In a recession, it seems, people eat more tortillas and stop buying bouquets for their sweethearts. Tortilla-makers landed on a recent top-10 list of best-performing privately held companies, and florists landed in the bottom 10.

New economic estimates released today by the U.S. Census Bureau show what most Valley residents already knew: Things were worse in 2008 than they were in 2007. And experts suggest they're even bleaker now.

In a sign of just how rocky the job market has become, a program at Fresno State that helps students start and run their own businesses is full for the first time.

Since it was first declared a federal holiday in 1894, Labor Day has become a treasured chance to take one last summer break from work.

California's budget crisis is creating a business opportunity for private colleges and trade schools in the central San Joaquin Valley.

With money tighter than ever, many people would rather fix than replace their cars, washing machines or stoves. And that has kept some repair shops in business through the recession.

A 15-acre plot may not seem like much of a farm on the west side, where crops stretch for miles. But the produce grown here isn't for sale. It goes to help some of the Valley's neediest families.

Finding a job in the real world is always a challenge for the proverbial liberal-arts major. This year, even college graduates with vocational degrees are struggling to get work.

Just about every time dairy farmers milk their cows these days, they're losing money. They face growing pressures from all sides: weak demand, a declining export market and low milk prices.