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RETAIL ADVOCACY
CALL TO ACTION: Replenish Unemployment Trust Fund
RAM members are urged to contact their elected officials and request support for using available federal and state resources to replenish the depleted Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. The recent pandemic resulted in a $7 billion UI deficit, which employers will have to pay off via assessments over the next 20 years.
The deficit was caused by government’s decision to shut down the economy during the pandemic -- not business related decisions made by employers. Massachusetts should take on a shared responsibility in covering these costs by following the more than 30 states that have already used available federal recovery funds to replenish their COVID-depleted UI Trust Funds.
Please ask your elected officials to support the appropriation of $2 billion in available funds for UI to mitigate the enduring economic impact of this unprecedented tax increase.
To learn more about the issue:
UI Tax Relief needed now talking points
RAM Editorial: Employers alone can’t foot the $7 billion bill for unemployment insurance
RAM Letter to the Legislature on UI Relief
RAM Joins Employer Organizations to Announce
Marketplace Principles for Employers & Government to Return to Economic Normalcy
Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, many small businesses across the Commonwealth still have not obtained normalcy, due in large part to constant negative public messaging. Meanwhile, Massachusetts has been a national leader in vaccinations over the last year, our best defense against the virus.
Every small business needs higher sales and/or lower costs to survive and thrive, but the last two years have driven those basic economic needs in the wrong direction. Federal and state loan and grant programs saved many small businesses from permanent closures, yet those programs have ended. Furthermore, some government entities continue costly mandates and counterproductive anti-local economic growth policies and messaging.
Rather than one-size-fits-all, government-imposed mandates, we must return to economic normalcy by recognizing that personal responsibility and appropriate choices by individuals, employers, employees and consumers represent the long-term path forward.
RAM Annual Meeting
2021 RAMAE Winners
The Retailers Association of Massachusetts Awards of Excellence are presented annually to businesses exhibiting retail excellence in the Commonwealth. The awards are designed to identify, acknowledge, and honor the industry’s true hidden gems from all corners of the state. RAM Congratulates this year’s RAMAE recipients:
- Hall of Fame Award - ATKINS FARMS
- Hall of Fame Award - CHATHAM JEWELERS
- Hall of Fame Award - EGGER’S FURNITURE
- Restaurant of the Year - PRINCE PIZZERIA
- Retailer of the Year - GEORGE WASHINGTON TOMA TV & APPLIANCE
Gov. Baker's Remarks from Annual Meeting
RAM’s annual board meeting held in November included the following virtual key note address and discussion with Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker.
Supreme Court Reimposes Stay of OSHA Employer Vaccine Mandate
WASHINGTON, January 13, 2022 – Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) COVID-19 employer-based vaccination and testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). Required implementation of the ETS for covered private employers will remain suspended pending further action by the Supreme Court. RAM will continue to monitor the Supreme Court’s deliberations of the case and provide additional updates as they become available. Please click here to view a copy of the decision.
PFML Update: 2022 Workplace Posters and Notifications
All Massachusetts employers must distribute information to their employees and display a workplace poster that explains Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML).
The Department of Family and Medical Leave has updated the necessary notifications and posters so that they reflect the 2022 maximum benefit amount and contribution rates. Click here to download what you need.
RAMHIC Offerings for 2022
RAMHIC continues to partner with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts to offer members access to the carrier's entire portfolio of high quality, small group health insurance plans.
New in 2022, all members purchasing their health insurance coverage through the cooperative will also receive an expanded list of ancillary benefits, provided by RAM free of charge.
Please see our brochure for more detail on the expanded 2022 benefit package. Specific information regarding each benefit may be found below:
For more information please visit the RAMHIC page of our website.
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