Temporary or seasonal work can provide a bridge for individuals looking for employment while between jobs, recent college graduations, or people interested in a new challenge. Seasonal jobs offer opportunities in a wide variety of fields. If you’d like to explore seasonal work possibilities, check…
Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden today released his annual Consumer Protection report for 2011. His office recovered a record $8 million in consumer restitution last year. In addition, the Consumer Protection Division recovered $2.5 million in penalties, fees and costs; received more than $24 million…
SEATTLE — Starbucks Corp. is pushing beyond coffee with the opening of the first Evolution Fresh Inc. juice store, the company said today. Starbucks, which is looking for new businesses for growth, purchased the California-based juice maker in November for $30 million. Evolution Fresh had…
KELSO, Wash. — A judge is hearing arguments over whether voters would have approved an initiative to privatize liquor sales in Washington if it had not included a provision for public safety funds. The entire measure would be nullified if the court determines that voters…
This weekend in Sunday Business, Michael Guilfoil interviews Fery Haghighi, who operated Au Croissant bakery and café for 15 years before closing it to focus on Fery’s Catering. Read her Cinderella-like story, including her childhood growing up in a prominent Iranian family, and learn about…
The AAA auto club reports the average price of a gallon of gas in Washington is $3.98. That’s up 4 cents in a week and 46 cents in a month. It’s 18 cents higher than the national average. Some metro prices from the AAA’s Monday…
You may be familiar with Litehouse Foods’ signature chunky bleu cheese dressing, but do you know what inspired the recipe that Ed Hawkins Sr. came up with back in the early 1960s? Learn how this successful Hope, Idaho, company got its start and read about…
Wondering how that contractor managed to underbid his competition by so much? Maybe it’s because he doesn’t pay his taxes, does shoddy work or will take your money and run. You can find out at suspectfraud.com, a website developed with the Washington state departments of…
Chrysler aims to be the first U.S. automaker to produce a factory-built pickup truck that is powered mainly by natural gas, the Associated Press reports. The privately held company said today that its new Ram 2500 Heavy Duty CNG truck will be sold to commercial…
The Internal Revenue Service is warning senior citizens and other taxpayers to beware of an emerging federal tax refund scam tempting victims to file tax returns claiming fraudulent refunds. Bogus refund claims have been identified across the nation. These schemes carry a common theme of…
The recession was not as hard on Idaho workers as originally estimated, but the state is pulling out of the recession more slowly than other states, the Idaho Department of Labor says. Thousands more Idahoans were working the past two years and fewer were unemployed…
The BBB serving Eastern Washington, North Idaho and Montana has a new CEO and president. Eleanor "Elea" Katzele, who has been vice president of the Spokane-based Better Business Bureau since 2007, will step into the position being vacated by Jan Quintrall. Quintrall has accepted the…
What was the most unusual product sold in a carton made by Spokane manufacturer Sonderen Packaging? Company president Mark Sonderen reveals it in the next Front & Center profile by Michael Guilfoil, this weekend in Sunday Business. Don't miss it.
Employee health and wellness will be discussed at this year’s Future of Health Care program, Thursday morning in Spokane. Presented by Greater Spokane Incorporated and the Journal of Business, the program runs from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at The Lincoln Center, 1316 N. Lincoln St.…
Idaho employers reversed an eight-year decline in workplace health care coverage in 2011, despite the financial pressures of coming out of the worst recession since World War II. Percent of Idaho Employers Offering Health Coverage to Full-Time Workers Single Family 2002 82% 62% 2005 74%…
The average total compensation per job in Spokane County rose 2.3 percent in 2010, the U.S. Department of Commerce said today. Total compensation – wages and salaries plus employer contributions for pension and insurance funds – averaged $50,336 in 2010, up from $49,227 in 2009,…
Spokane's role in building the regional aerospace industry will be discussed Wednesday morning at an event sponsored by Greater Spokane Incorporated. Members of the Washington Aerospace Partnership and the Spokane Aerospace Initiative for Recruitment Team also will present information from the recent Washington State Competitiveness…
Idaho's latest job vacancy survey confirms the state’s current labor market is still tight, but there are more new jobs being created now than a year ago, the Idaho Department of Labor said today. The Idaho 2011 Job Vacancy Survey found 1.7 vacant jobs for…
Seasonal hiring of educators and retail workers helped push Spokane County’s unemployment rate down last month. It fell to 8.3 percent in October, down from September’s revised rate of 8.4 percent. It’s the lowest rate so far this year but remains high than in October…
Walmart plans to hire about 170 people to work at a new store opening this fall in Moscow. The retailer has opened a temporary hiring center at 672 W. Pullman Road in Moscow. The hiring center will take applications 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday…
Employers across Idaho’s economy maintained payrolls at higher levels than typical for October, pushing Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate down another two-tenths of a point to 8.8 percent, the lowest level in nearly two years. It was the second straight month that Idaho’s jobless rate…
OLYMPIA — Washington’s jobless rate has dropped to 9 percent — the lowest since March 2009, according to figures released today by the state Employment Security Department. The October rate compares with a revised figure of 9.2 percent for September and 9.4 percent in October…
Sterling Financial Corporation of Spokane announced this morning that Sterling Savings Bank plans to buy First Independent Bank of Vancouver, Wash., including all deposits and banking operations, 14 branches in southeastern Washington and two offices in Portland. The purchase is expected to be completed early…
Do you have a strong sense of duty, honor and service? Are you physically fit and educated? Looking for a career? It's not the Army or Marines asking this time. It's the Washington State Patrol, which is recruiting for trooper positions. Candidates are invited to…
Tariffs on Northwest fruit crops and potatoes vanished Friday, completing an agreement that allows Mexican trucking firms to deliver inside the United States. The Mexican government announced elimination of the final 10 percent tariffs on 90 U.S. products, including apples, pears, cherries and apricots. Mexico…
