MONDAY, APRIL 8, 2019  |  IN THIS ISSUE  

The Johnson County Board of Supervisors has voted to increase the county's recommended minimum wage by 13 cents to $10.40 per hour, effective July 1. The Board of Supervisors used Consumer Price Index data to set the increase, which is based on inflation.
 
Though the wage increase is symbolic in nature and unenforceable under state law, the supervisors approved the increase to remain in line with their vote in September 2015 to begin phased increases.

"Many of our residents in Johnson County have benefited from this increased minimum wage," said Lisa Green-Douglass, board chairperson.  "Though the legislature took away our power to enforce it, we are upholding our promise to the workers of Johnson County. We encourage local businesses to continue to support this and increase their employee wage to $10.40 on July 1."

Iowa's minimum wage was increased to $7.25 per hour in 2008, ahead of the Federal increase to $7.25 in 2009, but has remained at $7.25 and is not indexed for inflation.

The Johnson County Board of Supervisors passed an ordinance in September 2015 establishing a Johnson County minimum wage. According to that ordinance, the minimum wage in Johnson County was raised in three steps - to $8.20 per hour on Nov. 1, 2015, to $9.15 per hour on May 1, 2016, and to $10.10 per hour on Jan. 1, 2017.

On March 30, 2017, then-Gov. Terry Branstad signed legislation eliminating the ability of Iowa jurisdictions to set a minimum wage above state minimum wage.

J ohnson County had a higher minimum wage than the state for 17 months, including three months when it was $10.10 per hour.

The Board of Supervisors has created a multi-year, multi-step process to increase the base wage rate for all county employees, including part-time, seasonal and temporary employees, and interns. The base wage was set at $14 an hour for Fiscal Year 2019, which began July 1, 2018, and will increase to $15 an hour in Fiscal Year 2020, which begins July 1, 2019.

More information on the minimum wage ordinance is available at www.johnson-county.com/wage. 

Iowa City-based Tru Art Color Graphics last week  announced the purchase of screen printer Graphic Printing & Designs, Inc. in a move expected to expand the company's printing capabilities, particularly in the decorated apparel arena.

"Graphic Printing has been a longtime vendor to Tru Art through our sister company, Bankers Advertising so it just made sense to combine capabilities and work together," said David Bywater, president of Tru Art and Bankers Advertising, a company founded 123 years ago as Economy Advertising Company. "It's a neat win-win for everybody."

Both companies are longtime members of the Iowa City business community with Graphic Printing serving the area for more than 50 years. Mr. Bywater said Tru Art was attracted to Graphic Printing's history of offering exceptional products and service, and providing screen-printed apparel, creative services, and offset printing to area customers.

Although Tru Art has been decorating apparel in house for years with its embroidery division, the company said adding in-house screen printing will allow it to more fully fulfill its decorating potential, allowing it to offer a full range of decorated apparel to its clients with the ease of a single seamless transaction.

The combined division, to be relocated to Tru Art's 2600 Highway 6 East campus along with Graphic Printing's current equipment, will be known as Graphic Printing & Embroidery.

Mr. Bywater said the purchase was precipitated by the retirement of Graphic Printing & Design's President Dennis Albright. The remaining staff members - five in all - will join Tru Art, ensuring the former company's clients receive consistent and uninterrupted service. Graphic Printing's 939 Maiden Lane location was not part of the purchase.

"It has been a good run," Mr. Albright said in a statement. "Thank you Iowa City and the surrounding communities for the opportunity to provide a variety of printing services. I am excited to see the 
company continue and grow by joining with Tru Art and its related companies."

Tru Art, along with Bankers Advertising, has been committed to partnerships with clients and sales partners to develop marketing strategies using print and promotional products to achieve business goals. The company said the knowledge and expertise Graphic Printing & Designs staff will bring with them are a welcome addition.

"We're excited to continue working closely together to offer new services to all of Tru Art's customers as well as those of Bankers Advertising," Mr. Bywater said.

Tru Art Color Graphics is a G7 Master Printer located in a state-of-the-art, climate-controlled, 80,000-square-foot facility. In addition to apparel, it works with a variety of paper stocks, vinyl, hard plastics, magnetic material, metals, and plexiglass.

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC (MMA), the middle-market subsidiary of Marsh, has announced an agreement to acquire  Centurion, the Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania-based retirement consulting, asset management, and benefit-plan advisory firm. 

Terms of the transaction, which is expected to close in the second quarter of 2019, were not disclosed.

Established in 2006, Centurion provides institutional retirement plan consulting and fiduciary services to clients, with combined plan assets in excess of $16 billion and over 400,000 participants. The company also provides private wealth management, financial planning services and institutional pension consulting as well as employee group benefit consulting.

Upon closing, Centurion will become part of Trion Group, a Marsh & McLennan Agency. Jim Hageney, who has served as a managing partner of Centurion since its formation, will continue to lead the group.

"We are delighted to welcome Centurion's talented and experienced retirement consulting services, investment and health professionals to MMA," said Chris Veno, co-CEO of Trion, in a release. "The addition of Centurion will enhance our offerings and expand our expertise, especially in retirement planning, and enable us to provide even greater support to our clients."

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC is a subsidiary of Marsh established in 2008 to serve as a platform for the middle market. MMA offers commercial property, casualty, personal lines, and employee benefits to midsize businesses and individuals across North America.

Mercer  Health & Benefits, a subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Co., relocated its Corridor office from Northgate Drive in Iowa City to Hiawatha's Boyson Square last December. 


Science, technology, engineering, math and art -- the acronym STEAM is meant to excited kids about careers in any of those fields. On Sunday, Iowa City celebrated educational opportunities in STEAM with a festival at the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center. News partner CBS2/FOX 28 got an inside look at the fun to see what kids are learning about. Watch the full video here.

Steven Williams
S teven Williams , previously senior vice president and chief commercial officer for Frito-Lay's U.S. operations, has been appointed chief executive officer of PepsiCo Foods North America (PFNA).  PFNA includes Frito-Lay North America  and Quaker Foods North America .  

Mr. Williams replaces Vivek Sankaran who will depart the company to become president and chief executive officer of Albertsons Companies, Inc.

Mr. Williams was most recently responsible for leading FLNA's customer, field and food service sales teams, go-to-market strategy and execution, and overseeing an organization of more than 29,000 employees.  

Previously, he served as division vice president for the Eastern Division of Frito-Lay; as global SVP of PepsiCo's Walmart business; and as head of sales for a number of PepsiCo's largest food and beverage brands. He joined PepsiCo in 2001 as part PepsiCo's acquisition of the Quaker Oats Company, which he joined in 1997. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Central Oklahoma and completed the Program for Leadership Development at Harvard Business School.

"Steven is the ideal leader for our North America food businesses, and his appointment is a testament to our strong bench of talent," said PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Ramon Laguarta in a release. "He has deep knowledge of the industry and our business, and we will greatly benefit from his inspirational leadership, broad customer knowledge, intimacy with consumer trends, and experience developing talent as we build on our already strong foundation."
 
April 8
Monthly Meeting, by Iowa Inventors Group, 6:30 p.m., Shuttleworth & Ingersoll, 115 Third St. SE, Cedar Rapids. Jared Adam will present on the formation of limited liability entities. Free. For more information, visit iowainventorsgroup.org.

April 9
TechBrew, by Technology Association of Iowa, 8-9 a.m., Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, 501 First St. SE. Brian Waller, TAI president, conducts casual interviews with CIOs who share their favorite music, discuss their career path and share what's most important for the Iowa technology community. Free. To register, visit technologyiowa.org/events.

Building Your Human Firewall, by Kirkwood Corporate Training and ProCircular, 8:30-10:30 a.m., The Hotel at Kirkwood Center, 7725 Kirkwood Blvd. SW, Cedar Rapids. This training program will help employees understand their unique and critical role in security. End users will learn techniques on how to quickly identify and respond (or not respond) to the latest cyberthreats. Cost: $39. For more information, visit bit.ly/kctcyberescape or call (319) 398-1022.

Marketing Forum, by Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, 11:45 a.m.-1 p.m., Economic Alliance, 501 First St. SE. This forum is designed to foster the growth and development of marketing professionals. Participants will receive advice and tips, learn from others and grow their professional network. This month's topic is websites and search engine optimization. Free. To register, visit www.cedarrapids.org.

Business Lunch Roundtable, by SCORE of East Central Iowa, noon-1 p.m., Granite City Food & Brewery, 4755 First Ave. NE, Cedar Rapids. A business topic will be discussed along with networking opportunities. For more information, visit scorecr.org.

Membership 101, by Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, 3:30-4:30 p.m., Economic Alliance, 501 First St. SE. Find out how to best utilize your membership and meet other new members. Free. To register, visit bit.ly/2EQrbIa.

April 10
1 Million Cups, by 1MC Cedar Rapids, 8:15-9:15 a.m., Geonetric, 415 12th Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids. Join for community connections, free coffee, and presentations by entrepreneurs, established companies, experts and more. Free. For more information, visit facebook.com/1MCICR.

1 Million Cups, by 1MC Iowa City, 9-10 a.m., MERGE, 136 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City. Join for community connections, free coffee, and presentations by entrepreneurs, established companies, experts and more. Free. For more information, visit facebook.com/1MillionCupsIC/.
See and Be Seen

in the CBJ Book of Lists - THE definitive resource guide for business leaders. Ranked information on Corridor companies by sector, regional market facts and profiles of the most influential people under one cover. Don't be left out - Be Seen! For advertising information, contact Andrea Rhoades at  andrea@corridorbusiness.com .
Headlines from CBS2/FOX 28
These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28  
 
It's been a year since the community of La Porte City was shaken by the disappearance of 16-year-old Jake Wilson.  "Jake we love you, we know your spirit is there, and we'll never forget you," said Bruce Wilson, Jake's grandfather.  Bruce still struggles to hold back tears for his grandson.  "My son struggles with it. Jake's father," he said. Sixteen -year-old Jake Wilson disappeared the night of April 7 on a walk near Wolf Creek in La Porte City.  Recreational kayakers found human remains identified as Jake's in August in the same creek authorities had been searching for months.  "We still can't figure out how he eluded us for so long, because we were right where he was found," said La Porte City Police Chief Chris Brecher.

Sexually transmitted disease cases are increasing both across the nation and in Iowa. A  preliminary report from the the Iowa Department of Public Health shows in 2018 there were 14,695 cases of chlamydia, 4,839 cases of gonorrhea, 283 cases of syphilis. The number of syphilis cases has decreased since 2017's number of 288. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for chlamydia and gonorrhea.  "We had over 1,500 cases here in Linn County of chlamydia and over 450 cases of gonorrhea," said Heather Meador, the Linn County Public Health's clinic branch supervisor.  The  Center for Disease Control and Prevention  reports there were 1,708,569 cases of chlamydia in 2017, along with 556,608 cases of gonorrhea, and 30,644 cases of syphilis in the United States. In 2017, the Iowa Department of Public Health shows there were  13,895 cases of chlamydia  and 3,758 cases of gonorrhea in Iowa. 2018's numbers show a 5.8 percent increase in chlamydia numbers and a 28.3 percent increase in gonorrhea cases.

T hese news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28 
CBS2 Chief Meteorologist Terry Swails' Weather First Forecast

A strong storm will move through the Midwest this week. This will lead to ups and downs in our temperatures and periods of rain Wednesday through Friday.  It will be a sunny, warm and breezy day today. Temperatures will warm into the low to mid-70s across eastern Iowa. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph at times. A weak cold front will pass through the area tonight and it will be slightly cooler Tuesday as a result. It will be partly cloudy with temperatures in the 60s.