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
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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
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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.
OSHA TO REQUIRE NEW LABELS FOR HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS
Today in Manufacturing
Today in Manufacturing
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
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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
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Quick Manufacturing News
Viewpoint:
It's clear that Americans value manufacturing jobs -- just not for their
kids. Click to continue
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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
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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 -
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)
(CNNMoney)
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