As businesses begin to return to operations, recalling employees, the Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce is pushing for what it calls Safe Harbor protections for businesses against COVID-19 related lawsuits.

Tyrone Russell, owner of Faces International, a marketing and advertising agency in Allentown, knows what racial inequality feels like. As a Black business owner launching a business eight years ago, obtaining financing was a challenge. After being turned down several times he finally secured a $15,000 loan, but at 10% interest. The lack of financing hampered the growth of his firm.

“We have not seen numbers like this since the 1930s and it took three years to get there,” said Kamran Afshar, director of the Kamran Afshar Data Analytics Center at DeSales University in Upper Saucon Township, which produces the index. “It is a frightening situation to be in.

After an overwhelming response to an initial round of grants, a group of business leaders led by the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of commerce this morning released a second pool of $150,000 in small business grants aimed at easing some of the financial burden of the COVID-19 shutdown.

The largest stimulus package in American history was signed into law last week and while it may take time to feel its effects, businesses are beginning to look at what it could mean for their employees and communities.

As of 2019, women make 79 cents for every dollar a man makes, but income transparency could go a long way towards the goal of closing the gender pay gap, according to the panelists at the Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce’s International Women’s Day Event.

The Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp., Discover Lehigh Valley and the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce have formed an alliance, which they are calling “Made Possible in the Lehigh Valley.”

The economy of the Lehigh and Northampton counties is growing significantly, with several factors contributing to the strength of several large sectors, including construction, manufacturing and health care. Last year showed strong growth and 2020 has potential to bring more, experts say.

Allentown had 486 new businesses open in the city in 2019, an increase of 19% from 2018, said Mayor Ray O’Connell during his annual State of the City address.

During a speech at the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Economic Outlook at ArtsQuest in Bethlehem, Bryson said he does not see the U.S. headed for a recession in the near future, but profit growth has been flat for American businesses.