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☆ UK health minister says he will seek court order to block nurses' strike
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 21 (Reuters) - British health minister Steve Barclay said on Friday that he intends to pursue legal action against the Royal College of Nursing's upcoming strike action. "Following a request from NHS Employers I have regretfully provided notice of my intent to pursue legal action to ask the courts to declare the Royal College of Nursing's upcoming strike action planned for 30 April to 2 May to be unlawful," he said. "Bullying nurses and dragging us through the highest courts would not be a good look for government," the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said in a response to his statement. Last week, nurses in England rejected an offer of a 5% pay rise and set out plans for further strikes. Reporting by Shivani Tanna in BengaluruOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Loan losses for banks will rise, but will be manageable, says Barclay's Jason Goldberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailLoan losses for banks will rise, but will be manageable, says Barclay's Jason GoldbergJason Goldberg, Barclay senior equity analyst, joins 'Closing Bell: Overtime' to discuss bank earnings heading into regional banks reporting next week.

☆ Junior doctor strike: Some of England's trainee doctors are paid less than fast-food workers. They've had enough
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“For too long we have been undervalued,” Vivek Trivedi, co-chair of the BMA junior doctors committee, told a crowd of striking doctors Tuesday. It is difficult to compare the salaries of UK junior doctors with those of their international peers, said Lucina Rolewicz, a researcher at Nuffield Trust, a healthcare think-tank. Junior doctors make up nearly 40% of England’s NHS doctors, according to the confederation. But NHS junior doctors have been squeezed for well over a decade, says former radiologist Tania King-Mohammad. “[Junior doctors’] pay is not reflective of their education, dedication and commitment,” King-Mohammad said.

☆ Sinner digs deep to reach Monte Carlo quarter-finals, Ruud stunned
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Hurkacz raised his game to force a tiebreak and looked in control but the scrappy Sinner saved a matchpoint and dragged the contest into a decider. The Italian then got his nose in front and held firm to complete the win as Hurkacz faded. German qualifier Jan-Lennard Struff earlier stunned fourth seed Casper Ruud 6-1 7-6(6), ending the Estoril champion's nine-match winning streak on clay stretching back to last July. In-form third seed Daniil Medvedev, the winner of four hardcourt tournaments in 2023, will take on Alexander Zverev in the pair's first claycourt meeting. read moreReporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru Editing by Toby DavisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Jabeur targets Grand Slam success after Charleston crown
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"I'm glad that I'm finding my rhythm and I hope my body will allow me to play," Jabeur told Tennis Channel, looking ahead to the European claycourt swing. I'm working on a lot of things and it's going my way, so for me: step by step, and I'm going for the Grand Slam this year." "If you want to do something, believe in it and only you can really manifest it," Jabeur added. "I was imagining myself in the photoshoot after, putting the image that I won that title already, and it happened. "I'll manifest the big trophy sets, the Wimbledon one and other Grand Slams that I want to win."

☆ Britain braces for 'unparalleled' disruption from doctors' strike
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Junior doctors hold placards during a strike, amid a dispute with the government over pay, outside St Thomas' Hospital, in London, Britain April 11, 2023. REUTERS/Maja SmiejkowskaLONDON, April 11 (Reuters) - Junior doctors in Britain began a four-day strike on Tuesday over pay that is likely to cause unprecedented disruption to the health service, prompting the government to warn of a risk to patient safety. Tuesday's walkout followed a three-day doctors' strike last month. The BMA has said the strikes by junior doctors, some of whom are very experienced, could be stopped if health minister Steve Barclay put a credible pay offer forward. He says the BMA's demands are unreasonable and would mean an increase of more then 20,000 pounds ($24,840) for some doctors.

☆ Djokovic returns to Tour seeking strong start to clay swing
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"I've done more training on clay, which is positive if you think about the clay season," said Djokovic, the 2013 and 2015 champion who meets Mackenzie McDonald or a qualifier first. "I've not had much success in Monte Carlo in the past two seasons. I haven't played great tennis here, so I'm hoping this year I can start the clay season better than previous years and build my form." Djokovic, who trains at Monaco, said home comforts could prove helpful is his quest for a record-extending 39th Masters 1000 crown at Monte Carlo. Quite a few top players reside in Monaco and use this club as a training base, Djokovic said.

[1/5] Apr 2, 2023; Miami, Florida, US; Daniil Medvedev celebrates with the Butch Buchholz championship trophy after his match against Jannik Sinner (ITA) (not pictured) in the men's singles final on day fourteen of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY SportsApril 2 (Reuters) - Daniil Medvedev beat Italy's Jannik Sinner 7-5 6-3 to win the Miami Open on Sunday for his fourth title of the year and 19th overall. Medvedev broke Sinner for 3-1 in the second set and cruised from there, his powerful groundstrokes and impenetrable defense carrying him to the finish. With the win Medvedev earned his fifth Masters 1000 title and improved to 6-0 lifetime against Sinner. Sinner, who also made the Miami final in 2021, is still searching for his first Masters 1000 title.

The Russian called himself a "hard court specialist" at Indian Wells last month while complaining about the slow speed of the courts and it is hard to argue with his expertise. "I love hard courts. If it would be my choice, it would be only hard courts," he told reporters. Even if I know that I can play well enough on the grass and clay, on hard courts I feel the most fluid. "The earlier you lose in Miami, the more clay court practice you can get," he told Tennis Channel.

☆ Cruise robotaxis blocked a road in San Francisco after a storm downed trees and wires
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

General Motors ' self-driving vehicle unit Cruise acknowledged that some of its cars stalled out on city streets in San Francisco following rainstorms that downed trees there on Tuesday night. After that, another tree on Polk and Clay streets fell into the street. In response, he said, the San Francisco Fire Department had blocked off Clay between Polk and Jones streets with caution tape. He said the driverless Cruise vehicles did not appear to detect and avoid the caution tape and bus wires properly, and instead became "tangled in them." Cruise has permits to test and deploy autonomous vehicles in San Francisco all hours of day and night, excluding heavy rain."

☆ Medvedev aims to build new streak after falling to Alcaraz
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Mar 19, 2023; Indian Wells, CA, USA; Daniil Medvedev (RUS) hits a shot in the men’s final match against Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) in the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY SportsMarch 20 (Reuters) - Daniil Medvedev suffered double disappointment on Sunday after losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the Indian Wells final and seeing his 19-match winning run snapped, but the Russian said the only thing to do now was embark on another streak. That's actually disappointing," Medvedev said. "This would be cool to try to beat it and maybe try to prolong it as long as possible. I'm proud of it, and now it's time to try to build a new streak.

☆ CNBC Daily Open: Banks got hammered by SVB's collapse. But the Fed might still raise rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The exterior of a First Republic Bank branch is seen on Barclay Street on March 13, 2023 in New York City. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. The biggest losers: First Republic Bank plunged 61.83%, Western Alliance Bancorp plummeted 57.06% and KeyCorp sank 27.33%. Despite the turmoil in the banks, markets and analysts expect the Fed to go through with rate hikes. Subscribe here to get this report sent directly to your inbox each morning before markets open.

☆ Dow and X-energy to build U.S. Gulf Coast nuclear demonstration plant
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 1 (Reuters) - Dow Inc (DOW.N) and private company X-energy said on Wednesday they have agreed to develop and demonstrate the first grid-scale next-generation nuclear reactor for an industrial site in North America. The X-energy Xe-100 plant featuring four high-temperature, gas-cooled reactors is set to be built at one of Dow's sites on the U.S. Gulf Coast. Backers of next-generation nuclear reactors, including the Biden administration, say the technology is crucial to fight climate change. The X-energy plant will provide a Dow facility with process heat and power to make products. Dow, a chemicals company, makes a wide variety of products including polyethylene used in packaging, paints, and foams.

☆ Analysis: Decree adds to doubts about Mexican lithium industry's future
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Carolina Pulice | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Last Saturday, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador signed his latest presidential decree on lithium, establishing a more than 900-square-mile (235,000 hectare) lithium mining zone in northern Sonora state, stating that existing concessions within it "remain safe." But the order also declared "no mining activity can be carried out related to lithium" within this area. Neither Lopez Obrador's office or Mexico's economy ministry, which was part of the decree, responded to a request for comment. Created last August, state-run LitioMx will likely launch further exploration efforts in the new mining zone, BTG Pactual analysts said in a research note. He emphasized the need to minimize political risks associated with the government's latest decree, if Mexican lithium has any hope of transforming its raw potential into a thriving industry with a long-term horizon.

One company is injecting liquid clay into California desert to trap moisture and help fruit to grow, while another in Malaysia boosts soil with droppings from fly larvae. Biochar, liquid clay and fly larvae droppings are all in limited commercial production. Some, like liquid clay and biochar add nutrients while also improving the ground's ability to retain water, and require fewer applications than fertilizer. Norway-based Desert Control has spent 18 years and $25 million developing liquid clay to boost soil. In Malaysia, Nutrition Technologies produces "soil conditioner" from frass - the waste and skin of Black Soldier Fly larvae.

☆ Walmart-owned Sam's Club plans to open about 30 new stores over next five years
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Melissa Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Walmart -owned Sam's Club on Thursday said it will open more than 30 new stores in the U.S., marking its most aggressive expansion in years. Sam's Club also plans to open five fulfillment and distribution centers this year, with the first of those opening in Georgia. "During times like inflation, times when people have pressure on their household budget, it's a time when Sam's Club can really show up," she said in a CNBC interview. Its most recent new club opened in 2017 in Hanover, Pa.McLay said the new stores will open in high-growth suburban areas where Sam's Club has few stores or no stores, but declined to specify the locations, citing competitive reasons. Sam's Club's new stores will be about 160,000 square feet — larger than Sam's Club's typical footprint of about 140,000.

☆ Sam's Club goes big with plans to open dozens of new US stores that are nearly 20% larger
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Ben Tobin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sam's Club is opening 30 new warehouses across the United States in the next five to seven years. The new warehouses will be roughly 160,000 square feet, much larger than the average Sam's Club store. The decision to expand comes as Sam's Club membership numbers have continued to reach record heights, fueled by the pandemic. "We've seen remarkable growth over the past few years with a record number of members, and we're excited to bring the experience of Sam's Club to even more markets as we expand our footprint," Sam's Club CEO Kathryn McLay said in a statement. For context, the average Costco warehouse is 146,000 square feet, and BJ's Wholesale Club stores range in size from 63,000 square feet to 163,000 square feet.

Less than three years later on Wednesday, tens of thousands of nurses in England are estimated to have walked off work as part of an unprecedented strike shaking the country’s much-loved but troubled National Health Service. They are also striking to highlight the long-term deterioration of the service amid a chronic shortage of health care staff and ballooning living costs. Meanwhile, the health service, normally a huge source of pride for Britons, has spiraled into crisis due to long- and short-term factors including the fallout of the pandemic. As of September, there were a record 132,000 unfilled health service jobs — almost 10% of the total workforce of more than 1.3 million — according to figures released by NHS England. She described one shift in which three nurses and two student nurses looked after 15 patients.

☆ Gunman impersonating police officer wanted in shooting of boy and man in Washington, D.C.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Marlene Lenthang | Marlene Lenthang Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Police are searching for a man who impersonated a police officer and shot a man and a boy at a facility for youth awaiting trial in Washington, D.C. The suspect claimed he was an officer serving a warrant on one of the juveniles housed at the privately owned facility, NBC Washington reported. “He recognized that individual who was in the facility, immediately pulled out a handgun and started shooting at that individual,” Metropolitan Police Department Cmdr. “He was absolutely trying, specifically targeting that individual,” Haines said. Juveniles housed at the facility have been relocated following the shooting, an official familiar with the investigation said to NBC Washington.

☆ Thousands of UK ambulance staff to stage more strikes in January
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Thousands of British ambulance workers will stage two further strikes on Jan. 11 and 23 in an escalating dispute over pay and staffing, the Unison trade union said on Thursday, after a similar walkout by staff on Wednesday. While Wednesday's strike, which also involved workers affiliated to two other trade unions, lasted 12 hours, the two Unison strikes next month will last 24 hours each, Unison said in a statement. "No health workers want to go out on strike again in the new year." The strikes come as an already pressured health system faces further strain this winter, with nurses also going on strike in a separate pay dispute. British health minister Steve Barclay said meeting unions' pay demands would mean taking money away from frontline services.

☆ UK ambulance staff follow nurses in striking over pay
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Ambulances are parked at the Hollymoor Ambulance Hub of the West Midlands Ambulance Service, operated by the West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, in Birmingham, Britain June 5, 2020. Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said the National Health Service (NHS) would prioritize those with life-threatening needs. "Ambulance workers – and the public – deserve better. An independent pay review body has awarded more than 1 million NHS workers a pay rise of at least 1,400 pounds ($1,704), equating to an increase of at least 4% for most ambulance staff, according to the government. The NHS Confederation, which represents national health service organisations, said the strike risked patient safety.

☆ 'What a tragic day': British nurses strike in bitter pay dispute
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Farouq Suleiman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/6] NHS nurses take part in a strike, during a dispute with the government over pay, outside St Thomas' Hospital in London, Britain December 15, 2022. An estimated 100,000 nurses will strike at 76 hospitals and health centres, cancelling an estimated 70,000 appointments, procedures and surgeries in Britain's state-funded NHS. "What a tragic day. This is a tragic day for nursing, it is a tragic day for patients, patients in hospitals like this, and it is a tragic day for people of this society and for our NHS," Pat Cullen, the head of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) union, said to the BBC on a picket line on Thursday. Polling ahead of the nursing strike showed that a majority of Britons support the action, but once the walk-outs are underway politicians will be closely monitoring public opinion.

☆ Taunted for being Black, a student fought back, civil rights complaint says. The 30-second fight derailed her life.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | Mike Hixenbaugh | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +18 min

The threat didn’t seem to dissuade the boy who told Autumn he runs her block, she said. A moment later, Autumn said, one of the boys said the first syllable of the N-word, and the other student said the rest. “She is a breath of fresh air,” JaQuatta told them. Autumn told Medley it was becoming harder to keep up the facade. Mary Pegues, a former Slaton school board member and longtime teacher’s aide in a neighboring district, was furious when she saw the clip.

☆ UK strikes set to escalate as nurses prepare for ‘unprecedented’ walkout
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

“It is pretty unprecedented,” Billy Palmer, senior fellow at Nuffield Trust, a health research firm, told CNN. While small pockets of nursing staff have walked out before, the country’s National Health Service has seen “nothing of this scale until now,” he added. ‘Enough is enough’Earlier this year, the RCN rejected an offer by the government to increase nurses’ pay by a minimum of £1,400 ($1,707) a year. Each additional 1% pay rise for nursing staff would cost the government around £700 million ($854 million), he added. Internationally, it is hard to compare UK nurses’ pay, given health care systems differ significantly between countries, but it falls somewhere in the middle of the range of comparable economies, Palmer said.

☆ UK strikes to hit ambulance services, hospitals and trains in the run up to Christmas
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

More than 10,000 ambulance workers represented by the GMB Union will strike again on December 28. Ambulance workers, like others in the UK National Health Service (NHS), “are on their knees,” according to GMB national secretary Rachel Harrison. According to The Times, one million UK workers are set to strike in December and January. The union said that critical care will be exempt from strike action but non-critical services will have lower staffing levels. The Communication Workers Union (CWU), which represents 115,000 postal workers, has notified Royal Mail of additional walkouts on December 9, 11, 14 and 15.

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