. Gavin Newsom Read More →
Invoca makes first acquisition, will push company past $100M annual revenue
Invoca, a marketing call analytics company based in Santa Barbara, announced its first acquisition May 24, the purchase of a Chicago-based call tracking and analytics company called DialogTech in a combined cash and stock deal. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Invoca said the puts it on track to exceed $100 million in revenue Read More →
United to connect Santa Barbara and Chicago in June
United Airlines has begun taking reservations for Santa Barbara-to-Chicago service and offering some Windy City-style hot dogs to make a splash. What airport officials describe as Santa Barbara’s longest flight will kick off on June 3 with nonstop daily to O’Hare International Airport, leaving at 7 a.m., according to a May 24 news release from Read More →
Region’s unemployment dropped to 6% in April, but shrinking workforce played a part
The tri-county region’s unemployment rate dropped from 6.4% in March to 6% in April, equaling its lowest rate since the pandemic began, according to a Business Times analysis of data released May 21 by the California Employment Development Department. The drop in the unemployment rate was due in part to job growth, but a shrinking Read More →
Opinion: Source of labor shortage not so simple
By Bruce Stenslie We all know from the shared experiences of employers across a wide range of industries and business models that it’s become an enormous challenge to hire the workers needed to keep up with demand as the economy re-opens. We know too that the most commonly presumed cause for the worker shortage is Read More →
Our View: Region’s growers and farmworkers need help with labor issues
Add the treatment of agricultural workers from Mexico to the growing list of the foreign policy items on the agenda for the Biden administration. In the latest dust-up, the Mexican ambassador, Esteban Moctezuma Barragán, has written Labor Secretary Marty Walsh invoking the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement to protest treatment of farmworkers in the United States.Issues raised Read More →
Ventura County Farm Bureau CEO to retire
John Krist, the CEO of the Ventura County Farm Bureau, will retire in February after 14 years with the organization, the Farm Bureau said in a May 21 news release. Krist joined the Farm Bureau in 2008 and as the CEO he was responsible for managing the staff, daily operations and finances. He also recommended Read More →
