Join the Massachusetts Apprentice Network for the three-year anniversary celebration of the Network's launch.
04/23/2025
9:00am - 10:30am
Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce
Join us to deepen your understanding of diverse certifications, their benefits, and the resources available through the Supplier Diversity Office.
04/24/2025
12:00pm - 1:00pm
Zoom
Join us to learn about Senate President Spilka's recent actions and legislative impact.
05/07/2025
9:45am - 11:00am
The Westin Boston Seaport
Go deeper than basic DEI training to achieve higher productivity, satisfaction, and revenue growth with our new corporate workshop.
This program is in redevelopment. Click this page for DEI resources.
Our Women’s Leadership Program enables you to take your leadership to the next level by arming you with the most in-demand leadership toolkit.
Our Boston’s Future Leaders (BFL) program provides emerging leaders with a socially conscious and civically engaged leadership toolkit, as well as the opportunity to apply their knowledge through experiential assignments.
City Awake empowers young professionals in a variety of ways that encourages these rising leaders to stay invested in the region’s future success.
We are developing an ecosystem of corporations and partners with the influence and buying power to transform economic inclusion for minority business enterprises (MBEs).
Join us for our first Words of Wisdom dinner of the year featuring Callie Crossley, host & commentor at GBH.
04/16/2025
5:00pm - 7:00pm
Small businesses are the backbone of the Boston economy. Learn more about the resources available through the Chamber.
BIMA (the Boston Interactive Media Association) serves a vibrant community of like-minded professionals from agencies, brands, publishers, and ad-tech companies with business interests in the New England market.
For over 30 years, the Chamber’s Women’s Network has connected female professionals of all background and career levels. Today, our Women’s Network is the largest in New England, strengthening the professional networks of women each year.
The Massachusetts Apprentice Network convenes employers, training providers, and talent sources interested in developing and implementing apprenticeship programs in occupations across industries and statewide in fields such as tech, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, financial services, and more.
Explore our mission and values to better understand how we are leading the business community forward.
Our member directory is your resource to discover, connect, and engage with Boston’s businesses from every industry and sector.
May 18, 2021
Today, the Chamber submitted testimony to the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development opposing legislation expanding eligibility standards for the unemployment insurance (UI) system because such an expansion would jeopardize UI Trust Fund solvency. As the state recovers from the pandemic, the UI Trust Fund solvency should be the main concern for this Committee. Trust fund solvency should be addressed by using federal funds to replenish the fund and, once employment returns to normal levels, by reforming work and duration standards for UI benefits.
The Treasury Department’s interim final rule on state and local fiscal recovery funds provides an opportunity to rebuild the depleted fund as the state moves away from the worst of the pandemic. The Chamber urges the Legislature and the administration to dedicate up to $2 billion to the fund to defray the severe unemployment insurance increases for employers.
Even if there is an infusion of federal funds, and despite recent legislation to freeze UI rates, employers have higher UI taxes in 2021, including a new temporary excise tax, because the state must close the UI Trust Fund deficit. Massachusetts already has among the most generous eligibility requirements in the country and expanding the eligibility formula further will increase the burden on employers working through an economic recovery.
In fact, the state’s UI trust fund has for years been ill-prepared to weather a recession, as explained in the Chamber’s Road to Economic Recovery brief. The brief recommends tying the benefit duration period to the state unemployment rate and account for time worked in determining eligibility and/or benefits. Massachusetts offers the longest duration period for benefits of all 50 states and is the only state in the country that does not require a minimum amount of time worked to determine either UI eligibility or to calculate the weekly benefit. Reforms to eligibility and benefit calculations are needed to address the long-term needs of the system.
Click here to read the Chamber’s testimony letter.
Carolyn Ryan
Senior Vice President, Policy & Research
[email protected]617-557-7310
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