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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Leaders from both labor and industry, from areas ranging from Milwaukee to the Silicon Valley, will converge on Buffalo with a simple message: communities must work together to create real economic development. At the "High Road Economics @ Work" conference, being held Feb. 27 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, speakers from both sides of the labor market, as well as politicians and economic development leaders, will offer their experiences in working together to generate high-paying jobs. "We're bringing people to Buffalo from a wide range of places, so they can share some of the successes, and the pitfalls, in making collaborations work," said Lou Jean Fleron, director of economic development initiatives for the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, which is sponsoring the conference. Amy B. Dean, a former leader of the South Bay AFL-CIO Labor Council that oversaw Silicon Valley and a founder of the nonprofit Working Partnerships group, will provide the keynote address at the conference. Dean said her speech will focus on explaining how labor relations need to extend "beyond just the bargaining table." "On issues that affect the entire region, like land use, transportation policy and others, labor and management have more of a basis for collaboration than disagreement," said Dean. "When industry and unions work together, they can help grow the economy, and attract and retain good jobs that pay well." Issues that affect Buffalo specifically - supporting the automotive industry and building trades, generating low-cost and sustainable energy for the region, and others - labor groups need to take the initiative, Dean said, rather than waiting until contract negotiations begin. "If you're only showing up every so often at the bargaining table, you end up only marginalizing issues that are extremely important to all of us." David Palmer, area director for the Communications Workers of America, said he hopes that both employers and union leaders will come away from the conference with an understanding that economic development means "more than just moving one company from one town to another." "It's about creating high-road jobs, with decent pay and benefits, jobs that college graduates can move into, not away from," Palmer said. Others scheduled to appear at the conference include: . Tom Croft, executive director of the Steel Valley Authority, a regional development authority working to revitalize Pittsburgh and other municipalities . Bruce Colburn, co-founder of Sustainable Milwaukee and a representative for the University of Wisconsin's Center on Wisconsin Strategy. . Morton Bahr, president of Communications Workers of America. . Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, D-Fairport, and Rep. Jack Quinn, R-Hamburg. The registration fee for "High Road Economics @ Work" is $60 per person. For information or registration, call 854-4191. Back to Original Article: Mortgage News You Can Use
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