Black MBA - Winter 2007/2008 - (Page 16) UP FRONT SUPREME COURT CASES DIRECTLY AFFECT SMALL BUSINESSES OF THE 51 cases that the U.S. Supreme Court, whose term began in October, is reviewing, eight could potentially impact small businesses. The employment-discrimination case Sprint/United Management Co. v. Mendelsohn, which went to court December 3, questioned whether to disregard “me too” evidence from employees outside of a discrimination suit, debating whether it was unfair for businesses, especially small businesses, to deal with more than one legal issue at a time. Two other cases, Riegel v. Medtronic Inc. and WarnerLambert Co. v. Kent, pertain to preemption, asking whether a business is protected from liability claims once the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) states that its products are safe. Stoneridge Investment v. Scientific-Atlanta Inc. is perhaps most important, as it will decide if investors can sue thirdparty businesses for assisting firms in committing securities fraud. This ruling will affect the case against banks accused of helping Enron financially misrepresent itself. The Supreme Court will announce its decisions regarding these suits over the following months. –www.biz.yahoo.com AFRICAN AMERICANS SAY THEY CAN NO LONGER BE SEEN AS ONE RACE IN NOVEMBER, the Pew Research Center reported that, because of the growing gap between middle-class and poor African Americans, four in 10 African Americans say that they can no longer be thought of as a single race. Blaming differences in work ethic, education and values, some African Americans experience their race as too diverse, arguing, for example, that low-income African Americans have little in common with poor and middle-income African Americans. The majorit y of African Americans supporting this view were, according to the study, between 1829 years of age. Other poll findings include the fact that 54 percent of African Americans agree that over the last 10 years, the values of white and Black people have become more similar, and 53 percent of African Americans believe that “Blacks who can’t get ahead are mostly responsible for their own condition.” Discrimination still exists, however. Sixty-eight percent of African Americans reported experiencing racial discrimination while applying for college or for a job. Although the poll reported that eight in 10 African Americans think favorably of whites, they are much less optimistic about the state of Black progress. Only one in five African Americans believe that life is better for them now than it was five years ago. –www.npr.org 16 BlackMBA • Winter 2007/2008 • www.nbmbaa.org FEDS MOVE TO STEM TIDE OF AIRLINE DELAYS AFTER A YEAR of record airline delays and the resulting billions of dollars in lost productivity, the federal government is making a move to cut down on the unprecedented number of delayed domestic flights. On November 15, President Bush ordered several changes, some of which are especially designed to help business travelers. The Depart ment of Tra n sportat ion advised that the bump fee – what commercial airliners pay travelers when travelers buy tickets but end up without seats – increase from $200-$400 to $400-$800. This increase, if approved, would take effect summer 2008. Other changes include labeling a flight that operates more than 15 minutes late 70 percent of the time an “unfair and deceptive practice” and charging the responsible airline a fine; raising takeoff and landing fees for airlines and auctioning off takeoff and landing rights to the highest bidder. The Bush administration and airlines are working together particularly to improve traveling conditions at New York’s JFK International Airport, one of the busiest in the world. –www.washingtonpost.com STUDY SAYS BLACK-OWNED BUSINESSES ADD $44 BILLION TO NORTH CAROLINA ECONOMY THE NUMBER OF African American-owned businesses in North Carolina has risen by more than 30 percent over the last 10 years, a new study by University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill researchers shows. There currently are 53,000 African American business owners living in North Carolina and, more widely, African Americans account for more than 85,000 jobs within the state. The study also determined that each of the state’s 1.8 million African American residents, who together comprise 21.8 percent of North Carolina’s population, contributes $22,272 and costs $2,498 annually. Because of these findings, researchers are suggesting that more companies capitalize on this growing market, and that the state put more money into its education system. –www.wral.com http://www.biz.yahoo.com http://www.washingtonpost.com http://www.wral.com http://www.npr.org http://www.nbmbaa.org
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