January 31, 2014

GM plans to hire hundreds for new pickups to be built in Wentzville

The start of 2014 brought an increase in hiring activity at General Motors’ Wentzville assembly plant, where new midsize pickups will be built later this year.
Mike Bullock, chairman of Local 2250 of the United Auto Workers, which represents GM hourly workers in Wentzville, said the plant is hiring several hundred workers — about 35 to 50 a week — over the next few months.

The Wentzville plant, which opened in 1983, currently makes the Chevy Express and GMC Savana full-size vans. Later this year, it adds production of two newly redesigned midsize pickups, the Chevrolet Colorado and the GMC Canyon.

The plant currently has 2,100 employees — 1,900 hourly workers and 200 salaried employees. That’s up from about 1,400 employees when the plant only ran a single shift in 2011.

http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/68e46d24-7311-56d4-bd9c-95b4f783353c.html

January 30, 2014

Retail groups urge 40-hour full-time definition in ACA

Several retail groups, including Food Marketing Institute and National Grocers Association, this week renewed their calls for changes in the definition of “full time” for the purposes of the Affordable Care Act.

Their calls came as the House Ways & Means Committee was scheduled to discuss the matter Tuesday. The ACA originally set a 30-hour-per-week threshold for workers to be considered full-time — and therefore offered health insurance — but retailers are pushing for a definition that is “more in line with employment practices,” FMI said in a letter to the committee.

“The law’s definition of full-time as 30 hours of service per week does not reflect employers’ workforce needs or employees’ desire for flexible hours,” the letter stated.

Peter J. Larkin, president and CEO of NGA, noted, "The ACA's definition of a full-time employee at only 30 hours per week will have an enormous impact on the independent grocery industry, which creates over 944,000 direct jobs. It is critical for Congress to work together and pass legislation to amend this section of the ACA before its impact is felt by both employers and employees across the country."


Read More: http://supermarketnews.com/laws-amp-regulations/retail-groups-urge-40-hour-full-time-definition-aca#ixzz2rsOBLnzJ

The italics are mine, but looks to be a "charming" attempt to chip away at the ACA's protection. As there are fewer and fewer full time 40 hour jobs in Retail. All an employer has to do is schedule someone up to 39 hours and bingo no insurance costs for them.

January 3, 2014

With some heavy snows & cold about the country this might be helpful

http://kplr11.com/2014/01/02/surprising-cold-weather-tips-that-can-save-lives/

ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI)– This week’s bone chilling temperatures present danger to people in the region.

Nurses at St. Anthony’s Hospital said the cold weather is something that is dangerous for “people of all ages.”

They say people should wait 30 minutes after waking up to do any physical activity. The blood is more prone to clotting right after someone wakes up.

They also say do not eat a heavy meal because that diverts blood from your heart to your stomach.

They also warn that people should not smoke of drink coffee an hour before or an hour after any physical activity. Both elevate blood pressure.