Author: Press Room

TAIPEI: Taiwan aims to end its mandatory COVID-19 quarantine for arrivals from around Oct 13 and will ease other restrictions from next week as it continues to reopen to the outside world, the government said on Thursday (Sep 22). Taiwan has kept some of its entry and quarantine rules in place as large parts of the rest of Asia have relaxed or lifted them completely, though in June it cut the number of days required in isolation for arrivals to three from seven previously. Taiwan has reported 6 million domestic cases since the beginning of the year, driven by the…

A new pay equity report from the New York City Council shows “persistent, large pay gaps” in the city’s municipal workforce, particularly among Black, Latino and white employees — a divide that gets worse when comparing men and women workers. Black city employees make just 71 cents on average for every dollar made by their white counterparts, according to the report, which was released Thursday. Latinos make just 75 cents for every dollar and Asian employees make 81 cents.For Black women and Latinas, the gap is even larger, dropping to 69 cents for every dollar made by white male employees. On…

Chronotype describes what time of day people tend to be more active.‘Early birds’ get up promptly and are active in the morning, while ‘night owls’ take longer to get going in the day, but like to stay up late.Recently, research has suggested that chronotype may have an impact on health.Now, a study has found that ‘night owls’ may have a greater risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease than early birds.Some of us leap out of bed eager to get on with the day; for others, emerging from under the covers is left until the last possible minute—often because…

A JetBlue passenger jet (Embraer 190) taxis at LaGuardia Airport in New York, New York.Robert Alexander | Archive Photos | Getty ImagesA major airline union said Friday that it has enough support among JetBlue Airways’ roughly 3,000 fleet service staff to seek a unionization vote, in the latest move to organize workers.The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers said it will file an application for a union vote with the National Mediation Board. The work group includes baggage handlers and other ground operations employees.A vote in favor could create the third-largest unionized work group at the New York-based airline. JetBlue’s…

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai gestures during a session at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, on January 22, 2020.Fabrice COFFRINI | AFP | Getty ImagesAs Google tries to navigate an unfamiliar environment of slowing growth, cost-cutting and employee dissent over cultural changes, CEO Sundar Pichai is finding himself on the defensive.At a companywide all-hands meeting this week, Pichai was faced with tough questions from employees related to cuts to travel and entertainment budgets, managing productivity, and potential layoffs, according to audio obtained by CNBC.Pichai was asked, in a question that was highly rated by staffers on Google’s…

CNN  —  President Joe Biden on Friday criticized Republicans and House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy’s proposed midterm agenda, describing the plan as a “thin series of policy goals” in his latest campaign speech. Biden’s speech is part of a broader, ramped up effort by the President and the Democratic Party to capitalize on recent political wins and illustrate their differences with Republicans ahead of the November midterm elections. The President’s remarks came within hours of McCarthy’s event in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, where he unveiled the House GOP platform, dubbed the “Commitment to America.” “House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy went…

New South Wales Opposition Leader Chris Minns has sacked Bankstown MP Tania Mihailuk for failing to fall into line with his conditions on raising information about potential illegal conduct under parliamentary privilege.Ms Mihailuk on Tuesday night used parliamentary privilege to allege Canterbury-Bankstown Mayor Kahl Asfour was “tainted” and in cahoots with corrupt former minister Eddie Obeid.The NSW Labor leader told 2GB host Ben Fordham he had told Ms Mihailuk if she refused to follow the guidelines she would be sacked.“I’ve spoken to Tania Mihailuk and Kahl Asfour the Mayor of Bankstown, it’s really important to note that he’s rejected these…

U.S. health officials say 4.4 million Americans have rolled up their sleeves for the updated COVID-19 booster shot. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted the count Thursday as public health experts bemoaned President Joe Biden’s recent remark that “the pandemic is over.”The White House said more than 5 million people received the new boosters by its own estimate that accounts for reporting lags in states.Health experts said it is too early to predict whether demand would match up with the 171 million doses of the new boosters the U.S. ordered for the fall.“No one would go looking at our flu…

 Timothy Massad, former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and a current research fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, argued that regulatory progress on stablecoins can be made immediately by utilizing the current laws.Guesting on Bloomberg’s Odd Lots podcast, Massad discussed a stablecoin proposal he co-authored with two law professors, Howell Jackson and Dan Awrey, stating that they are “not sure [legislation] will happen,” and if it does, there is a question of how comprehensive it would be. “So what we’re saying is financial regulators today have the authorities they need to create a framework to try to…

Kim Kardashian is back in bodycon minis. After several months of favoring loose-fitted track pants and jeans (as part of her ongoing affinity for Balenciaga), she seems to be changing things up in Milan for fashion week. The Skims founder recently wore a familiar, dare we even say nostalgic, fit while out and about in Milan today: a white bodycon dress. She completed the look with a Marilyn Monroe-esque blond coif and a fuzzy coat worn half-on. It’s half JFK’s birthday party, half clubbing with Paris Hilton in 2007. The look comes courtesy of Dolce & Gabbana, who also featured Kardashian on…