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☆ Federal government investigating possible human trafficking of children who cleaned slaughterhouses
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Laura Strickler | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Julia-Ainsley-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +12 min

There is no indication DHS is investigating the company that hired the children, Packers Sanitation Services Inc., or PSSI, for human trafficking. The Labor Department’s Child Labor Regulations designate many roles in slaughterhouse and meatpacking facilities as hazardous for minors. The Labor Department says its investigation, which began in August, is ongoing as it scours company records from 50 locations. I don’t anticipate unless there are severe ramifications for this that it will actually change policies.”The Labor Department has issued no penalties or fines to date. Labor DepartmentQuestions about child labor at PSSI in Grand Island and Worthington are not new.

How LGFCU accounts compare Local Government Federal Credit Union Share SavingsLocal Government Federal Credit Union Checking AccountLocal Government Federal Credit Union Money Market AccountLocal Government Federal Credit Union Share Term Certificates Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. How Local Government Federal Credit Union worksLocal Government Federal Credit Union is a financial institution that serves North Carolina's local government employees and volunteers. The credit union doesn't have branches, but it's partnered with State Employees Credit Union. Local Government Federal Credit Union vs. Truliant Federal Credit UnionTruliant Federal Credit Union is a CDFI that serves local communities in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. Local Government Federal Credit Union offers higher interest rates, but Truliant Federal Credit Union doesn't charge monthly services.

☆ On King’s holiday, daughter calls for bold action over words
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

Bernice King, who leads The King Center in Atlanta, said leaders — especially politicians — too often cheapen her father’s legacy into a “comfortable and convenient King” offering easy platitudes. The service, organized by the center and held at Ebenezer annually, headlined observances of the 38th federal King holiday. ... A prophetic word calls for an inconvenience because it challenges us to change our hearts, our minds and our behavior,” Bernice King said. At Ebenezer, Warnock, who has led the congregation for 17 years, hailed his predecessor’s role in securing ballot access for Black Americans. But, like Bernice King, the senator warned against a reductive understanding of King.

Just a few years ago, the conceptual artist Hank Willis Thomas had no idea he would be instrumental in commemorating the lives of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. It really has been my mission over the past several years.”Workers stand beneath "The Embrace" sculpture in Boston Common, waiting for concrete to be poured, on Dec. 14, 2022. John Tlumacki / Boston Globe via Getty Images fileAiming to both inspire visitors and honor the Kings’ legacy, Thomas’ work will be revealed Friday at Boston Common, America’s oldest city park, in downtown Boston. Bettmann ArchiveKing dedicated his life to the civil rights movement, fighting for racial equality and economic justice. A man reaches to touch a detail of the 20-foot-high bronze sculpture "The Embrace," a memorial to Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, in the Boston Common on Jan. 10, 2023, in Boston.

"It's not just me and my children, future generations from our community in Jammu and Kashmir will vote for the BJP." A BJP victory in the disputed region could consolidate India's claim over the territory on the global stage. "We have taken a pledge to cross 50-plus seats to form the next government with a thumping majority," the BJP's president for Jammu and Kashmir, Ravinder Raina, told Reuters. Jammu has about 5.3 million inhabitants, 62% of whom are Hindu while Kashmir Valley has 6.7 million, 97% of them Muslim, according to a 2011 census. Previously unreported official records show just over 5.3 million certificates had been issued as of September.

The Kremlin and Russia’s defence ministry didn’t respond to Reuters’ questions, including about alleged torture and unlawful detentions. Ukraine’s top war crimes prosecutor, Yuriy Belousov, said authorities have identified ten sites in the Kherson region used by Russian forces for unlawful detentions. Belousov added that hundreds of bodies of civilians had been found in other areas that Russian forces had withdrawn from. Some of the thousands of alleged war crimes committed by Russian forces could be escalated to overseas tribunals if they are deemed sufficiently serious. The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) has opened an investigation into alleged war crimes in Ukraine.

☆ Brazil protests expose lack of U.S. risk premium
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Robert Cyran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Like the United States, Brazil was until recently led by an autocratic president who refused to concede electoral defeat. It’s perhaps no surprise that Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index scores Brazil at 38, below the global average, where 100 reflects a society nearly free of malfeasance. The United States scores substantially better at 67, but still below other developed nations. But if investors ever decide to demand a risk premium, it has a long way to fall. The Brazilian real weakened roughly 1% against the U.S. dollar in spot trading, while the benchmark Bovespa stock index fell 0.5%.

☆ Banks will pump H2O to top of climate agenda
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Antony Currie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

That’s when the United Nations’ first water confab in almost five decades starts in New York. Achieving that globally requires spending $1 trillion a year on the sustainable provision of drinking water and sanitation, and preparing for floods, scarcity and pollution, per the World Resources Institute. And 90% of climate change’s effects manifest through water, as recent floods and scarcity demonstrate. Knowing when to turn off the funding tap is important, too, just as many banks won’t back Arctic drilling or new coal mines. With some financial groups distancing themselves from umbrella climate change bodies, it’s a challenging time to make this case.

☆ A new cholera outbreak is killing hundreds in Haiti. Scientists think it's the same strain that was brought to the country by UN troops more than a decade ago.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Sarah Braner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The current strain may be descended from the 2010 strain that UN troops likely brought. The current outbreak was first reported on October 2, according to the WHO, after three years of no reported cholera cases. Before going to Haiti, there had been a cholera outbreak in Kathmandu, where the troops trained before deployment. Scientists don't yet know why this new cholera outbreak is occurringScientists aren't yet sure how cholera has reemerged in Haiti after three years of no reported cases. However, the authors say this third option is unlikely, partially because other countries in the region have not reported recent cholera cases.

“We were using Facebook Messenger to communicate with her parents and coached them through the delivery, so I watched her being delivered on my cellphone," Blackburn told NBC News. Davon Thomas with his wife, Erica Thomas, and their newborn, Devynn Brielle Thomas. Erica and Davon Thomas were trapped in their house by snow when Erica suddenly went into labor, Blackburn said. She had also instructed him to help his wife take a hot shower to ease her pain and help her move around “to get the gravity going,” Blackburn said. Moments later, Erica squatted down and when the baby came out, Davon Thomas was there to receive his daughter with towels in his arms.

☆ Latam M&A expected to recover in 2023, IPOs may take longer
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Tatiana Bautzer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SAO PAULO, Dec 27 (Reuters) - After a sharp drop in Latin American deals in 2022, bankers expect a slow recovery next year, led by M&A. The volume of M&A deals in Latin America fell 35% this year, to $86 billion, according to Refinitiv data. Bankers predict M&A volumes will grow up to 20% in the region next year as Latin America becomes more relevant among emerging markets. Latin America has a great opportunity to increase its share among emerging markets, said Latam M&A co-head at Citigroup Nicolas Roca. Share offerings fell 61% in Latin America this year to $13.4 billion, according to Refinitiv data through December 26.

watch nowFTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was sent back to a Bahamas jail Monday after a reported plan for him to waive his extradition to the U.S. stalled. FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (C) is led away handcuffed by officers of the Royal Bahamas Police Force at the Nassau, Bahamas, courthouse on December 19, 2022. The FTX founder arrived at Bahamian court in a convoy of police vehicles, heavily guarded, just after 10 a.m. Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of FTX, is escorted inside of the Magistrate's Court in Nassau, Bahamas, on Monday, Dec. 19, 2022. WATCH: Why Sam Bankman-Fried may decide to drop his fight against being extradited to the U.S.

Nassau, Bahamas CNN —FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried Monday morning arrived in court in the Bahamas where he is expected to drop his extradition fight, clearing a significant hurdle to return him to US soil to be prosecuted on multiple charges of fraud and conspiracy. Bankman-Fried had initially planned to fight efforts to return him to the United States. But after a week in Nassau’s notorious Fox Hill prison, he appears less interested in keeping up what would have likely been a yearslong battle to avoid extradition. The US State Department reported that conditions at Fox Hill, the Bahamian prison where Bankman-Fried has stayed since his arrest last Monday, are harsh. Bankman-Fried’s lawyer declined to comment on a timeline for his return to the United States.

☆ 'A better chapter': 18-year-old man elected mayor of Arkansas town
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 7 (Reuters) - Jaylen Smith, who counts his high school graduation earlier this year among his top accomplishments, can now add one more: election as mayor of small-town Earle, Arkansas, at the age of 18. "It’s Time to Build a Better Chapter of Earle, Arkansas," Smith said on his Facebook page following the Election Night victory, echoing his campaign slogan and thanking his supporters. "My mom can't stop crying," Smith told the Washington Post on Wednesday. During the campaign Smith, who graduated from Earle High School in May, called for improving public safety, restoring or removing abandoned homes and buildings and implementing new emergency preparedness plans. "Why should I have to be great somewhere else when I could be great in Earle, Arkansas?"

☆ The company accused of employing dozens of minors in slaughterhouses on the graveyard shift reaches agreement with the feds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Laura Strickler | Julianne Mcshane | Laura Strickler Is A Washington-Based Investigative Reporter With The Nbc News Investigative Unit. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

An industrial cleaning company accused by federal investigators of hiring dozens of children to clean slaughterhouses during the graveyard shift has resolved the allegations with the U.S. Department of Labor, according to a federal court filing filed Tuesday morning. The company will also provide a new child labor provision in its contracts with clients and will notify the Labor Department as to how many employees it terminated as a result of its compliance with child labor laws. Allegations of child labor at a slaughterhouse in Grand Island, Nebraska, date back to 2016, according to a previously unreported local police report obtained by NBC News. At least three chiildren suffered chemical burns as a result of working in the slaughterhouses, according to that complaint. The Department of Labor’s Child Labor Regulations designates many roles in slaughterhouse and meatpacking facilities as hazardous for minors.

☆ Operators of 13 Pittsburgh-area McDonald's locations accused of child labor violations
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Thirteen McDonald's franchise locations in the Pittsburgh area are accused of violating child labor laws by allegedly employing 101 14- and 15-year olds outside of permissible work hours, the Department of Labor announced Monday. The spokesperson added that, in addition to paying the fine, Santonastasso Enterprises LLC had to agree to full future compliance with department regulations. The spokesperson added that the department does not disclose if they plan to investigate other McDonald’s locations across the country. The violations follow more than 4,000 child labor violations the Department of Labor has identified affecting more than 13,000 minor workers from 2017 to 2021. A spokesperson for the company said in a statement that PSSI has "zero tolerance" for such violations.

☆ In wake of baby formula crisis, critical report recommends major food safety changes at FDA
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

It enforces food safety regulations, works with local governments on food safety information, promotes dietary guidelines, and develops food safety information and education, as well as overseeing nutrition labels on most food and being responsible for promoting good nutrition practices to the US public. Another would have the FDA develop a strategy to increase funding for the Human Foods Program, with help from Congress. “The current culture of the FDA Human Foods Program is inhibiting its ability to effectively accomplish this goal” of protecting public health,” the report says. “The work of these independent evaluators will help to inform a new vision for the FDA Human Foods Program,” Califf said in a news release. Some critics have suggested that food safety takes a back seat to the FDA’s regulations of drugs and medical devices.

☆ New York City wants to hire a ‘rat czar’—and could pay them $170,000 per year
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Megan Sauer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

New York City is hiring a leader to fight against residents' common enemy: rats. New York is the country's "second-rattiest" city, according to pest control company Orkin's most recent annual rankings. One performance actor, Jonothon Lyons, patrols the city's subway stations and park trash cans wearing a latex rat head. On Thursday, he tweeted an article about the position, writing: "If you have the drive, determination, and killer instinct needed to fight New York City's relentless rat population — then your dream job awaits." In October, the New York Sanitation Department announced that New Yorkers will be fined for putting trash on the curb before 8 p.m. starting in April 2023.

☆ Help wanted: New York City seeks 'badass' rat czar
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Rat sightings on the streets, in subways and even homes have jumped 71% over in the past two years, according to the city's sanitation department. "There’s NOTHING I hate more than rats," Mayor Eric Adams said in a tweet on Thursday in announcing the job posting. "If you have the drive, determination, and killer instinct needed to fight New York City’s relentless rat population - then your dream job awaits." The trash has encouraged the explosive growth of the city's rat population. Urban legend says there is one rat for each of New York City's 8.8 million residents.

☆ New York City seeks a 'bloodthirsty' rat czar: Ad for director of rodent mitigation job to fight serious, gnawing problem is ... actually pretty funny
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Bethany Biron | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

New York City is hiring a "director of rodent mitigation" for a salary of between $120,000 and $170,000. Rat sightings are up 71% this year from 2020, according to data from the NYC Department of Sanitation. A rat is seen by a trash bin in New York City on October 19, 2022. Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesWhile New York City has long been synonymous with rats, sightings have skyrocketed. Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch made an anti-rat statement in November that went viral, and became the subject of countless memes, New York City marathon signs — and now a shirt.

☆ Feds want a manager to oversee the troubled water system in Jackson, Mississippi
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

— The federal government filed a proposal Tuesday to appoint a manager for the troubled water system in Mississippi’s capital city, which nearly collapsed in late summer and continues to struggle. The goal is to achieve long-term sustainability of the system and the city’s compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act and other laws. According to the agreement, that litigation will be put on hold for six months while all parties try to improve the water system. Edward “Ted” Henifin was appointed as interim third-party manager of the Jackson water system and Water Sewer Business Administration, the city’s water billing department. While there is much more work ahead, the Justice Department’s action marks a critical moment on the path to securing clean, safe water for Jackson residents.″Jackson has had water problems for decades.

With the end of the year approaching, charitable giving is top-of-mind for many individuals. Give smarter for year-end impactYour personal portfolio and life events will best determine what a smart giving decision looks like to maximize the impact of your giving. IRA Charitable Rollover: Starting at age 70 1/2, you can make a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from your IRA account. Charitable giving through a will or trust: Legacy gifts allow you to have a lasting impact on Doctors Without Border's work. Charitable gift annuities: If you're 65 or older and prepared to give $10,000 or more, a charitable gift annuity can provide income for one or two people via fixed payments for their lifetimes.

☆ Natural vs. artificial Christmas tree: Which option is better for climate?
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Rachel Ramirez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Christopher Dilts/Bloomber/Getty ImagesIt’s easy to imagine that reusing an artificial tree year after year is the more sustainable option. The American Christmas Tree Association, a nonprofit that represents artificial tree manufacturers, commissioned WAP Sustainability Consulting for a study in 2018 that found the environmental impact of an artificial tree is better than a real tree if you use the fake tree for at least five years. “Planting, fertilizing and watering were taken into account for real trees, which have an approximate field cultivation period of seven to eight years.”What are the benefits of real trees? Nathan Howard/Getty ImagesOn average, it takes seven years to fully grow a Christmas tree, according to the National Christmas Tree Association. About 15,000 farms grow Christmas trees in the US alone, employing over 100,000 people either full or part-time in the industry, according to the National Christmas Tree Association.

☆ Czech pubs tap tech in bid to save energy costs on beer
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PRAGUE, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Czech pubs are turning to technology to reduce the cost of putting glasses of beer on the bar for thirsty locals. With Czechs among the biggest beer drinkers in the world, brewer Plzensky Prazdroj plans to install sensors which will collect data on beer flow, as well as tube and tap temperatures. Plzensky Prazdroj hopes that by making adjustments its pubs will save up to 30% of the energy needed for cooling and tapping their beer, a goal made more pressing by rising energy costs. The system uses Internet of Drinks solutions by start-up firm Smart Technology, which uses ultrasound metering and provides information on the amount of beer tapped, sanitation intervals and the state of the cooling system. At Prague's Katr pub, where the system is already in use, manager Michal Reznicek is hoping for an impact on rising costs, which are impacting beer, food and staff.

☆ As Amazon's Alexa unit faces layoffs, insiders describe a department in crisis
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Today, we're taking a look inside the rise and fall of Amazon's Alexa unit, and detailing more potential layoffs at Twitter, so we're not off to a great start — but let's keep our fingers crossed. Employees took us inside Amazon's floundering Alexa unit. With Amazon's Alexa — and the devices team at large — the prime target of the biggest layoffs in the company's history, Insider's Eugene Kim spoke with more than a dozen employees to understand the current state of the unit. Employees told Insider a combination of low morale, failed monetization attempts, and lack of engagement across users and developers made them feel as though the team was deadlocked over the last few years. Here's everything employees told us.

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