Jacksonville happy city for college grads
Happiness is liking your job, your coworkers and a decent salary, said online career website CareerBliss. CareerBliss, an online career website, has ranked Jacksonville number three in its list of the “happiest cities for job-seeking college grads.� That’s good news for local college graduates hitting the streets this month in search of their first job. Forbes magazine, which did a more in-depth look at the rankings, said the online website analyzed the average cost-of-living-adjusted salary,...

Jax Chamber endorses anti-discrimination ordinance
The Jax Chamber passed a resolution Friday encouraging the City Council to pass legislation that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation. The chamber’s resolution reaffirmed the organization's 1992 Declaration of Human Values. The city has an ordinance that bans discrimination based on factors such as race, nationality and gender, but not sexual orientation. The Jacksonville City Council is considering a ban on sexual orientation-based discrimination. “This issue impacts our city and...

Florida docs losing licenses rise 52 percent - slideshow
The number of doctors who lost their license in Florida jumped 52 percent from 2010 to 2011, from 95 to 144, according to data released May 17 by the Federation of State Medical Boards. Nationwide, the number of doctors who lost their license to revocation, suspensions, surrender or mandatory retirement jumped 5 percent, from 1,815 in 2010 to 1,905 in 2011. The total number of actions — including revocations, restrictions, other prejudicial actions and non-prejudicial actions — jumped about...

Mayor Brown launches training program to prepare local college students for careers
Mayor Alvin Brown has formed yet another public-private partnership, this time teaming up with a number of colleges and businesses to establish the Mayor Brown’s Leaders in Training program. The city partnered up with CSX, the Jax Chamber, WorkSource, Edward Waters College, Florida State College at Jacksonville, Jacksonville University, Nova Southeastern University, the University of North Florida, Keiser University and the University of Phoenix to create this new public-private partnership for...

Rep. Brown passes amendment clearing way for state and local funds in Mile Point project
Rep. Corrine Brown passed an amendment Friday to H.R. 4310, the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2013, to authorize funding for the Mile Point project. “As a senior member on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Corps of Engineers, I have served as one of the biggest advocates for the Port of Jacksonville,� Brown said in a news release. “I have also worked closely with the U.S. Corps of Engineers for several years to secure authorizing language...

For some locals, Facebook stock is more symbolic than a cash cow
For Nick Cicero and Tom Bolling, Facebook stock has much more meaning to them than a way to make a ton of money. Facebook shares, to them, are more symbolic than anything else. “I think I always had a vested interest in Facebook,� said Cicero, the social media strategist at On Ideas Inc. Cicero, who bought two shares, said Facebook is something he truly believes in. Because of the social media revolution, he has much to thank Facebook for — such as providing a career for him to support his...

Florida Capital Bank board member issues notice to buy stock
One of the board of director members at Florida Capital Bank recently gave notice to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta to possibly buy additional shares of the bank’s common stock that could amount to as much as 85.58 percent of its total common stock outstanding. James Heavener, who is on the board of directors at the bank, and general partner FCG Investors LLLP, gave the Federal Reserve prior notice last week to acquire an additional 24,259 shares of the bank’s series B preferred stock and...

Florida unemployment falls in April
Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 8.7 percent in April, according to the Department of Economic Opportunity. It’s the lowest unemployment rate for the state since January 2009. Florida’s job growth rate has been positive for a consecutive 21 months, according to a written statement. The U.S. unemployment rate was 8.1 in April. Unemployment in Jacksonville fell to 7.9 percent in April, the eighth consecutive month of decreases.

Jacksonville ranks No. 6 in tech sector job growth
The Jacksonville area has seen the most growth in technology jobs in the country — significantly more than Silicon Valley. That’s according to a Forbes/Praxis Strategy Group study that measured employment growth in high-tech industry sectors such as software engineering, data processing and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). The study found that, while the Silicon Valley employs fewer people in the high-tech sector than it did in 2000, the Jacksonville area has seen a...

Jacksonville unemployment rate drops again
Metro Jacksonville’s unemployment rate dropped to 7.9 percent in April from 8.3 percent in March, the eighth consecutive month of decreases. Florida’s comparable, not seasonally adjusted, rate was 8.6 percent in March, down from 9.1 percent in February, and the national rate was 8.4 percent, down from 8.7 percent in February. Flagler County still has the highest unemployment rate among Florida’s 67 counties, though it dropped to 11.6 percent in April from 12.2 percent in February. Putnam...