Tuesday, March 20, 2012

March 20, 2012


MARCH 20, 2012


Quick Manufacturing News
While many employers want to reward workers for safe behavior, there's a thin line between appropriate recognition and providing a disincentive to employees for reporting injuries. Companies that cross that line could be violating the law, according to a new memo sent to OSHA regional administrators and whistleblower program managers from Deputy Assistant Secretary Richard Fairfax. Click to continue


Quick Manufacturing News
February monthly data report states that the number of waterborne shipments coming into the U.S. experienced a 20% month-over-month decline from January to February. Also the number of global manufacturers shipping to the U.S. also went down — 12% — from January to February. Click to continue

Challenge to EPA’s Gas Rules.
FLAG Weekly Communications- NAM
The American Petroleum Institute is challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) mandate that requires gasoline to use a certain amount of cellulosic biofuel. The problem is there’s no cellulosic biofuel to blend in the gas.
“EPA’s standard is divorced from reality and forces refiners to purchase credits for cellulosic fuels that do not exist,” said API Director of Downstream and Industry Operations Bob Greco. “EPA’s unrealistic mandate is effectively a tax on manufacturers of gasoline that could ultimately burden consumers.”
The Clean Air Act requires EPA to determine the mandated volume of cellulosic biofuels each year at “the projected volume available.” EPA’s 2012 rule requires that refiners and importers of gasoline and diesel must use 8.65 million gallons of cellulosic biofuels despite a complete lack of commercial supply of the fuel.

The government says that by making labels conform with UN-developed guidelines, more than 40 deaths and 500 workplace injuries each year could be prevented ...   continue
ni � a �� Ȼ� altered dramatically by the election.
The current betting odds say that President Obama will be re-elected in November, with Republicans controlling both the House and the Senate. Does anyone think a mix like that will be less contentious than the one we have now? And does anyone think that Republicans, seeing control of both houses of Congress on the horizon, will be more compromising in the lame duck than they have been in the recent past?
In sum, while we probably will not fall off the fiscal cliff in January 2013, there are ample opportunities for stumbles and slips between now and then. So wouldn't it be nice if the two parties engaged on this issue prior to Election Day?
Mr. Blinder, a professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University, is a former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve.
Note: “The result of all this can kicking is that Congress must make all those decisions by January 2013—or defer them yet again. If the House and Senate don't act in time, a list of things will happen that are anathema either to Republicans or Democrats or both. The Bush tax cuts will expire. The temporary payroll tax cut will end. Unemployment benefits will be severely curtailed. And all on Jan. 1, 2013. Happy New Year!  Fast forward to December 2012. The lame duck Congress will have on its plate all the issues it had to deal with in the December 2010, August 2011, December 2011, and February 2012 budget battles, plus the automatic cuts mandated by the failure of the super committee, plus the legacy of whatever claims and promises are made during the campaign. We may also be bumping up against the national debt ceiling again. And who will have to sort it all out? A Congress whose days are numbered and whose complexion may have been altered dramatically by the election.”

American Superconductor Corp. lost 84% of its value after its largest customer, Chinese wind-energy giant Sinovel, started stealing, rather than buying, its turbine-control software. Experts say that's par for the course in China, where corporate espionage and other underhanded tactics are simply part of doing business. "I used to be a Sinophile," said AMSC chief executive officer Daniel McGahn. "I don’t know what I am now." Bloomberg Businessweek


Quick Manufacturing News
As its economy slows, China looks to Six Sigma and other quality efforts to mitigate potential weaknesses. Click to continue


Quick Manufacturing News
By creating a market for employees to evaluate and purchase individual health insurance, these exchanges could once and for all take employers out of the healthcare business. Click to continue


Quick Manufacturing News
Viewpoint: It's clear that Americans value manufacturing jobs -- just not for their kids. Click to continue


Quick Manufacturing News
In a strongly worded speech, Gary Locke called for fairness in U.S.-Sino economic ties, reiterating criticism of Beijing's exchange-rate policy, which Washington says makes the value of the yuan currency artificially low. Click to continue

SEMINAR -- KEY UTAH EMPLOYMENT RULES
Ogden - Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Salt Lake City - Thursday, March 29, 2012

Utah is generally perceived to be an employer-friendly state.  Thus, many businesses wrongly assume that there are no state-specific laws governing their employment practices.  Do not fall victim to that incorrect assumption!  Join the Council’s legal staff – Monica Whalen, Summer Morgenstern, and Bob Coursey – as they address key Utah rules, including:
  • Rules to care about all the time, such as Utah’s Antidiscrimination Act, Municipal Nondiscrimination Ordinances, and Right to Work Law
  • Rules to focus on at the beginning of the employment relationship, such as Utah’s Employee Reference Immunity Law, Poster Requirements, and Private Employer E-Verify Law
  • Rules to focus on throughout the employment relationship, such as Utah’s Payment of Wage Act, Drug & Alcohol Testing Law, and Weapons in the Parking Lot Law
  • Rules to focus on near the end of the employment relationship, such as Utah’s At-will Employment Rules and Final Paycheck Law
Attendees will receive a comprehensive manual covering these Utah employment rules and more with easy-to-read summaries, links, and employer tips.
Dates and Locations
  • Ogden - Tuesday, March 27th -- Comfort Suites  -- 2250 S 1200 W, Ogden
  • Salt Lake City - Thursday, March 29th -- Red Lion Hotel -- 161 W 600 S, SLC
Time -- Seminar:  8:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon (registration & breakfast buffet:  7:30 to 8:00 a.m.) 
Cost -- $129 per Council member; $209 per non-member (includes full breakfast buffet and materials) 

Call the Council or reply to this email with registration information or questions.  You can download the registration form at http://ecutah.org/2012springutrules.pdf.  Full refund or credit will be given if cancellation is received one week prior to meeting.

Certification:  This program is approved for 3.5 general recertification hours toward PHR, SPHR, and GPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute.

STATES TO MANUFACTURERS: WE WANT YOU ASAP!
EDCUtah -
In Utah, 21 manufacturers, ranging from food and medical device makers to aerospace parts makers, have expanded or relocated to the state in 2011. Utah's selling point: "Utah has the second youngest labor force in the country," said Jeff Edwards, president of Utah's Economic Development Corporation.
(CNNMoney)



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