2013 HEALTH BENEFITS BENCHMARKING SURVEY NOW OPEN

With the cost of healthcare skyrocketing, employers are faced with evaluating their employee benefits packages on a regular basis. If your organization has over 50 employees and has ever wondered how the benefits package you offer your employees measures up to other Western Washington companies, The Unity Group is offering an opportunity for you to find out at no cost.

The Unity Group is partnering with a national actuarial firm to conduct the 2013 Washington Health Benefits Benchmarking Survey. By participating in this survey you will receive customized benchmarking – a comparison of your unique plan(s) to others in your industry, of similar size, and all from Northwest Washington. With this data, you can assess your ability to attract and retain your most valuable asset, employees. All information remains private and confidential.

Click here for more information about this survey and a link to begin.

FREE FAMILY FUN

Mark your calendars!  This year we will be hosting our first Safetypalooza!  We will be bringing together local non-profits to educate our community on safety-related topics with fun as #1.  There will be free food, prizes, and local entertainment! We look forward to seeing you there.

When: June 22 from 10am-2pm 

Where: Bellingham Flea Market (Corner of N Forest & Ellis)

 

More information to come!

LIVE UNITED!

Amanda from our Marketing Dept. lives UNITED and stylish! Be sure to show your support at the Whatcom County United Way Awards Banquet on March 14^th!  More information here.

 

Congratulations to all the nominees:

 

Gold Standard Award

Partner Agency that went above and beyond during the campaign

American Red Cross Mt. Baker Chapter

Opportunity Council

Whatcom Counseling & Psychiatric Clinic

 

Chairman's Award

Extraordinary year-round partnership with United Way

Ferndale School Disrict

Whatcom Educational Credit Union

UPS-SCS

 

Campaign Champion

Volunteer(s) who put in tremendous amount of effort and advocacy in the Campaign

Pat Polluck & Ria Bordian- BP Cherry Point

Ray Perry- Heath- Techna

Sara Wilson- CFD

 

Joseph & Anne McClain Award

Outstanding success in this year's campaign

Heath Techna

Mills Electric

PowerTek Electric

 

Company Achievement Award

Steady and multiyear long excellent and overall Corporate support

Bellingham Cold Storage

Matrix

Samson Rope

 

Spirit of United Way

Campaign that embodies the "spirit" of United Way- Going above and beyond,

Sargento

Timken

Whatcom County Government

Thank you to everyone who helped make 2012 another successful year!

FREE NETWORKING WORKSHOP

Patti Rowlson, owner of PR Consulting Services joins The Unity Group’s Monthly Brew workshop series line-up on April 10th to share some of her favorite tips for ensuring networking success.

Face-to-face networking can be an important marketing tool by providing opportunities to develop mutually beneficial relationships and turn casual “connections” into valuable advocates...yet it’s reported that 80% of professionals are just not comfortable with networking!

It is free to attend this and any of the other Monthly Brew workshops which will also feature Telling Your Business Story on March 12, Protecting Your Business from Cyber Threats on May 14, and Time Management on June 13.

These workshops are held on the second week of every month from 8am until 9am at 110 Unity Street, Bellingham. 

For more information on upcoming workshop topics and instructions on how to register, please visit http://www.theunitygroup.com/monthlybrew.html.

UNITY GROUP HOSTS FREE BUSINESS WORKSHOPS

Since October 2011, The Unity Group has offered free monthly workshops to local businesses entitled Monthly Brew.  Guest speakers are invited into Unity’s training center to educate business leaders on a variety of topics to help with sustainability, efficiency, productivity and profitability.

Topics include marketing, bookkeeping, HR, tax planning, and Social Media.  All topics are taught in a comfortable, non-sales atmosphere.  Monthly Brew workshops are held on the second Tuesday of every month from 8am until 9am at 110 Unity Street, Bellingham.  There is no cost to attend but registration is required.

The next workshop is titled HR 101 for Small Businesses and will be taught by Patricia Dye of HR Consulting NW, LLC.  Patricia has over 20 years of experience in human resources in multiple industries.

For more information on upcoming workshop topics and instructions on how to register, please visit http://www.theunitygroup.com/monthlybrew.html.

UNITY GROUP DONATES $5,000 TO BELLINGHAM FOOD BANK

The Unity Group is pleased to announce in lieu of corporate gifts they have chosen to make a $5,000 donation to the Bellingham Food Bank’s – Food Bank Fresh program.  Unity was a founding sponsor of this program last year and with its success is happy to continue supporting the program.  Their founding contribution resulted in the production of 8,000 pounds of food to the food bank throughout 2012.   “We are hopeful this contribution will provide over 10,000 visitors per month to the food bank with fresh, locally grown, organic produce throughout 2013,” says Barry Hanson, President of The Unity Group. 

For more information about the Food Bank Fresh program, please visit the Bellingham Food Bank’s web site at www.bellinghamfoodbank.org. 

UNITY GROUP TO SPEAK AT NW FOOD PROCESSOR’S EXPO

Andy Billingsley, Employee Benefits Specialist at The Unity Group Insurance and Employee Benefits will be a guest speaker at the 99^th Annual NW Food Processors Expo and Conference to be held in Portland, Oregon, January 14^th-16^th, 2013.  Andy, partnered with Kristine Bingman Esq. of Vigilant, will speak on the latest components of the Health Care Reform debate, the Affordable Care Act, IRS rules, and creative cost control strategies.  Human Resource Professionals who attend their session will earn 1.5 HRCI credits.  This session is among 40 educational opportunities available during the conference.

The expo will host over 400 exhibitor booths and will attract over 3000 industry professionals from around the world.  Limited free tickets are available to individuals from the food processing industry who would like to attend this event.  Please contact Amanda Brock at amandab@theunitygroup.com for more details.

For more information about the NW Food Processors Expo and Conference, please visit the organization’s website at http://www.nwfpa.org/expo2013.