Aug 27, 5-7 pm, Realty Experts - William Hartkopf, 41051 Mission Blvd., Fremont, (510) 226-2444 more | map

Sep 10, 5-7 pm, Silicon Valley Business Journal, at the Fremont Chamber: 39488 Stevenson Place, Ste. 100, Fremont, (408) 295-3800 more | map

To Schedule a mixer, contact KK at 510-795-2244, ext. 103

If you would like to schedule a ribbon cutting, call KK Kaneshiro at 510-795-2244, ext. 103

Aug 19, 8:30-10:30 a.m. 2nd Annual Spare the Air Employer Summit - An employers’ perspective on how to “BLUE” your business. The Summit is a way to network with other businesspeople and a great opportunity to hear a panel of speakers share their experiences in implementing clean air policies and practices for the workplace and how the programs benefit their business, employees and clients. The Summit will be at 1111 Broadway, 19th Floor, Oakland, CA 94607. This event is free and breakfast is included. For questions, call (415) 277-4915.

Free Small Business Workshops
Co-sponsored by the City of Fremont, the East Bay Small Business Development Center, and the Fremont Chamber of Commerce. All classes are held at the City Council Chambers, 3300 Capitol Ave., Bldg. A, Fremont, CA. There is no cost to attend these workshops. Advance registration is required. To pre-register go to www.eastbaysbdc.org or call (510) 208-0410.
Sep 17, 9-noon, Expansion & Growth Capital
Nov 5, 9-noon, Business Planning
Dec 4, 9-noon, eCommerce & On-Line Marketing

Free Business Workshop at Fremont Main Library Co-sponsored by the Fremont Chamber of Commerce, the Fremont Main Library and Alameda County Library Foundation. All classes are held at the Fremont Main Library, a branch of the Alameda County Library system, located at 2400 Stevenson Blvd. and is wheelchair accessible. This event is free. No reservations are required. The Library will provide an ASL interpreter (please call 510-745-1401 or TTY 888-663-0660) for any event with at least 7 working days notice.
Sep 26, 8-10am, Economic Forum, keynote speaker Russell Hancock of Joint Venture. Registration is required.
Oct 9, 9-noon, International Business

The East Bay Small Business Development Classes & Workshops
The East Bay Small Business Development Center (SBDC), offers classes, consulting services and business planning resources for entrepreneurs and small business owners. The East Bay SBDC is focused on developing and implementing programs and services that support small business growth and sustainable economic development. All classes are held at SBDC Training Center, 1000 Broadway, Suite 109, Oakland, CA 94607 unless otherwise indicated. Visit http://www.eastbaysbdc.org/ calendar/index.html to register.

777 B. St., Hayward, CA 94541
Aug 21, 9-noon, Legal and Business Issues
Sep 25, 9-noon, Successful Advertising & Marketing Plans

1111 Broadway, 19th Floor, Oakland, CA 94607
Aug 26, 2-5pm, Buying or Selling A/Your Business

100 Civic Plaza, Dublin, CA 94568
Aug 19, 9-noon, Accessing Capital for Small Business & Start Up Companies

1188 S. Livermore Ave., Livermore, CA 94550
Sep 11, 9-noon, Successful Business Plans

475 14th St., Oakland, CA 94612
Sep 18, 2-5pm, Retailing 101

Free Government Contracting Course and Seminars  In these free training seminars you will learn techniques to tap into the profitable federal, state, and local government markets. The instructors have extensive experience in government contracting and are familiar with the latest contracting laws and regulations. Register online at www.TheFTC.org or call (866) 382-7822 toll free.

455 Market St., 6th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105
Aug 26, 9-noon, Doing Business with General Services Administration

2425 Bisso Ln, Ste. 200, Concord, CA 94527
Sep 4, 9-noon, Federal Contract Administration

84 W. Santa Clara St., Ste. 100, San Jose, CA 95113
Sep 9, 1-4pm, Government Subcontracting

950 Whipple Rd., Union City, CA 94587
Sep 18, 9-noon, Getting Started with Government Contracting

LOCAL
Bay Area CEOs plan more layoffs than hiring, except in Santa Clara County For the first time in 5 years, more Bay Area chief executives are planning layoffs than those planning work force increases, with Santa Clara County being the lone exception in the region, according to a quarterly survey. In Alameda County, 28% of respondents plan layoffs, 12% plan increases and 60% plan no changes. (8/15/08)

Silicon Valley posts year-over-year job loss The state Employment Development Department on Friday reported that the unemployment rate in the Silicon Valley was 6.4% in July, up from a revised 6.1% in June and above the year-ago estimate of 5.1%. In the year period, the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metropolitan statistical area lost 1,400 jobs or 0.2% of the total, marking the first time since September 2004 that the area lost jobs on a year-over basis. (8/15/2008)

Tri-City school officials pleased with test scores Fremont, New Haven and Newark school officials all had reason to be pleased with the gains their district's students made in this year's standardized test scores, and all identified additional growth areas needed. (8/14/08)

STATE
Assembly votes down budget plan California lawmakers finally voted on a state budget Sunday, 48 days after the start of the fiscal year. It was defeated along party lines, 45-30, 9 votes short of the supermajority needed to pass. Democrats and Republicans remained divided over two key issues: increasing taxes and imposing a hard cap on state spending. (8/18/08)

State proposes workers' comp rate increase Workers' compensation has been a bright spot for cost-conscious California businesses in recent years, with rates dropping 65% since 2003. Those days may be over. The Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau filed a proposal Friday for a 16% increase in the pure premium rate. This does not mean that every California business will see an increase of that amount though. (8/16/08)

California led nation in foreclosure filings in July Foreclosure filings were reported on 72,285 California properties in July for the highest total among the states, according to a report released Thursday. Nevada still has the highest actual rate of foreclosures. (8/14/08)

NATIONAL
Health care costs to rise 10.6% Rises in health care costs are slowing but will still increase more than 10% in the coming year, according to a new report.

Retail sales feed a mood of decline Another month of weak retail sales in July added to evidence that the spending power of American consumers has weakened considerably, despite the booster shot of billions of dollars from the government’s tax stimulus program. (8/13/08)

Living costs are rising fast, wages are trailing The cost of living, led by the soaring cost of gasoline and food, is rising at the fastest rate since the recession of the early 1990s, the government said on Thursday, handing a de facto pay cut to the American worker. (8/15/08)

COMPANIES IN THE NEWS
Solyndra wins $325M deal
Logitech to buy Ultimate Ears for $34M
Vermillion Q2 loss shrinks
Oplink reports loss, but earnings above projections
Asyst names CFO, COO
Kaiser becomes full member of Southwest Oncology Group
Mervyn’s to close 26 stores; Newark store NOT on closure list
Emtec Global Services (EGS) Acquires Fremont’s eBAS and Aveeva

Employer can establish cap on earned vacation time An employer may implement a cash-out policy and limit the number of hours that can be rolled over into the next year as long as the employee uses or is paid for all earned vacation or paid time off (PTO). As well, the employer may establish a cap on earned vacation that allows a reasonable time to use any earned vacation.

Survey: 22 percent of companies ban social networking sites Social networking sites are banned by nearly a quarter of all companies, many of which see them as a drain on productivity and a haven for idleness, according to a new survey.