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Inside Long Island business

Get the latest news and trends on Long Island companies and the people behind them.

Suffolk IDA seeks applicants for director's job

Bruce E. Ferguson, executive director and chief executive

Photo credit: Handout

The Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency is seeking applications for the job of executive director and chief executive.

Applicants should send a resume and cover letter outlining their qualifications to the development agency’s office in the H. Lee Dennison Building, Third Floor, 100 Veterans Memorial Highway, P.O. Box 6100, Hauppauge, N.Y. 11788. The deadline is June 7.

The...

Melville law firm files suit against Facebook underwriters

The Facebook logo on a computer screen

Photo credit: AP

The Melville law firm of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd has jumped into the Facebook fray.

The firm filed a federal lawsuit charging that major underwriters of the social networking site’s initial public offering failed to disclose to investors that they had cut their revenue projections for the company just before its IPO last Friday.

Robbins Geller, the Long Island branch of a San...

IKEA to give away big blue bags at Hicksville station

IKEA at Broadway Mall in Hicksville.

Photo credit: Newsday File/Bill Davis

Ikea was scheduled to hand out its trademark blue reusable bags at the Hicksville LIRR train station Thursday morning between 6 and 8 a.m. As part of its third National Random Acts of Life Improvement campaign, the company said it would hand out 35,000 free blue bags nationwide throughout the morning, the company said. The giveaway is part of the company's Life Improvement Project, “designed to...

Summer interns bring energy to ClearVision Optical

Jennifer Trakhtenberg, senior talent leader at Clearvision Optical

Photo credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara

This month, many Long Island companies will gear up for their summer internship programs. Among them is ClearVision Optical Co., a Hauppauge-based company that designs and distributes eyewear for famous brands that include Cole Haan, Ellen Tracy and Izod.

The company expects to hire 14 college interns this year, said Jennifer Trakhtenberg,  the company’s senior talent leader, who heads...

Nassau has one of lowest NYS jobless rates

Job seekers attend a career fair in midtown

Photo credit: Getty Images

The jump in Long Island’s April unemployment rate was a sign that the employment market here weakened last month. The rate rose to 7.1 percent, from 6.6 the year before, the state Labor Department said Tuesday.

But the Island’s performance wasn’t the worst in the state. In fact, it looks pretty respectable when compared with other New York counties.

Nassau County, with a 6.7 percent...

Poll: Where will Facebook's stock price be in a year?

In this handout from Facebook, Facebook founder and

Photo credit: Getty Images

Each week, the business section asks readers to take a poll on a business or financial question and leave comments.

Newsday publishes the results of the poll and some of the reader comments on Sunday. Join the conversation -- take the poll, leave a comment.

This week's question: Facebook just went public at $38 a share. Where do you think the stock price will be in a year?  ...

Hain Celestial wins tax breaks from Nassau

Hain Celestial chief executive Irwin Simon in the

Photo credit: Howard Schnapp, 2009

The Hain Celestial Group Inc. Wednesday won final approval from Nassau County for tax breaks that will keep the company's headquarters on Long Island.

The board of directors of the county's industrial development agency granted Hain a 16-year freeze on its property taxes and a $850,000 sales tax exemption on furniture, equipment and fixtures.

The maker of health foods plans to rent 86,104...

Suffolk IDA interviews candidate

Members of the Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency interviewed a candidate for executive director Tuesday afternoon but took no action to hire him.

The members questioned Babylon-based corporate and political adviser Anthony Manetta, 32, for more than an hour behind closed doors. Afterward, they said only that the process of selecting a replacement for Bruce E. Ferguson would continue....

Kites for a Cure taking flight in Southampton

Kites for a Cure participants, from left, Bryce

Photo credit: Steve Pfost, 2011

A family kite-flying event to benefit lung cancer research will take place this weekend in Southampton.

The fundraiser will be held  from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday at Cooper’s Beach, 268 Meadow Lane. The rain date is Sunday. More than 1,000 people are expected to attend.

The real estate developer Rechler Equity Partners is the presenting sponsor of the sixth annual Uniting Against Lung...

Minimum-wage rally planned in Babylon

Local supporters of raising the state minimum wage plan a rally Thursday at the Babylon LIRR station from 5  to 6 p.m.

The Long Island Federation of Labor AFL-CIO and local community groups are sponsoring the gathering. The groups want to build support for raising the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $8.50. They contend that raising the minimum “is one of the most effective ways to...

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Facebook just went public at $38. Where will the stock price be in a year?

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