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MCLEAN, Va.– To help more local small business owners innovate and compete in a rapidly changing marketplace, Capital One and Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence will hold a “Leadership Institute: Thrive with Massive Change” event for local women-owned small businesses, featuring world-renowned expert design innovator Bruce Mau from April 15-17, 2014 in Arlington, Virginia.

During the “Leadership Institute: Thrive with Massive Change” event, Mau will introduce the Design Thinking methodology, used by Fortune 500 companies, including Capital One, to the small business community. Local small business owners will have the opportunity to learn how they can apply Mau’s Design Thinking methodology — based on a human-centered, prototype-driven process for innovation — to their products, services, or business design.

“At Capital One we’re using Design Thinking and its customer-focused approach to reimagine the way millions of people interact with their money to ensure that we’re building the products and experiences our customers need,” said Evelyn Huang, Director of Design Thinking and Strategy, Capital One. “By partnering with Count Me In to introduce Design Thinking to the small business community, we’re hoping to help more entrepreneurs unlock critical customer insights to accelerate innovation and fuel the growth of their small businesses.”

A recent Capital One survey found that 43 percent of small business owners in the Washington, DC, area are concerned about their ability to compete with larger businesses over the next five years. While local DC-area small businesses identify a lack of customer insights as one of their top hurdles to keeping pace with larger businesses in a rapidly changing marketplace, only 37 percent of DC-area small businesses said they conduct in-person feedback sessions with customers, only 16 percent conduct surveys of customers to get feedback on new products and prototypes, and 9 percent do not involve customers at all in the process of creating new products and prototypes, found the Capital One survey of local small business owners.

“Applying Mau’s innovative design principles and tools will inspire women entrepreneurs and will give them fresh perspective on how to approach problem-solving, expand their vision and build their double bottom line of growing a bigger, better business and a better life,” said Nell Merlino, President, Count Me In. “We’re thrilled to partner with Mau and Capital One, who both share our commitment to empower women small business owners with invaluable insight and knowledge that will help them address their biggest business challenges.”

The Leadership Institute builds on Count Me In and Capital One’s partnership to support the growth of women-owned small business owners. Last year, Count Me In and Capital One launched the Women Veteran Entrepreneur Corps (WVEC), a training and mentorship program designed to help established women small business owners who are veterans, spouses/domestic partners, or daughters of veterans conquer daily business challenges and plan ahead for future growth and success.

“We recognize the critical role that our nation’s small businesses serve in economic recovery, and we’re committed to supporting small businesses at every stage of their journey – whether it’s directly through our products and services, or through innovative partnerships and programs like the Leadership Institute that provide tailored business training, mentoring, and other professional support and resources,” Huang added.

About Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence

Count Me In is the leading not-for-profit provider of business education and resources for women interested in growing their micro-businesses into million-dollar enterprises. Founded in 1999, the organization inspires and instructs thousands of women business owners online, at live events, and through peers, coaches and experts to significantly increase revenues and create new jobs. CMI has developed a reputation nationally and internationally for accelerating business growth and positioning women in the forefront of global economic recovery. For more information on Count Me In programs and resources visit www.countmein.org.

About Capital One

Capital One Financial Corporation, headquartered in McLean, Virginia, is a Fortune 500 company with more than 900 branch locations primarily in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Its subsidiaries, which include Capital One, N.A., and Capital One Bank (USA), N. A., offer a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. Capital One applies the same principles of innovation, collaboration and empowerment in our commitment to our communities across the country that we do in our business. Capital One recognizes that helping to build strong and healthy communities – good places to work, good places to do business and good places to raise families – benefits us all and Capital One is proud to support this and other community initiatives.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of the final $450 million in grants under the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training initiative. Over the last three years, these unprecedented investments have helped expand the capacity of the American community college system to provide accessible training programs that connect people to available jobs in growing industries in their communities. These grants are an important part of the Obama administration’s job-driven skills agenda and are being implemented in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education.

“Through the first three rounds of grants more than 800 colleges across the country are helping to build strong ladders of opportunity that allow people to secure a foothold in the middle class, while also supporting businesses to compete and grow,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. “This final round will help scale what works, strengthen career pathways and improve the way employment and education data are used in assessing programs throughout the country.”

Previous grantees have leveraged strong partnerships between community colleges, the workforce system, employers and industry groups to transform the way they design and deliver courses through accelerated learning strategies; redesigned curricula; distance learning; work-based training, such as Registered Apprenticeships; and innovative uses of technology to enhance learning activities. This solicitation continues to promote these strategies.

“Community colleges play a vital role in equipping our nation’s students with the skills they need to meet the demands of today’s careers,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. “This program is not about tinkering — it’s about transformation. This is not about getting more students to enroll — it’s about getting more students to graduation day and into good jobs.”

The program is designed to ensure that an eligible institution in every state plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico receive dedicated funding of at least $2.25 million. Single institutions may apply for grants of up to $2.5 million and consortia of institutions within the same state or among institutions that share an economic region may apply for grants up to $15 million.

This round of funding strengthens employer engagement throughout the grant process. Successful applicants will design programs that are responsive to the workforce needs of multiple employers within an industry sector by working closely with regional and national employers and industry groups. These employer and industry partners will help identify and map necessary skills and competencies, as well as assist in designing curricula, programs, assessments or credentials that will help quickly connect ready-to-work Americans with ready-to-be-filled jobs.

The final round of grants will place a priority on three additional goals by making additional funding available to those applicants who propose to:
develop partnerships with national industry groups or employers to scale strategies across the country;
engage employers, educators, Registered Apprenticeships and the workforce system to support the development or expansion of state career pathways systems; or
improve the integration of state employment and education data.
In an effort to scale promising practices from previous grants and sustain meaningful improvements to the community college system, additional preference will be given to collaborations that include:
in-depth employer partnerships, such as work-based learning and commitments to hire;
partnership with the workforce system and the network of nearly 2,500 American Job Centers to help support program implementation; or
partnerships with Registered Apprenticeship sponsors in their local and regional areas, particularly in occupations and industries with expected workforce shortages.

Those interested in applying for the newly available funding should visit http://www.grants.gov. The deadline to apply is July 7, 2014.
Eligible applicants include community colleges and other public, proprietary or nonprofit educational institutions that offer programs that can be completed in two years and are accredited by an agency or association recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
All curricula and training materials developed with the support of the grant will be made available for free re-use under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY) License, ensuring that colleges around the country can replicate their promising programs.
General information about the TAACCCT program can be found at http://www.doleta.gov/taaccct/.

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced today the re-launch of its Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, one of 13 federal agency offices under the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Housed within the Office of the Secretary, the Center serves to connect community- and faith-based organizations to Commerce resources and programs, engage a diverse array of stakeholders in the work of the agency, and promote economic development and job creation through local partnerships.

“I am excited to announce the new strategic direction of Commerce’s Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. The Center plays an important role in connecting Commerce to local communities and ensuring the Department’s ‘Open for Business Agenda’ expands opportunity for all Americans,” said U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker. “By linking community leaders and organizations with critical economic development programs, technical assistance and other resources, the Department of Commerce is working to achieve its mission of promoting job creation, economic growth, sustainable development and improved standards of living for all Americans by working in partnership with businesses, universities, communities and our nation’s workers.”

In direct alignment with the Department’s “Open for Business Agenda,” the Center has created Commerce’s first-ever “Community Development Resource Toolkit,” which highlights how community-based organizations can utilize Commerce Department programs to promote local-level economic development. The Center has also revamped its website and will begin a “Commerce in the Community” blog series highlighting the many ways in which local business, nonprofit and religious leaders are partnering with Commerce to make a positive impact at the local level. Additionally, the Center will begin a series of place-based convenings this summer, focused on connecting communities with Commerce Department programs and resources, while also promoting local partnerships around skills and workforce development.

“Commerce’s Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships plays an important role in our community development efforts by helping businesses and nonprofits work together to grow the economy and create jobs,” said Melissa Rogers, Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. “We are looking forward to collaborating with our colleagues at Commerce to build ladders of opportunity for all Americans.”

On March 30, 2014, the Center co-hosted Business Sunday – its first event under Secretary Pritkzer – at 19th Street Baptist Church in Washington, DC. A collaboration between the Minority Business Development Agency and the Small Business Administration, Business Sunday is focused on providing current and aspiring business leaders from congregations and communities around the country with the federal resources they need to start and grow their companies. As a reflection of the President’s commitment to job creation and economic opportunity for all Americans, Business Sunday connects people to valuable technical assistance, grant information and other resources from the Minority Business Development Agency, BusinessUSA and the Small Business Administration.

The Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships is led by Director Josh Dickson. Originally from Upstate New York, Josh is a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School and a long-time community organizer who’s been involved in numerous initiatives focused on engaging faith-based and neighborhood organizations in community development. In his role as Director, Josh will oversee faith-based and community partnership projects across all Commerce bureaus as well as within the Office of the Secretary.

This news is courtesy of www.doc.gov

Entrepreneurs play a critical role in expanding the economy and creating jobs. President Obama is committed to increasing the prevalence and success of entrepreneurs across the country, including through the White House Startup America initiative, an “all-hands-on-deck” effort to expand access to capital, accelerate innovation, and promote private sector efforts to strengthen the Nation’s startup communities. The United States also runs and funds hundreds of programs to support entrepreneurs globally and maintains a broad coalition of governments, business people, civil society, investors, and academics to educate and support entrepreneurs around the world.

Building on these efforts, today the Administration is announcing a series of new steps to accelerate the success of entrepreneurs in the United States and across the globe:

Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship: Today, President Obama hosted the inaugural meeting of the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship (PAGE), a group of successful American businesspeople who have committed to sharing their time, energy, ideas, and experience to help develop the next generation of entrepreneurs at home and abroad. The group is chaired by Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, and the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) are also partners in this effort.

Attracting the World’s Best and Brightest: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will soon publish several proposed rules that will make the United States more attractive to talented foreign entrepreneurs and other high-skill immigrants who will contribute substantially to the U.S. economy, create jobs, and enhance American innovative competitiveness. These proposed regulations include rules authorizing employment for spouses of certain high-skill workers on H-1B visas, as well as enhancing opportunities for outstanding professors and researchers. These measures build on continuing DHS efforts to streamline, eliminate inefficiency, and increase the transparency of the existing immigration system, such as by the launch of Entrepreneur Pathways, an online resource center that gives immigrant entrepreneurs an intuitive way to navigate opportunities to start and grow a business in the United States.

Accelerating Biomedical Entrepreneurs from Lab to Market: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) are launching a new collaboration to empower entrepreneurial scientists and address the critical gap between fundamental research and the development of a commercial entity. Academic researchers and entrepreneurs who receive Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding from NIH will be eligible to pilot a new version of the NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program that is specially tailored for biomedical technologies. This intensive, mentor-driven experience is changing the way that NSF-funded researchers think about the commercialization process. NIH will also help scale up I-Corps by augmenting existing NIH-funded programs, such as the NIH Centers for Accelerated Innovation (NCAI), that focus on promising technologies developed by academic researchers. Faculty and students who participate in these new I-Corps programs will receive mentorship opportunities, entrepreneurial training, and modest funding to enable them to move their ideas from the lab to the market.

Energizing Entrepreneurs to Help End Extreme Poverty: Fostering entrepreneurs and strengthening entrepreneurial ecosystems are vital elements of USAID’s newly launched U.S. Global Development Lab (The Lab). The Lab will empower a global network of individuals to help create, solve and scale innovative solutions to global challenges by applying rigorous scientific, business, research, and technological expertise. In the next five years, scientists and technology experts at The Lab will create a new global marketplace of innovations and take them to scale to reach over 200 million people worldwide. The Lab is pioneering open-source development models like Development Innovation Ventures and Grand Challenges that nurture new solvers and players in emerging markets and spurring innovation. The Lab is expanding a Global Development Alliance furthering LGBT equality through entrepreneurship and small and medium enterprise growth in Latin America. A new USAID Research and Innovation Fellowships Program will send more than 60 young U.S. leaders in science and technology to universities, NGOs, and companies in 12 developing countries this year.

Bolstering Exchanges and Training for Entrepreneurs in the Western Hemisphere: This fall, the State Department will host TechCamps for women in El Salvador, Colombia, and Argentina. These camps will bring together hundreds of women across the region over the course of the year and provide them training to address key challenges in business formation, from financing to marketing. Additionally, the State Department will be launching two new exchange programs for entrepreneurs in the Western hemisphere. The Small Business Network of the Americas (SBNA) Fellowship Program will connect incubators across the hemisphere to share best practices in entrepreneurial development and unlock market access for small businesses across the region. The Professional Fellows Program will bring Salvadorian, Guatemalan, and American officials together for a six-week internship and training program focuses on professional development, problem-solving, and networking.

This news is courtesy of www.whitehouse.gov

LONDON, – JPMorgan Chase and the UK Department for International Development will kick start promising businesses in East Africa through a new joint investment in Novastar Ventures.

The new $5 million investment by JPMorgan Chase will be matched by an additional $15 million from DFID as part of its first ever Impact Investment Fund. Launched in 2013, the fund is managed by the CDC, the UK’s own Development Finance Institution.

The investment will develop and grow early-stage businesses that bring the most basic human needs to some of the poorest communities in East Africa, such as healthcare, energy, housing, education and sanitation. The announcement follows Novastar’s recent investment in Bridge International Academies, which provides affordable, primary education to low-income populations. Since 2009, Bridge has built more than 250 schools in Kenya and has hired over 3,000 employees from some of Kenya’s poorest communities.

“We are delighted to have Novastar join our latest investment round,” said Jay Kimmelman, Cofounder and CEO of Bridge International Academies. “Novastar’s founding partners have supported Bridge since our very early days. Their values are closely tied with ours – seeking innovative business-based solutions to sustainably solve some of the world’s greatest problems. Their investment and their experience will be invaluable as we enter our next phase of expansion.”

Novastar’s investment portfolio is diverse and includes rapidly growing businesses supplying fuel-efficient cookstoves in Kenya and Ethiopia, and franchise sanitation facilities in Nairobi’s urban slums. Novastar seeks to develop fully commercial businesses that adapt and deploy innovative business models to profitably serve proven demand for basic goods and services, improving access, affordability and quality. Novastar’s investments are expected to benefit more than 2 million low-income households in East Africa over the next decade.

“We’re looking for the next generation of exceptional entrepreneurs who are designing and executing innovative business models to profitably serve low-income consumer markets in East Africa,” said Steve Beck, Managing Director of Novastar. “By supporting these entrepreneurs and the growth of their ventures, we aim to generate long-term capital appreciation for our investors and significant, scalable benefits to these consumers and producers. In so doing, we hope to attract more entrepreneurship and private capital into the emerging economies of East Africa.”

The investment follows DFID’s appointment of Novastar as the first beneficiary of its Impact Investment Fund in January 2014. The UK’s £75 million Impact Fund is expected to benefit five million people over the next thirteen years, by providing capital to fund innovative enterprises that serve the poor as employees, producers and consumers.

“Our joint investment will ensure promising businesses get the support they need to create jobs and deliver much needed services like health and education,” said Justine Greening, Secretary of State for International Development. “Sharing our joint knowledge and expertise on development and sound investment choices will improve the lives of many of the poorest people across East Africa.”

“Impact investments have the potential to transform the lives of millions of the poorest people in Africa and South Asia,” said Diana Noble, CDC’s Chief Executive. “Novastar will now be able to provide early-stage funding to businesses in East Africa that provide vital jobs, goods and services. When CDC commits its capital to impact investment, we’re looking for teams, like Novastar, who are able to raise money from other commercial investors.”

“We are very proud to partner with the UK Government in providing investment to Novastar and the critically important businesses they support in East Africa,” said Peter L. Scher, Executive Vice President and head of Corporate Responsibility at JPMorgan Chase. “Our firm has made a substantial commitment to supporting market-driven solutions to some of the world’s most pressing social, economic and environmental challenges. Novastar’s management team has an accomplished record of financing start-ups that seek to improve the basic quality of life for people in East African communities. We’re thrilled that our investment can help expand their efforts.”

The investment in Novastar is further demonstration of JPMorgan Chase’s dedication to building and delivering innovative solutions to address social and environmental challenges in partnership with governmental and philanthropic organizations. Late last year JPMorgan Chase and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced a new $108 million investment fund to advance late-stage global health technologies, like vaccines, in low-income countries. Since its launch in 2007, JPMorgan Chase has committed more than $50 million in capital to a number of funds making investments in Africa and other parts of the world including the African Agricultural Capital Fund, LeapFrog Financial Inclusion Funds I and II, and MicroVest II.

About JPMorgan Chase
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.4 trillion and operations worldwide. The Firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset management and private equity. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co. serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its J.P. Morgan and Chase brands. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.

About DFID
The UK’s Department for International Development leads the British Government’s fight against world poverty. Find out more at www.gov.uk/dfid

About CDC
CDC is the UK government-owned development finance institution that uses its own balance sheet to invest in the developing countries of Africa and South Asia. It has net assets of £2.8bn. CDC’s mission is to support the building of businesses in Africa and South Asia, creating jobs and making a lasting difference to people’s lives in some of the world’s poorest places. Under its strategy, announced in September 2012, CDC provides debt and direct investment to businesses as well as acting as a fund-of-funds investor. CDC now only makes new investment commitments in Africa and South Asia

This news is courtesy of www.jpmorganchase.com

WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez issued the following statement about the March 2014 Employment Situation report released today:
“Today’s report tells the story of a solid and steady economic recovery delivering more opportunity for more people. We saw 192,000 new jobs in the month of March, and the private sector has now created 8.9 million jobs over the last 49 consecutive months of employment growth. The unemployment rate held steady at 6.7 percent and is down from 7.5 percent a year ago.

“There is encouraging news across sectors. Health-care employment increased by 19,000 jobs. The average work week in manufacturing rebounded to 42.0 hours, tied for the highest mark since July 1945. Motor vehicle sales had their strongest month in seven years. At the height of the recession, there were six job seekers for every job available. Today, it’s two-and-a-half people competing for every open job.

“Without question, there is more still to do. On issues from infrastructure to immigration reform, from manufacturing to the minimum wage, there are steps Congress can take that will help more people punch their ticket to the middle class.

“For the 57th straight month (since the middle of 2009), at least one-third of jobless Americans have been unemployed for more than 27 weeks. So, priority number one must be for the House and Senate to extend emergency unemployment benefits that they irresponsibly allowed to expire more than three months ago, creating profound hardship for 2.3 million people. These benefits are a critical lifeline for job seekers struggling to get back on their feet; but they also act as a broader economic stimulus, putting money in people’s pockets and spurring consumer demand.

“The success of the Affordable Care Act is helping working families enjoy greater economic security, the peace of mind of knowing they won’t be wiped out by an injury or illness. The open enrollment period ended with 7.1 million people signing up for health coverage they didn’t have before. The ACA will help provide a shot in the arm to the economy, as people are free to start their own businesses and pursue entrepreneurial ventures now that their health insurance is no longer tied to their job.”

This news is courtesy of www.dol.gov

The Federal Trade Commission has moved to close down a multi-million dollar telemarketing fraud that targeted U.S. seniors across the nation, scamming tens of thousands of consumers.

On March 18, U.S. District Judge J. Curtis Joyner issued a temporary order to halt the scam. Then, after a hearing on March 27, three defendants agreed to court-issued preliminary injunctions, and the court imposed a preliminary injunction against the final defendant, Ari Tietolman and his companies. In shuttering the scheme, pending trial, the court found that the FTC was likely to prevail and that funds should be preserved so they can potentially be returned to the victims of the telemarketing fraud scheme.

“The defendants’ conduct in this case was simply outrageous. They targeted and called senior citizens and lied to them to get their bank account information. Then they used this information to withdraw money from their bank accounts,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Consumers can count on the FTC to be aggressive in the fight against this type of fraud”

Tietolman, the alleged leader of the telemarketing scheme, and his associates established a network of U.S. and Canadian entities to carry out their scam, according to a complaint filed by the Commission. The defendants used a telemarketing boiler room in Canada, where Tietolman lives, to cold-call seniors claiming to sell fraud protection, legal protection, and pharmaceutical benefit services. The cost for the defendants’ alleged services ranged from $187 and $397.

In some instances, the telemarketers who carried out the fraud impersonated government and bank officials, and enticed consumers to disclose their confidential bank account information to facilitate the fraud. The defendants used that account information to create checks drawn on the consumers’ bank accounts. They then deposited these “remotely created checks” into corporate accounts they established in the United States. The U.S.-based defendants then transferred the money to accounts controlled by the Canadian defendants, according to an analysis of bank records.

The FTC alleges that the defendants’ conduct violated the FTC Act and the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule and that the telemarketing scheme drew in over $20 million dollars between May 2011 and December 2013.

The defendants’ businesses include First Consumers, LLC, Standard American Marketing, Inc., and PowerPlay Industries LLC. First Consumers, LLC is a Pennsylvania company formed in 2010. Consumer complaints and bank records indicate that from at least June 2009 until June 2013, the company scammed consumers using its own name and three other names: Patient Assistance Plus, Legal Eye, and Fraud Watch. The three other individual defendants who assisted in the scheme are U.S. nationals: Marc Ferry, Charles Borie, and Robert Barczai.

The Commission vote approving the complaint was 4-0. It was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

The FTC received valuable help throughout this case from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The case will be decided by the court.

The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics.

This news is courtesy of www.ftc.gov

ROSELAND, N.J. – U.S. private-sector franchise jobs increased by 12,050 during the month of February 2014, according to the ADP National Franchise ReportSM. Broadly distributed to the public each month free of charge, the ADP National Franchise Report measures monthly changes in franchise employment derived from ADP’s actual transactional payroll data. The report is produced by ADP®, a leading global provider of Human Capital Management (HCM) solutions, in collaboration with Moody’s Analytics, Inc. and is published by the ADP Research Institute®.

“Franchises created 12,050 new jobs in February,” said Ahu Yildirmaz, vice president and head of the ADP Research Institute. “For the second month in a row, restaurants continued to show considerably diminished growth, adding fewer jobs last month than the average monthly gain over past eleven month. This may be attributable to the unusually harsh winter the U.S. has been experiencing.” Yildirmaz added, “It is worth noting that combined, auto-related franchises, business services, and accommodations reflect more than half of the franchise jobs created this month.

The ADP National Franchise Report, the first and only report of its kind, is a monthly measure of the change in total U.S. nonfarm private franchise employment derived from actual, anonymous payroll data of client companies served by ADP®, a leading provider of human capital management solutions. The matched sample used to develop the ADP National Franchise Report is derived from ADP payroll data, which represents 15,000 Franchisors and Franchisees employing nearly one million workers in the U.S.

The ADP National Franchise Report is published by the ADP Research Institute®, a specialized group within ADP that provides insights around employment trends and workforce strategy, in collaboration with Moody’s Analytics, Inc.

Each month, ADP issues the ADP National Franchise Report as part of the company’s commitment to adding deeper insights into the U.S. labor market and providing businesses, governments and others with a source of credible and valuable information. The ADP National Franchise Report is broadly distributed to the public each month, free of charge.

About Moody’s Analytics
Moody’s Analytics helps capital markets and risk management professionals worldwide respond to an evolving marketplace with confidence. The company offers unique tools and best practices for measuring and managing risk through expertise and experience in credit analysis, economic research and financial risk management. By providing leading-edge software, advisory services and research, including proprietary analyses from Moody’s Investors Service, Moody’s Analytics integrates and customizes its offerings to address specific business challenges. Moody’s Analytics is a subsidiary of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE: MCO), which reported revenue of $2.7 billion in 2012, employs approximately 8,300 people worldwide and has a presence in 31 countries. Further information is available at www.moodysanalytics.com.

About ADP
With more than $11 billion in revenues and more than 60 years of experience, ADP® (NASDAQ: ADP) serves approximately 620,000 clients in more than 125 countries. As one of the world’s largest providers of business outsourcing and human capital management solutions, ADP offers a wide range of human resource, payroll, talent management, tax and benefits administration solutions from a single source, and helps clients comply with regulatory and legislative changes, such as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). ADP’s easy-to-use solutions for employers provide superior value to companies of all types and sizes. ADP is also a leading provider of integrated computing solutions to auto, truck, motorcycle, marine, recreational vehicle, and heavy equipment dealers throughout the world. For more information about ADP visit the company’s Web site at www.adp.com.

This news is courtesy of www.adp.com

Over the past 30 years, modest minimum wage increases have not kept pace with the rising costs of basic necessities for working families. No one who works full time should have to raise his or her family in poverty. President Obama supports raising the minimum wage to help build real, lasting economic security for the middle class and has made it a key part of his plan to create more opportunities for every hardworking American to get ahead in 2014.

The President knows this is important for workers, and good for the economy. That is why the President has already signed an executive order to raise the minimum wage and tipped minimum wage for federal contract workers and is calling on Congress to raise the national minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour and index it to inflation thereafter, while also raising the tipped minimum wage for the first time in over 20 years. Increasing the minimum wage and the tipped minimum wage is especially important for women, who make up more than half of the workforce in jobs that pay the minimum wage and tipped occupations. Today, the White House is releasing a new report, attached, that lays out how women and the workforce would benefit if Congress passed legislation to raise the national minimum wage and tipped minimum wage for all Americans. Key findings from the report include:

Raising the minimum wage is especially important for women because:

Women in the workforce are more highly concentrated in low-wage sectors such as personal care and healthcare support occupations.
Women account for more than half (55 percent) of all workers who would benefit from increasing the minimum wage to $10.10.
Women also make up the majority of workers in predominantly tipped occupation. Under Federal law, employers are allowed to pay a “tipped minimum wage” of $2.13 to employees who regularly earn tips as long as their tips plus the tipped minimum wage meet or exceed $7.25 per hour.

Women account for 72 percent of all workers in predominantly tipped occupations – such as restaurant servers, bartenders, and hairstylists.
Average hourly wages for workers in predominantly tipped occupations are nearly 40 percent lower than overall average hourly wages.
Workers in predominantly tipped occupations are twice as likely as other workers to experience poverty, and servers are almost three times as likely to be in poverty.
About half of all workers in predominantly tipped occupations would see their earnings increase as a result of the President’s proposal.
The national tipped minimum wage has been stuck at $2.13 for over 20 years. Partly as a result, tipped workers are at greater risk of not earning the full minimum wage, even though employers are required by law to ensure that employees’ tips plus their employer-paid wage meet or exceed the full minimum wage.

Since 1991, the tipped minimum wage has declined by 40 percent in real terms. Today, the tipped minimum wage equals just 29 percent of the full minimum wage, the lowest share since the tipped minimum wage was established in 1966.
When surveyed, more than 1 in 10 workers in predominantly tipped occupations report hourly wages below the full national minimum wage, including tips. This fact highlights the challenges of ensuring compliance with minimum wage laws for tipped workers, as the employer contribution has been eroded by 20 years of inflation.
Many states have recognized the need for a greater employer contribution to the wages of tipped workers. Currently 32 states (including the District of Columbia) require employers to pay tipped workers an hourly wage that exceeds the national tipped minimum of $2.13 – and seven of these states require employers to pay both tipped and non-tipped workers the same state minimum wage before tips.
Raising the full minimum wage and the tipped minimum wage will help reduce poverty among women and their families, as well as make progress toward closing the gender pay gap.

About one-quarter (26 percent) of all workers who would benefit from increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 have dependent children, and 31 percent of female workers who would benefit have children.
2.8 million working single parents would benefit from the President’s proposed increase in the full minimum wage, more than 80 percent of whom are women.
Research shows that raising the minimum wage reduces child poverty among female-headed households.
Increasing the minimum wage can also help women work their way out of poverty and into the middle class.
For every dollar that men earn, women earn just 77 cents. Estimates from the President’s Council of Economic Advisers suggest that increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour and indexing it to inflation could close about 5 percent of the gender wage gap.

This news is courtesy of www.whitehouse.gov

Fitch Group today announced it has acquired Business Monitor International (BMI), an independent provider of country risk and industry analysis specializing in emerging and frontier markets. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The addition of BMI strengthens and expands Fitch Group’s client offering in financial information services. Subscribers to BMI’s products include decision makers at multinationals, governments, academia, financial institutions, investment funds and research centers in more than 160 countries.

Paul Taylor, president and CEO of Fitch Group, commented: “We are excited to add BMI’s world-class research, data, and analytical capabilities to Fitch’s global suite of financial information services. BMI and Fitch share a commitment to pairing robust data with sophisticated analysis to produce content that is insightful and accessible.”

Richard Londesborough and Jonathan Feroze, founders and co-CEOs of BMI, commented: “The strategic fit between BMI and Fitch Group is excellent, not least in terms of the entrepreneurial culture shared by both companies. Clients will benefit from a broader platform of research products, greater global reach and Fitch Group’s focus on growth.”

BMI will continue to operate independently as Business Monitor International, a Fitch Group Company. Mr. Londesborough and Mr. Feroze will continue to lead BMI, reporting to Mr. Taylor. BMI was previously owned by growth equity investor Spectrum Equity in partnership with BMI Founders and employees.

About Business Monitor International
Business Monitor International (BMI) integrates country risk and industry analysis and forecasts on global, regional, and country level developments and trends across 200 countries and 24 industry verticals. Business Monitor Online, the company’s enterprise platform, enables clients to access daily analyses, time series and forecast data, reports and proprietary databases. BMI has approximately 300 employees and is based in London with additional offices in New York, Singapore, and Pretoria. For more information visit www.businessmonitor.com.

About Fitch Group
Fitch Group is a global leader in financial information services with operations in more than 30 countries. In addition to Business Monitor International, Fitch Group includes: Fitch Ratings, a global leader in credit ratings and research; Fitch Solutions, a leading provider of credit market data, analytical tools and risk services; and Fitch Learning, a provider of learning and development solutions for the global financial services industry. Fitch Group is jointly owned by Paris-based Fimalac and New York-based Hearst Corporation.

This news is courtesy of http://www.hearst.com/

Lt. Gov. Drew Wrigley and the North Dakota Economic Development Foundation today announced a new workforce recruitment campaign aimed at attracting a permanent private-sector workforce to meet the growing needs of North Dakota’s robust economy. The “Find the Good Life in North Dakota” campaign will use targeted marketing and event strategies to attract potential new residents to North Dakota.

The campaign will emphasize the career opportunities available in North Dakota and promote the qualities that make North Dakota a great place to live, work and raise a family. It is being developed to target people in states with chronic unemployment, and people in industries that are high-demand in North Dakota, including: engineering, healthcare, energy, skilled trades, transportation and information technology.

“We have been working hard to grow our economy and create jobs, and those efforts have paid off in big ways as North Dakota leads the nation in economic and job growth,” said Wrigley. “To sustain that growth, we need to ensure that the jobs we are creating are filled with highly-skilled workers, and this campaign is a tremendous opportunity to expand our workforce and promote the quality of life that North Dakota has to offer.”

The campaign is also placing an emphasis on attracting veterans and active military transitioning to civilian life and employment.It is estimated that 250,000 service men and women will be exiting the armed forces in the coming years and the campaign will invite them to start their next career in North Dakota.

“Find the Good Life in North Dakota” is a public-private partnership led by the North Dakota Economic Development Foundation. The State of North Dakota has provided $400,000 in matching funds to launch the project. “Find the Good Life in North Dakota” is set to launch in May 2014.

Steve McNally, Hess Corporation’s general manager of the company’s North Dakota operations, presented the North Dakota Economic Development Foundation with a $400,000 check as an investment in the “Find the Good Life in North Dakota” campaign. “Like many businesses, Hess is faced with tremendous workforce needs,” said McNally. “We want to hire workers who, like us, believe in the exciting opportunities North Dakota has to offer.”

“We’re a state with great schools, friendly people, supportive and safe communities, arts and entertainment, tremendous outdoor recreation and, of course, great job opportunities,” said Wally Goulet, chair, North Dakota Economic Development Foundation. “In the end, our goal is to ensure our state has the workforce it needs to take full advantage of the opportunities we have all worked so hard to create and foster.”

The North Dakota Economic Development Foundation is charged with helping the governor and Department of Commerce develop and execute strategies that improve our state’s competitiveness and increase economic growth.

This news is courtesy of http://www.business.nd.gov/

Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission has approved a final order settling charges that Aaron’s Inc., a national rent-to-own retailer, knowingly played a direct and vital role in its franchisees’ installation and use of software on rental computers that secretly monitored consumers, including taking webcam pictures of them in their homes.

Under the terms of a consent agreement, first announced in October 2013, Aaron’s is prohibited from using monitoring technology to gather consumers’ information from rental computers, or receiving, storing or communicating such information, except to provide technical support at a consumer’s request. The terms of the settlement also bar the company from gathering information from any consumer product via geophysical location tracking technology without clearly notifying and obtaining express consent from consumers at the time of rental. Aaron’s is further prohibited from installing or activating such technology on rental computers that does not clearly notify consumers of its presence immediately before each use, including via a prominent icon on the computer.

The order further bars Aaron’s from deceptively gathering information about consumers, and from using improperly obtained information to collect debt, money or property as part of a rent-to-own transaction. The company must delete or destroy any information it has collected improperly, and can transmit information obtained via monitoring or location tracking only if it is encrypted. In addition, the order requires Aaron’s to conduct annual monitoring and oversight of its franchisees for compliance with the terms of the agreement, act immediately to ensure compliance, and terminate any franchisee that fails to comply.

This news is courtesy of www.ftc.gov

MILWAUKEE, Wis., The second-quarter 2014 Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, released today by ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN), indicates that the headwinds encountered in many global labor markets may be moderating amid numerous signs of measured optimism among employers globally.

This quarter’s research of over 65,000 hiring managers across 42 countries and territories reveals:

Largest Gains in Hiring Plans in Nearly Six Years: Staffing levels are expected to increase in 38 of 42 countries and territories. Outlooks strengthen in 26 out of 42 countries and territories quarter-over-quarter and weaken in 11. When compared to one year ago, the hiring pace is expected to be stronger in 28 countries and territories and weaker in 11.
Where Hiring Plans are Strongest: The strongest hiring intentions are reported by employers in India, Taiwan, New Zealand, Turkey and Costa Rica. Conversely, the weakest — and only negative — forecasts are reported by employers in Italy, the Czech Republic and France.

Signs of Stabilization in Europe: Employers in 20 of 24 Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) countries forecast workforce growth during the next three months, while staffing levels are expected to decline in three countries. Hiring prospects improve in 17 countries quarter-over-quarter, but decrease in seven. Year-over-year, the Net Employment Outlook is stronger in 17 countries but weaker in five. Employers in both Ireland and Spain report their first positive hiring forecasts since 2008. The recovery in the Greek labor market is expected to continue.

U.S. Hiring Predicted to Hold Steady: For the third consecutive quarter, U.S. employers anticipate a steady hiring pace for the April-June timeframe. Year-over-year, the Outlook improves by two percentage points. Only four percent of U.S. employers plan to reduce headcounts, among the smallest percentage in survey history.

Indian Employers Forecast Dynamic Hiring Pace: Hiring intentions in India improve by eight percentage points when compared with the previous quarter and are 14 points stronger year-over-year.

“Employers who have been experiencing significant headwinds for a considerable time are now starting to feel a soft breeze at their backs,” said Jeffrey A. Joerres, ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO. “There is improvement across industries and across geographies. Although the improvement is still very cautious and not as robust as we’ve seen in the past, there are signals that confidence is starting to take hold.”

Employers in all 10 countries in the Americas report varying degrees of positive hiring activity in the next three months, with more than one in four employers in Costa Rica intending to add to payrolls. However, employers in Brazil report the weakest hiring intentions since the survey began there in Q4 2009. The hiring pace is expected to gain traction in Mexico, where the forecast is particularly strong in the mining and extraction sector. The Canadian outlook softens both quarter-over-quarter and year over year. Meanwhile, for the third consecutive quarter, employers in Argentina report the weakest outlook.

“US employers are still guarded when it comes to hiring, although the resolution of the debt ceiling issue removes some of the uncertainty,” said Jonas Prising, ManpowerGroup President. “Hiring looks set to pick up in Mexico, especially in the mining and extraction sector. Employers here anticipate changes in the government’s energy policies will expand opportunities for oil and gas companies and boost both domestic and foreign investment.”

Job prospects also remain positive across the Asia Pacific region, with outlooks improving in five of the eight countries and territories in a quarter-over-quarter comparison, and strengthen in all countries and territories except Australia when compared year-over-year. For the sixth time in the last three years, employers in India report the most optimistic forecast among the 42 countries and territories participating in the survey. A booming labor market is also expected in Taiwan, while Japanese employers indicate that hiring is expected to continue, on pace for the past six years. Second-quarter hiring plans also improve slightly in China.

“As hiring is set to rebound in India, competition for talent is likely to prove intense. Upturn in demand for outsourcing from the U.S. and other countries will boost prospects for individuals with engineering and programming skills,” said Darryl Green, ManpowerGroup President. “Skills shortages continue to frustrate many employers in Japan, especially those in small to medium-size enterprises who often lose out to larger firms and multinationals in the competition for individuals with valued skillsets. Signs of weakening domestic demand in China have not dampened down hiring expectations, and Hong Kong’s forecast is bolstered by considerable improvements in the finance, insurance and real estate sector as financial institutions pursue risk and compliance talent in response to tightened banking regulations.”

In Europe, Turkey’s optimistic outlook is propelled by bright hiring prospects in manufacturing and construction. In the United Kingdom, job seekers should continue to benefit from incremental gains in employer optimism. There is even a glimmer of promise in the construction sector, where employers report their first positive outlook since the third quarter of 2008. Poland’s outlook remains cautiously optimistic, while confidence among Finnish employers turns positive again following two successive quarters of negative forecasts. An active hiring pace expected in finance and business services in Germany is counterbalanced by a slowdown in the manufacturing sector, where the outlook softens to its weakest level in a year and a half. The forecast in France turns negative despite employers in the transport, storage and communications sector reporting their most optimistic outlook since the survey began there in 2003.

“The second-quarter survey results don’t point to a definitive turnaround in Europe, but there are several indications that employer optimism is gradually improving — especially in a handful of countries where hiring plans remained stubbornly pessimistic in the aftermath of the global recession,” added Prising. “Whether the recently passed law in Switzerland to impose curbs on immigration will impact hiring remains to be seen, but the forecast there did improve by a moderate margin from three months ago.”

Full survey results for each of the 42 countries and territories included in this quarter’s survey, plus regional and global comparisons, can be found at http://manpowergroup.com/press/meos_landing.cfm. The next Manpower Employment Outlook Survey will be released on 10 June 2014 to report hiring expectations for the third quarter of 2014.

About the SurveyThe Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is the longest-running, most extensive, forward-looking employment survey in the world, commencing in 1962 and now polling over 65,000 employers in 42 countries and territories to measure their intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the next quarter. The survey serves as a bellwether of labor market trends and activities and is regularly used to inform the Bank of England’s Inflation Reports, as well as a regular data source for the European Commission, informing its EU Employment Situation and Social Outlook report the Monthly Monitor. ManpowerGroup’s independent survey data is also sourced by financial analysts and economists around the world to help determine the health of labor markets.

About ManpowerGroup

ManpowerGroup™ (NYSE: MAN) is the world leader in innovative workforce solutions that ensure the talent sustainability of the world’s workforce for the good of companies, communities, countries, and individuals themselves. Specializing in solutions that help organizations achieve business agility and workforce flexibility, ManpowerGroup leverages its 65 years of world of work expertise to create the work models, design the people practices and access the talent sources its clients need for the future. From staffing, recruitment, workforce consulting, outsourcing and career management to assessment, training and development, ManpowerGroup delivers the talent to drive the innovation and productivity of organizations in a world where talentism is the dominant economic system. Every day, ManpowerGroup connects more than 630,000 people to work and builds their experience and employability through its relationships with 400,000 clients across 80 countries and territories. ManpowerGroup’s suite of solutions is offered through ManpowerGroup™ Solutions, Manpower®, Experis™ and Right Management®. ManpowerGroup was named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies for the third consecutive year in 2013, confirming our position as the most trusted brand in the industry.

This news is courtesy of www.manpowergroup.com.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Workers at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga plant today have voted against union representation that would have led to the establishment of a works council that would have been the first such model of labor-management relations in the United States.

At the end of voting on Friday, Volkswagen workers voted against joining the union in a vote of 712 to 626.

The decision follows three days of voting during an election supervised by the National Labor Relations Board and comes amid a firestorm of interference and threats from special interest groups.

“While we certainly would have liked a victory for workers here, we deeply respect the Volkswagen Global Group Works Council, Volkswagen management and IG Metall for doing their best to create a free and open atmosphere for workers to exercise their basic human right to form a union,” said UAW President Bob King.

“We commend Volkswagen for its commitment to global human rights, to worker rights and trying to provide an atmosphere of freedom to make a decision,” said UAW Region 8 Director Gary Casteel, who directs the union’s Southern organizing. “Unfortunately, politically motivated third parties threatened the economic future of this facility and the opportunity for workers to create a successful operating model that that would grow jobs in Tennessee.”

“While we’re outraged by politicians and outside special interest groups interfering with the basic legal right of workers to form a union, we’re proud that these workers were brave and stood up to the tremendous pressure from outside,” said UAW Secretary-Treasurer Dennis Williams, who directs the union’s transnational program. “We hope this will start a larger discussion about workers’ right to organize.”

This Press Release is courtesy of www.uaw.org

Burbank, Calif., Today The Walt Disney Company announced that it will select ten startup companies for a three-month mentorship and seed-stage investment program. Disney Accelerator, which will be based in Los Angeles and powered by Techstars, is now accepting applications from early-stage companies with innovative consumer media and entertainment product ideas.

Participants will receive $120,000 in investment capital to develop their ideas, along with mentor support from top Disney executives, including Chairman and CEO Robert A. Iger, and leaders from Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, ABC, ESPN and Walt Disney Imagineering, among others. Mentors will also include other entertainment industry leaders, venture capitalists, and Techstars’ extensive network of entrepreneurs, investors and executives. Participants will have access to stories, characters, technology and other resources from across The Walt Disney Company. The program begins June 30, and it concludes with an Investor Demo Day in September where each team will present their company to industry leaders and investors.

“Disney has always been defined by innovation, leveraging the technology required to build the future of entertainment,” said Kevin A. Mayer, executive vice president, Corporate Strategy and Business Development, The Walt Disney Company. “Disney Accelerator offers a unique collaboration between some of the best creative minds in the entertainment industry and the modern-day visionaries who are starting businesses on the strength of exciting new ideas.” Overseeing the Disney Accelerator program is Michael D. Abrams, Disney’s senior vice president, Innovation.

Visit www.disneyaccelerator.com for details on the program and to apply by April 16, 2014.

About The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading diversified international entertainment and media enterprise with five business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment, consumer products and interactive. Disney is a Dow 30 company and had annual revenues of $45 billion in its Fiscal Year 2013.

About Techstars
Techstars is the #1 startup accelerator and mentorship-driven seed stage investment program in the world. Techstars delivers programs annually in top startup markets all over the world. Additionally, Techstars powers programs in collaboration with some of the best brands in the world. Companies have gone on to average more than $1.6M raised in outside capital after the completion of the program. To date, Techstars has funded more than 350 companies that are collectively valued in the billions of dollars.

This Press Release is courtesy of www.thewaltdisneycompany.com

Today, the Justice Department announced the results of its ongoing efforts to combat fraudulent tax-return preparers and promoters of tax-fraud schemes. Taxpayers filed an estimated 142 million individual income tax returns for the 2011 tax year, with nearly 70 million taxpayers using a paid return preparer according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Compliance Data Warehouse, Individual Returns Transaction File and Return Preparers and Providers Database, Tax Year 2011, filed through March 2013. The return filing deadline for the 2013 tax year is just over two months away on April 15, 2014. The department’s Tax Division has an active program to stop fraudulent return preparers and promoters from violating federal tax laws, particularly where their fraudulent activity can harm individual customers or drain the U.S. Treasury. In the last year, the division has obtained permanent injunctions against more than 60 preparers and promoters doing business all over the United States.

“During the time when honest taxpayers are preparing their returns, the Tax Division will work tirelessly to challenge those who would abuse the tax laws and take advantage of their customers,” said Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally for the Tax Division. “The division’s attorneys and staff, along with our colleagues in the Internal Revenue Service, are working hard to shut down these abusive schemes and scams and punish the perpetrators where appropriate.”

The division’s enforcement efforts have been directed against against both large-scale return preparation franchises and smaller, independent return preparers and promoters. For example, in 2013 the Tax Division concluded civil actions resulting in permanent injunctions against ITS Financial LLC, the parent company of the Instant Tax Service franchise located in Dayton, Ohio, and against Instant Tax franchises in Las Vegas, Kansas City , Kan., Los Angeles and Indianapolis. Instant Tax Service claimed to be the fourth-largest tax-preparation firm in the nation. In entering the permanent injunction in November 2013 that ordered ITS Financial LLC to cease operating, the court found the “defendants’ harm to the public is extensive and egregious, indeed appalling…especially so given the nature of Instant Tax Service’s core customer – the working poor – who are particularly vulnerable to [the] defendants’ fraudulent practices.” The injunction also barred Fesum Ogbazion, the sole owner and CEO of ITS Financial, from operating or being involved with any business relating to tax-return preparation.

Similarly, in September 2013, the division obtained injunctions that permanently barred the owners, Markey Granberry and Derrick Robinson, as well as Eumora Reese, a former manager of Mo’ Money Taxes, the Memphis, Tenn., based tax-preparation chain that at one time operated as many as 300 offices in 18 states, from preparing tax returns for others and owning or operating a tax return preparation business. Earlier, in March 2013, a federal district court in Tennessee permanently shut down a Nashville, Tenn., licensee of Mo’ Money Taxes LLC and MoneyCo USA LLC.

Numerous smaller tax return preparation businesses and individual preparers around the country were also subjects of injunctions shutting down their business, including tax return preparers in Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Texas, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida and California who were engaging in fraudulent practices.

The division also obtained injunctions against a number of fraudulent tax-scheme promoters. For example, in October 2013, a federal court permanently barred Tobias Elsass and his companies from preparing federal tax returns, promoting the availability of theft loss deductions or engaging in any other tax-related business. The court found that Elsass and Fraud Recovery Group promoted a nationwide scheme that falsely informed customers that they were entitled to claim large theft loss tax deductions, and then prepared the tax returns that improperly claimed such deductions. The court stated “there can be no doubt that the collective transgressions represent concerted and conscious attempts to game the nation’s income tax system not necessarily for the benefit of FRG’s customers, but for the profit of Elsass himself.” At the division’s urging, federal courts also enjoined a real estate appraiser who allegedly inflated easement values on historic properties to help customers claim millions in improper deductions, and a Chicago lawyer , who the complaint alleges had lawyers, entrepreneurs and professional football players among his customers, from promoting tax fraud schemes and from preparing various types of tax returns (IRS Forms 1040, 1041, 1065 and 1120) for individuals, estates and trusts, partnerships or corporations, to help facilitate the schemes.

As set forth in the civil injunction complaints filed by the United States, fraudulent return preparers commonly falsify return information to take advantage of refundable credits available under the tax code, often manipulating a taxpayer’s income, expenses and dependents to maximize the amount of the refundable credit claimed. Some return preparers also take advantage of their customers by selling deceptive loan products with exhorbitant fees. As identified in the complaints, some of the fraudulent schemes and practices that have been stopped through injunction orders entered include:

· Preparing phony tax-return forms with fabricated businesses and income;
· Claiming false education and homebuyer credits;
· Claiming false and inflated deductions;
· Claiming false filing status;
· Claiming false dependents;
· Selling deceptive loan products and defrauding customers, who were largely low-income earners, by marketing false and fraudulent loan products to lure them into the tax-preparation offices;
· Filing tax returns without customer consent or authorization;
· Preparing bogus W-2 Forms, based on information from employee paystubs;
· Falsifying return information to claim inflated Earned Income Tax Credits;
· Preparing tax returns for cash payments, but not signing the tax returns; and
· Defrauding customers by requiring franchisees to charge phony and exorbitant fees.

In addition to the civil enforcement through injunctions that stop their illegal actions, many return preparers also face prosecution. Examples of those investigations can be found for fiscal years 2013 and 2014 .

In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of tax-return preparers and tax-fraud promoters. Information about these cases is available on the department website . Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’s “Dirty Dozen Tax Scams.”

The IRS advises taxpayers who may select a tax professional to prepare their return to be careful in selecting a tax professional to prepare a return. The IRS offers some basic tips and guidelines to assist taxpayers in choosing a reputable tax professional and is also offering taxpayers a number of instructional YouTube videos to help them prepare their own taxes for the upcoming filing season. Several options, including free assistance with preparation and electronic filing for the elderly and individuals making $50,000 or less, are available to help taxpayers prepare for the 2014 tax season and receive their refunds as easily as possible.

This Press Release is courtesy of www.justice.gov

Small business owners are the most optimistic they have been in five years, according to the latest Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index, and expect their businesses to increase cash flow and hire more employees in 2014.
In a small business survey conducted Jan. 6-10, the overall score increased to a positive 45 (+45) in January, up from a positive 24 (+24) in October 2013. While this score is the highest it has been since the third quarter of 2008, it is still well below pre-recession levels.

Several factors contributed to this quarter’s increase in small business optimism compared to fourth quarter 2013:
Improved cash flow: In the January survey, more small business owners said they had good cash flow over the past 12 months than they did last quarter (52 percent compared to 46 percent). A larger majority of business owners also expect to have good cash flow in 2014 (57 percent compared to 52 percent).

Increasing hiring: More small business owners said they expect to increase hiring in the next 12 months than in last quarter’s survey (22 percent compared to 16 percent).

Increasing revenue: A larger percentage of small business owners expect their revenue over the next 12 months to increase (48 percent compared to 44 percent).

Accessing credit: Fewer small business owners in the current survey reported having difficulty obtaining credit than did so last quarter (23 percent compared to 27 percent).

“There are many reasons for small business owners to view 2014 as a promising year,” said Lisa Stevens, Wells Fargo lead executive for Small Business and Pacific Midwest Regional Banking president. “There’s less uncertainty in the economy than there has been for quite some time. Congress approved a federal budget deal at the end of last year. The stock market performed well in 2013, and capital spending has picked up. With each piece of good news, business owners gain a little more confidence to grow and expand. We know that small business owners still face many challenges, yet hope this momentum continues as the economy improves further.”

Challenges
When business owners were asked to identify the most important challenge facing their businesses, several concerns rose to the top of the list. In January, business owners once again said their top concern was finding new business (21 percent). Other top concerns included the economy (11 percent), government regulations (11 percent), hiring (8 percent) and healthcare (8 percent).

The Future – Retirement
In the January survey, small business owners were also asked about planning for retirement. A majority of small business owners said they aren’t ready to sell their businesses or stop working yet. More than half of business owners said they estimate the best time to sell would be in the next 1-10 years. About a quarter of those surveyed said the best time would be more than 10 years from now. Yet, a majority of business owners said they are not worried or not too worried about being able to sell their businesses when they are ready (62 percent).

In the January survey, a majority of small business owners (55 percent) said if money were no object they would opt to continue working full or part-time, while 26 percent said they would retire completely, 13 percent would start another business and only 4 percent would choose to work for someone else.

SAN FRANCISCO -Small business owners still have some financial concerns about retirement but are feeling a little more optimistic: About two-thirds of small business owners (66 percent) anticipate that they will have enough money to live comfortably in retirement (up from 63 percent in third quarter 2010, when businesses were last surveyed on retirement).

More than half of business owners (57 percent) are either very or moderately worried about not being able to pay medical costs for a serious medical issue in retirement. In third quarter 2010, 64 percent were worried. About half of business owners (55 percent) are either very (26 percent) or moderately worried (29 percent) that they will not have enough money in retirement. The percentage reporting worry in third quarter 2010 was 64 percent.

Fewer business owners are worried about building back retirement income lost in the recession (50 percent are either very or moderately worried, down from 68 percent in third quarter, 2010). This latest finding may indicate that small business owners are feeling more positive about the performance of retirement funds and the market in general.

Small Business Index Key Drivers
Wells Fargo, together with Gallup, surveys small business owners quarterly across the nation to gauge their perceptions of their present situation (past 12 months) and future expectations (next 12 months) in six key areas: financial situation, cash flow, revenues, capital spending allocation, hiring, and credit availability.

This Press Release is courtesy of www.wellsfargo.com

NAIROBI, Kenya — On Monday, Microsoft Corp. announced the five African startups it will award innovation grants designed to provide the financial support needed to cross borders and empower the next generation of developers and entrepreneurs in Africa. The grant is part of the company’s 4Afrika Initiative, which was launched in February 2013 to facilitate the company’s active engagement in Africa’s economic development to improve its global competitiveness.

Last year, Microsoft 4Afrika extended the Microsoft Ventures partnership program to Africa, with startup accelerator 88mph as its first partner. Through the 4Afrika Initiative, Microsoft is now extending its support to include grants to startups, selecting five startups as the first set of recipients. The startups were selected based on the uniqueness and scalability of their solutions, their business models and the relevance of the key problems they are addressing. The solutions and apps developed by the startups are relevant to consumers and the African market, ranging from agriculture, education and consumer (gaming).

These startups will receive funding:

• access.mobile LLC (Uganda) A solution with a key focus in the agriculture and healthcare industries, giving enterprises the ability to collect, analyze and share clear, real-time information about their operations and supply chain activity.

• Africa 118 (Kenya) A mobile directory services solution that helps bridge the information gap both for enterprises and consumers.

• Gamsole (Nigeria) A mobile game production company creating Windows games, with downloads topping more than 4 million.

• Kytabu (Kenya) A textbook leasing application for low-cost tablets. Students can save more than 60 percent of their education cost by renting their textbooks on an hourly, weekly, monthly, school term or annual plan.

• Save & Buy (Nigeria) A Web and mobile platform that enables Nigerians to save toward the purchase of items conveniently and securely through e-commerce channels.

In addition to grants, Microsoft will provide technical support and mentorship to help these startups develop their businesses through the company’s Center of Expertise. This group of Microsoft technology enthusiasts focuses on using Microsoft tools and technologies to solve business problems. The 4Afrika Initiative aims to help startups break through barriers and reach new heights with the help of Microsoft’s data platform solutions, unified communications, optimized desktops and enterprise project management.

“As part of the 4Afrika initiative, we are excited to be supporting startups that have developed innovative solutions that address key issues in Africa,” said Amrote Abdella, director of startup engagement and Partnerships for 4Afrika. “Our support is aimed to showcase the importance of local innovation, but, more important, it highlights the great potential that African innovators have in competing with world-class developers and entrepreneurs.”

Abiola Olaniran, CEO of Gamsole, which has already developed some of the most popular Windows Phone games in Africa, said, “The Microsoft 4Afrika innovation grant provides a great support as it helps entrepreneurs to further bootstrap their companies without giving up equity or control. It allows us to not miss out on the kind of fast growth that only major cash infusion can provide.”

“A critical success factor in driving the economic success of entrepreneurs in Africa is access to capital together with a solid incubation foundation. Microsoft 4Afrika is partnering with local organizations in creating opportunities for ‘smart capital’ to be available to our young innovators,” said Fernando de Sousa, general manager for Microsoft 4Afrika. “Smart capital combines access to finance, technical skills development, business mentoring, sharing of global best practices and access to markets with the infrastructure provided by local partners to enable world-class companies to emerge from Africa.”

The Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative is designed to help Africa improve its global competitiveness and, in just under a year, has successfully launched various programs across the continent, including these recent innovation grants, to reach is 2016 goal. This will help place tens of millions of smart devices in the hands of African youth, bring 1 million African small and medium-sized enterprises online, upskill 100,000 members of Africa’s workforce, and help an additional 100,000 recent graduates develop skills for employability, 75 percent of whom Microsoft will help place in jobs.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

This Press Release is courtesy of www.microsoft.com

DAVOS, Switzerland,- ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions and World Economic Forum (WEF) strategic partner, calls for focused skills development in order to tackle pervasive unemployment.

Today, Jeffrey A. Joerres, ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO, will participate in the WEF panel session “Solving the Employment Equation,” which will focus on how to reduce structural unemployment and address the skills mismatch to meet both present and future demand for talent. Topics to be explored by the panel include unleashing the potential of new and traditional sectors to drive employment, and how to create an environment where entrepreneurship can flourish and create jobs.

Technological advances and an ever changing business environment means that lifelong learning and skills development need to become a priority to ensure the talent pipeline is sustainable. The World Bank reports that 600 million new jobs will need to be created worldwide as the workforce grows. Increased demand in certain sectors, such as IT, will generate large numbers of these roles, therefore skills development must align with growth. This requires a shift in thinking from businesses, education institutes, and government, from short term skills improvements to playing for the long term.

According to ManpowerGroup’s 2013 Talent Shortage Survey, employers in IT and manufacturing reported a shortage of workers with the necessary technical skills. Collaboration is needed to reduce this talent mismatch, ensuring young people gain sought-after skills, and businesses have access to the talent they need. To do this, organizations must work with education institutions to develop training programs that are aligned with business needs.

“Companies today are waiting to see sustained demand before they hire, achieving growth through productivity and efficiency. They are much leaner than in previous years, capitalizing on new technology and growing exponentially with a small team of highly skilled workers. This is a seismic shift in how we do business,” said Joerres. “A new, forward-looking, strategic approach from all stakeholders is necessary to successfully build a sustainable career for individuals and an effective talent pipeline for companies.”

This Press Release is courtesy of www.manpowergroup.com

The Tory Burch Foundation (TBF) and Bank of America today announced the launch of Elizabeth Street Capital, an initiative designed to provide early-stage women entrepreneurs in the United States with access to low-cost capital, mentoring support and networking opportunities to grow their businesses, creating communities of women entrepreneurs.

The Elizabeth Street Capital initiative will launch with an investment of $10 million in low-cost capital from Bank of America and additional funds for operating expenses shared by TBF and Bank of America. The initial launch will support women entrepreneurs in Boston, Charlotte, Las Vegas, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco, but will expand to additional markets over the next two years.

This unique partnership brings together TBF’s network of early-stage women entrepreneurs with one of the world’s largest financial institutions. The loans will be administered through nonprofit entrepreneurial loan centers (also known as Community Development Financial Institutions or CDFIs) that support low- and moderate-income communities. In the initial markets, participating partners are Accion East (Boston and New York), Self-Help (Charlotte), Nevada Microenterprise Initiative, in partnership with VEDC (Las Vegas), Entrepreneur Works (Philadelphia) and Opportunity Fund (San Francisco). Bank of America is the largest supporter of CDFIs among major financial institutions.

Tory Burch, founder of TBF, stated: “When we started our foundation, we understood that women entrepreneurs need access to capital as well as access to business networks, and by partnering with Bank of America, we are thrilled to be providing help to women across the United States. The combination of loans, mentoring support and peer networking expertise opens up new opportunities for women looking to build and grow their businesses.”

Thomas K. Montag, co-chief operating officer of Bank of America, said: “Bank of America and the Tory Burch Foundation recognize a huge opportunity to support women-owned businesses. Research has shown that women entrepreneurs need better access to capital and more opportunities to build strategic business relationships. The Elizabeth Street Capital initiative will help address these issues and provide loans and mentoring to women ready to take their businesses to the next level.”

Elizabeth Street refers to the New York City location of Tory Burch’s first boutique, the launching pad for a business that has grown into a global brand with nearly 120 boutiques and a presence in more than 50 countries around the world. The name speaks to the hard work and passion that drive successful entrepreneurial ventures and to the enormous potential of women-owned small businesses.

Andrew Plepler, Corporate Social Responsibility executive, Bank of America, said: “Tory and team recognize that supporting women-owned businesses, both financially and by sharing expertise, can have a dramatic impact on the local economies, paving the way for future generations. This program has the potential to be a real catalyst for advancing women’s economic empowerment.”

The program will launch with a TBF signature event this evening at the Bank of America Tower in New York City.

This Press Release is courtesy of www.bankofamerica.com