Unemployment Numbers Targeted, Small Business Looks for Growth

Jobs are a hot topic for candidates.

Unemployment numbers can mean win or lose for incumbent presidents.

And President Obama's Republican challenger will likely be taking a hard look at those unemployment levels.

Here in Rochester, the March 2012 unemployment rate is at 8-percent.

One year ago, the rate was at 7.9-percent.

However, Rochester's unemployment outlook is much brighter than New York State's rate which is at 8.6-percent.

The Finger Lakes region is home to almost 30,000 small businesses that are looking to grow and add jobs.

There are entrepreneurs likeDebra Kostiw. She went from working at the American Red Cross to working for herself.

"My own mother became really ill," said Debra Kostiw.

Kostiw says she saw that there was a need to help the elderly. She formed Home Helpers, an elderly companion business out of her Henrietta home.

She says she started with 10 employees and in two years grew her business to about 30 employees.

Kostiw says she would like to hire another 10 employees.

Hiram Hernandez is also growing his business - First Capital Payments.

"When customer makes a purchase with credit card they would be making a phone call to us and we do authorization and we transfer the money through the merchant account," said Hiram Hernandez, President of First Capital Payments.

His downtown Rochester office went from two to seventeen employees in eleven years.

"Growing fantastic," said Hernandez.

Both of these Rochester-area small business owners are turning to New York State for advice on how to grow and expand.

And so are more than 100 others who came to a workshop at Hillside in Rochester on Tuesday.

"I find the unemployment insurance and benefist very confusing and taxing that is on my business and taxes are pretty high," said Kostiw.

The state is doing outreach across New York to change perception.

"The governor has created... incentive programs and financial services so that we level the playing field," said Alphonso David, Deputy Secretary to the Governor.

Businesses say they don't need politics, but solutions to find talent and ways to keep taxes reasonable.

"We are fortunate enough to have cash so don't need incentives to grow for funding however, our customers do, so having that agency working with banks and having this kind of tax credit is encouraging," said Hernandez.

Jobs and the economy are expected to be major issues that will draw voters to the polls this election season.