Issue 10.19

May 17, 2024

THIS WEEK IN DOVER

A new environmental justice proposal, HB 422, known as “cumulative impacts” was introduced [yesterday]. The bill has been assigned to the House Natural Resources & Energy Committee. The State Chamber is opposed and has significant concerns with the bill.

Bills that saw movement this week included:

HS 2 for HB 350: Hospital Cost Review Board
SB 258: Autonomous Vehicles
HB 127: Fire Protection Fees
SB 290: Protection of Wetlands

END-OF-SESSION POLICY CONFERENCE

MAY 30 | 9 AM - 1 PM | DOVER

The decisions made in Dover have a direct impact on your business and employees. Hear from Speaker of the House Valerie Longhurst and Senate President Pro Tempore David Sokola, who will offer insights on the priorities their respective chambers are considering as the 152nd General Assembly inches closer to adjournment on June 30. Join us on May 30 >

The Future of Work

9 TRENDS THAT WILL SHAPE WORK IN 2024 & BEYOND

From Harvard Business Review

As we look toward 2024, we can expect disruption to continue. Gartner research has identified nine trends that will shape work in the next year. Leaders who proactively develop explicit business and talent strategies to navigate these trends will give their organizations a competitive advantage in both talent outcomes and achieving the organizations’ strategic goals. Read more >

1. Organizations will offer creative benefits to address the costs of work.

2. AI will create, not diminish, workforce opportunity.

3. Four-day workweeks will move from radical to routine.

4. Employee conflict resolution will be a must-have skill for managers.

5. GenAI experiments will yield hard lessons and painful costs.

6. Skills requirements will overtake degree requirements as the “paper ceiling” crumbles.

7. Climate change protection becomes a new employee benefit.

8. DEI won’t disappear; it will become more embedded in the way we work.

9. Traditional stereotypes of career paths will collapse in face of workforce change.

Download the report >

ADAPTING TO CHANGE

THE DYNAMIC WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT OUTLOOK IN DELAWARE

At the 2024 Delaware State Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner, Governor John Carney reminded the audience that the state is “determined to win the competition for new jobs,” adding that Delaware currently has “30,000 job openings and 21,000 people looking for work.” The workforce of tomorrow must be built today through dynamic partnerships, active listening, and a shared vision of what’s possible. Read more >

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

It’s now mid-May and many are wondering if the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates this year. Now I’m about as optimistic a person as they come, but I’m also a realist and I just never saw a pathway for rate cuts. With the biggest generation in the history of mankind—Baby Boomers—now almost fully into retirement, gone with them are the people that fueled consumer spending and capital investments. ... hen you stop and consider the two mandates that drive Fed policy—full employment and stable prices—a murky picture starts to emerge. Read more >