DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Package theft is now a felony in 8 states and counting as lawmakers crack down on 'porch piracy'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Emma Cosgrove | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Package theft is a staple of the e-commerce age, and is more common in some states than others. And even if they had logged the theft with police, the crime of package theft is filed and charged differently depending on the location. Oklahoma — Package theft can be charged as a felony if the perpetrator is convicted of three instances within 60 days. There isn't much of a correlation between the states cracking down on package theft and the places that experience it. Only one of the top 10 metro areas experiencing the most package theft is in a state where porch piracy is a felony.

☆ A former mail carrier and devout Christian who refused to deliver Amazon packages on Sundays is taking the US Postal Service to the Supreme Court for bias
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The Supreme Court is to hear an appeal by a former mail carrier who is accusing the USPS of religious bias. Gerald Groff, an evangelical Christian, has said he was reprimanded for refusing to deliver parcels on Sundays. Groff's legal team appealed this ruling and has now succeeded in having it heard at the Supreme Court. When Groff joined the postal service in 2012, he did so with the understanding that it did not operate on Sundays. His attitude caused resentment among his co-workers, with one carrier leaving their station and another quitting the Postal Service.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an evangelical Christian mail carrier's employment discrimination claim in a case that could force employers to do more to accommodate the religious practices of their workers. Postal Service could have granted his request that he be spared Sunday shifts based on his religious belief that it is a day of worship and rest. Based on his request for an accommodation, his managers arranged for other postal workers to deliver packages on Sundays until July 2018. Upon resigning, he sued the Postal Service for failing to accommodate his request. In the earlier ruling, the court said that employers are not required to make accommodation if it would impose even a minimal burden.

☆ One U-Haul manager believes lots of people will still move to Florida in 2023—but not to the popular cities of Miami and Tampa Bay
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Kelsey Neubauer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Florida was the second-most-popular destination for U-Haul movers in 2022. Florida was the second-most-popular destination for U-Haul movers last year, second only to Texas, per a new report by the national truck-rental company. In a twist, these movers were less likely to embrace the popular cities of the pandemic era, like Miami and Tampa. People in the past year were choosing smaller, less expensive Florida areas — such as Clermont, Ocala, and The Villages, both moveBuddha and U-Haul found. It's a trend mirrored nationally, as movers sought exurban areas — suburbs with a rural feel in close proximity to cities.

☆ Alabama's attorney general threatened to prosecute people seeking abortion pills. A day later, he walked it back.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Yelena Dzhanova | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said he'd prosecute people who take abortion pills. A day later, Marshall walked back his remarks and said only abortion providers would be prosecuted. Prosecuting people for taking abortion pills would not have been legal in the state of Alabama, civil-rights experts told Insider. The FDA authorized brick-and-mortar pharmacies across the country to pursue certification to carry abortion pills, a move that could expand abortion access nationwide. Kay Ivey in 2019, specifically says abortion providers can be held criminally liable, but people who get abortions cannot be.

☆ Trump is headed to court Tuesday to argue that presidents can't be sued for defamation. Here's what's at stake.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Ashley Collman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

An appeals court is set to weigh in on E. Jean Carroll's defamation suit against Donald Trump. Trump and the DOJ argue that he can't be personally sued for statements he made in office. Carroll sued Trump for defamation in November 2019, saying her career suffered "as a direct result of Trump's defamatory statements." Seth Wenig/APThe Westfall Act protects government employees from being sued for actions in the line of their work. Because he made those comments after leaving the White House, he won't be able to claim Westfall Act protection.

☆ U.S. Postal Service delivered at least 54.4 million ballots during 2022 election
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) said Monday it delivered at least 54.4 million ballots during the 2022 midterm general election, with almost 99% of ballots from voters to election officials delivered within three days. Between Sept. 6 and Dec. 6, USPS delivered more than 54.4 million ballots to and from election officials to voters through the U.S. Mail, including votes in the Georgia runoff election for the U.S. Senate. The figure only includes ballots properly identified using the correct electronic identifiers and does not include ballots USPS diverted from its processing network or handled outside of normal processes in an effort to accelerate delivery. Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UK strike law will make it harder for key workers to strike
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

London CNN —The UK government is planning to introduce a new law forcing workers in key public sectors such as ambulance services to maintain a basic level of service during strike action or risk dismissal. Workers who strike after they have been told to report to work by their employer and union could face dismissal. Critical care was exempt from the nurses’ strike, and unions pledged to cover life-threatening emergencies during recent walkouts by ambulance workers. The government said that it will impose minimum safety levels in these areas only if “voluntary agreements” cannot be reached. “Trade unions will fight this every step of the way,” the Trades Union Congress, which represents 48 UK unions, said on Twitter.

☆ New York City buying more than 900 EVs for government fleets
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The announcement is the latest by a U.S. government agency to speed the shift away from gas-powered vehicles to EVs. New York City currently has more than 4,000 government-owned electric vehicles and by later this year says close to 20% of city vehicles will be EVs. "Electric vehicles, they are clearly the future," New York Mayor Eric Adams said on Wednesday. New York City has about 26,000 government vehicles in service. USPS said it plans to buy at least 66,000 electric vehicles through 2028 after committing in July to buying 25,000 next-generation electric delivery vehicles.

The new House GOP majority returns to elect a speaker after failing on three votes Tuesday. ... Nancy Pelosi reacts to GOP dysfunction: “As one who loves this institution, I think it’s a sad day.” ... And President Biden appears with Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell to tout the bipartisan infrastructure law. Andy Beshear) all appear at an event in Kentucky promoting a bridge improvement from the bipartisan infrastructure law. 16: How many years Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has served as Senate GOP leader, making him the longest-serving Senate leader ever, per NBC News’ Frank Thorp. Eyes on 2024: DeSantis takes office amid GOP chaosAs the GOP descended into chaos on Capitol Hill Tuesday, Florida GOP Gov.

☆ USPS can keep delivering prescription abortion drugs, DOJ says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Postal Service (USPS) can continue to deliver prescription abortion medication despite a June 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned a landmark abortion rights decision, the Justice Department said on Tuesday. Evelyn Hockstein / Reuters/Alamy fileMifepristone is a prescription drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to induce an abortion up to 10 weeks into a pregnancy. It must be followed by a second drug, misoprostol. A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment on the opinion. Restrictions on the abortion medication lifted in 2021 had been in place since the FDA had approved the drug in 2000.

☆ U.S. Postal Service can continue to deliver prescription abortion medication - DOJ
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Postal Service (USPS) can continue to deliver prescription abortion medication despite a June 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned a landmark abortion rights decision, the Justice Department said on Tuesday. Mifepristone is a prescription drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to induce an abortion up to 10 weeks into a pregnancy. It must be followed by a second drug, misoprostol. A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment on the opinion. Restrictions on the abortion medication lifted in 2021 had been in place since the FDA had approved the drug in 2000.

☆ UK train strikes will disrupt return to work this week
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Britain’s largest transport union, RMT, said workers will strike on January 3, 4, 6 and 7. The rail strikes will make city centers “ghost towns” for another week, Nicholls said. “The sector has struggled to recover from Covid and these protracted rail strikes since May have made that bounce back much tougher,” she added. According to PwC, the average British worker’s pay in 2023 is expected to fall back to 2006 levels once inflation is taken into account. In a statement, Network Rail said that the RMT strike was “unnecessary and deeply damaging” to the railway and the economy.

☆ Covid-19: China's surge in cases hits factories and consumer market
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Hong Kong CNN —China’s economy is under severe strain as a wave of Covid cases sweeps across the country. Factories and companies are also forced to shut down or cut production because of more workers getting sick. Nationwide, truck cargo volumes and delivery orders both shrank in the past week, according to statistics from the transportation ministry and the postal service regulator. Many factories have been forced to shut down for weeks because of sick workers and lack of orders, according to Chinese media. The next few weeks may be “the most dangerous” for China’s battle with Covid, said Capital Economics analysts.

New York CNN —Flight delays continued Saturday, interrupting travel during the busy holiday season as parts of the country were battered by a deadly winter storm. As of Saturday morning, there were upwards of 2,000 cancellations of flights into, leaving and within the United States, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. On Friday, there were nearly 6,000 canceled flights in the US, and close to 12,000 delays, according to FlightAware. Greyhound bus service warned Thursday evening that trips in the Midwest or upper Northeast could be canceled or disrupted. On Saturday, over 1.6 million homes and businesses nationwide were without power due to an Arctic blast and winter storm that tore down power lines.

With the deep freeze stretching from Montana to Texas as it crept eastward, some 240 million people - more than two-thirds of the U.S. population - were under winter weather warnings and advisories on Friday, the National Weather Service (NWS) said. The map of existing or impending wintry hazards "depicts one of the greatest extents of winter weather warnings and advisories ever," the NWS said. [1/5] A driver makes their way through a flooded street at high tide during a winter storm in Gloucester, Massachusetts, U.S., December 23, 2022. Their plight has added to local agencies scrambling to get people off the streets as the arctic blast arrived. While some areas downwind from the Great Lakes received a foot or more of snow on Friday, "the big story wasn't so much the falling snow but the blowing snow," weather service meteorologist Brian Hurley said.

☆ FedEx, other shippers warn extreme weather will delay some U.S. holiday gift deliveries
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 23 (Reuters) - A severe winter storm gripping most of the United States threatens to delay millions of last-minute Christmas gift deliveries due to shutdowns at major shipping hubs. FedEx (FDX.N), United Parcel Service (UPS.N), the U.S. Postal Service and Amazon.com (AMZN.O) alerted customers that severe weather was disrupting key operations in Tennessee, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, the Dakotas and other areas hard-hit by strong winds, bitter cold and blizzards. UPS and FedEx told Reuters they have contingency plans in place if severe weather shuts or idles cargo planes and delivery trucks. As a result, shipping companies have ample capacity to handle this year's holiday delivery surge, Jindel said.

☆ UK wages next year will be at their lowest level since 2006, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The report confirms that wages have stagnated in Britain even as inflation hits double digits, sparking the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades. That’s led to widespread strikes across the UK economy, encompassing railways, schools, nurses, hospitals and the postal service. “Despite a contracting economy, the UK remains an attractive destination for workers,” PwC economist Jake Finney said in a statement. “The rise in inactivity poses serious challenges to the UK economy. PwC’s Kupelian added that UK inflation likely peaked in October and “will gradually begin to return to target over the next two years.”

The Postal Service expects all priority mail packages shipped by Dec. 19 and express packages shipped by Dec. 23 to arrive at their destinations by Christmas. “The Postal Service has shown an inclination to do whatever it takes to avoid the nightmare that they had in 2020. “I am deeply concerned about the severe delays and interruptions in postal service experienced by Montanans,” Daines said in a statement. Earlier this year, Congress appropriated $107 million to the Postal Service to fund a systemwide overhaul to modernize equipment and facilities. “We expect a very successful 2022 peak holiday season,” said Albert Ruiz, a Postal Service spokesperson.

☆ The brutal cold is disrupting last-minute UPS and FedEx deliveries and sending drivers sliding on icy roads. Here's where packages could be delayed.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Emma Cosgrove | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

FedEx's advisory said winter weather could affect shipments going through the company's Indianapolis and Memphis air hubs. "Potential service disruptions may not affect FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, FedEx Office, etc. UPS announced that severe winter weather is already affecting deliveries in North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska — 314 zip codes in all. Though the weather system will be felt by most Americans Friday, some delivery drivers have already experienced snowy and icy conditions. At least one UPS and one FedEx Ground driver posted on Reddit photos of trucks stuck in snowy drifts.

☆ Postal Service Outlines Plans to Convert Fleet to Electric Vehicles
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Suryatapa Bhattacharya | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Postal Service plans to acquire about 66,000 electric vehicles by 2028. Postal Service plans to transform its fleet, with the goal of buying only electric delivery vehicles starting in 2026. The agency said Tuesday that of 106,000 delivery vehicles it expects to acquire by 2028, at least 66,000 will be electric.

☆ Shipping companies brace for harsh winter weather with 'contingency plans' to help gifts arrive on time for the holidays
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Antonio Planas | Antonio Planas Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Postal Service, will be shipping on average a combined 100 million packages per day this week leading up to Christmas. A blast of Arctic air from Canada is expected to bring “life-threatening” cold to parts of the United States in the lead-up to Christmas, weather forecasters have warned. Postal Service, their workers are ready for harsh weather. “UPS has a team of full-time meteorologists who monitor the weather and help us create contingency plans as winter storms develop. Postal Service said it plans for “various weather issues throughout the year.” The postal service also said its workers have the proper equipment to do their jobs safely.

☆ USPS mail trucks are going all-electric, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Washington Post reported the agency has a plan to go almost entirely zero-emissions by 2026. The USPS will spend nearly $10 billion to buy 66,000 electric vehicles and the infrastructure needed to keep them running, The Washington Post reported Tuesday morning. The USPS' fleet replacement plan has been contentious as President Biden has placed pressure on government agencies to go entirely zero-emissions by 2035. Meanwhile, as The Post reported, this may also increase pressure on the USPS' competitors to expedite their own EV transitions. FedEx is planning an entirely electric fleet and a carbon-neutral business by 2040.

☆ U.S. Postal Service to transform delivery fleet with 66,000 electric vehicles by 2028
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Three United States Postal Service (USPS) mail trucks are parked in front of the post office in Danville. On July 20, the USPS announced that at least 40 percent of its Next Generation Delivery Vehicles (NGDVs) and commercial off-the-street (COTS) vehicles will be battery electric vehicles. Postal Service said Tuesday that it intends to purchase at least 66,000 electric delivery vehicles as part of a push to transform its delivery fleet. The electric vehicles would amount to more than half the 106,000 vehicles it plans to acquire for delivery between now and 2028. The new vehicles will start to replace its aging fleet of 220,000 vehicles, the Postal Service said in a press release.

☆ Schumer reflects on how Senate Democrats went from infighting to big policy wins and a larger majority
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Sahil-Kapur-Headshot.Jpg | Sahil Kapur | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

The 50-50 majority, which has been unkind to Senate leaders in the past, seemed to be slipping from his grasp. “Everyone said Democrats are gonna lose a whole ton of seats,” Schumer said during a wide-ranging interview in his Capitol Hill office. Democrats may have held the Senate, but they narrowly lost the House majority to Republicans, which could spell the end of the party’s biggest legislative goals. And despite Schumer’s confidence that he’ll hold the Senate majority again in 2024, the map presents enormous challenges. Schumer said he isn’t giving up on working with moderate House Republicans, including some who won swing districts in his home state of New York.

Search resuls for: "Postal Service"

25 mentions found