Author: Press Room

David Wagner had a rough start to the year. The medical equipment technician says he was fired on his first day back from the holidays. Under his non-compete agreement, 12 months would have to go by before he could work in his field again.Time is precious for near-sexagenarian Wagner, who is concerned companies may prefer younger candidates. “They’re looking at a guy at 59 [saying]: ‘Oh, this guy, we don’t want to hire him because he’s gonna retire soon,’” he said.The US Federal Trade Commission now aims to ban all such non-compete clauses in a move that has inflamed industry…

European stocks rallied on Thursday morning after German inflation came in lower than expected.The benchmark Stoxx 600 rose 0.8 per cent and Germany’s Dax climbed 1.3 per cent. Inflation in the eurozone’s largest economy in January showed a 9.2 per cent rise year on year, which was below economists’ expectations.The French Cac 40 index gained 1 per cent while the euro was up 0.4 per cent against the dollar.The yields on 10-year Bunds fell 0.05 per cent to 2.31 per cent, while those on two-year contracts eased 0.04 per cent to 2.68 per cent.Market watchers said investors had become somewhat…

Eva Simpson is shocked by the level of violence against a girl in an attack outside a school and the fact it took so long for anyone to interveneI was taking my son to school when I heard a ping on my phone. I had been sent a video by a friend showing a black schoolgirl being viciously beaten up by a violent gang of girls who took it in turns to punch, kick and tear out her hair. The attack happened outside Thomas Knyvett College, a secondary school in Ashford, Surrey, in the middle of the day. I watched…

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Among the long-standing by-products of team success in the NFL is assistant coaches becoming hot commodities for the various head-coaching openings. Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy has been the supposed next-man-up for a head-coaching job for the past few seasons with the sustained offensive success in Kansas City under Andy Reid. Steve Spagnuolo, the Chiefs’ defensive coordinator since 2019? Not so much. “Spags,’’ as he’s affectionately known by coaching colleagues and players, curiously has slipped through the cracks in this head-coach interview process despite the fact his Kansas City defenses have been quite representative during the team’s…

NEW YORK — A shooting outside a New York City high school Wednesday injured two students and a school security guard, city police said.Gunfire erupted outside Williamsburg Charter High School in Brooklyn at about 2 p.m. around dismissal time during a large fight, authorities said.Police said the three victims’ injuries were not life-threatening. Two students — a 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy — were both shot in their legs and the 37-year-old security guard suffered a bullet graze wound to his neck, officials said. All three were taken local hospitals.No arrests have been announced. Police said it was not…

When global leaders gathered at the annual World Economic Forum conclave in Davos last month, they were looking at a bleak economic scenario. Two-thirds of the economists polled by the WEF for its Chief Economists Outlook report said a global recession – a shrinking of the world’s gross domestic product – was likely in 2023. Also in January, the World Bank warned the global economy was “perilously close to falling into recession”. Since then, the International Monetary Fund in its end-January assessment has presented a less pessimistic forecast, suggesting that the global economy might avoid contraction this year. Still, the…

Ukrainian military vehicles drive along a road outside of the strategic city of Bakhmut on January 18, 2023 in Bakhmut, Ukraine. Russia has stepped up its offensive in the Donetsk region in the new year, with the region’s Kyiv-appointed governor accusing Russia of using scorched-earth tactics.Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesUkraine could soon face a tough decision over tactically withdrawing from Bakhmut in the eastern Donetsk region, as the fate of the city hangs in balance.Bakhmut has been intensely fought over by Russian and Ukrainian forces for months, with Moscow viewing its capture as a strategic goal…

A by-election in the federal seat of Aston will put pressure on former prime minister Scott Morrison to resign, says Sky News Chief News Anchor Kieran Gilbert. “I do think it’s going to put a bit of heat on Scott Morrison to make up his mind to what he’s going to do here,” he said. Source: Sky News

Interest in President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address dwindled Tuesday night as the annual event pulled the second-smallest audience in at least 30 years, according to a Wednesday report by the Nielsen company.The report said an estimated 27.3 million people tuned into a television network for the president’s address, which was down nearly 28% from the 38.2 million who watched last year.Since 1993, the only audience smaller than Tuesday nights was recorded in 2021 when 26.9 million people watched Biden address Congress on April 28. The speech, was delivered unusually late due to precautions associated with the coronavirus pandemic,…

Kyrie Irving got two wins for the price of one in his Mavericks debut on Wednesday night. First, Irving led the Mavericks, who never trailed, with 24 points in beating the Clippers 110-104 in Los Angeles. Then to top his night off, he saw Kevin Durant, his former Nets teammate, get traded to the Suns. “It felt good to get this debut out of the way,” Irving said. “It’s just been a long 96 hours, barely any sleep sometimes. It’s the first time I ever got traded in the middle of the season, so it was new for me, but…