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U.S. job openings dip to 9.8 million but remain high, showing resilience in labor market

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. job openings slipped in May but remained at levels high enough to illustrate that the American labor market remains resilient in the face of sharply higher interest rates.Employers posted 9.8 million job vacancies, down from 10.3 million in April, the Labor Department said Thursday. But layoffs fell slightly, and more Americans quit their jobs — a sign they were confident they could find better pay or working conditions elsewhere.Job openings fell in healthcare, insurance and finance. But there were more jobs available in education and government.The Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), “continues to reflect a gradually slowing yet still-robust labor market, one that is cooler than a year ago but still hot,” said Nick Bunker, research director at the Indeed Hiring Lab. He added that “demand for new hires remains elevated and employers are still holding onto the workers they have.”Monthly job openings ...

Despite prevention efforts, fireworks were used to target people, police in Minneapolis

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Large groups of people used fireworks to target other people and police in Minneapolis over the Fourth of July holiday, even as police staffing doubled and the city took other measures to try and avoid such trouble.The “brazen and reckless” discharge of fireworks didn’t result in any serious injuries, Police Chief Brian O’Hara said. But in one case, an officer chased down and arrested a 17-year-old suspect who allegedly fired a barrage of Roman candles at an occupied squad car, the Star Tribune reported. In another, commercial-grade fireworks were launched at a group of pedestrians.Preventative steps were taken after 2022 Independence Day gatherings in and near downtown turned violent, with fireworks launched at buildings, cars and first responders. In addition to increased police staffing, the Stone Arch Bridge downtown was closed from 10 p.m. Tuesday through 6 a.m. Wednesday.O’Hara said the measures helped.“Last year, the MPD was overwhelmed an...

Canada expected to break heat records for third day in a row

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

Some experts say 2023 could go down as the hottest year on record.This comes as the global temperature is expected to break records for the third day in a row.“1.38 C above pre-industrial levels is warmer than before we started burning fossil fuels. 9 out of the past 9 years have been the warmest on record and I think 2023 is going to make that 10 out of 10 without a doubt,” explained CNN meteorologist Chad Myers.The hottest day ever recorded now has an average global temperature of 17.18 C, which was Wednesday, surpassing another record-breaker which was on Monday at 17.01 C. Both of those temperatures broke the previous record which was set back in 2016.These numbers are according to the Climate Re-analyzer Project, painting a very concerning picture.“You can imagine the hottest day you’ve ever experienced in your life and that may be a typical summer day if we continue down this path,” said University of Pennsylvania earth and environmental science p...

A hiker is missing in Yosemite after being swept away by a fast-flowing creek

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — A hiker has been missing in Yosemite National Park since the holiday weekend after being swept away by a cold and fast-flowing creek as California’s epic winter snowpack melts.Hayden T. Klemenok vanished while backpacking with a group at Upper Chilnualna Falls on Sunday, the National Park Service said in a statement.“At approximately 2 p.m., he entered Chilnualna Creek near the trail junction, and his whereabouts are currently unknown,” the service said.The section of creek is about a dozen miles (20 kilometers) south of Yosemite Valley and features a series of waterfalls and cascades that plunge hundreds of feet.Klemenok’s parents told The San Francisco Chronicle that his friends said the day of the accident was hot and the 24-year-old from Petaluma, California, had gotten down on all fours to wet his face, but his hands slipped and he went into the water.“It’s the worst experience any parent or family should go through,” said Michelle Kl...

Toronto’s Pearson Airport to host hydrogen refuelling station

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

Toronto’s Pearson Airport will be home to Ontario’s first public hydrogen refuelling station.The Greater Toronto Airports Authority and Carlsun Energy announced the station Thursday.They say in a press release that the refuelling station will have capability for both cars and transport trucks. Carlsun will build, own and operate the station, which the two groups say is enabled by $1 million from Natural Resources Canada. According to Natural Resources Canada, there are currently five retail hydrogen stations across the country, four of which are in British Columbia, and the fifth in Quebec. The GTAA says this station is part of the Pearson airport’s commitment to clean and efficient energy solutions. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 6, 2023.The Canadian Press

CP NewsAlert: N.W.T. signs agreement in principle with feds on health funding

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

OTTAWA — The Northwest Territories has signed on to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s health funding offer, which would see a $361-million boost to health transfers to the territories over 10 years. More coming.The Canadian Press

Democratic council member joins race for Indiana’s open US Senate seat

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — An Indianapolis City-County Council member on Thursday became the second announced Democrat to seek Indiana’s open U.S. Senate seat in the 2024 election.Keith Potts is joining former state lawmaker Marc Carmichael in vying for the party’s nomination to fill the seat that Republican Sen. Mike Braun is giving up to run for Indiana governor. Carmichael announced his bid last month. No well-known Democrats have made moves to start campaigns in the Republican-dominated state. Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Banks has secured high-profile support as the only prominent GOP candidate in the Senate race.Potts was elected to the Indianapolis council in 2019 and didn’t seek reelection this year. He cited affordable health care, and protecting abortion rights and Social Security as top campaign issues against Banks, who has gained attention in Washington as a combative defender of former President Donald Trump.Carmichael was a state representative from Muncie in 1986-91 and w...

Memphis prosecutors to seek death penalty against man charged with kidnapping and killing teacher

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty against a man charged with kidnapping a Memphis, Tennessee, school teacher during an early-morning run and killing her.Cleotha Abston is charged with snatching Eliza Fletcher from a street near the University of Memphis on Sept. 2 and putting her in an SUV. Her body was found days later near an abandoned house. He has pleaded not guilty.Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy has filed notice with the court that prosecutors will seek the death penalty, Judge Lee Coffee said.No trial date has been set.Adrian Sainz, The Associated Press

Mass expulsions and mistreatment of migrants reported in Tunisia as tensions spike in port city

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Tensions spiked dangerously in a Tunisian port city this week after three migrants were detained in the death of a local man, and there were reports of retaliation against Black foreigners and accounts of mass expulsions and alleged assaults by security forces. The people suspected in the slaying of a 41-year-old Tunisian were under investigation for premeditated murder, according to Faouzi Masmoudi, spokesman for the prosecutor’s office in the seaside city of Sfax. Twenty-two migrants from sub-Saharan countries in Africa also were detained for questioning in connection with crimes in the area, Masmoudi said Wednesday. Sfax, on Tunisia’s eastern coast, is a main departure point for migrants and refugees planning to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe. Thousands of people, mainly from sub-Saharan Africa, have poured into the city to set out in unprecedented numbers for dangerous crossings to Italy in small boats. After the burial Tuesday of Nizar Ben Bra...

17-year-old charged after 'despicable vandalism' found on Chesterton sign

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:52:27 GMT

CHESTERTON, Ind. — A 17-year-old has been charged after "despicable vandalism" targeting the LGBTQ+ community was found on Chesterton's municipal sign.The sign was found defaced on the morning of June 20.The Northwest Indiana Times reports "kill all (homophobic slur)" was spray painted on the sign outside the town's complex in the 1400 block of Broadway.A 17-year-old boy has been charged with criminal mischief. “At the Town Council’s June 26 meeting,” Chesterton Police Chief Tim Richardson said. “Chesterton resident Erin Collins read an eloquent statement urging the Town Council to recognize June as Pride Month, as a response to the graffiti. The Town Council promptly did so. At the time I asked everyone not to let this crime define our community but to define it instead by the events which followed: an outpouring of support for the LBGTQ+ community, the public’s diligence in contacting the CPD with tips, the assistance of advocacy organizations in advising us on ways to navigate t...