October 2, 2024 5:15 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Some 45,000 dockworkers at 36 U.S. ports from Maine to Texas are on strike for the first time in decades. And experts say the workers may wield the upper hand in their standoff with port operators over wages and the use of automation. Organized labor enjoys rising public support and has achieved a string of recent victories in other industries, with the backing of the pro-union administration of President Joe Biden. Their negotiating stand is likely further strengthened from having the nation’s supply chain of goods under pressure from the effects of Hurricane Helene, which has coincided with the peak shipping season for holiday goods.
October 2, 2024 5:48 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Some manufacturers and retailers are urging President Joe Biden to invoke a 1947 law as a way to suspend a strike by 45,000 dockworkers that has shut down 36 U.S. ports from Maine to Texas. At issue is Section 206 of the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947, better known as the Taft-Hartley Act. The law authorizes a president to seek a court order for an 80-day cooling-off period for companies and unions to try to resolve their differences. Biden has said, though, that he won’t intervene in the strike.
October 2, 2024 5:14 am
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Palestinian medical officials say at least 32 people, mostly women and children, have been killed in Israeli strikes in southern Gaza. The European Hospital in Khan Younis said it received the bodies after heavy Israeli airstrikes and ground operations in the city overnight and into Wednesday. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Israel has continued to strike what it says are militant targets across Gaza nearly a year after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack ignited the war. That’s even as attention has shifted to Lebanon, where Israel is battling Hezbollah, and to Iran, which launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel late Tuesday.
October 1, 2024 5:18 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — John Amos, who starred as the family patriarch on the hit 1970s sitcom “Good Times” and earned an Emmy nomination for his role in the seminal 1977 miniseries “Roots,” has died. He was 84. Amos’ publicist, Belinda Foster, confirmed the news of his death Tuesday. He played James Evans Sr. on “Good Times,” which featured one of television’s first Black two-parent families. Produced by Norman Lear and co-created by actor Mike Evans, who co-starred on “All in the Family” and “The Jeffersons,” it ran from 1974-79 on CBS. Amos was Emmy nominated for playing the adult Kunta Kinte, the centerpiece of “Roots,” based on Alex Haley’s novel set during and after the era of slavery in the U.S.
October 2, 2024 5:51 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A San Diego doctor charged in connection with Matthew Perry’s fatal overdose has pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute the surgical anesthetic ketamine. Dr. Mark Chavez entered the plea Wednesday in a Los Angeles federal court. The “Friends” star died last year of an overdose of the powerful anesthetic. Chavez and two others have now pleaded guilty in the case and agreed to cooperate. Prosecutors’ two main targets are a doctor allegedly supplied by Chavez who is accused of selling the drug to Perry, and a woman who prosecutors say is a drug dealer who sold him the lethal dose.
October 1, 2024 6:53 am
JERUSALEM (AP) — Iran says it fired dozens of missiles into Israel, a sharp escalation of the monthslong conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed militias Hezbollah and Hamas. There were no immediate reports of casualties in Israel on Tuesday as the country ordered residents to head to bomb shelters and as air raid sirens sounded. Earlier in the day, Israel warned people to evacuate communities in southern Lebanon to avoid harm from limited ground operations it said were launched against Hezbollah. Israel and the United States said there would be consequences for any direct attack by Iran on Israel. (Photo: AP)
October 1, 2024 6:50 am
State Police are investigating a homicide last night in Washington County. Authorities say they were called to Spring Street in Robinson Township just before six o’clock for reports of a shooting involving two men. Police have not released the identity of those involved, but said both men were taken to a hospital where one later died. Troopers say they do have a suspect in custody.
October 1, 2024 12:53 pm
A jackknifed tractor-trailer briefly shut down part of eastbound I-70 Early Tuesday afternoon, one mile past the West Alexander Exit. There’s been no word on what caused the crash or if there were any injuries.
October 1, 2024 1:37 am
The contract for 32 clerical and maintenance employees, belonging to Teamsters Local 585, expired at midnight, October 1st, and without a new contract, the workers walked off their jobs and onto the picket line. Harold Close, Principal Officer of Teamsters Local 585, the Housing Authority of Washington County chose to put those employees on strike. Close says negotiations have been ongoing and the only sticking point is over wages. He said that $36,567.20 separates the union and Authority from settling the contract negotiations. He says for simplicity’s sake, $1000 a month is all it would cost to keep the employees on the job for the next three years. The union has rejected unanimously the authority’s last best offer, saying that without an agreement, they were going to strike. Close is adamant in saying that workers are not choosing to walk out, it is the authority who will be putting the workers on strike because their salary demands were not met. . The Washington County Housing Authority, in an emailed statement, said that they are working to ensure services are continuing to be provided to residents and they have several contingencies in place should issues arise during the walkout. The authority says it has offered the union a contract that surpasses the previous several contracts in terms of wages. In addition, they say they have met with state mediators and will meet again to try and resolve the agreement. In the meantime, they say they look forward to continuing to bargain in good faith, despite the strike. The authority has assets in the range of $20 million and manages approximately 1100 apartments in Washington, Canonsburg, California and Fredericktown
October 1, 2024 4:54 am
A Monday evening Washington City Council meeting focused on a 2023 audit report for the city and next steps for the upcoming budget. Although the audit was clean, Council is now looking for creative solutions to address a near 500 thousand dollar revenue shortfall. Councilman Ken Westcott says the process is just beginning and the lost revenue is mostly due to businesses leaving the area and the continuing rising costs of city pensions. He says they’ve been able to make up some ground with refinancing but are still looking at ways of finding money that will hopefully stave off a tax increase for residents.
