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Home » Archives by category » Coronavirus
Vaccine hesitant New Yorkers consider leaving the city as mandates take effect
New YorkVaccine hesitant New Yorkers consider leaving the city as mandates take effectFor some in the Bronx, the borough hit hardest by the coronavirus, mistrust may win out over jobs and even home Bahar OstadanWed 13 Oct 2021 06.00 EDTDeysia Padilla’s family thought she was at work. Instead, she spent last Thursday afternoon unloading a mound of orange and pink baby socks in a sunny South Bronx laundromat – one-by one, in all their three-inch glory. She had 48 hours to consider an impossible choice: either get vaccinated or lose her job.Padilla is one of thousands of unvaccinated New Yorkers affected by Mayor Bill de Blasio’s ultimatum last week. Not only do city employees face the reality of losing their jobs, but without a shot, they’ll even forgo unemployment payments. Some unvaccinated Bronx natives would rather pursue a life outside New York City than be forced to take the vaccine.“I feel like my dream is being shattered by the government,” said Padilla. “I’m being taken out of my home.” The 25-year-old mother had plans to become an art teacher one day. Now, she’s considering moving to Florida with her husband and three-month-old baby.A pandemic-induced population shift to Florida – sometimes called the city’s sixth borough – is already under way. As of March, more than 33,500 New Yorkers permanently relocated to Florida – up 32% from the same period in the previous year. Experts say people flocked south for looser Covid …
India faces electricity crisis as coal supplies run critically low
11/10/2021 Comments Off on India faces electricity crisis as coal supplies run critically lowIndiaIndia faces electricity crisis as coal supplies run critically lowEight in 10 thermal power stations within days of running out as state blackouts spark protests Hannah Ellis-Petersen in DelhiMon 11 Oct 2021 21.27 EDTLast modified on Tue 12 Oct 2021 06.35 EDTIndia is facing a looming power crisis, as stocks of coal in power plants have fallen to unprecedentedly low levels and states are warning of power blackouts.States across India have issued panicked warnings that coal supplies to thermal power plants, which convert heat from coal to electricity, are running perilously low.China orders coalmines to raise production to address power crunchRead moreAccording to data from the Central Electricity Authority of India, nearly 80% of the country’s coal-fired plants were in the critical, or “supercritical” stage, meaning their stocks could run out in less than five days.Over the weekend, Delhi’s chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, wrote to the prime minister, Narendra Modi, that the capital “could face a blackout” if power stations did not receive more coal.States including Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Bihar have been experiencing power cuts lasting up to 14 hours.Maharashtra shut down 13 thermal power plants and urged people to use electricity sparingly, and in Punjab three power plants halted production. Scheduled power cuts introduced in Punjab, lasting up to six hours at a time, have prompted protests.However, experts have emphasised that the power issues are not due to a shortage of domestic coal …
Continue reading …Covid pandemic has pushed poor countries to record debt levels – World Bank
11/10/2021 Comments Off on Covid pandemic has pushed poor countries to record debt levels – World BankWorld BankCovid pandemic has pushed poor countries to record debt levels – World Bank‘Tragic reversal’ has set back progress, president says, as he calls for a comprehensive plan Coronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage Larry ElliottMon 11 Oct 2021 10.57 EDTLast modified on Mon 11 Oct 2021 14.22 EDTThe Covid-19 pandemic has led to a “tragic reversal” in development and pushed debt in poor countries to record levels, the head of the World Bank has said.David Malpass, the bank’s president, warned the virus had widened the gap between rich and poor nations, setting back progress by years and, in the case of some countries, by a decade.Announcing new World Bank figures showing the debt burden of more than 70 low-income nations had increased by a record 12% to $860bn (£630bn) in 2020, Malpass called for a comprehensive plan to ease the debt pressures and for rich countries to make vaccines available to the less well-off.Wealthy nations must share more resources or risk crisis for billions, warns UN chiefRead moreHe said one particular problem was the lack of a bankruptcy process to help in cases where debts had become unsustainable. Under the current system, companies can declare themselves bankrupt but countries cannot.With income per head expected to rise by an average of 5% in developed countries this year compared with 0.5% in developing countries, Malpass said the problem of inequality …
Continue reading …US wages are going up, and those who don’t adapt to the new reality will fail | Gene Marks
10/10/2021 Comments Off on US wages are going up, and those who don’t adapt to the new reality will fail | Gene MarksUS small businessUS wages are going up, and those who don’t adapt to the new reality will failLabor is in short supply, so it’s more expensive. It’s simple economics and hankering for pre-pandemic times won’t help Gene Marks@ …
Continue reading …Federal Reserve hints it will end pandemic stimulus programs
22/09/2021 Comments Off on Federal Reserve hints it will end pandemic stimulus programsFederal ReserveFederal Reserve hints it will end pandemic stimulus programs Fed chair says it could raise interest rates next year, as long as the Covid crisis is contained Dominic Rushe@ …
Continue reading …Big pharma fuelling human rights crisis over Covid vaccine inequity – Amnesty
22/09/2021 Comments Off on Big pharma fuelling human rights crisis over Covid vaccine inequity – AmnestyRights and freedomVaccines and immunisationBig pharma fuelling human rights crisis over Covid vaccine inequity – AmnestySix companies warned not to put profit before lives as report shows less than 1% of almost 6bn doses have gone to low-income countries Rights and freedom is supported byAbout this contentSarah JohnsonWed 22 Sep 2021 06.46 EDTLast modified on Wed 22 Sep 2021 07.24 EDTAmnesty International has accused six pharmaceutical companies that have developed Covid-19 vaccines of fuelling a global human rights crisis, citing their refusal to sufficiently waive intellectual property rights, share vaccine technology and boost global vaccine supply.After assessing the performance of six Covid-19 vaccine developers – Pfizer and BioNTech, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca and Novavax – Amnesty International claims that all are failing to uphold their own human rights commitments and warns they should not be putting profit before the lives of people in the world’s poorest countries.Less than 1% of the almost 6bn doses of Covid vaccine administered worldwide have gone to low-income countries, with almost 80% delivered to wealthy countries. Despite calls to ensure a fair global vaccine supply, some companies have continued to disproportionally distribute vaccines to wealthy countries, according to Amnesty’s report, published today.Agnès Callamard, secretary general of Amnesty International, said: “Big pharma’s intentional blocking of knowledge transfer and their wheeling and dealing in favour of wealthy states has brewed an utterly devastating vaccine scarcity for so many others.”Callamard said: “[These companies’] actions are plunging parts of …
Continue reading …‘I worry what’s going to happen’: how Covid has made airline work risky and exhausting in the US
16/09/2021 Comments Off on ‘I worry what’s going to happen’: how Covid has made airline work risky and exhausting in the USAirline industry ‘I worry what’s going to happen’: how Covid has made airline work risky and exhausting in the US As flight attendants are forced to manage disruptive passengers, other workers in the industry get by with no health insurance or sick leave Michael Sainato Thu 16 Sep 2021 05.00 EDT Last modified on Thu […]
Continue reading …Poorest countries will be $12tn worse off by 2025 due to Covid – UN
15/09/2021 Comments Off on Poorest countries will be $12tn worse off by 2025 due to Covid – UNGlobal economy Poorest countries will be $12tn worse off by 2025 due to Covid – UN Pandemic has added to their debts while wealthy nations limit access to vaccines, says annual report Richard Partington Economics correspondent @RJPartington Wed 15 Sep 2021 10.00 EDT Last modified on Wed 15 Sep 2021 10.52 EDT The world’s poorest […]
Continue reading …UK cancels Covid vaccine deal with French firm Valneva
13/09/2021 Comments Off on UK cancels Covid vaccine deal with French firm ValnevaCoronavirusUK cancels Covid vaccine deal with French firm ValnevaGovernment serves notice to terminate contract over allegations of a ‘breach of obligations’ Coronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage Jamie Grierson and Rob DaviesMon 13 Sep 2021 08.35 EDTFirst published on Mon 13 Sep 2021 03.07 EDTThe UK government is to pull out of a deal with the French pharmaceutical company Valneva to buy its Covid-19 vaccination, the company has said.The move will come as a blow to the vaccine manufacturing site in Livingston, west Scotland, which was visited by the prime minister, Boris Johnson, in January.About 100m doses of the yet-to-be-approved vaccine were put on order after the UK increased its request by 40m in February. But in a U-turn, the government has served notice to terminate the contract over allegations of a breach of the agreement.Scotland’s health secretary, Humza Yousaf, told BBC Good Morning Scotland: “This is a blow for the facility in Livingston. We are very keen and will be reaching out to the company to try to get security and secure a future for that facility in Livingston; we hope that would be with Valneva.“Clearly, when it comes to their supposed alleged failure to meet their contract obligations, we obviously are looking for more information from the UK government and would expect that shortly.”The Livingston MP Hannah Bardell said: “This has come as a huge blow to my constituency, in which the facility is …
Continue reading …- Celebrating the Resilience of Low-Income Women
- CEOs Get to Retire Comfortably. Workers Like Me Deserve the Same.
- Jobs Increased 339,000 In May, Unemployment Up 0.3% To 3.7%
- The decline of job creation at new establishments
- Contractor faces 2 serious citations after US Department of Labor finds safety failures led to welder’s death at Bonner Bridge demolition project
- Investigation into worker’s severe arm injury finds Cusseta auto parts manufacturer, supplier willfully ignored safety precautions
- ‘It’s a sweat factory’: Instacart workers ready to strike for pay and conditions
- Ships backed up outside US ports pumping out pollutants as they idle
- Privacy fears as Moscow metro rolls out facial recognition pay system
- ‘We are not machines’: Hollywood workers poised to strike for better conditions
- Boeing pilot indicted for allegedly deceiving US regulators over 737 Max
- Ipswich apprentice butcher encourages others to consider industry
- Ipswich apprentice butcher encourages others to consider industry
- Over 10,000 John Deere workers strike over ‘years’ of poor treatment
- Corporations are pledging to be ‘water positive’. What does that mean?
- US Department of Labor investigation of crane collapse, double fatality on Interstate 10 finds Lufkin company failed to assemble crane properly
- For the 6th time in 7 years, federal inspectors find Illinois contractor putting construction workers at risk of industry’s deadliest hazard
- US Department of Labor proposes $83K in fines to healthcare facility for failing to protect workers from coronavirus hazards
- Facebook says it will do more to prevent online hate, harassment
- As U.S. prepares to reopen border, some urge Canada to relax testing requirement
- Biden orders companies to ease supply chain bottlenecks or he’ll ‘call them out’
- What is the ‘new model’ the EU is proposing for Northern Ireland?
- Apple to make 10 million fewer iPhones due to microchip shortage
- US Department of Labor, Mexican Consulate in Boston enter alliance to promote workplace safety, health among New England’s workers
- US Department of Labor sues Austin luxury car dealer that retaliated against employee who raised concerns of coronavirus hazards
- Vaccine hesitant New Yorkers consider leaving the city as mandates take effect
- Carbon emissions ‘will drop just 40% by 2050 with countries’ current pledges’
- House passes bill to raise US debt ceiling through early December
- ‘The stakes couldn’t be higher’: GE urged to invest in green US jobs
- Zellers returns — kind of — but the lowest price isn't quite the law
- Cement makers across world pledge large cut in emissions by 2030
- India faces electricity crisis as coal supplies run critically low
- California justice department to investigate enormous oil spill
Today’s News & Commentary — September 9, 2021
09/09/2021 Comments Off on Today’s News & Commentary — September 9, 2021Uber and Lyft have continued their national push to cement the status of their drivers as independent contractors rather than employees. In conjunction with Postmates and Instacart, the companies previously spent $205 million in California to successfully support an initiative to make those gig workers into contractors with some benefits. Now, they have moved their […]
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