Connect with us

News

Strike Over Pay Paralyzes Rail, Air Travel In Germany

Published

on

Germany Pay Strike

BERLIN — Trains, aircraft, and public transportation systems were grounded across most of Germany on Monday as labor unions launched a big one-day strike over pay to obtain inflation-busting raises for their members.

The 24-hour strike, one of the country’s largest in decades, also impacted cargo movement by train and ship as workers at the country’s ports and waterways joined the strike.

Many commuters chose to travel to work, generating some traffic delays, while those who could work from home did so.

Unions are seeking a 10.5% pay increase and have rejected employer offers of approximately 5% over two years plus one-time bonuses.

According to Ulrich Silberbach of the Civil Service Federation, high inflation observed everywhere last year affected many workers hard.

“We have seen a drop in real wages, which needs to be balanced,” he told reporters in Berlin, adding that some of his union’s members in major cities must request public assistance to pay their rent.

Silberbach expressed hope that employers will raise their offer in the next discussions or that unions would be forced to consider an open-ended strike.

pay strike

Three days of talks are scheduled between the two sides.

His EVG train union colleague Martin Burkert noted that workers’ salaries are a fraction of some senior executives’ salaries.

However, Deutsche Bahn dismissed the union’s proposals as overblown and warned that millions of commuters would be affected.

“Thousands of companies that normally send or receive goods by rail will also suffer,” said Achim Strauss, a spokesman for Deutsche Bahn. “In the end, the environment and the climate will suffer.” The oil companies are today’s winners.”

He said that train tickets that couldn’t be used because of the disruption would remain valid, and travelers should check the company’s website for updates.

pay strike

The strike caused inconvenience and delays Sunday.

Three days of talks are scheduled between the two sides. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, representing the federal government in the talks, said her side would be “tough but fair and constructive” in the discussions.

Faeser expressed confidence that a satisfactory solution may be found.

Labor strikes are common in Germany, and they usually conclude with a compromise agreement reached between unions and employers.

The strike caused inconvenience and delays Sunday as travelers hurried to reach their destinations early.

strike

SOURCE – (AP)

News

Canada to Expedite the Rejection of Bogus Refugee Claims

Published

on

Canada to Fast-Tracking Refugee Refusals

Canada’s immigration minister, Marc Miller, has announced that he intends to suggest reforms to the nation’s refugee system. These reforms could expedite the rejection of cases with a low likelihood of success.

“I intend to bring up additional initiatives. I intend to reform the system. “It is not working as it should,” Immigration Minister Marc Miller told a parliamentary committee on Monday.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been shifting his government’s friendly posture toward migrants. He promises to limit immigration and Canada’s population over the next two years as his party falls in polls and Canadians express waning support for new arrivals.

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, an independent adjudicator of refugee claims, is receiving claims from “people with increasingly fewer hopes to stay in Canada and being counseled to file, I believe unjustly, asylum claims where they should not be able to do so,” Miller added.

In recent months, Canada has seen an all-time high number of refugee claims. Although the monthly total fell to roughly 17,400 in October from above 20,000 in July, the number of claims pending was the highest ever, at more than 260,000 last month.

Statistics Canada reports that more than 265,000 non-permanent residents arrived in Canada during the second quarter of 2024.

Miller has called into question the legitimacy of thousands of refugee petitions filed by international students.

The reforms would try, in part, to discourage people who planned to utilize their international studies as a gateway to permanent residency in Canada from submitting refugee claims as a last-ditch effort to stay now that new laws have closed that avenue.

According to the Immigration and Refugee Board, 46,736 people have sought asylum in Canada since March of this year. This represents a 62% increase over 2023, with a backlog of 186,000 claimants.

An increase in temporary immigration has been connected to Canada’s housing crisis. In April, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cautioned that the situation needed to be “under control,” claiming that temporary immigration had “grown at a rate far beyond what Canada has been able to absorb.”

Related News:

Canada Records Its First Case on Monkeypox

Canada Records its First Case on Monkeypox

Continue Reading

News

Notorious Serial Killer Paul Bernardo Denied Parole

Published

on

Serial killer Paul Bernardo
Serial killer Paul Bernardo makes third attempt at release before Canada parole board

Paul Bernardo, a notorious serial killer, has been denied parole for the third time during a hearing before the Parole Board of Canada.

The parole board stated that, while Bernardo has made some progress while incarcerated, there is still great worry about his potential for sexual recidivism and narcissistic personality disorder, given the “extremely violent” nature of his crimes.

Paul Bernardo, a dangerous offender, is serving an indeterminate life sentence for the kidnapping, sexual assault, and murder of Kristen French, 15, and Leslie Mahaffy, 14, in the early 1990s near St. Catharines, Ontario.

The 60-year-old told the board that his primary goal was to obtain day parole at a halfway house or, at the very least, escorted absences from jail so that he could attend a community program for sex offenders.

Leslie’s mother, Debbie Mahaffy, arrived in person on behalf of both families. Meanwhile, Kristen’s mother, Donna French, delivered her victim impact statement virtually.

Tim Danson, the families’ lawyer, noted, “Unfortunately, Donna French will be unable to attend the hearing due to PBC’s short notice and last-minute change in position. “She will deliver her victim impact statement virtually.”

Bernardo also killed his sister-in-law, Tammy Homolka. Karla Homolka, his ex-wife, served a 12-year sentence for manslaughter in the French and Mahaffy murders.

Last year, Bernardo’s transfer from a maximum-security prison to a medium-security facility in Quebec sparked widespread outrage.

The victims’ family presented an emotional case against Bernardo’s release, claiming they had been re-traumatized every time his parole hearings came up.

After about 30 minutes of deliberation, the parole board decided at the end of a daylong hearing at the La Macaza Institution in Quebec, where Bernardo is now housed.

About Paul Bernardo

Paul Bernardo is a Canadian serial rapist and murderer. During the 1980s and early 1990s, he committed heinous atrocities alongside his wife, Karla Homolka.

They were jointly responsible for the sexual assault and murder of several young women, including Karla’s sister, Tammy Homolka. Bernardo also became known as the “Scarborough Rapist,” having committed more than a dozen sexual assaults in the Toronto region.

In 1995, he was convicted of many offenses, including first-degree murder and aggravated sexual assault, and sentenced to life. His case is still one of Canada’s most prominent criminal investigations.

 

Continue Reading

News

‘Keep Calm and Gobble On’: Joe Biden Holds Trump’s Final Turkey Pardon.

Published

on

Joe Biden
AFP

(VOR News) – Vice President Joe Biden delivered a message to the American populace during his concluding Thanksgiving turkey pardon ceremony on Monday, encouraging them to “maintain composure and gobble on.”

Prior to Donald Trump’s potential return to the White House, this communication was conveyed.

The 82-year-old U.S. Vice President Joe Biden guaranteed that the birds Peach and Blossom would not be served at the American dinner table over the forthcoming holiday.

Joe Biden has observed this peculiar tradition for a long time.

Vice President Joe Biden, addressing a large audience on the South Lawn of the presidential palace, asserted that Blossom’s mindset was characterized by “no foul play,” while Peach adhered to the principle of “keep calm and gobble on” in a series of remarks. The audience was the intended recipient of these statements.

The two avian creatures “remained composed and continued to gobble, and they are still gobbling” as they journeyed from the Minnesota farm of their origin to Washington, he elaborated. During their relocation from Minnesota to Washington, he made this statement.

Notwithstanding this, the Democrats’ claims that the turkeys indeed emitted gobbling sounds on multiple occasions conveyed a melancholic sentiment as Obama readies to leave the White House on January 20.

Republican Donald Trump is poised to dismantle numerous programs established by Vice President Joe Biden following his victory over Biden’s vice president, Kamala Harris, in the November election.

Uncertainty has emerged in the United States and other nations due to Trump’s pledges to execute extensive deportations, dismantle the federal bureaucracy, and levy substantial tariffs on imports from foreign countries.

Biden remarked, in a more solemn tone, that this would be “my final opportunity to address you as your president during this season.” Biden’s address was intended to conclude on a momentous note. He also stated that it was “my final opportunity to address this audience.”

Following a disastrous televised debate with Trump in July, Biden exited the race, stating, “Let me express that it has been the honor of my life, and I am eternally grateful.” “I am eternally thankful,” he stated in conclusion. Finally, he expressed, “I will be eternally grateful.”

Ruffled feathers

Notwithstanding this, the outgoing president has pledged to refrain from creating any complications during the transition to Donald Trump’s government. This stands in stark contrast to his opponent, who persistently claims, without basis, that his loss to Biden in the 2020 race was due to a fraudulent campaign.

The White House confirmed on Monday that Vice President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will attend the Republican swearing-in ceremony on January 20. This occurred despite President Trump’s absence at the Democrats’ inauguration in 2021.

During a Thanksgiving dinner in New York with Vice President Joe Biden, Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates informed reporters, “He perceives this as a significant affirmation of our democratic principles and a tribute to the people’s will.”

In a press conference, Bates and Joe Biden spoke.

Vice President Joe Biden’s attention will soon transition to the personal pardons customarily issued by the president of the United States before leaving the White House, as the conclusion of his one-year term approaches. This is because these pardons are often granted by the President of the United States.

Vice President Biden quipped to reporters, “I am informed that there are 2,500 individuals present today seeking a pardon.” However, Biden has declared that there is one that he would not bestow upon his son, Hunter Biden, at this moment.

One of the gravest offenses is falsifying drug use, a charge for which the younger Biden was convicted this year in relation to a firearm purchase. Moreover, he has admitted guilt in a second legal proceeding for tax avoidance. Both charges culminated in convictions earlier this year.

The determination of whether Hunter Biden, whose little son Beau participated in the turkey pardoning event, will face any punishment remains unresolved in both instances. This matter remains unresolved.

On Monday, the White House issued a statement indicating it had no further remarks regarding Vice President Biden’s previous comments about his son’s prospects for obtaining a pardon.

SOUREC: NDTV

SEE ALSO:

Factbox – TikTok Decision Approaches as the January 19 Divestment Deadline Approaches

Trump Tells Trudeau to “FIX THE BORDER”

Continue Reading

Trending