ASA Members Ask Vice President Gore to Support Soy Food Aid Initiative
During a visit to the Perry, Iowa, farm of American Soybean Association (ASA) members Dave, Steve and Ed Menz, U.S. Vice President Albert Gore was asked to support a soy food aid initiative that will assist the most needy countries in the world with much needed food aid while helping to improve prices paid to farmers for their soybeans. During a private meeting in his machine shop, Dave Menz presented the Vice President with a packet of information outlining the benefits of the program.”The Vice President said he appreciated the efforts of the ASA and the Iowa Soybean Association and acknowledged the importance of improving prices for farmers,” said Dave Menz.ASA had previously requested the personal intervention of Vice President Gore to resolve an inter-agency dispute between the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Office of Management and Budget, and other government agencies that is delaying implementation of a proposal ASA presented to Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman last March.The Menz family has farmed in Iowa since before the Great Depression. Son Ed and grandsons Dave and Steve, now farm more than 3,000 acres of soybeans and corn, and supplement their income by constructing steel farm buildings and metal roofs for their neighbors.”In addition to asking the Vice President for his support on the soy food aid initiative, I wanted the Vice President to know that farming is an important industry in this country,” Menz said. “Some people think that farmers simply want to protect their way of life and may not understand that we see farming as a business that contributes greatly to the entire U.S. economy.”By virtue of higher prices paid to farmers for their soybeans, the food aid program will generate budget offsets that will reduce the funding required for loan deficiency payments. The food aid program will also help develop long-term markets for U.S. agricultural products by introducing soy to areas of the world where hungry people currently cannot afford to purchase them.”The soy food aid program will help Iowa farmers,” said ASA Board member Gary Langel, a producer from LeMars, Iowa. “We greatly appreciate that Vice President Gore met with the Menz family today to discuss what he can do to break through the red tape that is delaying this program.”Vice President Albert Gore walks with American Soybean Association members Dave, Ed and Steve Menz at their family farm in Perry, Iowa. Dave Menz asked Vice President Gore to support an international soy food aid program that will help feed hungry people around the world and support better prices paid to U.S. farmers for their soybeans.Source: The American Soybean Association in cooperation with the Iowa Soybean Association
The American Soybean Association (ASA) is calling for the Senate to reinsert a retroactive extension of the biodiesel tax incentive in the first Jobs Bill it passes to save the jobs of 23,000 people working in the biodiesel industry. The biodiesel tax incentive had been included in a version of the Senate Jobs Bill unveiled last week by Senators Max Baucus (D-MT) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) later stripped the biodiesel and other tax provisions out of the bill. Production of biodiesel, a homegrown renewable fuel, also supports higher prices paid to farmers for their soybeans, which contributes additional employment opportunities in both urban and rural communities.”There is a direct correlation between the biodiesel tax incentive and creating jobs,” said ASA First Vice President Alan Kemper, a soybean producer from Lafayette, Ind. “If Senators really want a bill to save jobs for American workers, they need to put a retroactive extension of the Biodiesel Tax Incentive back in the first Jobs Bill they consider. Put simply, we don’t understand the logic used to strip the biodiesel provisions out of the bill. The biodiesel tax incentive provisions would save and create thousands of green jobs and help all Americans move away from their dependence on imported petroleum.”Expiration of the biodiesel tax incentive on December 31, 2009, has essentially caused the production and use of biodiesel in the U.S. to cease and has placed the 23,000 jobs that are currently supported by the domestic biodiesel industry in immediate jeopardy. Companies have already started laying-off employees, and this situation is certain to worsen the longer the tax incentive is allowed to lapse.The one dollar per gallon biodiesel tax incentive is structured in a manner that makes biodiesel price competitive with petroleum diesel fuel in the marketplace. Absent the tax incentive, biodiesel is more expensive than conventional diesel fuel.”Biodiesel has the best energy balance and the best greenhouse gas reduction of any fuel that is currently in the commercial marketplace, and biodiesel is the only advanced biofuel that has reached commercialization in the United States,” Kemper said. “Biodiesel is an excellent way for America’s soybean growers to boost U.S. energy security, promote economic development and improve the environment.”
ASA joined several agricultural industries last week in a letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, reemphasizing concern for the periodic disruptions in Official grain inspection and weighing services provided by the Federal Grain Inspection Service’s (FGIS) designated agencies in the Pacific Northwest.Last October at a meeting with Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards, the groups urged that contingency plans be developed to ensure that FGIS respond immediately and effectively if there were any future disruptions in Official inspection service from WSDA.“Our expanded stakeholder interest group now understands that on July 1, 2014, the designated agency – the Washington State Department of Agriculture – provided written notification that it was withdrawing Official grain inspection services at the Port of Vancouver, WA, effective July 7, 2014. Based upon this unprecedented development, we urge you to direct that FGIS take immediate action to provide such Official inspection services utilizing either its own personnel or the personnel of another FGIS-designated agency authorized- perform such Official services at grain export facilities,” the groups state in the letter.The groups reemphasized that statute prohibits the export of U.S. grains and oilseeds unless Officially inspected and weighed by Official personnel in accordance with the Grain Standards and exports are required to be accompanied by Official certificates showing the Official grade designation and certified weight – unless such a requirement is waived by the Secretary of Agriculture and the grain is not sold or exported by grade.“Thus, Congress has vested in FGIS the responsibility and obligation to provide vibrant and reliable Official inspection and weighing services to facilitate efficient and cost-effective marketing of U.S. grains and oilseeds to foreign markets, upon which U.S. agriculture and the American economy depend for economic growth and jobs,” the letter states. “To our knowledge, this latest announcement by a designated State agency declining to provide Official services is unprecedented. We believe WSDA’s actions create an extremely troubling precedent that will cause irreparable damage to the integrity and reliability of the nation’s Official grain inspection system. This development already has created uncertainty within the U.S. grain export industry regarding potential future disruptions of Official services at facilities operating at other U.S. export ports. The disruptions that already have occurred have put at risk the United States’ reputation as a reliable supplier of grains and oilseeds to foreign customers. In the absence of WSDA’s reliable performance of its duties, FGIS must intervene and make the necessary arrangements to provide the mandatory Official services.”The letter concluded by underscoring the importance of accurate, timely and cost-effective delivery of mandated impartial third-party Official inspection services—depended upon by American farmers, grain handlers and exporters and foreign customers.“To this point, confidence that the U.S. Official grain inspection system will function in a continuous and consistent manner – and not be subject to unwarranted disruptions – has been instrumental in facilitating the ability of U.S. farmers and agribusinesses to reliably serve foreign customers and remain competitive in world markets. It has been a model of integrity,” the groups said in the letter, “But the recent decision by WSDA, and the subsequent inaction to this point of FGIS to fulfill its mandate to provide Official inspection services, risks sullying that hard-earned reputation, to the long- lasting detriment of U.S. agriculture. It also sends a dangerous signal to any third-party that might wish to disrupt U.S. grain export trade.”To read the entire letter, click here.
Jenny Rohrich, ASA member from North Dakota, answered questions about modern agriculture on Reddit on June 22.One of the American Soybean Association’s (ASA) goals is to expand our reach and engage with consumers and audiences we may not usually interact with—which is why on this week one ASA member ventured somewhere we haven’t been before.ASA’s Jenny Rohrich participated in a live Q&A online through Reddit, answering a wide variety of questions about modern agriculture, with topics ranging from genetically modified organisms (GMOs), weed and pest control, to life in her now home state of North Dakota.Reddit is a social news website that contains hundreds of different forums called sub-reddits, tailored to specific interests and themes. One of the largest with 3 million users is the “IamA…Ask Me Anything” otherwise known as “AMA” where users can run a live question and answer session.During her AMA, Jenny started by introducing herself: “I am a farmer’s wife from North Dakota. On our third generation farm, we grow wheat, corn, soybeans and sunflowers—Ask Me Anything.” From here she spent a couple of hours answering more than 20 questions that came her way.This was a great opportunity to spread the message of modern agriculture on a new platform where we engaged with people who may have never seen a farm or met a real farmer.If you missed Jenny’s session, click here to read!
Dr. Kevin Fitzsimmons, University of Arizona/Past President of World Aquaculture Society, (center) trains recent graduates on pond management together with ASA/WISHH Country Representative, R.S.N. Janjua.The American Soybean Association’s World Initiative for Soy in Human Health (ASA/WISHH) program recently sent Dr. Kevin Fitzsimmons, of the University of Arizona, to Pakistan as part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) funded FEEDing Pakistan project.Fitzsimmons traveled to Thatta, Karachi, Multan, Lahore, Murdkee and Islamabad to conduct seminars, farmer field days and an aquaculture conference with the first Tilapia cooking competition and Research Poster Exhibition in Pakistan’s largest women’s University, Lahore College for Women University (LCWU).He provided technical assistance to tilapia and trout fish farmers and Tawakkal Hatchery continuously highlighting the important role of soy-based feeds in the aquaculture industry. Fitzsimmons also visited two feed mills producing soy-based feeds: Oryza Feeds and Super Punjab Feed Mills.LCWU is the largest women’s university in Pakistan having over 14,000 registered students. Two years ago, fisheries and aquaculture were added as a new degree program within the Zoology Department at the university in response to the growing aquaculture industry in Pakistan. This academic program, and others like it, are building local capacity which will lead to sustained growth in the industry.During his visit Fitzsimmons also provided hands-on training on pond management to recent graduates trained as part of the FEEDing Pakistan program.
Clark County Fire & Rescue crews were called to a report of a travel trailer on fire this morning.The fire was reported just before 11 a.m. at 701 N.W. 179th St., in the Fairgrounds neighborhood.Firefighters arrived to find smoke coming from a small travel trailer, according to emergency radio traffic monitored at The Columbian.No additional details were immediately available.
Michael Damphoffer Sr.’s unassuming 3-foot-high gray tombstone in Old City Cemetery offers precious little insight into the colorful life he led. But when the cemetery’s visitors walk past his grave this weekend, they will know at least one thing about him: He was a U.S. soldier.The Vancouver Heritage Ambassadors placed small American flags next to the graves of Damphoffer and around 119 others on Friday and Saturday, in remembrance of their sacrifice, on the eve of Monday’s Memorial Day.Visitors might also notice that the fence that lines the front of the cemetery on East Mill Plain Boulevard has been repaired. The Vancouver Heritage Ambassadors paid more than $2,000 to have bent and broken fence pieces replaced this week.Old City Cemetery was established in 1867, and serves as the final resting place for around 8,000 people, including members of some of the city’s oldest families. As such, keeping up the cemetery is a way of preserving Vancouver’s identity.“This is pretty sacred ground for our history,” said Michael Parker, president of the 15-member Vancouver Heritage Ambassadors. “If it hadn’t been for them, we wouldn’t have Vancouver.”
The Central Vancouver Little League all-stars remained alive at the state tournament Monday with an 8-1 win over Spokane South at the Fort Vancouver Little League fields.Central Vancouver moves on to play Kent at 3 p.m. Tuesday in another loser-out contest. The tournament brought together 13 district champions from throughout Washington in the 11-12 year-old baseball division.Central Vancouver scored twice in the first inning and then pulled away with a six-run fifth inning.Dawson Allen hit a home run for Central Vancouver, Josh Mulcahey had a double and an RBI, and Jacob Barnes knocked in two runs.All four of Monday’s games at the tournament were loser-out contests.Kent edged Asotin County 2-1 to earn the matchup against Central Vancouver.Also, Pasco eliminated South Whidbey 11-1, and Bainbridge Island ousted Chehalis 15-13 in seven innings.Salmon Creek, which won its opening game Sunday, takes on Eastlake of Sammamish at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday for a semifinal berth.The other game in the winner’s bracket is North Bothell vs. Alderwood at 5 p.m.Pasco plays Bainbridge in the 2:30 p.m. loser-out contest.The tournament, which will send the winner to a regional tournament in San Bernardino, Calif., runs through the weekend. The state tournament is the second step on the road to the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pa.LITTLE LEAGUE ALL-STARSMAJOR (11-12) STATE BASEBALLat Fort Vancouver LLMonday’s GamesPasco 11, South Whidbey 1 (loser out)Bainbridge 15, Chehalis 13 (loser out)Kent 2, Asotin County 1 (loser out)Central Vancouver 8, Spokane South 1 (loser out)Tuesday’s GamesG15, Salmon Creek vs. Eastlake, 5:30 p.m.G16, North Bothell vs. Alderwood, 5 p.m.G17, Pasco vs. Bainbridge, 2:30 p.m. (loser out)G18, Kent vs. Central Vancouver, 3 p.m. (loser out)Wednesday’s GamesG19, G15 loser vs. G17 winner, 3 p.m. (loser out)G20, G16 loser vs. G18 winner, 5:30 p.m. (loser out)G21, G15 winner vs. G16 winner, 5 p.m.Thursday’s GameG22, G19 winner vs. G20 winner, 5:30 p.m. (loser out)Friday’s GameG23, G21 loser vs. G22 winner, 5:30 p.m. (loser out)Saturday’s GameChampionship: G21 winner vs. G23 winner, 1 p.m. (Second game, if necessary, 1 p.m. Sunday.)CENTRAL VANCOUVER 8, SPOKANE SOUTH 1Central Vancouver 200 060 –8 5 1Spokane South 000 001 –1 5 3Central VancouverPitching — Simonsen 2 IP, Thompson 2 2/3 IP, McPherson 1 1/3 IP, Jamison 1 IP. Highlights — Josh Mulcahey 2B RBI; Damon McPherson 1B; Royce Cone 1B; Jacob Barnes 1B 2RBI; Dawson Allen HR RBI.
News Release from: Portland Police BureauCRIME STOPPERS #11-34 CLARK COUNTY HOMICIDEPosted: October 7th, 2011 2:07 PMThe Clark County (WA) Sheriff’s Office, in cooperation with Crime Stoppers, is asking for the public’s help in solving a homicide in Clark County, Washington.On Monday, September 5, 2011, at approximately 8:00 p.m., Clark County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the parking lot of Riverview Bank, located at 1220 Northeast 88th Street, for a death investigation. The deceased was identified as 61-year-old David Michael Gates of Vancouver, Washington. The cause of death has been determined to be a homicide.There is little information known or available to the Sheriff’s Office about Gates other than he is transient and that he frequents the Hazel Dell area of Clark County and regularly visits the local Hazel Dell businesses.The Clark County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit is asking assistance from anyone having information as to Gates’ whereabouts on Sunday September 4th and Monday September 5th as well as any assistance on Gates’ associates.Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact Major Crimes Unit Detectives Kevin Harper or Lindsay Schultz at: 1-877-Crime11 (1-877-274-6311) or email them at ccsomcu@gmail.com.
For information on Heidi Yewman’s book, visit Beyond the Bullet.On the one-year anniversary of the shooting of 19 people in a Tucson, Ariz., Safeway parking lot, about 30 people in Vancouver gathered to encourage gun safety and promote ways to prevent gun violence.The candlelight vigil was at St. Paul Lutheran Church and featured a survivor of the Columbine High School shooting in 1999.Andrea Bannister of Vancouver said she was a 17-year-old junior at Columbine when that Colorado massacre left 15 dead and 21 injured.She said her best friend, Corey DePooter, died and her boyfriend, Austin Eubanks, was wounded. Both were in the library.Bannister said she wanted to see what was happening when shots rang out and a substitute teacher refused to let her leave the classroom.“He saved my life by not letting me go,” she said. The teacher later led students down a hallway, out an exit and over a chain-link fence and told students to “run like hell.”“It still affects my life today, and it always will,” Bannister said. “I still have nightmares. … I am not a victim, but I am a survivor, and I always will be.”The Vancouver event was one of 65 on Sunday in 22 states, said Heidi Yewman, a writer who lives in Salmon Creek. She is a former Littleton, Colo., student and her teacher and coach, Dave Sanders, died in the massacre.
What: Doorways to Luxury, a tour of 21 high-end houses in Southwest Washington priced between $600,000 and $5.6 million.When: Noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.Where: Throughout Clark County.Cost: Free.Information: Doorways to Luxury.Well-appointed and luxurious living is the overarching theme of an annual tour of homes set for noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.The self-guided Doorways to Luxury tour will showcase 21 high-end homes in Clark, Cowlitz and Skamania counties. Priced from $600,000 to $5.6 million, the houses illustrate the variety of upscale living options in Southwest Washington, ranging from condominiums to penthouses, from sprawling country estates to homes with sweeping waterfront views.The historic Biddle mansion and property are sure to be one of the must-sees of this year’s tour, said Connie McDowell, listing agent for the property and a principal broker with The Hasson Co. Realtors. She described the 1930s-era home as “meticulously maintained and updated.” The listing includes 5 acres of land that share a 350-foot border with the Columbia River.“The person who developed the site was an engineer from Pennsylvania and an amateur botanist,” McDowell said of Henry Jonathan Biddle, known for protecting and purchasing Beacon Rock in 1915 for $1 from Charles Ladd, a Portland developer.Biddle collected, identified and planted native flora and fauna all over his waterfront estate, according to McDowell.“It’s now so private and luscious, you feel like you’re surrounded by nature,” she said.The kitchen has been remodeled, but the home features original woodwork, chrome faucets and leaded glass windows.High-end materials, finishes and design differentiate luxury homes from typical listings, said Linda Horowitz, a broker with Windermere Real Estate/Stellar Group in Vancouver.“Nice appointments — granite, hardwood floors, high-end appliances and hardware, travertine floors,” she said. “They have the things you would find in your Street of Dreams (home showings).”
The Battle Ground float cruises the Rose Festival Grand Floral Parade in Portland on Saturday. It won the Rose Festival Court Award as the best example of enthusiasm and teamwork. Vancouver’s Union High School marched away with top honors Saturday during the 100th edition of the Grand Floral Parade as part of the Portland Rose Festival.Union won the Band Sweepstakes Award, naming it the best band in the parade, in an event that also saw honors go to marching bands from Heritage and Battle Ground high schools, as well as awards for band support to cheerleaders from Heritage High School. The Battle Ground Community Float also was honored with the Rose Festival Court Award.The Grand Floral Parade, Oregon’s largest single-day spectator event, wound 4.2 miles through Portland and featured floats, bands, costumed marchers, equestrian teams and even a delegation of llamas from Southwest Washington.Here are the awards presented to Clark County entries:Battle Ground Rose Float: Rose Festival Court Award (Best example of enthusiasm and teamwork)Union High School: Band Sweepstakes (Best Band in Parade)Heritage High School: First Place, Out of State Open (100 or more members)Battle Ground High School: First Place, Out of State Division A (99 members or fewer)Heritage High School: Caption Award (Band Support: Cheerleading)
WASHOUGAL — A plan that could have reduced Washougal’s annual upsurge in sewer and water rates is off the table.The city won’t pursue plans to partially privatize its water department. Officials proposed the plan to help defer costs associated with infrastructure improvements mandated by federal and state authorities.With a unanimous vote, city council members chose to ditch the plan at their Monday evening meeting.“If we screw this up,” city council member David Shoemaker said, “we don’t have the resources to fix it.”Councilors had voiced skepticism at the draft plan, which showed savings of only a few dollars per billing cycle, or between 7 and 14.5 percent of an overall bill. On top of that, the city could be tied down to a 15 year contract with a company.The city’s privatization plans were never fully formed, but they called for an outside company to operate and maintain the city’s new wastewater treatment plant.The city thought the proposal could help defray the costs of making $15 million in plant upgrades, while decreasing sewer, water and stormwater rates in the process.In 2013, Washougal’s ratepayers will shell out an extra $37 every two months on their stormwater, water and sewer bills.The bump is part of a five-year series of rate increases, which were approved by the city council in 2010.In August, the city signed a $45,335 professional services agreement with Science Applications International Corporation, a Seattle-based consultant, to look into the plan. It was unclear how such an arrangement would affect the city’s 29 public works employees.
Counts from Bonneville Dam are not available on a regular daily basis until April 2. But video counting is under way with a day or two lag time. The count for Saturday was 11 adult spring chinook and 95 steelhead. Total count for the year is 37 chinook.Streamflow on Monday was 222,000 cubic feet per second. Normal flow for the date is about 170,000 cubic feet per second. The river is 44.5 degrees.
EVERETT — Boeing Co. said Monday that U.S. and European regulators have approved its newest and larger version of the 787 passenger jet for commercial flying.The company says that the first Boeing 787-9 is undergoing final preparation before being delivered to Air New Zealand.The new plane is 20 feet longer and able to carry more passengers than the original 787-8. Boeing says the planes, which it calls the Dreamliner, use 20 percent less fuel and produce 20 percent less emissions than other planes of the same size. Boeing reduces weight and fuel burn by using composite materials for about half of the plane, according to the company website.Boeing says 26 customers around the world have ordered 413 787-9 jets.The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the European Aviation Safety Agency certified the 787-9 for commercial service. Boeing said the certification process involved ground and laboratory tests on five planes and more than 1,500 hours of flight testing.Dreamliners were grounded worldwide last year after batteries on two of the planes overheated. The planes were allowed to fly again after regulators approved a fix by Boeing that included encasing the battery cells in steel to contain any fires.
Load More RelatedPosts Calls for 10% gaming tax renewed as report reveals Imperial Pacific tax payments of just US$21,000 in 2019 Imperial Pacific pays remaining US$10.5 million balance on annual license fee Imperial Pacific adds to Board of Directors as regulator looks to impose US$375,000 fine for late license fee payment Hong Kong-listed Imperial Pacific International (IPI) has denied any suggestion that it is struggling to pay its staff wages after a delay in the transfer of funds last week – but opponents of the company’s Saipan integrated resort have wasted no time in seizing the opportunity.IPI issued a statement on Friday in which it promised to meet its financial obligations and asked for patience after it was revealed late last week that the company was experiencing payroll delays. “Imperial Pacific International (CNMI) LLC is issuing this statement to inform all stakeholders that Imperial Pacific has been experiencing transfer issues to fund the company’s payroll for the 17 August 2018 pay-period,” IPI said.“Despite the issue, the company paid over 2,000 of hourly employees on time today, Friday. Salaried employees will be paid within the week.“Imperial Pacific intends to meet our obligations and asks for the community’s continued support, patience and understanding.”However, while IPI made the statement readily available to media, Inside Asian Gaming was also sent the same statement from an undisclosed source with the title, “Casino being built on island of Saipan is failing.” The timing of the email is notable given the upcoming CNMI elections in November.Asked for comment, IPI told IAG it was “sad” to see people using the payroll situation to further their personal agenda, adding that “if this project is to fail, there are thousands of families that will have a negative impact to their livelihoods and no one should want that to happen.”It’s been an eventful week for IPI with Chairman Marco Teng stepping down to pursue other interests less than seven months after taking over the role from Mark Brown.The company also confirmed recently that it won’t make its 31 August deadline for completion of Imperial Pacific Resort, with early 2019 now looming as a more likely reality.
Strong VIP growth sees Okada Manila GGR climb 72% in August Lack of premium mass strategy begs questions of SJM’s Grand Lisboa Palace launch: analysts SKYCITY has also retained the ongoing right to access the VIP and premium gaming facilities at the Darwin casino for its International Business customers for at least two years after completion of the sale.In a further announcement, the two companies – SKYCITY and Delaware North – revealed that they plan to enter into a joint venture to establish an online casino business based out of the Northern Territory should there be any future change in legislation in Australia permitting online gaming activities within the next decade.Inside Asian Gaming understands there is currently a concerted push to have online poker legalized in the near future although online casino games are likely many years away.Commenting on the transaction, SKYCITY CEO Graeme Stephens said the sale was a positive result for the company.“We see both International Business and the online space as future growth areas for us, so we see value in this outcome,’’ he said.“The sale is consistent with our ‘capital lighter’ strategy to sell non-core assets and to allocate capital to assets and businesses which we feel are aligned with our long-term strategic objectives. As always, our top priority is to deliver attractive and sustainable returns for shareholders.“It also allows us to concentrate our Australian activities in Adelaide, which is undergoing an AU$330m expansion, due for completion in late 2020.’’SKYCITY purchased the Darwin-based casino in 2004 from MGM Grand, subsequently adding a new hotel and pool, new bars and restaurants and VIP facilities. The value of the business was impaired by AU$95m in FY17 due to changes in gaming regulations but the property experienced positive earnings growth in FY18 on a like-for-like basis.SKYCITY will continue to own and manage the Darwin casino on a business-as-usual approach while Delaware North obtains the required approvals from the Northern Territory Government. Genting’s Resorts World Las Vegas names five key additions to executive team RelatedPosts SKYCITY Entertainment Group Limited has found a buyer for its Darwin business with US firm Delaware North agreeing to purchase SKYCITY Darwin for AU$188 million.The sale will see Delaware North acquire 100% of SKYCITY Darwin Pty Limited on a cash-free and debt-free basis, although SKYCITY said on Thursday morning that it will retain its adjacent Little Mindil property to be sold separately. Load More
The top 10 most read stories on www.employeebenefits.co.uk between 20 and 26 April 2017 were:Government launches gender pay gap viewing service29% of baby boomers cite work-life balance as top consideration when looking to move jobsFacebook and Microsoft among 2017’s highest-paying UK organisationsBrighton and Hove Albion Football Club staff to receive up to 20% bonusUber is granted right to appeal in UK worker-status caseGovernment delays money purchase annual allowance and pensions advice legislationIris Worldwide and Warner Music shortlisted for health and wellbeing benefits39% are somewhat likely to provide access to a Lifetime Isa in the next five years65% want to see changes to equal pay and discrimination laws after BrexitGovernment consults on employer debt in multi-employer DB pension schemes
EXCLUSIVE: Employee Benefits Live, Europe’s largest two-day event for benefits and reward professionals, is partnering with mental health charity Mind for its 2018 event at ExCeL London on Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 October 2018.The charity will host the event’s first Mental Health Hub, where Mind will offer delegates advice on mental health in the workplace and showcase its new Mental Health at Work Gateway, which is being launched in partnership with The Royal Foundation.Mind currently operates a Workplace Wellbeing programme that aims to help individuals understand and start talking about the costs of neglecting mental wellbeing in the workplace. This includes offering free resources for employers around how to improve both mental wellbeing and employee engagement.Linked to this, Mind also runs its Workplace Wellbeing Index, which is a benchmark of best practice and policies around mental wellbeing at work. This enables employers to celebrate and gain recognition for the good work they are doing in this area.Mind additionally participates in the Time to Change campaign, which it runs alongside the charity Rethink Mental Illness. This aims to change public attitudes and perceptions towards mental health and, to date, more than 800 organisations have signed the Time to Change Employer Pledge.Faye McGuinness, head of workplace wellbeing programmes at Mind, said: “We are really excited to be working in partnership with Employee Benefits Live, and hosting the first ever Mental Health Hub.“With 300,000 people leaving work every year with a mental health condition and the cost of poor mental health at work costing employers £33 billion to £43 billion per year, it is vital that employers understand what measures need to be in place to support the mental health of their staff.“Across the two-day event, delegates will have the opportunity to learn more about what good practice looks like, find out what Mind can offer to support employers and explore our new Mental Health at Work Gateway that is being launched in partnership with The Royal Foundation.”Employee Benefits Live is a two-day event for HR, reward and benefits professionals, featuring an extensive exhibition and a comprehensive multi-stream conference programme. Delegates will be able to gain insight from leading industry experts and specialists as well as network with their peers, colleagues, industry providers and consultants.Employee Benefits Live 2018 will take place on Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 October 2018 at ExCeL London.For more information or to register for the show…
WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) – Tennis superstar Venus Williams attended a deposition in West Palm Beach months after, authorities said, she was involved in a crash that claimed a man’s life.Thursday’s deposition is the latest development in a lawsuit filed against Williams by the family of 78-year-old Jerome Barson.Investigators said Barson was a passenger in the Hyundai Accent that, witnesses told police, was struck by Williams after she ran a red light on June 9.Barson remained in the intensive care unit at St. Mary’s Medical Center until he died, June 22.Barson’s family is blaming Williams for the crash, but Williams told police she did not see the Accent until the two vehicles collided.Police said Williams broke no laws and was not at fault.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.