FILE - In this May 17, 2012 file photo, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. Big business and major labor unions appeared ready Friday, March 29, 2013 to end a fight over a new low-skilled worker program that had threatened to upend negotiations on a sweeping immigration bill in the Senate providing a pathway to citizenship for 11 million immigrants already in the U.S. Schumer, who's been brokering talks between the AFL-CIO and the Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement that negotiators are "very close, closer than we have ever been, and we are very optimistic." He said there were still a few issues remaining. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
FILE - In this May 17, 2012 file photo, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. Big business and major labor unions appeared ready Friday, March 29, 2013 to end a fight over a new low-skilled worker program that had threatened to upend negotiations on a sweeping immigration bill in the Senate providing a pathway to citizenship for 11 million immigrants already in the U.S. Schumer, who's been brokering talks between the AFL-CIO and the Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement that negotiators are "very close, closer than we have ever been, and we are very optimistic." He said there were still a few issues remaining. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Prospects for a Senate deal on an ambitious rewrite of the nation's immigration laws improved markedly as business and labor appeared ready to set aside their differences over a new low-skilled worker program holding up the agreement.
The AFL-CIO and U.S. Chamber of Commerce had been fighting over wages for tens of thousands of low-skilled workers who would be brought in under the new program to fill jobs in construction, hotels and resorts, nursing homes and restaurants, and other industries. But on Friday, officials from both sides said there was basic agreement on the wage issue, and Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said a final deal on the low-wage worker dispute was very close.
That likely would clear the way for Schumer and seven other senators in a bipartisan group to unveil legislation the week of April 8 to overhaul the U.S. immigration system, strengthening the border, cracking down on employers, allowing in tens of thousands of new high- and low-skilled workers and providing a path to citizenship for the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants already in the country.
"We're feeling very optimistic on immigration: Aspiring Americans will receive the road map to citizenship they deserve and we can modernize 'future flow' without reducing wages for any local workers, regardless of what papers they carry," AFL-CIO spokesman Jeff Hauser said in a statement. "Future flow" refers to future arrivals of legal immigrants.
Under the emerging agreement between business and labor, a new "W'' visa program would bring tens of thousands of lower-skilled workers a year to the country. The program would be capped at 200,000 a year, but the number of visas would fluctuate, depending on unemployment rates, job openings, employer demand and data collected by a new federal bureau pushed by the labor movement as an objective monitor of the market.
The workers would be able to change jobs and could seek permanent residency. Under current temporary worker programs, personnel can't move from employer to employer and have no path to permanent U.S. residence and citizenship. And currently there's no good way for employers to bring many low-skilled workers to the U.S. An existing visa program for low-wage nonagricultural workers is capped at 66,000 per year and is supposed to apply only to seasonal or temporary jobs.
The Chamber of Commerce said workers would earn actual wages paid to American workers or the prevailing wages for the industry they're working in, whichever is higher. The Labor Department determines prevailing wage based on customary rates in specific localities, so that it varies from city to city.
There was also disagreement about how to deal with certain higher-skilled construction jobs, such as electricians and welders, and it appears those will be excluded from the deal, said Geoff Burr, vice president of federal affairs at Associated Builders and Contractors. Burr said his group opposes such an exclusion because, even though unemployment in the construction industry is high right now, at times when it is low there can be labor shortages in high-skilled trades, and contractors want to be able to bring in foreign workers. But unions pressed for the exclusion, Burr said.
The low-skilled worker issue had loomed for weeks as perhaps the toughest matter to settle in monthslong closed-door talks on immigration among the senators, including Republicans John McCain of Arizona and Marco Rubio of Florida. The issue helped sink the last major attempt at immigration overhaul in 2007, when the legislation foundered on the Senate floor after an amendment was added to end a temporary worker program after five years, threatening a key priority of the business community.
The amendment passed by just one vote, 49-48. President Barack Obama, a senator at the time, joined in the narrow majority voting to end the program after five years.
___
Follow Erica Werner on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ericawerner
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Big business and labor have struck a deal on a new low-skilled worker program, removing the biggest hurdle to completion of sweeping immigration legislation allowing 11 million illegal immigrants eventual U.S. citizenship, labor and Senate officials said Saturday.
The agreement was reached in a phone call late Friday night with AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, U.S. Chamber of Commerce head Tom Donohue, and Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, who's been mediating the dispute.
The deal resolves disagreements over wages for the new workers and which industries would be included. Those disputes had led talks to break down a week ago, throwing into doubt whether Schumer and seven other senators crafting a comprehensive bipartisan immigration bill would be able to complete their work as planned.
The deal must still be signed off on by the other senators working with Schumer, including Republicans John McCain of Arizona and Marco Rubio of Florida, but that's expected to happen, according to a person with knowledge of the talks who spoke on condition of anonymity. With the agreement in place, the senators are expected to unveil their legislation the week of April 8. Their measure would secure the border, crack down on employers, improve legal immigration and create a 13-year pathway to citizenship for the millions of illegal immigrants already here.
It's a major second-term priority of President Barack Obama's and would usher in the most dramatic changes to the nation's faltering immigration system in more than two decades.
"The strength of the consensus across America for just reform has afforded us the momentum needed to forge an agreement in principle to develop a new type of employer visa system," Trumka said in a statement late Saturday. "We expect that this new program, which benefits not just business, but everyone, will promote long overdue reforms by raising the bar for existing programs."
Schumer said: "This issue has always been the dealbreaker on immigration reform, but not this time."
The AFL-CIO and the Chamber of Commerce, longtime antagonists over temporary worker programs, had been fighting over wages for tens of thousands of low-skilled workers who would be brought in under the new program to fill jobs in construction, hotels and resorts, nursing homes and restaurants, and other industries.
Under the agreement, a new "W'' visa program would go into effect beginning April 1, 2015, according to an AFL-CIO fact sheet.
In year one of the program, 20,000 workers would be allowed in; in year two, 35,000; in year three, 55,000; and in year four, 75,000. Ultimately the program would be capped at 200,000 workers a year, but the number of visas would fluctuate, depending on unemployment rates, job openings, employer demand and data collected by a new federal bureau pushed by the labor movement as an objective monitor of the market. One-third of all visas in any year would go to businesses with under 25 workers.
A "safety valve" would allow employers to exceed the cap if they can show need and pay premium wages, but any additional workers brought in would be subtracted from the following year's cap.
The workers could move from employer to employer and would be able to petition for permanent residency after a year, and ultimately seek U.S. citizenship. Neither is possible for temporary workers now.
The new program would fill needs employers say they have that are not currently met by U.S. immigration programs. Most industries don't have a good way to hire a steady supply of foreign workers because there's one temporary visa program for low-wage nonagricultural workers but it's capped at 66,000 visas per year and is only supposed to be used for seasonal or temporary jobs.
Business has sought temporary worker programs in a quest for a cheaper workforce, but labor has opposed the programs because of concerns over working conditions and the effect on jobs and wages for U.S. workers. The issue helped sink the last major attempt at immigration overhaul in 2007, which the AFL-CIO opposed partly because of temporary worker provisions, and the flare-up earlier this month sparked concerns that the same thing would happen this time around. Agreement between the two traditional foes is one of many indications that immigration reform has its best chance in years in Congress this year.
After apparent miscommunications earlier this month between the AFL-CIO and the Chamber of Commerce on the wage issue, the deal resolves it in a way both sides are comfortable with, officials said.
Workers would earn actual wages paid to American workers or the prevailing wages for the industry they're working in, whichever is higher. The Labor Department would determine prevailing wage based on customary rates in specific localities, so that it would vary from city to city.
There also had been disagreement on how to handle the construction industry, which unions argue is different from other industries in the new program because it can be more seasonal in nature and includes a number of higher-skilled trades. The official said the resolution will cap at 15,000 a year the number of visas that can be sought by the construction industry.
Schumer called White House chief of staff Denis McDonough on Saturday to inform him of the deal, the person with knowledge of the talks said. The three principals in the talks ? Trumka, Donohue and Schumer ? agreed they should meet for dinner soon to celebrate, the person said.
However, in a sign of the delicate and uncertain negotiations still ahead, Rubio sent a letter Saturday to Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., calling for a deliberate hearing process on the new legislation and cautioning against a "rush to legislate." Rubio and a number of other Republicans are striking a tricky balance as they simultaneously court conservative and Hispanic voters on the immigration issue.
Separately, the new immigration bill also is expected to offer many more visas for high-tech workers, new visas for agriculture workers, and provisions allowing some agriculture workers already in the U.S. a speedier path to citizenship than that provided to other illegal immigrants, in an effort to create a stable agricultural workforce.
___
Follow Erica Werner on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ericawerner
Six years ago, the video ?Shift Happens? (2007) was featured at our school?s professional development day. I clearly remember one take-away:
We are currently preparing students for jobs that don?t exist using technologies that do not exist in order to solve problems we don?t even know are problems yet.
The video was created by Karl Fisch, and modified by Scott McLeod.?The slides provided statistics on the rapid exponential growth in population and in information, highlighting the differences between the present and what was successful in the past, specifically England?s position on the world stage in 1900. Several slides are alarming in calling attention to the building tsunami of information available to students with examples such as ? there is more information in a week?s worth of the?The New York Times?than what an average person knew in the 1700s?. Since 2007, there have been several updated versions of ?Shift Happens? uploaded to YouTube; there have also been many imitations.
I thought of this video this week when I drove past a sign on a large office building: Strategic Information Technologies.
?What does that mean?? I asked my friend Catherine, ?Is the technology stategic because of geography? Strategic because of a choice of software or hardware?? I continued, ?I don?t know what a ?strategic information technologist? does?Is this one of the unknown new jobs were are ?preparing? our 21st Century students to take?? I referenced the video.
?That?s ridiculous!? Catherine responded, ?The people who ?prepared? us for the 21st Century were not worried about what new jobs would be?available?in our future. In fact,? she continued, ?they taught us what they knew?what they thought we should know, and we are doing just fine.?
I was startled. Could a ?Shift Happens? video place a misguided emphasis on adjusting skills and content in order to prepare students for the unidentified problems they?don?t even know are problems yet?
?After all,? she continued, ?We are the generation that created these new technologies that we didn?t know would exist today.?
When I reflect on her statement I think about how my favorite teachers in grades K-12 ?(Sister Ella, Mrs. Rowland, Miss Montessi) were not obsessed with preparing me for some unidentified job in the future. Instead, their collective obsession was to prepare me with basic skills and content so that I could be a productive member of?society? I was taught to think, to read well, write well, speak well, know math, appreciate history, recognize science, and, since I attended Catholic school, recite my?Catechism.
Perhaps, educators cannot predict the future for their students, but educators can address trends. For example, in 1957, the American public began to reconsider how the role of public education may contribute to winning the Space Race with the Soviets once Sputnik had been released. The investments in education made as a consequence resulted in increased scientific advancements and many spin-off technologies. In contrast, however, predictions such as those at the?1964 NY World?s Fair of a future with flying cars, jet packs, vacation trips to Mars and beyond, underwater cities, and robot laborers have never came to fruition.
Similarly, Karl Fisch?s video alerted educators to the rapid changes in education and the global implications in preparing students for the real world. He wrote:
??it?s a different world out there. A world whereanyone?s?ideas can quickly spread if they happen to strike a chord.?
This was certainly true of the ?Shift Happens? video which had great success without??a large company or a huge public relations effort to make an impact.? Fisch continued:
This is just one of the reasons that I believe our schools need to change. They need to change to reflect this new world, this flatter world, this information-abundant, globally connected, rapidly changing, technology super-charged world that they are going to spend the rest of their lives in.
Fisch made no silly ?predictions? like those at the NY World?s Fair. Instead, his video served to bring attention to trends that require an increase in the skills of ?communication and sharing information.
In order to communicate and to share, students from grades K-12 must think, read well, write well, and speak well regardless as to what predictions are being made about new industries or technologies.?In trying to anticipate the future, educators must not discount how the generations of students who learned these important skills became the graduates who are now responsible for evolving changes of the present.
Shift is not an entirely new enterprise on the world stage, for example, ?the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, the Reformation, the Industrial Revolution are all examples of global ?shifts?. In the six short years since the ?Shift Happens? video, Facebook has replaced MySpace as the world?s most?formidable?social network; Twitter has evolved into a powerful communication tool. The role of educators is not ?to predict the next Steve Jobs or Bill Gates or company that will spawn new jobs or dominate an industry or the next ?shift?. Instead, the role of educators must be to teach the skills of thinking, reading, writing, and speaking well that contributed to the ?shift? that is happening for our students.
There is no surprise that ?Shift Happens?, and the students who are prepared to think, to read well, to write well, and to speak well will not be surprised either.
As much as we're intrigued by the prospect of Twitter's music app, the rumored emphasis on SoundCloud would potentially limit the selection given major label resistance to giving away ad-free content: we'd expect a lot of DJ sets and indie demos. A supposed leak from AllThingsD has Twitter catering to the less adventurous among us by adding Vevo support. While the full workings of the rumored app remain a mystery, Twitter would reportedly play Vevo's mostly pop-oriented music videos through a custom player. It might not be the only service involved, too: the same tips suggest that Twitter wants to round up multiple services, and the two that have surfaced so far are just the first to hop aboard. We have a hunch that the expanded app (if real) won't make the originally claimed March launch when we're already at the last weekday of the month, but the latest tidbit suggests Twitter is far from giving up on turning microblogs into mini jukeboxes.
Clumps of ?-synuclein protein in nerve cells are hallmarks of many degenerative brain diseases, most notably Parkinson's disease.
"No one has been able to determine if Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites, hallmark pathologies in Parkinson's disease can be degraded," says Virginia Lee, PhD, director of the Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania.
"With the new neuron model system of Parkinson's disease pathologies our lab has developed recently, we demonstrated that these aberrant clumps in cells resist degradation as well as impair the function of the macroautophagy system, one of the major garbage disposal systems within the cell."
Macroautophagy, literally self eating, is the degradation of unnecessary or dysfunctional cellular bits and pieces by a compartment in the cell called the lysosome.
Lee, also a professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and colleagues published their results in the early online edition of the Journal of Biological Chemistry this week.
Alpha-synuclein (?-syn ) diseases all have clumps of the protein and include Parkinson's disease (PD), and array of related disorders: PD with dementia , dementia with Lewy bodies, and multiple system atrophy. In most of these, ?-syn forms insoluble aggregates of stringy fibrils that accumulate in the cell body and extensions of neurons.
These unwanted ?-syn clumps are modified by abnormal attachments of many phosphate chemical groups as well as by the protein ubiquitin, a molecular tag for degradation. They are widely distributed in the central nervous system, where they are associated with neuron loss.
Using cell models in which intracellular ?-syn clumps accumulate after taking up synthetic ?-syn fibrils, the team showed that ?-syn inclusions cannot be degraded, even though they are located near the lysosome and the proteasome, another type of garbage disposal in the cell.
The ?-syn aggregates persist even after soluble ?-syn levels within the cell are substantially reduced, suggesting that once formed, the ?-syn inclusions are resistant to being cleared. What's more, they found that ?-syn aggregates impair the overall autophagy degradative process by delaying the maturation of autophagy machines known as autophagosomes, which may contribute to the increased cell death seen in clump-filled nerve cells. Understanding the impact of ?-syn aggregates on autophagy may help elucidate therapies for ?-syn-related neurodegeneration.
###
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine: http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/news/
Thanks to University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine for this article.
This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.
In an effort to speed up an already contested $20.1 billion merger, Softbank and Sprint have reportedly agreed not to use Huawei network equipment within the US carrier's existing network. In fact, the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Mike Rogers, recently told The New York Times that the two outfits have pledged to remove Huawei hardware from Clearwire's network, too.These promises are likely a reaction to Congress' security concerns, which saw Huawei exiled from America's first responder network back in October. While Rogers is happy with Softbank and Sprint's new game plan, this deal is far from done. The two firms still need to make it past the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, which reviews national security risks connected to business transactions. Until then, Dan Hesse may wanna hold off on any extracurricular activities.
The authority for sports coverage in the Fredericksburg region.
FROM STAFF REPORTS
March 30: 5K Rabbit Run, 8 a.m. at Spotsylvania Courthouse Village Pavilion. Cost: $20 for FARC members $25 on race day. Also, 1-mile ($15) and -mile kids? Bunny Chase ($5). Register online at racetimingunlimited.org.
April 1: Shirley Gray Scholarship Golf Outing, noon at Country Club of Culpeper. Cost: $300 per four-player team, $80 per individual. Information: Careen Angel (540/222-8708), Mike Wills (540/825-8310) or bluedevilbacker@gmail.com.
April 6: J. Brian?s Tap Room 15K, 7 a.m. in downtown Fredericksburg. Cost: $45. Register at racetimingunlimited.org.
April 12: Lexi Ray Golf Classic, 9 a.m. at Lee?s Hill Golf Club. Cost: $300 per team, $75 per player. Proceeds benefit Lexi Ray, a teen suffering from Legg-Calve Perthes Disease. Information: Jane Ray (540/710-7555 or 538-1980), Patrick Voit (540-809-5943) or pventerprises1@hotmail.com.
April 13: Stafford Hospital 5K, 8:30 a.m. at Stafford Hospital. Grand Prix event. Cost: $25 ($30 after March 29). Register at racetimingunlimited.org.
April 20: King George healthy kids day 5K, 8 a.m. at King George YMCA. Cost: $15 ($20 after April 14), $10 for kids? 1-mile fun run. Register at racetimingunlimited.org.
April 27: Festival of Feet 5K and 10K, 8 a.m. at Bowling Green Town Hall. Cost: $20 for 10K, $10 for 5K. Register at racetimingunlimited.org.
April 27: Spring Fling Golf Classic, 9 a.m. at Pendleton Golf Club in Ruther Glen. Cost: $85 per player, $320 per team. Information: 804/448-8428 or Wethclan@aol.com.
April 28: Park Ridge 5K, 8 a.m. at Park Ridge Elementary in Stafford. Cost: $25 for 5K ($27 after April 13, $30 on race day), $15 for 1-miler. Register at racetimingunlimited.org.
May 4: Virginia State Taekwondo Championship Qualifier, 10 a.m. at Massaponax High School. Cost: $15 for team forms, $65 for all others ($75 through May 1 deadline). Register online at tourneyreg.net. Information: 540/710-9094 or pilsungma@hotmail. com.
May 19: Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon, 7 a.m. in Fredericksburg. Costs: $75 for Historic Half Marathon, $45 for Historic 10K, $35 for Semper Fred 5K. Register, online at marinemarathon.com.
Submitted by MissKitty007 on Wed, 03/27/2013 - 5:48pm
Just wondering who the "oldest" SM on this site is and how did you make it as long as you have? I have been a SM for 3 years and its so hard and not getting easier.
There are currently 75 users and 184 guests online.
?
?
New forum topics
?
?
In your experience as a stepparent, which is easier to deal with?:
Toddlers
33%
Teenagers
4%
There is no good age
63%
Total votes: 256
Help keep Step Talk online!
As this site gets more popular (and it is!) our hosting costs get bigger. Any amount will be graciously accepted. Even $1.00 helps! Thank you!
A Note about PayPal
While PayPal is our payment processor, you do not need a PayPal account to donate. PayPal accepts payments from all Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express cards, as well as some other localized payment types.
BOSTON (Reuters) - The longest-serving mayor in Boston history told voters on Thursday that he would not seek a sixth term in office, setting the stage for the city's most competitive mayoral race in decades.
Mayor Tom Menino, 70, declared his intention not to seek reelection to the office he has held since 1993 at Boston's historic Fanueil Hall.
"I never dreamed I would end up here, mayor of Boston, during its best years," said Menino, who was hospitalized for a month last year after falling ill while on vacation in Italy.
"I'm back to a mayor's schedule, but not a Menino schedule. And I miss it," he said, referring to his historic practice of spending most evenings at events around the city.
"I will leave the job that I love," Menino told a crowd of a couple hundred staff and supporters, including the state's interim U.S. Senator William "Mo" Cowan and Representative Stephen Lynch, one of two Democratic representatives running for a permanent shot at the senate seat.
"It was a surprise and obviously disappointing, but I'm happy for him," said Henry Vitale, acting executive director of the Boston Water and Sewer Commission, as he waited for the mayor to speak. David Bowie's "Changes" played over a public address system.
Menino took office at a tough time for Boston and much of urban America - crime was high and neighborhoods were struggling economically. Vitale said an important part of Menino's legacy would be the economic resurgence that Boston has undergone in the past two decades.
"Look at all the development he has done, look at the neighborhoods," Vitale said. "Boston is vibrant."
'THIS IS THE TIME'
Before today, only Democrat John Connolly, 39, had jumped into the race. Connolly, a Boston city councilor, has focused his campaign on improving schools.
Menino said he had "no plans to pick the person to fill this seat".
More local leaders are expected to enter the race now that they know they will not be facing a powerful incumbent.
"Boston mayors are rarely defeated for reelection, so if you are going to make a run for it, this is the time to do it," said Peter Ubertaccio, chairman of the political science department at Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts, south of Boston. "The city councilors are going to be jockeying for this position."
Menino had a formidable campaign organization that he has used both for himself and fellow Democrats. His supporters played a key role in Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren's successful 2012 campaign to unseat Republican Scott Brown.
He has declined to endorse Lynch or his Democratic rival Representative Markey.
Voters will go to the polls in that special election on June 25, a little more than four months before November's mayoral race, making for one of Boston's most lively political calendars in recent years.
On the national stage, Menino has stood out as an advocate for gun control and gay rights, often working alongside New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Menino became mayor in July 1993 after predecessor Raymond Flynn resigned to become U.S. ambassador to the Vatican.
His fellow politicians were quick to offer praise.
"It's hard to imagine Boston without Tom Menino as mayor," said Governor Deval Patrick. "No one loves this city and her people more or is more excited about her future."
(Reporting by Scott Malone; Editing by Paul Thomasch and Kevin Gray)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Actress Ashley Judd's next role will not be as a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in Kentucky.
Judd said on Wednesday she has decided not to run in 2014 to try to unseat Republican Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, after considering such a candidacy for months.
"After serious and thorough contemplation, I realize that my responsibilities & energy at this time need to be focused on my family," she wrote on Twitter.
Judd and her husband, three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti, announced in January that they had decided to end their 11-year marriage.
Judd, 44, considers Kentucky her home state but actually lives in neighboring Tennessee. She would have had to move to Kentucky in order to qualify as a candidate.
McConnell's re-election team in Kentucky already produced a campaign video criticizing Judd that made light of the fact that she did not live in Kentucky.
"And it just clicked, Tennessee is home," Judd is quoted as saying in a speech in the video.
Judd has starred in a number of movies including "Double Jeopardy" and "Kiss the Girls." Her mother, Naomi Judd, and sister, Wynonna, made up the country singing duo, The Judds.
Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen told CNN that her political consulting firm had represented Judd in her deliberations and that it had became clear over the past 10 days that she would not run.
"The timing just wasn't right," Rosen said. "She has a lot of other things going on."
Nashville television station WSMV said Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes has expressed interest in running for the Democratic nomination to challenge McConnell, 71.
(Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Will Dunham)
Here?s an important factor when considering discharge: Dis??crimi??nation complaints made years ago can form the basis for a lawsuit if the underlying events show a pattern of discrimination.
Recent case: Javier worked for Champion for a decade before being terminated for allegedly missing an important safety meeting. Javier is a Mexican citizen who has been in the United States since 1988 as a resident alien authorized to work.
Over the 10 years he worked for the company, he made several discrimination claims. Two involved his super?visor?s decision to give him a smaller raise than others. After complaining, he received larger raises.
He also complained to his boss that non-Mexican co-workers received more privileges, to which the supervisor allegedly replied, ?They are Americans, and you aren?t. You?re Mexican and not the same as them.?
Then the supervisor OK?d Javier?s vacation request, only to revoke the approval and instead allow a non-?Mexican to take vacation during that time period. On the day before he was fired, Javier claims his boss tricked him into leaving early and then got him fired in retaliation for complaining about the vacation incident.
When Javier sued, Champion argued that Javier couldn?t use the old incidents to prove that his boss had set him up for termination in part because of an anti-Mexican prejudice.
The court disagreed and said that while the old incidents couldn?t be used as separate discriminatory acts, they could bolster his claim he was fired because of his national origin. (Gonzalez v. Champion Technologies, No. 14-11-00612, Court of Appeals of Texas, 14th District, 2012)
Final note: Before approving a termination, make sure there aren?t prior complaints against the supervisor who recommended the firing. If there are, get the employee?s version of events and then seek legal advice.
Like what you've read? ...Republish it and share great business tips!
Attention: Readers, Publishers, Editors, Bloggers, Media, Webmasters and more...
We believe great content should be read and passed around. After all, knowledge IS power. And good business can become great with the right information at their fingertips. If you'd like to share any of the insightful articles on BusinessManagementDaily.com, you may republish or syndicate it without charge.
The only thing we ask is that you keep the article exactly as it was written and formatted. You also need to include an attribution statement and link to the article.
" This information is proudly provided by Business Management Daily.com: http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/34276/beware-old-slights-can-bolster-new-bias-claims "
The latest trailer for Michael Bay's "Pain & Gain" has arrived, and it's absolutely hilarious. Though Dwayne Johnson's character Paul Doyle, Mark Wahlberg's Daniel Lugo and Anthony Mackie's Adrian Doorbal aren't considered heroes in real life, they definitely look like they will be in the movie based on what we've seen this red band trailer. [...]
In this Feb. 25, 2013 photo, a new townhouse is under construction at the Crossings adult community in Colonie, N.Y. Sales of new homes fell in February after climbing to the highest level in more than four years in January. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
In this Feb. 25, 2013 photo, a new townhouse is under construction at the Crossings adult community in Colonie, N.Y. Sales of new homes fell in February after climbing to the highest level in more than four years in January. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
In this Feb. 25, 2013 photo, a new townhouse is under construction at the Crossings adult community in Colonie, N.Y. Sales of new homes fell in February after climbing to the highest level in more than four years in January. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Sales of new homes fell in February after climbing to the highest level in more than four years in January.
Sales of new homes dropped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 411,000 in February, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. That is a decline of 4.6 percent from the January level of 431,000, which had been the strongest sales pace since September 2008.
The decline in February still left sales 12.3 percent higher than a year ago. While sales remain below the 700,000 level considered healthy, the housing recovery is gaining strength and is starting to look sustainable. Steady job creation and near record-low mortgage rates are spurring sales.
The median price of a new home sold in February was $246,800, up 2.9 percent from a year ago.
By region of the country, sales were up only in the Midwest, which saw a 13.7 percent increase. Sales fell in every other region, led by a 13.3 percent drop in the Northeast, where severe winter weather likely dampened activity. Sales were down 9.7 percent in the South and fell 2.1 percent in the West.
Last week, the National Association of Realtors reported that sales of previously owned homes rose 0.8 percent in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.98 million units. That was the fastest sales pace since November 2009 when a temporary home buyer tax credit had boosted sales.
The rise in demand is helping to boost sales and prices in most markets. Low inventories have been a problem but the Realtors reported a gain in the number of homes on the market at the end of February compared to January. It was the first monthly rise in inventories of previously owned homes since April although the increase still left the total 19 percent below a year ago.
But analysts saw the increase as a hopeful sign that more homeowners are gaining confidence in the housing recovery and becoming willing to put their homes up for sale, helping to alleviate an inventory squeeze which had held back sales in many markets.
Low inventories are just one of several constraints. First-time home buyers are viewed as critical to any sustainable housing recovery, but their numbers are still below healthy levels. They made up 30 percent of existing home sales in February, still well below the 40 percent that is typical in a healthy market.
Since the housing bubble burst more than six years ago, banks have imposed tighter credit conditions and required larger down payments. Those changes have left many would-be buyers unable to qualify for the super-low mortgage rates which have been spurred by the Federal Reserve's efforts to ease credit as a way to give the economy a boost.
Rising demand for homes has encouraged builders to boost construction. Builders started work at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 910,000 in February, the second fastest pace since June 2008. Applications for building permits rose to 946,000, the highest level since June 2008.
A 4-year-old boy spent nearly a week alone in a New Jersey apartment with his mother's decomposing body before a maintenance worker checking on the stench spied him through a crack in the door and called police, authorities said.
Police say they believe the child was alone with his dead mother for five or six days before they removed him from the second-floor apartment in Union Tuesday morning and took him to the hospital.
The emaciated boy told police he had been hungry but unable to eat because he wasn't strong enough to open the refrigerator.
He was taken to University Hospital in Newark with dehydration and malnutrition, but police told NJ.com he's expected to make a full physical recovery.
Police believe the mother died of natural causes, but the medical examiner will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death. She was found in her bed.
Authorities say they found lotion on the mother's body and believe the child may have applied it to her skin to cover up the smell as her remains started to decompose.
A neighbor told NBC 4 New York the child's grandmother rents the apartment, but she recently was moved to a nursing home because she broke her hip.
College education has become expensive and nearly useless. Got that? Price up, quality down. No surprise, when government gets involved. Even WSJ seems to get this (partially). In a recent article, they write:
By some measures, nearly half of employed college graduates are in jobs that don't traditionally require a college degree.
Unfortunately, WSJ seems to blame this on robots:
Ia paper released Monday by the National Bureau of Economic Research, a team of Canadian economists argues that the U.S. faces a longer-term problem.?
They found that unlike the 1990s, when companies needed hundreds of thousands of skilled workers to develop, build and install high-tech systems?everything from corporate intranets to manufacturing robots?demand for such skills has fallen in recent years, even as young people continued to flock to programs that taught them.
If it was simply a case of robots replacing workers in certain jobs, this would mean that there would be productivity gains for the economy overall, beginning and end of story. But, it is not as though we live in paradise where goods and services are so plentiful that none of us has to work. Something else is going on
The problem is that a college education for the most part does not ?increase the value of a potential worker for an employer (aside from accounting and engineering degrees). The college system is far from a free market profit oriented system. Almost 100% of colleges take money from government or accept students who?receive government loans. This results in colleges being required to meet government guidelines which have dramatically dumb downed the system.
The Chinese government has created 60 million vacant apartments through its central planning policies, while the U.S. government through its intervention in the education system has created tens of millions of college graduates with vacant minds.
College for most is really a waste of time, unless you want that accounting or engineering degree, or you are really sharp, can get into an Ivy League school and have a strong enough mind that you won't be corrupted by the system. In this latter category, I suspect no more than 1 in 500,000 could pull it off. Tom Woods did it, but few others. I can think of many more that were swallowed up by the system and now spend their time justifying some intervention in the economy.
If you are interested in studying Austrian economics, just go to the Mises Institute web?site?and absorb that material. Studying under Professor Walter Block at Loyola University New Orleans or Richard Ebeling at Northwood University are outlier options, but that is about it. For most who want to advance, they are much better off reading James Altucher than going to college.
Hope for Galapagos wildlife threatened by marine invadersPublic release date: 26-Mar-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Kim Marshall-Brown kxm@noc.ac.uk 44-023-806-96170 National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (UK)
Increasing tourism and the spread of marine invasive non-native species is threatening the unique plant and marine life around the Galapagos Islands.
Increasing tourism and the spread of marine invasive non-native species is threatening the unique plant and marine life around the Galapagos Islands.
UK scientists from the Universities of Southampton and Dundee are currently investigating the extent of the problem following a grant from the UK Government's Darwin Initiative, which aims to protect biodiversity and promote sustainability around the world.
UK Environment Minister Richard Benyon said:
"The UK has played a major role in supporting the establishment of the Galapagos Marine Reserve and our Darwin Initiative has funded a range of important projects protecting and enhancing both marine and terrestrial wildlife.
"Invasive non-native species can cause huge damage to local ecosystems and I am delighted that action is being taken to monitor this threat."
Project leader Dr Ken Collins, Ocean and Earth Science of University of Southampton based at the National Oceanography Centre said:
"Tourism is partly to blame for the influx of invasive non-native species, due to the huge rise in ships and planes from mainland Ecuador bringing in pests. In recent years, it was realised that cargo ships were carrying disease-infected mosquitoes, which were attracted to the ship's bright white deck lights. Simply changing from conventional filament bulbs to yellow sodium lamps, along with fumigation in the hold has substantially reduced the threat.
"We are trying to protect marine biodiversity by identifying newly arrived species to the Galapagos, assessing if they have the potential to compete for space and overcome other species of algae and native corals."
White coral, which has already been reported off the mainland Ecuador coast (600 miles away), is also causing anxiety. It could easily hitch a lift on the frequent vessels supplying Galapagos tourists and residents. Already, two new algae species have been found in the Galapagos Marine Reserve, a World Heritage Site.
Another species causing concern and which has the potential to overwhelm natural populations is the Indian Ocean lionfish. This fish colonised the Caribbean through accidental release from an aquarium and has spread through the entire Caribbean in the last decade. Its rapacious appetite has led to the decimation of coral reef fish populations in the southern Caribbean. Lionfish can consume prey up to two thirds of their own length and data shows that they can eat 20 small wrasses in 30 minutes. Their stomachs can expand by up to 30 times in volume when consuming a large catch. The Panama Canal could provide a short cut to Ecuador's Pacific coast and then the Galapagos.
One of Ken Collin's PhD students is Fadilah Ali, who is at the University of Southampton studying how the lionfish is eating its way through coral reef fish populations in the southern Caribbean. For over a hundred years Southampton, one the UK's busiest ports has been receiving marine hitchhikers from around the world, changing the entire balance of its underwater marine plants and animals. One example is the Pacific Oyster, which is being studied in the Solent region by another of Ken's PhD students Steff Deane.
Prof Terry Dawson, SAGES Chair in Global Environmental Change at Dundee, added,
"Invasive species are becoming one of the greatest threats to biodiversity on a global scale. The Galapagos islands are particularly vulnerable due to the fact that much of the indigenous wildlife have evolved over millions of years in the absence of predators, competition, pests and diseases, which makes them very susceptible to the negative impacts of aggressive non-native species.
"We are very pleased to have Inti Keith, one of the staff of the Charles Darwin Research Station, registered with the University of Dundee to study for her PhD on this important topic. Her extensive local knowledge of the marine environment of the Galapagos Islands gives us a head start in developing the research to tackle the issue.
The team have recently returned from the Galapagos, where they met the Ecuadorian Navy and DIRNEA, the national maritime authority, to discuss control measures and helped take part in the first underwater survey of the Galapagos capital port.
###
Notes to Editors
For more information contact National Oceanography Centre Press Officer Kim Marshall-Brown on 023-8059-6170 or email on kxm@noc.ac.uk.
Images of the researchers with lionfish and invasive algae are available from Dropbox, go to http://bit.ly/11GrNZI.
1. A previous Darwin Initiative funded project (1997-2000) supported the establishment of a new Galapagos Marine Management Plan that led to the declaration of Galapagos Marine Reserve as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This year the control of marine invasives is being incorporated into its management plan.
The UK Darwin Initiative is supporting this project, which is led by the Charles Darwin Foundation and the University of Southampton. Other collaborators are the Galapagos National Park Service, the Ecuadorian Navy's Oceanographic Institute, the Ecuadorian Biosecurity Agency, and the University of Dundee.
Further information on the Darwin Initiative projects can be found at darwin.defra.gov.uk/.
2. The National Oceanography Centre (NOC) is the UK's leading institution for integrated coastal and deep ocean research. NOC operates the Royal Research Ships James Cook and Discovery and develops technology for coastal and deep ocean research. Working with its partners NOC provides long-term marine science capability including: sustained ocean observing, mapping and surveying; data management and scientific advice.
NOC operates at two sites, Southampton and Liverpool, with the headquarters based in Southampton. Among the resources that NOC provides on behalf of the UK are the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC), the Marine Autonomous and Robotic Systems (MARS) facility, the National Tide and Sea Level Facility (NTSLF), the Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL) and British Ocean Sediment Core Research Facility (BOSCORF).
The National Oceanography Centre is wholly owned by the Natural Environment Research Council.
3. The University of Southampton is a leading UK teaching and research institution with a global reputation for leading-edge research and scholarship across a wide range of subjects in engineering, science, social sciences, health and humanities.
With over 23,000 students, around 5000 staff, and an annual turnover well in excess of 435 million, the University of Southampton is acknowledged as one of the country's top institutions for engineering, computer science and medicine. It combines academic excellence with an innovative and entrepreneurial approach to research, supporting a culture that engages and challenges students and staff in their pursuit of learning.
The University is also home to a number of world-leading research centres including the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research, the Optoelectronics Research Centre, the Institute for Life Sciences, the Web Science Trust and Doctoral training Centre, the Centre for the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease, the Southampton Statistical Sciences Research Institute and is a partner of the National Oceanography Centre at the Southampton waterfront campus.
4. The University of Dundee is one of Scotland's leading institutions and one of the world's top 250 universities. Dundee is internationally recognised for the quality of its teaching and research, spread across four Colleges Arts & Social Sciences; Art, Science & Engineering; Life Sciences; and Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing.
The University is a major employer in the east of Scotland and a hub for investment in biotechnology and the creative industries. Dundee was voted best in the UK for student experience in the 2012 Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey. See http://www.dundee.ac.uk for further details.
The University's School of the Environment comprises Town & Regional Planning, Architecture, Geography and Environmental Science.
By bringing together distinct but related subjects, it has been possible to enhance inter-disciplinary research, and research-led teaching and create innovative degree programmes aimed at finding solutions to the social and environmental issues underpinning many of the world's most pressing problems.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Hope for Galapagos wildlife threatened by marine invadersPublic release date: 26-Mar-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Kim Marshall-Brown kxm@noc.ac.uk 44-023-806-96170 National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (UK)
Increasing tourism and the spread of marine invasive non-native species is threatening the unique plant and marine life around the Galapagos Islands.
Increasing tourism and the spread of marine invasive non-native species is threatening the unique plant and marine life around the Galapagos Islands.
UK scientists from the Universities of Southampton and Dundee are currently investigating the extent of the problem following a grant from the UK Government's Darwin Initiative, which aims to protect biodiversity and promote sustainability around the world.
UK Environment Minister Richard Benyon said:
"The UK has played a major role in supporting the establishment of the Galapagos Marine Reserve and our Darwin Initiative has funded a range of important projects protecting and enhancing both marine and terrestrial wildlife.
"Invasive non-native species can cause huge damage to local ecosystems and I am delighted that action is being taken to monitor this threat."
Project leader Dr Ken Collins, Ocean and Earth Science of University of Southampton based at the National Oceanography Centre said:
"Tourism is partly to blame for the influx of invasive non-native species, due to the huge rise in ships and planes from mainland Ecuador bringing in pests. In recent years, it was realised that cargo ships were carrying disease-infected mosquitoes, which were attracted to the ship's bright white deck lights. Simply changing from conventional filament bulbs to yellow sodium lamps, along with fumigation in the hold has substantially reduced the threat.
"We are trying to protect marine biodiversity by identifying newly arrived species to the Galapagos, assessing if they have the potential to compete for space and overcome other species of algae and native corals."
White coral, which has already been reported off the mainland Ecuador coast (600 miles away), is also causing anxiety. It could easily hitch a lift on the frequent vessels supplying Galapagos tourists and residents. Already, two new algae species have been found in the Galapagos Marine Reserve, a World Heritage Site.
Another species causing concern and which has the potential to overwhelm natural populations is the Indian Ocean lionfish. This fish colonised the Caribbean through accidental release from an aquarium and has spread through the entire Caribbean in the last decade. Its rapacious appetite has led to the decimation of coral reef fish populations in the southern Caribbean. Lionfish can consume prey up to two thirds of their own length and data shows that they can eat 20 small wrasses in 30 minutes. Their stomachs can expand by up to 30 times in volume when consuming a large catch. The Panama Canal could provide a short cut to Ecuador's Pacific coast and then the Galapagos.
One of Ken Collin's PhD students is Fadilah Ali, who is at the University of Southampton studying how the lionfish is eating its way through coral reef fish populations in the southern Caribbean. For over a hundred years Southampton, one the UK's busiest ports has been receiving marine hitchhikers from around the world, changing the entire balance of its underwater marine plants and animals. One example is the Pacific Oyster, which is being studied in the Solent region by another of Ken's PhD students Steff Deane.
Prof Terry Dawson, SAGES Chair in Global Environmental Change at Dundee, added,
"Invasive species are becoming one of the greatest threats to biodiversity on a global scale. The Galapagos islands are particularly vulnerable due to the fact that much of the indigenous wildlife have evolved over millions of years in the absence of predators, competition, pests and diseases, which makes them very susceptible to the negative impacts of aggressive non-native species.
"We are very pleased to have Inti Keith, one of the staff of the Charles Darwin Research Station, registered with the University of Dundee to study for her PhD on this important topic. Her extensive local knowledge of the marine environment of the Galapagos Islands gives us a head start in developing the research to tackle the issue.
The team have recently returned from the Galapagos, where they met the Ecuadorian Navy and DIRNEA, the national maritime authority, to discuss control measures and helped take part in the first underwater survey of the Galapagos capital port.
###
Notes to Editors
For more information contact National Oceanography Centre Press Officer Kim Marshall-Brown on 023-8059-6170 or email on kxm@noc.ac.uk.
Images of the researchers with lionfish and invasive algae are available from Dropbox, go to http://bit.ly/11GrNZI.
1. A previous Darwin Initiative funded project (1997-2000) supported the establishment of a new Galapagos Marine Management Plan that led to the declaration of Galapagos Marine Reserve as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This year the control of marine invasives is being incorporated into its management plan.
The UK Darwin Initiative is supporting this project, which is led by the Charles Darwin Foundation and the University of Southampton. Other collaborators are the Galapagos National Park Service, the Ecuadorian Navy's Oceanographic Institute, the Ecuadorian Biosecurity Agency, and the University of Dundee.
Further information on the Darwin Initiative projects can be found at darwin.defra.gov.uk/.
2. The National Oceanography Centre (NOC) is the UK's leading institution for integrated coastal and deep ocean research. NOC operates the Royal Research Ships James Cook and Discovery and develops technology for coastal and deep ocean research. Working with its partners NOC provides long-term marine science capability including: sustained ocean observing, mapping and surveying; data management and scientific advice.
NOC operates at two sites, Southampton and Liverpool, with the headquarters based in Southampton. Among the resources that NOC provides on behalf of the UK are the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC), the Marine Autonomous and Robotic Systems (MARS) facility, the National Tide and Sea Level Facility (NTSLF), the Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL) and British Ocean Sediment Core Research Facility (BOSCORF).
The National Oceanography Centre is wholly owned by the Natural Environment Research Council.
3. The University of Southampton is a leading UK teaching and research institution with a global reputation for leading-edge research and scholarship across a wide range of subjects in engineering, science, social sciences, health and humanities.
With over 23,000 students, around 5000 staff, and an annual turnover well in excess of 435 million, the University of Southampton is acknowledged as one of the country's top institutions for engineering, computer science and medicine. It combines academic excellence with an innovative and entrepreneurial approach to research, supporting a culture that engages and challenges students and staff in their pursuit of learning.
The University is also home to a number of world-leading research centres including the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research, the Optoelectronics Research Centre, the Institute for Life Sciences, the Web Science Trust and Doctoral training Centre, the Centre for the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease, the Southampton Statistical Sciences Research Institute and is a partner of the National Oceanography Centre at the Southampton waterfront campus.
4. The University of Dundee is one of Scotland's leading institutions and one of the world's top 250 universities. Dundee is internationally recognised for the quality of its teaching and research, spread across four Colleges Arts & Social Sciences; Art, Science & Engineering; Life Sciences; and Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing.
The University is a major employer in the east of Scotland and a hub for investment in biotechnology and the creative industries. Dundee was voted best in the UK for student experience in the 2012 Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey. See http://www.dundee.ac.uk for further details.
The University's School of the Environment comprises Town & Regional Planning, Architecture, Geography and Environmental Science.
By bringing together distinct but related subjects, it has been possible to enhance inter-disciplinary research, and research-led teaching and create innovative degree programmes aimed at finding solutions to the social and environmental issues underpinning many of the world's most pressing problems.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
SANAA, Yemen (AP) ? Yemini security officials say clashes in the south between al-Qaida and pro-government fighters have killed nine.
The officials said Sunday that pro-government fighters recaptured the town of Batis, north of the city of Jaar in Abyan province, after three days of fighting that left six militants and three pro-government militiamen dead. Seven were wounded and 11 al-Qaida members were captured.
The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said the army supported the pro-government militia known as Popular Committees in the fighting.
The U.S. considers Yemen's al-Qaida branch as the terror group's most dangerous offshoot. Washington helped Yemeni troops with airpower and advisers during last year's offensive to drive the militants out of large areas they seized during the political turmoil related to Yemen's 2011 uprising.
THE SPORTS DESK![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](http://www.eurekalert.org/images/back2e.gif){kind=small}
Public release date: 26-Mar-2013
Share ] 
Go back to the previous page ? Go to the Facebook homepage ? Visit the Help Center