LOOKING FORWARD, LOOKING BACK What are you worried about? Any words of advice or caution for others in your field? Sen. Ron Wyden Certainly there’s lots to worry about with uncertainty around the globe — China, Ukraine, the Middle East, Sudan and far too many other hot spots. That all adds up to the importance in an election year of choosing a president with the temperament and experience to let all Americans know there’s a rational hand at the wheel. Melissa Unger President & CEO, SEIU Local 503 The labor movement needs to continue to work to make gains for our current members, but we also need to continue to challenge the laws that keep workers from forming unions. Workers who are trying to form unions are meeting million-dollar campaigns in opposition; employers are still firing people for wanting to have a voice on the job through their union; and as a movement, we must continue to focus on how we bring workers together in union. We should do that creatively, like they have in California with fast-food workers; we should do that by pressuring companies like Starbucks to recognize the union and bargain at one table. We need to continue to fight for higher standards and make sure that Unions for All is a reality — every worker should have the right to form a union free from intimidation and fear for their job. As a movement we need to continue to do that. Heidi Khokhar Executive director, Rural Development Initiatives That the current political climate is creating such fierce divides among people. That this pressure to pull us apart will undo all the great work that so many are doing to try to bring us together to solve really complex issues. We are fighting amongst ourselves vs. fighting together to solve our common problems. Jason Brandt President & CEO, Oregon Restaurant & Lodging Industry Cost controls are everything. A dollar saved in expense is a dollar to your bottom line. Make sure to leverage every possible scenario that can result in cost savings to sustain your small business and fulfill your plans for growth and success. The Oregon Employment Department expects our industry to continue growing faster than any other industry in the coming years. If those projections hold true, the demand should be there to find lasting success with thoughtful cost controls that don’t impede customer and employee satisfaction. Josh Lehner Economist, Oregon Office of Economic Analysis That Oregonians will continue to choose to not build enough housing in our communities. Bad housing affordability not only results in higher homelessness but it impacts all of our household budgets and is a key factor in migration patterns. There are a growing set of public policies designed to increase housing production, but ultimately it will come to our willingness to be neighborly. Sen. Ron Wyden Melissa Unger 37
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