April 15, 2023

 

A MA Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development Webinar:

 

Immigration Update 2025:

Understanding Your Rights as an Employer of Work-Authorized Immigrants

 

The MA Office for Refugees and Immigrants, in partnership with the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, invites employers to an immigration update and informational webinar on the rights of employers of work-authorized immigrants.

 

The webinar is scheduled for April 18, 2025, with sessions at 10:00 am and 11:30 am.  Registration is required. Register Here.

 



ABEC Launches Webinar Series for
Asian-owned Restaurants

 

The Asian Business Empowerment Council (ABEC), in partnership with Prepshift, is launching a free multilingual webinar series designed specifically for Asian-owned restaurants across Massachusetts.
 
This exciting new program, Ignite, offers two expert-led webinars and a 6-week coaching program to help AAPI restaurateurs strengthen their businesses in time for #ShopAAPIMonth (statewide) and the Boston Asian Restaurant Week (Greater Boston) in May. 
 
Sessions are virtual, with live translation in Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Khmer, and Vietnamese. It’s an incredible opportunity for Asian-owned restaurants to get practical support, connect with industry peers, and prepare for increased visibility and growth. 
 
RAM works closely with ABEC and is proud to support their efforts in assisting business owners in navigating today’s challenging economic environment. 
 
For more information: 

 

 


MassDEP Pauses Enforcement of Advanced Clean Truck (ACT) Rule

 

The MA Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) this week announced a delay in any enforcement of the Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) regulation.  The announcement was welcome news to RAM and our members who have argued that the regulation’s minimum electric truck sales requirements have essentially stifled new truck sales in the Commonwealth, given the current limitations in technology, infrastructure, and vehicle availability.

 

“Medium and heavy-duty trucks are essential for the broad supply chain supporting the retail and restaurant industries, but the necessary technology and infrastructure are just not there yet to support these new initiatives,” said RAM Senior Vice President Bill Rennie.  “We appreciate this action the Healey Administration has taken to provide some relief and look forward to continuing the conversation on emissions reduction.” 

 

The MassDEP announcement can be found here.
 



REMINDER: Upcoming Planned EBT Outage
 

The Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) announced that there will be a full EBT outage from 11 p.m. Saturday, April 26, until midday Sunday, April 27, impacting 1.1 million DTA clients. During this time, Massachusetts EBT cards will not work for SNAP purchases, cash purchases, or cash withdrawals. Retailers will also not be able to process manual vouchers. DTA will post an update on mass.gov/EBT when the outage ends and you can resume processing EBT transactions.

DTA has created an informational poster about the outage. Retailers should hang this poster in their stores as soon as possible, in a prominent location where customers will see it (on the doors/windows at entrances, in the check out lines, etc.), and keep the posters up until the outage is over. The poster is available in multiple languages and can be downloaded at mass.gov/EBT.

DTA is also introducing a new EBT card design. This new card will be accepted in addition to the other existing/past card designs. DTA has created a poster with images of the new and current designs. We encourage you to hang this poster in your employee breakroom for staff reference. The poster can be downloaded at mass.gov/EBT.