TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalUnfair labor practices charged at Volkswagen's US plant
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The National Labor Relations Board has filed another unfair labor practices complaint against Volkswagen for hiking health insurance premiums and changing working hours of employees who voted for union representation at the German automaker's only U.S. plant.
Volkswagen is mounting a legal challenge to NLRB rulings in favor of the small group of skilled-trades workers who voted in 2015 to be represented by the United Auto Workers union.
But the NLRB says the federal appeals court case doesn't override the UAW's exclusive collective-bargaining rights over the terms and conditions of employment of the workers who maintain and repair the plant's machinery and robots.
Volkswagen Chattanooga spokesman Scott Wilson says that until the appeals court rules, the company is "unable to bargain with the UAW without compromising our legal argument."
http://www.newsadvance.com/work_it_lynchburg/news/wire/unfair-labor-practices-charged-at-volkswagen-s-us-plant/article_17f51880-3eba-58e2-a8d1-ea12f359e0fe.html
State police ask pipeline surveyors to leave Bent Mountain property
A Virginia State Police trooper asked a survey crew working Monday for Mountain Valley Pipeline to leave properties whose owners had not granted permission for the crews to study their land in Roanoke County for a possible pipeline route.
The surveyors agreed to comply but, according to witnesses, lingered for a time after the trooper left.
On Thursday, Mountain Valley Pipeline responded by filing a motion in Roanoke County Circuit Court for an injunction against three members of one family — a family who has denied access for surveying on their property off Poor Mountain Road — that could bar the family from attempting to halt surveying.
The state’s controversial survey law allows a natural gas company to survey private property without an owner’s consent as long as the company follows the law’s requirements for notifying landowners, via certified mail, about their plans and the anticipated dates of entry of survey crews.
Read more: http://www.roanoke.com/business/news/roanoke_county/state-police-ask-pipeline-surveyors-to-leave-bent-mountain-property/article_61c6360c-faae-5254-bd99-853f8a20af28.html
Liberty University preps for commencement, President Donald Trump
LYNCHBURG — With President Donald Trump set to speak to Liberty University graduates on Saturday, the campus is abuzz with preparations for tens of thousands of people expected to be on hand .
Lee Beaumont, Liberty University’s senior vice president of auxiliary services, said Wednesday the university has prepared for upward of 50,000 people to attend “the largest event we’ve ever held.”
Security for this year’s commencement ceremony will be intensified for the president’s visit, with a total of 35 metal detectors set up for attendees, graduates and faculty, Beaumont said. .
Law enforcement and fire and emergency medical services officials also will be out in strong and visible force.
Read more: http://www.roanoke.com/news/virginia/liberty-university-preps-for-commencement-president-donald-trump/article_c9f4e294-611d-5998-9184-15bb5742c771.html
Virginia's first lady decides against a run for Congress
McLEAN, Va. (AP) — Dorothy McAuliffe, the wife of Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, says she won't run for Congress.
Virginia's first lady considered seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock next year, but media outlets report that McAuliffe said Wednesday that she has decided against a run. McAuliffe says she can have more impact in her current role.
Democrats consider the 10th District seat in the Washington suburbs one of their top targets — Democrat Hillary Clinton carried the district last year by 10 points.
State Sen. Jennifer Wexton, a former prosecutor, is the most prominent among those who have announced plans to run against Comstock. Lindsey Davis Stover, a former Obama administration official, and Dan Helmer, an Army veteran and Rhodes scholar, have also filed paperwork to seek the nomination.
http://www.richmond.com/ap/state/virginia-s-first-lady-decides-against-a-run-for-congress/article_8ae30f80-12db-573b-b28c-24fabeb9beec.html
Coal dust gets an airing outside Norfolk Southern shareholders meeting
NORFOLK -- For years, people who live near Norfolk Southern Corp.’s coal-export pier at Lamberts Point have complained that dust from the operation has coated their cars and porches. Some have worried that their health could be at risk as well.
The issue has flared periodically, then receded amid assertions by the Norfolk-based railroad that its own air monitoring shows dust levels are below regulatory guidelines.
On Thursday morning, a group called New Virginia Majority tried a new tack to raise the profile of the coal dust issue, with a protest at The Main, downtown’s new hotel and conference center.
On the third floor of the center, Norfolk Southern shareholders were preparing for their annual meeting, overseen by CEO James Squires. On a sidewalk below, about 10 people organized by New Virginia Majority walked in a tight circle while chanting slogans like “Norfolk Southern, cover your coal!” and “Let’s Talk!”
Read more: http://pilotonline.com/news/local/environment/coal-dust-gets-an-airing-outside-norfolk-southern-shareholders-meeting/article_b8920d05-0312-587c-b3fe-08be5ab52341.html
Don't call me Caitlyn: Baby name plunges in popularity
WASHINGTON (AP) — Don't call me Caitlyn.
A year after Caitlyn Jenner announced her new name and gender, the popularity of the name Caitlyn plummeted more than any other baby name, according to Social Security's annual list of the most popular baby names.
In fact, the four names that dropped the most were all variations of the same name: Caitlin, Caitlyn, Katelynn and Kaitlynn.
"It was inevitable," said Laura Wattenberg, founder of BabynameWizard.com. "Caitlyn was already falling in popularity. Now it is suddenly controversial."
Each year, the Social Security Administration releases the top 1,000 baby names and uses the announcement to drive traffic to their website, where workers can start tracking their benefits long before they retire.
Read more: http://pilotonline.com/news/government/politics/don-t-call-me-caitlyn-baby-name-plunges-in-popularity/article_82057802-d43d-5625-a3c0-c8a47f26699e.html
"You are paddle-boarding next to approximately 15 great white sharks," chopper tells beachgoers
"You are paddle-boarding next to approximately 15 great white sharks," Deputy Brian Stockbridge announced via a loudspeaker.
Stockbridge was in a helicopter, flying off the coast of Dana Point in Orange County, Calif., at about 2 p.m. local time on Wednesday. And, indeed, swimming in the Pacific Ocean below and clearly visible from the air, were several great white sharks. Their fins rose menacingly from the water as they glided back and forth.
"They are advising you exit the water in a calm manner," Stockbridge added. "The sharks are as close as the surfline."
No one was hurt, and OC Lifeguards Chief Jason Young said the situation wasn't dire enough to call for an ocean closure, which only occurs when the sharks are more than 8-feet long and/or acting aggressive.
Read more: http://pilotonline.com/news/nation-world/national/you-are-paddle-boarding-next-to-approximately-great-white-sharks/article_22e87026-7e21-5318-8f6f-30946fd63dac.html
Thousands of gallons of Navy jet fuel spilled at Oceana, traffic diverted near base
VIRGINIA BEACH -- Thousands of gallons of spilled jet fuel at Oceana Naval Air Station weren’t discovered Thursday morning before some already had seeped into the Lynnhaven River watershed that crosses under a major road and by some neighborhoods.
The Coast Guard said it had contained the spill in Wolfsnare Creek, while Navy officials said air- and water-quality monitoring showed it wasn’t endangering the public.
“Right now, all of our measurements have not even come close to where there’s any threat to human health,” Coast Guard Capt. Kevin Carroll, deputy commander of Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads, said during a Thursday afternoon news conference.
Tens of thousands of gallons of jet fuel escaped when a line at the base’s bulk fuel facility began leaking unnoticed Wednesday, according to Beth Baker, a Navy Region Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman.
Read more: http://pilotonline.com/news/military/local/thousands-of-gallons-of-navy-jet-fuel-spilled-at-oceana/article_2888072e-3b78-55cc-82fe-d0abf790ebc9.html
Perriello sold financial stake in company linked to pipeline and Trump's border wall
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Perriello has sold his financial holdings in a construction company interested in building President Donald Trump’s wall along the Mexican border and that has worked with Dominion Energy, a Perriello punching bag, on energy projects in Virginia.
Perriello’s investment in Fluor Corp., revealed last month on the former congressman’s mandatory conflict-of-interest disclosure, cut against his campaign message of populist reform, standing up to Trump and fighting corporate power.
At the time, Perriello’s campaign said he wasn’t aware of the investment. The campaign confirmed the stock was sold on April 18 but declined to comment on the reasons behind the decision.
Perriello’s financial disclosure showed he had equities valued somewhere between $5,000 and $50,000 in the Texas-based engineering and construction firm. The company, a major federal contractor, had expressed early interest in the still-uncertain wall project, though it’s not clear how strongly it is pursuing the work.
Read more: http://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/perriello-sold-financial-stake-in-company-linked-to-pipeline-and/article_57969229-67c9-5102-9af1-ee81dc7609cf.html
State revenue growth loses steam in April as income tax payments lag
Virginia is still likely to end the fiscal year in the black, but revenues dropped in April, including an unforeseen lag in income tax payments that aren’t withheld from paychecks.
Total revenues fell by 3.4 percent compared with the same month a year ago, but that’s not what most concerns budget officials. They’re wondering why estimated and final income tax payments from nonwithholding fell almost 18 percent in the month and 4.2 percent for the year to date.
“It’s probably weaker than we’d like to see,” Secretary of Finance Richard D. “Ric” Brown said in an interview.
State revenues had come out of March strong, growing 4.6 percent for the first nine months of the fiscal year compared with an annual projection of 2.9 percent. The results in April dropped the growth rate for the year to 3.6 percent.
Read more: http://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/government-politics/general-assembly/state-revenue-growth-loses-steam-in-april-as-income-tax/article_d441a653-55d0-53f3-9452-294e14baec5f.html
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