Chamber Blog

Mark Your Calendar New Members On March 28, for the first time in 50 years, the Department of Labor (DOL) proposed changing the definition of the “regular rate” of pay—the building block for calculating overtime. If the planned exclusions from the regular rate are adopted, employers may pay less in overtime than plaintiffs’ attorneys would…

Mark Your Calendar New Members The Justice Department is supporting a federal judge’s ruling that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional in a case that could eventually be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. In the meantime, all ACA coverage and reporting obligations for employers remain in place. ACA is still the law and the…

Mark Your Calendar New Members Allow me to introduce myself. I am a customer. I am the person that makes the economic engine turn. I am the reason you take home a paycheck. I am the reason you are able to feed your family, pay your mortgage, go on vacation, buy a car, and contribute…

Mark Your Calendar New Members According to a study by BetterUp Labs, 9 out of 10 career professionals told researchers that they would sacrifice a significant portion of their future earnings—an average of $21,000 a year—for “work that is always meaningful.” For more on this article provided by the Society for Human Resource Management, click here.

Mark Your Calendar New Members Automation is everywhere, and its penetration and sophistication are increasing. Artificial intelligence is expected to greatly expand the ability of robots and automated systems to learn, combine work functions and think outside the box. Robotics and cognitive technologies are continuing to supplant a growing number of routine business functions that…

Mark Your Calendar New Members The Department of Labor has proposed an increase in the salary-level threshold for white-collar exemptions to $35,308 per year from $23,660. If finalized, the new overtime rule would result in the reclassification by employers of more than a million currently exempt workers as nonexempt and an increase in pay for…

Mark Your Calendar New Members Leadership and professional development is one of The Chamber’s four core functions.  This is important to our members and the community as a whole, because when you consider our ever-changing culture, ongoing technological advances and the need for leaders to guide organizations while connecting the right people to the right…

Mark Your Calendar New Members As a member of The Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce, you’re eligible to participate in an exclusive program that could reduce your energy costs. Members who receive their electricity and/or natural gas services through Ameren have free access to an energy purchasing cooperative through CQI Associates that is offered and…

Mark Your Calendar New Members The proposed Paycheck Fairness Act would prohibit employers nationwide from asking job applicants about their salary history and require employers to prove that pay disparities between men and women are job-related. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., introduced the bill in January. It has been reintroduced many times since 1997 but has failed to…

Mark Your Calendar New Members Effective January 1, 2019, the Illinois state law governing military leaves changed. ISERRA (the Illinois Service Member Employment and Reemployment Rights Act) replaces a set of laws that formerly governed such leaves: the Military Leave of Absence Act, Public Employee Armed Services Rights Act, Municipal Employees Military Active Duty Act,…