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PSAC says strike will begin Wednesday if no deal reached with federal government

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

The country’s largest federal public service union says if a deal isn’t reached with the federal government by 9 p.m. eastern time on Tuesday, it will strike this Wednesday.The Public Service Alliance of Canada says some 155,000 employees are prepared to walk off the job, including 35,000 workers from the Canada Revenue Agency.Mediated contract negotiations between the union and the Treasury Board continued over the weekend in what the union described as the government’s final chance to reach a deal.The biggest sticking point in the talks appears to be pay increases, as the union is calling for raises to keep up with the rising cost of living and historic inflation.The government offered a roughly two per cent average wage increase each year over a five-year period, while the union has pushed for annual raises of 4.5 per cent.The union also wants to put greater limits on contract work, more anti-racism training and provisions for remote work on the table.

Clinton optimistic Northern Ireland govt will be revived

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) — Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said Tuesday he was optimistic that one of Northern Ireland’s main political parties would soon end a boycott that has kept the regional government on ice for more than a year. Clinton said he had met with Democratic Unionist Party leader Jeffrey Donaldson on Monday, and “I left that meeting more optimistic than I entered it.”Clinton is in Belfast this week to mark 25 years since the Good Friday Agreement ended decades of sectarian bloodshed. The deal established a Northern Ireland government with power shared between British unionist and Irish nationalist parties.The DUP walked out more than a year ago to protest post-Brexit trade rules that imposed a customs border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the U.K. It has refused to return, despite a deal reached by the U.K. and the EU in February to remove many of the border checks.Clinton said the deal, known as the Windsor Framework, had gone a long way to resol...

Scottish National Party treasurer arrested in finance probe

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

LONDON (AP) — The treasurer of the Scottish National Party was arrested Tuesday, police said, in a party finance probe that previously saw its executive director — the husband of former Scottish first minister and party leader Nicola Sturgeon — taken into custody.Colin Beattie, 71, was arrested two weeks after the SNP’s former former longtime executive, Peter Murrell, was questioned for nearly 11 hours before being released without charges.Police at the time said the investigation would continue and officers returned to Murrell and Sturgeon’s house in Glasgow the following day to continue their search for evidence.Scottish police have been investigating how 600,000 pounds ($745,000) designated for a Scottish independence campaign was spent. The arrests followed Strurgeon’s abrupt resignation earlier this year after eight years as party leader and first minister of Scotland’s semi-autonomous government. She said that it was the right time for her, her party and her ...

Syria, Tunisia reestablish diplomatic relations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Syria’s chief diplomat is on a three-day official visit to Tunisia meant to restore diplomatic relations that have been cut off since 2012 during the civil war that followed President Bashar Assad’s brutal crackdown on mass protests against his rule. Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mikdad had a meeting with Tunisian counterpart Nabil Ammar shortly after his arrival on Monday evening. No details were disclosed about the talks and Mikdad’s schedule for Tuesday or Wednesday.The visit is meant to help restore bilateral relations, the Tunisian Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.The move is a glaring example of how things have changed in the region over the past decade: Tunisia was the birthplace of the Arab Spring pro-democracy movements that spread as far as Syria in 2011, and was long among Assad’s strongest critics. But today, Tunisia’s leadership is swinging back toward authoritarianism, and is allying anew with Assad’s Syria.Earlier this month, Tu...

UN says leaving Afghanistan would be ‘heartbreaking’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations is ready to take the “heartbreaking” decision to pull out of Afghanistan in May if it can’t persuade the Taliban to let local women work for the organization, the head of the U.N. Development Program said.U.N. officials are negotiating with the Islamist government in the hope that it will make exceptions to an edict this month barring local women from working for the organization, UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner told The Associated Press.“It is fair to say that where we are right now is the entire United Nations system having to take a step back and reevaluating its ability to operate there,” Steiner said. “But it’s not about negotiating fundamental principles, human rights.” The Taliban have allowed Afghan women to engage in some work, Steiner said, and a U.N. report released Tuesday shows that the country desperately needs more women working, with its economy flailing.The Taliban takeover has been accompanied by some very modest sign...

Stock market today: Shares mixed following China growth data

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Global shares were mixed Tuesday as pessimism over economic and political uncertainties remained even as China reported better-than-expected growth data.France’s CAC 40 added 0.3% in early trading to 7,517.90. Germany’s DAX rose nearly 0.1% to 15,804.68. Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.2% to 7,897.45. U.S. shares were set to drift higher with Dow futures up almost 0.1% at 34,160.00. S&P 500 futures rose 0.1% to 4,181.75. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.5% to finish at 28,658.83. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.3% to 7,360.20. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.2% to 2,571.09. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.6% to 20,650.51, while the Shanghai Composite rose 0.2% to 3,393.33. Oil prices fell.Traders have been focused on data out of China as the region’s chief engine for growth, and trading was muted until the release of its gross domestic product figures. China’s 2023 growth target is 5%. China’s first-quarter GDP, which measures the value of ...

Lebanon’s parliament votes to postpone municipal elections

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s parliament on Tuesday postponed municipal elections for up to a year for a second time amid concerns the government would not be able to secure the needed funding in time for the polling.The delay comes as Lebanon’s economy and infrastructure continue to crumble, with legislators in the deeply divided parliament unable to reach a settlement to end a presidential vacuum for almost six months. Lebanon has also been without a fully functioning government for nearly a year as Prime Minister Najib Mikati is heading a caretaker Cabinet with limited functions. The country has also been in a severe economic crisis since late 2019, with three-quarters of the population now living in poverty.Lebanon’s municipality elections were originally slated for May 2022 but were postponed for a year because they coincided with parliamentary elections, which brought in a dozen reformist lawmakers running on anti-establishment platforms.Earlier this month, caretaker Interior Minist...

Gun buyback day April 29 in Kingston

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

KINGSTON, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A gun buyback day will be held on Saturday, April 29, at the American Legion Post at 18 West O'Reilly Street in Kingston, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event is hosted by New York Attorney General Letitia James, the Kingston Police Department, and the Ulster County Sheriff's Office. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) will accept working and non-working unloaded firearms for compensation on site, no questions asked. The OAG will provide money in the form of prepaid gift cards when a gun is received and secured by law enforcement officers on site, according to the OAG. There is no limit to the number of firearms someone can turn in. The guns must be unloaded and placed in a bag or box. This is an amnesty program, meaning no questions will be asked about the person dropping off the gun. Schenectady County hosting free E-Waste event Compensation rate:$500 per ass...

Schenectady County hosting free E-Waste event

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Schenectady County will host a free electronics recycling event for residents on Saturday, April 29, at SUNY Schenectady from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Registration is required. Residents looking to attend can register online or by calling (518) 388-4775. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The e-waste event will look to keep waste out of landfills and harmful metals and chemicals from leeching into the environment, according to Schenectady County. Items will be cleaned and sorted, some being reused if possible. Accepted items will include:MonitorsMP3 PlayersNetworking gearPhone systems/Cell phonesPower suppliesPrinters/plotters (ink, toner, cartridges)Routers & switchesStereo equipmentStorage devices (external hard drives, SD/memory cards, etc.)TabletsTelevisions (all sizes/types)Video and audio equipmentBatteriesCables/IT accessoriesCamerasCDs and DVDsComputers and computer accessories (mice, keyboa...

Play of the Week winner - Shenendehowa's Mason Carroll

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:18 GMT

CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Congratulations to this week’s winner of our Play of the Week poll, Shenendehowa's Mason Carroll! Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Carroll tallied a slick behind the back goal in the Shenendehowa boys lacrosse team's loss to Niskayuna. Vote here for this week’s Play of the Week poll!