U.S. Treasury disputes finding that new IRS funding would increase middle-class taxes



Fri, August 19, 2022 
By David Lawder

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As a political messaging war rages over $80 billion in new Internal Revenue Service funding, a U.S. Treasury official is pushing back on an informal estimate that the money could cause Americans earning less than $400,000 to pay as much as $20 billion more in taxes over a decade.

Republicans have seized on the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimate, claiming Democratic President Joe Biden's recently enacted, sweeping tax, drugs and climate law would break his pledge not to increase taxes on middle-class Americans.

Republicans are also claiming the funding will unleash an 87,000-strong "army" of new IRS agents on American households, despite the Treasury's plans to focus the bulk of IRS hiring on offsetting a wave of retirements and improving customer service and information technology.

When the bill, formally known as the Inflation Reduction Act, was being debated in the Senate, Republican Senator Mike Crapo introduced an amendment to prohibit any use of funds to audit Americans with taxable incomes below $400,000.

Responding to a request from Crapo, the CBO found that the proposed amendment would reduce revenues by $20 billion over a decade if it was enacted, his office said. A spokesperson for the CBO confirmed the figure.

The amendment was rejected on a party-line vote.

Asked about the claims about middle-class taxes, Natasha Sarin, Treasury Department counselor for tax policy and administration, told Reuters this week that the CBO estimate assumed a threshold of $400,000 in reported taxable income before any audits, which would exclude the middle class.

Sarin said those making $400,000 and up include far wealthier people who have hidden their incomes to lower taxable incomes below $400,000, sometimes even to zero -- the very people the Treasury is seeking to target for audits.

A significant portion of the $20 billion estimated by CBO would be recouped from wealthier people who are under-reporting their income, she said.

"People are trying to look like they are under $400,000 when actually they are well above it," said Sarin, who as a University of Pennsylvania law professor did influential research https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w26475/w26475.pdf on policing tax evasion with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers.

The CBO has not issued a final cost estimate for the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes the IRS funds along with massive new spending on clean energy and healthcare.

Sarin said the $80 billion in funding to improve enforcement, information technology and taxpayer services would actually spare more middle-class taxpayers reliant on wage income from being targeted with audits. New, modern computer systems would be better able to use data analytics and other tools to more precisely target wealthier Americans for audits, she said.

(Reporting by David Lawder; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Walmart expands abortion coverage for U.S. employees

Fri, August 19, 2022 

Employees sort shelving for food products as they prepare for the opening of a Walmart Super Center in Compton, California

(Reuters) -Walmart Inc, the largest private employer in the United States, is expanding abortion and travel coverage for employees, about two months after the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that legalized the procedure nationwide.

In a Friday memo to its 1.6 million U.S. employees that was seen by Reuters, the retailer said its self-insured healthcare plans will now cover abortion "when there is a health risk to the mother, rape or incest, ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage or lack of fetal viability."

Company employees and their family members will also have their travel costs paid for, if they cannot access a covered legal abortion within 100 miles of their location, according to the memo.

A host of other companies including JPMorgan Chase & Co, Amazon.com Inc and Walt Disney Co have also expanded their insurance policies to offer travel benefits to U.S. employees who may need to access out-of-state abortion services.

(Reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni)

Crypto exchange FTX ordered to halt 'false and misleading' claims by U.S. bank regulator

By Pete Schroeder and Hannah Lang - Yesterday 

© Reuters/DADO RUVICFILE PHOTO: Illustration shows representations of cryptocurrencies

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A U.S. bank regulator ordered crypto exchange FTX on Friday to halt what it called "false and misleading" claims the exchange had made about whether funds at the company are insured by the government.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said a July tweet by Brett Harrison, head of FTX's U.S. operations, contained misleading claims that funds held at and stocks purchased through FTX were FDIC insured, and ordered the company to remove any misleading language from its social media accounts and websites.

Related video: What Happens If a Crypto Platform Goes Bankrupt?

Duration 6:10   View on Watch

In the tweet, which Harrison has since deleted, he stated that direct deposits from employers to the crypto exchange are “stored in individually FDIC-insured bank accounts” and that stocks purchased via FTX US “are held in FDIC-insured” brokerage accounts. The FDIC said in its cease and desist letter to FTX US that those statements implied that FDIC insurance was available for cryptocurrency and stock holdings, and that the agency does not insure brokerage accounts.

In a tweet on Friday, FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried emphasized FTX is not FDIC-insured, and apologized if anyone misinterpreted previous comments.

The order, one of five sent to crypto firms by the FDIC on Friday, comes as regulators have ramped up efforts to police crypto firms that may be misleading investors on whether their funds enjoy a government backstop. The issue has come to a head of late, as turmoil in the crypto market has led to stress and the collapse of some high profile firms.

The bank regulator issued a similar cease and desist letter to bankrupt crypto firm Voyager Digital , arguing that the company had misled customers by claiming their funds with Voyager would be covered by the FDIC. Later, the FDIC issued an advisory urging banks dealing with crypto companies to ensure that customers are aware of what types of assets are government-insured, particularly in cases where firms offer a mix of uninsured crypto products alongside insured bank deposit products.

(Reporting by Pete Schroeder and Hannah LangEditing by Tomasz Janowski)

BlackRock warns Wall Street watchdog new ESG rule could harm investors

By Katanga Johnson - Yesterday 

© Reuters/CARLO ALLEGRI

The BlackRock logo is pictured in New York City

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The world's largest asset manager BlackRock Inc. warned the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) this week that its proposed rules aimed at fighting "greenwashing" by fund managers will confuse investors.

BlackRock made the claims in a letter filed this week in response to a SEC May proposal to stamp out unfounded claims by funds about their environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) credentials. The rules also aim to create more standardization around ESG disclosures.

Regulators and activists have become concerned that U.S. funds looking to cash in on the popularity of ESG investing may be misleading shareholders over their ESG credentials.

While BlackRock acknowledged the need to boost oversight, it questioned the SEC's demand for more details on how funds should categorize strategies and describe their ESG impact, arguing such details could mislead investors about how much ESG really matters when managers pick stocks and bonds.

"The proposed requirements would increase the potential for greenwashing and lead to investor confusion," BlackRock wrote in its letter.

"The granular nature of requirements will inevitably lead to the disclosure of proprietary information about these strategies, reducing the competitive advantage of those unique insights."

Also at issue is how the SEC's proposal outlines how ESG funds should be marketed and how investment advisors should disclose their reasoning when labeling a fund.

While SEC Chair Gary Gensler said in a May statement the measures respond to growing investor demand for such details, industry groups warn the agency's aim to standardize ESG labels could reduce investor choice.

The Managed Funds Association said it also supported the SEC’s goal to promote better disclosure, but with concerns.

"Requiring an adviser to provide extensive disclosures concerning how it integrates ESG factors—no matter how incidental the consideration may be...—will result in undue emphasis on an otherwise immaterial strategy," the group said.

(Reporting by Katanga Johnson in Washington; Editing by Michelle Price and Josie Kao)

As Iraqi protesters rally, political deadlock leaves families without cash
By Amina Ismail




A supporter of Iraqi populist leader Moqtada al-Sadr attends the mass Friday prayer outside the parliament near the Green Zone, in Baghdad, Iraq August 19, 2022. 

REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani

Summary
Support for hundreds of thousands of families at stake
Political deadlock has lasted 10 months since election
Amid protests, some efforts at dialogue

BAGHDAD, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Sabreen Khalil lost her husband to COVID last year, leaving her to raise seven children alone, but Iraqi government funding to help her and hundreds of thousands of families in poverty is blocked by political stalemate.

With politicians deadlocked over forming a new government since an election in October, rival Shi'ite Muslim factions in Baghdad on Friday continued their weeks-long protests which have prevented parliament from meeting.

The standoff has raised fears of renewed unrest in a country where militias wield significant power and is already taking a toll on the most vulnerable.

"I am a woman and all of a sudden I had to take the responsibility of seven children alone...it broke my back," Khalil said, speaking of the impact of her husband's death.

Sitting on the floor in her one-bedroom brick house in the village of Saada on the outskirts of Baghdad, she said she cannot afford treatment for her chronic illness and that her children have to skip some meals as food prices soar.

Nine months after applying for a government pension, she has received nothing from the ministry of labour and social affairs. "Every time we go they tell us 'We are waiting for a budget'," she said.

An official at the ministry said Khalil qualifies for support but confirmed there is no funding to provide it. "Our hands are tied because there is no budget," the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters.

Her family is one of about 370,000 families who qualify for the pension but are not receiving it because of the political deadlock, the official said.

ATTEMPT AT DIALOGUE

Iraq's 10-month standoff since the election is the longest stretch without a fully functioning government in the nearly two decades since Saddam Hussein was overthrown in a U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Rival Shi'ite groups want to see a new government formed, but disagree on the steps to achieve it.

Supporters of the powerful Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who fought U.S. occupation forces before emerging as the main opponent of Iran-backed Shi'ite militias and their political leaders, has demanded fresh elections.

Sadr was the biggest winner of last year's election but was unable to form a government along with Kurdish and Sunni Muslim Arab parties, excluding his Iran-backed Shi'ite rivals.

Those rivals, known collectively as the Coordination Framework, say an election can only take place after a government is formed to lead a transition period during which legislation including a new election law should be passed.

"There is consensus over dissolving parliament and holding early elections, the issue is with the mechanism," a source in the caretaker government said, adding that talks were ongoing.

On Wednesday, caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhimi met political leaders and called on Sadr's supporters to join a national dialogue. He also called on all sides to suspend any political escalation.

Sadr did not attend the meeting, and his supporters have shown little public enthusiasm for the initiative.

"These dialogues do not serve the interest of the country... They serve your interests and your parties' interests and to keep you in power," an imam told hundreds of Sadr's followers who gathered to protest outside parliament on Friday.

Some carried portraits of Sadr and his late father, also a prominent cleric, as well as Iraqi flags.

Dozens of supporters of the Coordination Framework also protested outside the heavily protected Green Zone.

Hamdi Malik, an associate fellow at the Washington Institute and a specialist on Iraq's Shi'ite militias, said that despite some efforts to bridge the differences there appeared to be little prospect of swift results.

"The division is so wide that I can't see any solution and the possibility of clashes is actually increasing," Malik said.

Parliament did pass an emergency bill in June allocating billions of dollars to buy wheat, rice and gas and to pay salaries, but other government business has stalled.

A prominent Iraqi rights activist said the political factions were all responsible for the deadlock and ordinary Iraqis were paying the price.

"Anger is rising up among the people. Economic conditions have worsened and unemployment is on the rise," said Hanaa Edwar. Leaders are "holding dialogues to redistribute the spoils amongst politicians", she said.

Khalil meanwhile is still waiting in Saada, which means "happiness" in Arabic, for the government to come to her aid. She said the political process was not working.

"They say it's wrong if we don't vote," she said. "But elections didn't change anything."

Additional reporting by Maher Nazih in Baghdad; Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by Nick Macfie

Fires around major river torch wetlands, human health in Argentina
By Miguel Lo Bianco and Claudia Martini



Trucks drive by the route 174 amid the smoke produced by the fire that continues to consume trees and pastures in a wetland near the city of Victoria, Entre Rios, Argentina August 18, 2022. REUTERS/Marcelo Manera 

ROSARIO, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Grassland fires near a key South American river delta pose grave dangers to nearby wetland ecosystems and human health, according to environmental leaders, just a year after the water level of the once mighty Parana River dropped to a decades low.

The wildfires around the major riverside port of Rosario, crucial to transporting Argentina's massive grains harvest, have triggered alarm bells among ordinary residents as well as activists already concerned with prolonged drought worsened by this year's scarce rainfall and underscoring the consequences of a warmer, drier climate.

"The combined effect just makes it worse," said Enrique Viale, one of Argentina's leading environmental lawyers.

The Parana River, South America's second-longest waterway after the Amazon, saw its water level last year shrivel to its shallowest since 1944, according to official data, due to several drought cycles plus less rainfall in upstream Brazil. Its level remains very low.

A billowing haze caused by the wildfires, many set by farmers prepping the land for new crops, reached Buenos Aires, about 190 miles (300 km) south of Rosario, earlier in the week. The soot in the air provoked the ire of residents, with popular weather apps issuing forecasts that simply called for "smoke."

Earlier this month, thousands took to the streets of Rosario to protest the fires, demanding enforcement of laws that forbid them.

"Plant life around the river delta is terribly damaged," said Roberto Rojas, the local director of emergency services.

He noted that some 28,000 hectares had already been torched prior the most recent fires, while total land lost to the flames has reached as high as 500,000 hectares in recent years.

"With the climate like it is, so much wind and no rain, we can only wait to see how this story ends," added Rojas.

Reporting by Miguel Lo Bianco and Claudia Martini; Writing by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Richard Chang

Fear for future after mass die-off of fish in Poland's Oder river

By Agnieszka Pikulicka-Wilczewska
and Kuba Stezycki




WIDUCHOWA, Poland, Aug 20 (Reuters) - As thousands of dead fish neared the banks of the Oder River in the village of Widuchowa in western Poland on Aug. 11, local people realised an ecological disaster that started in late July in the country's south-west was heading towards the Baltic Sea.

As Widuchowa's residents searched for tools to remove the lifeless bodies from the the river, the government began crisis response that many scientists say came too late.

"It's been the hardest five days of my life," said Pawel Wrobel, the mayor of Widuchowa, which is around 400 kilometres (250 miles) from the town where dead fish had first been spotted. "I'd never imagined experiencing such a catastrophe, it is something you see in disaster movies."

With the help of the local community, he gathered dozens of pitchforks, used to lift potatoes, to remove dead fish from the river, which marks part of the Polish-German border.

"We don't know how to do it and what tools to use, we learn from our mistakes," Wrobel said.

On Aug. 12, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki fired the head of Poland's national water management authority and the head of the general environmental inspectorate, saying that their institutions should have reacted earlier. read more

Despite numerous tests of fish and water samples conducted by Polish and foreign laboratories, and a 1-million-zloty ($211,775) reward for information on the source of contamination, it is still unclear what poisoned the Oder, Poland's second largest river.

"We are focused on, on the one hand, stopping what is happening, and on the other hand, finding the reason for this situation," said climate ministry spokesman Aleksander Brzozka.

Researchers in Germany and Poland's climate ministry have pointed to a large overgrowth of toxic algae as a possible cause for the mass die-off. read more

"The most likely hypothesis is that it was a combination of various natural factors," said Brzozka.

'SOMETHING IS WRONG'

Local people told Reuters that firefighters and territorial defence forces deployed by the government to remove tonnes of dead fish were not prepared for what awaited them in the river.

The stench around the waters was so bad that most of them vomited during their work, according to residents of the village.

Local businesses have also been hit.

When Piotr Bugaj, a passionate angler and owner of boats, a slip and rooms to rent on the Oder heard what was coming, he knew that it was time to put his business on hold.

He asked his guests from the Czech Republic to leave the water and cancelled all future reservations from clients, who flock to Widuchowa from around Europe for its wilderness and diverse population of large fish such as catfish and pike-perch.

"If it's possible with such a tragedy, I would really like to learn that only what was on the surface died out and not more. But for the moment, no one has checked what is currently at the river bottom," he said.

The government has promised support for those affected by the crisis.

Piotr Piznal, a local activist, has dedicated his life to photographing wildlife around the Oder. For the past week he has been documenting the disaster.

"It is hard because in fact, the world we've observed and photographed with my friend for the past few years is disappearing," he says. "I think that after what has happened in the Oder it will take years to rebuild the ecosystem... It will all have to be reborn to function the way it has until now."

Meanwhile, among Widuchowa's residents fear and uncertainly prevail.

"The dead fish have warned us that something is wrong," said Sylwia Palasz-Wrobel, wife of Widuchowa's mayor, standing next to her husband at the foul Oder shore. "When the fish are gone, who will inform us next time when a disaster happens? We would like to know who is responsible for this."

 ($1 = 4.7220 zlotys)

Reporting by Agnieszka Pikulicka-Wilczewska and Kuba Stezycki, Editing by Alan Charlish and Alex Richardson

Montenegrin Parliament passes motion of censure against the government

Daniel Stewart - Yesterday 


© Provided by News 360Extraordinary session in which the Parliament votes on the motion of censure of the Government of Dritan Abazovic, Montenegro. - PARLAMENTO DE MONTENEGRO

At the session, out of 81 seats, 51 deputies were present, of which 50 voted in favor, and only one congressman voted against, as reported by the country's public broadcasting company RTCG.

The motion against Abazovic's government was presented by the Socialists of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS). They have announced tonight that negotiations for the formation of a new government may begin this Saturday.

Podgorica signed in early August a pact with the Serbian Orthodox Church, despite the opposition of the DPS, to regulate relations between the two institutions. Opponents announced the motion of censure for having made the agreement of for concealing the time when it was made.

The Prime Minister has indicated that this move is irresponsible if the opposition does not have a plan to constitute a new cabinet. "I hope that we will quickly constitute a new government and get a new mandate (...). If that does not happen, it is irresponsibility and the citizenry must know that it has pushed them into instability," Abazovic has criticized.

Thus, he added that he wants to "believe that (the opposition) has a continuation of the plan". "This is just one of the political battles," he said.

Abazovic has also defended himself in his post by pointing out that no one could have done more in 100 days. "Maybe in a year or four, but not in 100 days," he has assured, before remarking the results in the fight against crime and corruption.

"I am proud of everything we have done in 100 days. We will be remembered as the government that lasted the shortest time. We will do everything possible to ensure that the government that will be formed after the elections will bring Montenegro into the EU," the pro-European politician reiterated.

Disqualified for disabilities, railroad workers fight back

By JOSH FUNK

August 18, 2022

1 of 8

Terrence Hersey stands for a portrait at his home Friday, June 17, 2022, in South Holland, Ill. Hersey underwent extensive rehabilitation for a stroke in 2015, before his doctors eventually cleared him to return to work in 2016. But Union Pacific decided without ever having a doctor examine him that the stroke made him unfit to work for the railroad. Union Pacific has already lost three lawsuits over the way it dismisses employees with health conditions because of safety concerns, and the prospect of hundreds more similar lawsuits, including Hersey's case, looms over the railroad. 

(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)


OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — After Terrence Hersey had a stroke on the way home from his railroad job in 2015, he underwent months of therapy to learn how to put words together in sentences and learn to walk again. He had to relearn how to get in and out of a car and how to dress himself before his doctors eventually cleared him to return to work with no restrictions.

That recommendation wasn’t good enough for Union Pacific. The railroad decided after reviewing Hersey’s records — but without a doctor’s examination — that he was unfit for his job overseeing inspections of stationary railcars in Chicago because of the risk he would become incapacitated.

“I had a doctor that cleared me, and then Union Pacific did not give me any kind of physical or anything. I felt tossed to the side,” said Hersey.

Without his job, his car was repossessed. He lost his house. He had worked on the railroad for more than 20 years, and finding a job that paid as well as Union Pacific was hard for the 50-year-old Hersey, who now drives a school bus. For his current job, he’s had no problem passing an annual medical test to retain his commercial driver’s license.

“I was a 20-year man and had worked my way up to being a supervisor and had some management opportunities that I could have reached out for. Now I’m making half the money I could make. It’s just like my whole world went upside down,” he said.

Hersey is among hundreds of Union Pacific employees who are fighting back with federal lawsuits after losing their jobs because of health issues. Although they make up only a small percentage of the railroad’s more than 30,000 employees, their cases could prove costly to Union Pacific and could hinder the companies’ efforts to fill scores of open jobs at a time when all of the nation’s railroads are dealing with worker shortages.

Former Union Pacific workers have filed at least 15 other federal lawsuits, and more than 200 other complaints are pending with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that are likely to turn into lawsuits. Seven other cases have been settled.

The lawsuits were originally going to be part of a class-action case filed by former employees, but a federal appeals court decided in 2020 that the complaints had to be pursued individually. The first few cases have now been tried and verdicts over $1 million have been issued in all three.

A spokeswoman for the EEOC said it can’t comment on whether it is investigating allegations against Union Pacific. However, one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, Jim Kaster, said the EEOC has ongoing investigations of the railroad’s practices.

“What makes this case so egregious is the planning from the top down,” said Kaster, who helped handle the class-action case. “It is one thing for a rogue manager in a company to discriminate on the basis of disability. This case is different because this company targeted people with disabilities and disqualified them from working without even examining them and many times without even talking to them.”

By the railroad’s own count, UP said in arguments in the original class-action lawsuit that some 7,700 employees had to undergo what is called a “fitness-for-duty” review between 2014 and 2018. It’s not clear how many of those people were forced out by unworkable restrictions, but lawyers for the plaintiffs estimate nearly 2,000 people faced restrictions that kept them off the job for at least two years if not indefinitely.

Union Pacific policies say that anyone with more than a slight chance of “sudden incapacitation” shouldn’t work for the railroad because it’s dangerous. The railroad has vigorously defended its policy, arguing its strict rules are designed to protect its workers and the public from injury risks or environmental damage if someone suffers a health emergency that causes a derailment or other accident.

Union Pacific spokeswoman Robynn Tysver said the railroad strives to maintain an inclusive workplace, but “the Americans with Disabilities Act does not diminish Union Pacific’s commitment and obligation to maintain a safe work environment.”

“Union Pacific medical personnel who have a thorough understanding of a railroad’s unique operational requirements assess employees’ medical condition to determine if it prevents them from safely performing their essential job duties in accordance with our medical standards and obligations under the ADA,” Tysver said. “In addition, Union Pacific often engages third-party medical consultants to assist with medical reviews.”

Yet former workers claim Union Pacific is ignored their doctors’ advice and making their own determinations, often when doctors have said an employee is cleared to work.

The cases leave Union Pacific potentially facing more than $350 million in damages plus sizeable legal fees, and government regulators could impose additional penalties if they fault the railroad. That may not do much to dent the bottom line for a company that reported a $1.84 billion profit in its most-recent quarter, but the lawsuits could add to unrest among its current workers. UP workers are already upset that they haven’t had a raise since 2019 and that the railroad tightened its attendance policy, making it harder to take time off.

Federal law caps most damages in these disability cases besides lost wages at $300,000, but lawyers for the plaintiffs say the giant judgments, including a $44 million decision they won last year in Wisconsin, send a strong message that Union Pacific’s policy is flawed even if the penalty is reduced. In the Wisconsin case, a conductor with impaired hearing was forced out despite years of successful employment because he couldn’t pass a hearing test while wearing the company’s newly required hearing protection. The railroad wouldn’t consider alternative protective gear.

The cases all argue that Union Pacific discriminates against people with disabilities because of the way it disqualifies employees after they report certain health conditions, even if they have little bearing on whether an employee can safely do their job. Since 2014, the Omaha, Nebraska-based railroad has required workers to report anytime they develop a heart condition, have a seizure or develop diabetes that needs to be treated with insulin. Union Pacific also routinely imposes restrictions on employees who fail a color vision test it designed and refuses to employ someone with a prosthetic limb regardless of how capable they might be.

When an employee or their supervisor reports a health condition, Union Pacific puts them on leave and demands they submit medical records that railroad doctors review to determine their suitability for work. The plaintiffs say the railroad usually makes its decision without doctors examining employees, and Union Pacific ignores the recommendations of doctors who are treating individuals and have cleared them to return to work.

An occupational medicine doctor who works with the plaintiffs, Kevin Trangle, said he doesn’t think UP’s policy is sound because it’s “more restrictive than necessary, and would tend to cause workers to be unnecessarily prevented from working.”

Rolando Vasquez said in one of the lawsuits he lost his job after he had a motorcycle accident because doctors put him on anti-seizure medication as a precaution. In response, the railroad imposed a series of restrictions that made it impossible for him to work as an electronic technician inspector in Del Rio, Texas, even though he’d never actually had a seizure.

In another case, a diesel electrician said he was treated as if he had a condition that causes seizures after he fainted once because he was dehydrated while battling an illness. The railroad ruled that Joseph Carrillo shouldn’t be allowed to operate any company vehicles, work around moving trains or hold any job that involved “critical decision making,” so his managers in El Paso agreed he could no longer repair locomotives.

J.J. Stover lost his job as a track inspector in Kearney, Nebraska, after having a dizzy spell at work because his doctors labeled the 2016 incident a mini stroke, or transient ischemic attack, even though he said all the tests they performed on him while he was hospitalized for more than three days came back negative and he hasn’t experienced any more dizziness.

Stover’s doctors said he could return to work just a couple weeks later. Shortly after that, the Army Reserves took his doctors’ word and sent him to Poland for several weeks of training, but Union Pacific spent nine months reviewing his records before deciding he shouldn’t be allowed to drive a railroad truck or work around the tracks.

“It’s just hard to understand,” Stover said.

Another one of the workers’ attorneys, Nick Thompson, said Union Pacific doesn’t seem to consider any mitigating details, and it applies the same restrictions to every worker that has a condition regardless of whether that person drives a train or digs a ditch to install a signal for the railroad.

“They treat every condition like it’s the worst version of that. If you pass out — regardless of the cause — they treat it for determining risk of future events as though it is an unmedicated seizure condition. That just doesn’t make any sense,” Thompson said.

Fewer Americans file for jobless benefits last week
By MATT OTT

August 18, 2022

A hiring sign is displayed at a restaurant in Schaumburg, Ill., Friday, April 1, 2022. More Americans applied for jobless benefits last week, reported Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, as the number of unemployed continues to rise modestly, though the labor market remains one of the strongest parts of the U.S. economy. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Slightly fewer Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week as the labor market continues to stand out as one of the strongest segments of the U.S. economy.

Applications for jobless aid for the week ending August 13 fell by 2,000 to 250,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Last week’s number, which raised some eyebrows, was revised down by 10,000.

The four-week average for claims, which evens out some of the week-to-week volatility, fell by 2,750 to 246,750.

The number of Americans collecting traditional unemployment benefits increased by 7,000 the week that ended August 6, to 1.43 million. That’s the most since early April.

Unemployment applications generally reflect layoffs and are often seen as an early indicator of where the job market is headed.

Hiring in the United States in 2022 has been remarkably resilient in the face of rising interest rates and weak economic growth.

The Labor Department reported earlier this month that U.S. employers added 528,000 jobs in July, more than double what forecasters had expected. The unemployment rate dipped to 3.5%, tying a 50-year low reached just before coronavirus pandemic slammed the U.S. economy in early 2020.

The United States recovered with unexpected strength from 2020′s COVID-19 recession, leaving businesses scrambling to find enough workers.

That’s not to say the U.S. economy doesn’t face challenges. Consumer prices have been surging, rising 8.5% in July from a year earlier — down slightly from June’s 40-year high 9.1%. To combat inflation, the Federal Reserve has raised its benchmark short-term interest rate four times this year.

Higher borrowing costs have taken a toll. The economy contracted in the first half of the year — one measure suggesting the onset of a recession. But the strength of the job market has been inconsistent with an economic downturn.