Danville Register and Bee - editorial
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Karl Stauber called this week’s $2 million grant to help bring Com.40 Ltd. to the city “pretty unusual” for the Danville Regional Foundation.
Stauber, the president and CEO of the foundation started with the $200 million profit from the sale of Danville Regional Medical Center, recently concluded his first six months in Danville.
Com.40 Ltd., a Polish maker of mattresses and upholstered furniture, will hire 813 people over seven years, making it the largest single manufacturing job announcement in the Dan River Region in the past four years.
“The Danville region needs success stories,” Stauber said this week. “We’re looking for opportunities that build legitimate hope.”
Stauber believes Com.40 offers laid off tobacco and textile workers a chance to move into living wage jobs that will help “stabilize the employment base in the community.”
But the core mission of the Danville Regional Foundation is advancing the health, welfare and education of local residents, not being a source of money to close economic development deals.
“I don’t imagine that we’re going to do too many Com.40s,” Stauber said.
But two other projects recently supported by the Regional Foundation better define the types of projects it will support in the future.
The first is two grants totaling $1.5 million over five years to the Free Clinic of Danville. The money will help the clinic treat more patients and put it in a better financial position.
Helping the Free Clinic is not only directly tied to the Regional Foundation’s core function of advancing health care, but it made sense because of the tobacco and textile company layoffs that led thousands of people here to lose their health care coverage.
The Free Clinic grants seem obvious, but people would say the same thing about the BEST Coalition if they knew how much money the working poor were walking away from.
Low-income workers are eligible for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, but because so many of them don’t take the credit, the United Way of Danville-Pittsylvania County, Pittsylvania County Community Action, the Virginia Legal Aid Society and the Caswell County, N.C., Senior Center formed the “Building Economic Success Together” Coalition to get more local people to take this credit.
“A lot of these folks don’t even file taxes,” Stauber said, adding that 80 percent of the money people receive from the EITC flows through the local economy.
Stauber believes getting people to take a federal tax credit they’re already entitled to is tied to the larger issue of financial literacy - teaching the working poor how to get the best deals on everything from mortgages and car loans to insurance.
Those kinds of things can lead to real changes in the lives of a great many people - and long-term change is the Danville Regional Foundation’s business.
The Danville Regional Foundation’s recent grants have started to define this critical local organization. The news so far is good.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
29 comments:
EIGHT YEARS to hire a full workforce? No real help there
Considering Dan River employeed 10,000, not to mention the jobs lost at lifepoint and other facilities in danville. The jobs and business ? good but we need improvements over months to 1-2 years not decades the remaining viable worforce will be gone by now.
Okay...so your solutions are....?
(silence)
Hmmm...didn't hear anything better from you.
800 jobs in a million square foot former tobacco plant. That's not a bad day's work for Danville.
Hate to tell you...you aren't going to find a company that comes in and hires 10,000 employees, pays them $40K per year plus benefits, and occupies all the old decrepit turn of the century factory buildings. Give up on that dream.
Really.
If Danville economic development doesn't bring in a new industry to hire unemployed Danvillians, they aren't doing their job.
If Danville economic development brings in a company which will employee 800 people and put a tobacco facility back on the active building list, they aren't doing their job.
So please...all of you closet economic development experts, tell us how YOU would do the job of reinventing the economy of this city.
Everyone sure does have a definition of failure. I don't see too many people offer up their definition of success.
P.U. or S.U.
"EIGHT YEARS to hire a full workforce? No real help there"
Okay, big talker.
How many jobs is YOUR business going to provide over the next 8 years?
If more than 800...kudos to you.
If less than 800...please don't type anything else unless you have something real to contribute.
"good but we need improvements over months to 1-2 years not decades the remaining viable worforce will be gone by now."
Easily said...not easily done.
The workforce (and the economy) here have to be RE-INVENTED.
Not re-directed...RE-INVENTED.
That takes time, resources and commitment.
Ok all of you have the confrontational attitudes to say how wrong that poster is where's your big soulution?
Danville paid roughly the salaries for two years for the entire workforce that won't be there for 8 years. BMW, Toyota, Timken, Honda jet, all were ignored and lost to close areas due to danville not "reinventing" .As for:
"Okay...so your solutions are....?
(silence)
Hmmm...didn't hear anything better from you."
You showed your ignorance by not understanding the economics to rescue a city. We didn't hear anything better from you either.
AND:
"How many jobs is YOUR business going to provide over the next 8 years?"
How about yours ?
"That takes time, resources and commitment?"
Like a previous poster has said
" Danville is years ahead at being decades behind."
Oh and I hope you all like waiting 7 years for your job , if it's still here , and your $14 will buy a quart of gas.
800 new jobs in 8 years is better than 0 jobs that are currently being added in Danville at the present time.
We are lucky to get this opportunity. There are several large companies that have passed on Danville within the last 2 years because of the turmoil within the community regarding the poor showing by LPNT.
This is such a typical set of postings...on both sides o fteh coin. It makes one just shake one's head and have to wonder if a good city-wide dose of prozac might not be the solution. No one on this blog ever seems to be happy enough, no matter what. How sad. Off to anti-depressant land.
"have passed on Danville within the last 2 years because of the turmoil within the community regarding the poor showing by LPNT."
THAT's the point of the blog , thank you someone understands.
LPNT is the problem.
You really believe that, don't you?
that post is correct : If you don't think lifepoint is a huge problem you need to study corporate greed and the NAFTA CAFTA
(and soon to be SAFTA) destruction of United States economics. If you don't understand the economic destruction of America by greedy corporations and the concept of fair labor practices and what the term living wage means, well, then no one can help you. and by the way, not gaining continuous education and this localities lack of education and understanding of the US economic climate is one more reason that a few people, and their decendants, continue to keep danville supressed and away from what true hospitals(NON- profit teaching facilities) do. Treat people very well and GROW their communities.
Education opportunities were available to those who lost their mfg jobs at Dan River, however and unfortunately, most decided to take courses relating to careers that do no exist in great quantities in the community (ie entry level clerical). Hopefully, some of those folks will be able to fill positions at COM.40.
Danville was already in a downward spiral before the purchase of DRMC. The state of the local economy is not LPNT's fault. However, they're execs (local and corporate) have not done anything to promote the "family-feeling" that once existed between DRMC and the community.
"You showed your ignorance by not understanding the economics to rescue a city. We didn't hear anything better from you either."
Not really...I completely understand the economics. That's the field I work in professionally. My efforts have been directly related to bringing over 2,000 jobs to the region in the past two years.
Three pieces to the equation:
Product: buildings or property that industrial prospects actually want.
People: A workforce of which the majority can pass basic literacy and work skills tests...not to mention be drug free.
Place: The prospect has to be looking for a location at the intersection of two non-interstate highways that is four hours from the port.
This city has come a loonngg way towards being truly marketable. The credit for that can be found in the school system, the economic development office, and myriad other public and private agencies working together behind the scenes to transform the region.
"Danville paid roughly the salaries for two years for the entire workforce that won't be there for 8 years."
YOU don't understand the economics of the process, do you?
Actually I do. I have years of audit and tax experience and 2 four year degrees in it .
You should try education, it's very liberating. You might have a clue if you knew what you were talking about.
"2 four year degrees in it"
So you were willing to wait eight years and shell money out of your pocket in anticipation of the future benefits of your degrees?
Hmmm....interesting point of view.
I have to say that even I am tired of hearing that LPNT is the problem. If you want to get to the root of the problem in America, which includes Danville, blame the person who came up with the bright idea to reduce expenses on the financials by reducing the labor force. This was accomplished by going from full-time with benefits to part-time, no benefits and a reduction in pay. When you are barely making a living on what you make you can't take a pay cut. Then factor in that jobs traditionally provided by service companies, i.e. power companies and line repairmen, were sourced out to other companies for them to carry the burden of payroll and benefits. But service quality went out the window. How many people have called the help line or customer service and ended up talking to someone in India? They were able to jump in and scoop up the service jobs that were being outsourced because there were no companies in the United States that would take on these jobs. Why? Did they believe that the service industry giants were just crying wolf when they said they were going to eliminate jobs? Now there are companies in the US who provide this service but they pay minimum wage, no benefits and turnover rates for employees is very high.
A house united will stand strong.
A house divided will fall.
Well Put! They are looking after the stock holders and no longer the workers. The stock holders have a big voice but the workers make the company.
"So you were willing to wait eight years and shell money out of your pocket in anticipation of the future benefits of your degrees?"
Nice try , I and the majority of students work and produce and contribute while studying it's pay as you play , not pay to maybe play.
"I have to say that even I am tired of hearing that LPNT is the problem." They are a local representative of the problem .
Your writing is dead on. NAFTA, CAFTA, and the possible SAFTA, are the problem. Everything you said about the Part-time v full-time, excellent. Corporations are all about the stockholders , typically the CEO's and their friends and family network.Just like in Danville , a few families have enslaved the populace of danville.
Lifepoint is our best local example of this ie. seriously destroyed services to suck up money for a different region (tenn.)at the expense of others danville.
And the above post is correct it's not the same.
"Nice try , I and the majority of students work and produce and contribute while studying it's pay as you play , not pay to maybe play."
Right back atcha...that's what I did when I worked to get my MBA.
The point being, very few econ dev deals are fully loaded on the front end. This is a company establishing its first North American presence on the basis of a couple product lines for a very big and very demanding customer (IKEA). To be conservative and estimate the buildup over 8 years is not surprising...understanding that with IKEA, they won't have that long. It's much like being a supplier for Wal-mart...no time to be lazy or take WAG's.
At least we've come to a semi agreement in philosophy, something lifepoint will never do in their operation.Thanks for the dialogue.
We cannot understress the importance of a qualified educated workforce. This is a huge negative presently for our community. the educated young leave and do not wish to come back, the older textile workers and tobacco workers in general do not wish to return to school. There is a generalized lack of value expressed for those who have completed an education to include bachelors and graduate work. I worked at the hospital for years and found no desire from the majority of staff (to include the professionals) to seek further education. It was not valued or fostered. How very sad. If you were a company looking to expand in this area one of your concerns would be a qualified, educated, workforch with a desire to grow and seek more education.
Oh, you can seek higher education. Lot of good it will do you. They want the knowledge and expertise that you can bring to your job with a higher education. Only problem: if you expect a higher reimbursement for your advanced degree then forget about it.
You both are exactly right, The "lifepoint" hospital (formerly DRMC),Is currently threatening to end my employement due to my reduced work schedule while seeking a higher education .
They also DO NOT compensate us for our Bachelors degrees in our field. The Degrees we hold have been proven to improve patient outcome but lifepoint isn't worried about patients or employees.
It is not just lifepoint, I find this entire community does not appreciate a hire education. I am masters prepared in my field yet I couldn't evn get a job at the local community college...yet they hire some who don't even have a bachelours degree. I received no recognition for andvanced preparation at DRMC long before LPNT arrived on the scene. I left to a community in which it is valued and nurtured. There are no standards or values of such education found in this community at all. It is who you know not what you know.
You're correct (except for the first "hire", should be higher education)
Otherwise 100% correct.
Lifepoint is just the best shining example of disrespect for employees, and patients.
I read your blogs regularly. Your humoristic way is amusing, continue the good work!raspberry ketone side effects
Post a Comment