Owner Michael Rogak of the 71-year-old chocolate business, JoMart Chocolates, merged with Liddabit, another Brooklyn chocolatier earlier this year to share production space and cut costs. Rents are rising exorbitantly throughout New York City, but a newer rising expense is labor. The minimum wage will increase from $11 to $13 […]
At 6:30 pm on a Saturday night, Rhonda Kave, owner of Roni-Sue’s Chocolates, is doing the dishes in her shop. She’s the only one working – and there’s a lot to clean up after yesterday’s busy chocolate fair. With increases in labor costs, fines, regulations and soaring rents, Kave had […]
Increased pay for low-wage workers has small New York City businesses worrying about expanding, or, in some cases, already downsizing. Others are forced to move out of the state or replace employees with machines. As measured by jobs, food is the city’s largest manufacturing sector. Between 2005 and 2015, the […]