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| North American machinists union slate challenges top leaders Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 07:41 PM PST  By Alwyn Scott SEATTLE (Reuters) - North American members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace workers on Saturday nominated challengers seeking to replace top union leaders, a move that could lead to a tougher negotiating stance toward major companies. At stake is control of about 339,000 dues-paying members at companies ranging from aerospace and defense giants Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp to United Airlines , heavy equipment maker Caterpillar Inc , a factory owned by furnishing retailer Ikea AB , and even Maine lobstermen. On Saturday, members at several of roughly 800 local lodges nominated candidates to challenge current IAM President R. Thomas Buffenbarger, General Secretary-Treasurer Robert Roach and eight general vice-presidents, members and union officials said. If the challengers win support from at least 25 local lodges, an election would be held in April, the first contested IAM ballot in more than 50 years. Full Story | Top |
| Chile port workers end strike after three weeks Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 06:01 PM PST  Chilean port workers negotiated a settlement with management on Saturday and ended a more than three-week-old strike that had slowed copper, fruit and other shipments from the world's top copper producer. Other ports joined the strike in solidarity and in protest over what they say is police brutality against striking workers. Full Story | Top |
| Three dead, including gunman, in Maryland mall shooting Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 05:38 PM PST  By Bill Trott COLUMBIA, Maryland (Reuters) - A gunman opened fire with a shotgun in a skate shop at a crowded shopping mall near Baltimore on Saturday, killing two store employees and wounding another person before apparently killing himself, police said. Howard County police said they did not know the motive for the shooting at the large mall in Columbia, Maryland, about 20 miles west of Baltimore. Police identified the victims as Brianna Benlolo, 21, of College Park, Maryland, and Tyler Johnson, 25, of Ellicott City, Maryland. Both were employees of Zumiez, a skate shop where the shooting took place. Full Story | Top |
| TransCanada gas pipeline explodes in Manitoba, none hurt Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 05:34 PM PST By Rod Nickel WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - A natural gas pipeline operated by TransCanada Corp exploded and caught fire in a rural area of the western Canadian province of Manitoba early on Saturday, but there were no injuries, a federal regulator said. The explosion happened near Otterburne, Manitoba, about 25 km (15.5 miles) south of the provincial capital, Winnipeg. The area was evacuated as a precaution, said the National Energy Board, which oversees parts of Canada's energy industry. "We could see these massive 200- to 300-meter high flames just shooting out of the ground and it literally sounded like a jet plane," said resident Paul Rawluk, as quoted by the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. The line was shut down and was depressurized to contain the fire, the energy board said, adding it would work with the federal Transportation Safety Board to determine the cause. Full Story | Top |
| Chemical tanks ordered removed in West Virginia after spill Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 04:59 PM PST  (Reuters) - The company whose storage tank spilled a chemical that tainted the water supply of 300,000 people in West Virginia must begin removing its above-ground storage tanks by March 15, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin ordered on Saturday. Freedom Industries must dismantle and remove 17 tanks and related equipment at its coal processing plant in Charleston, West Virginia, under Tomblin's directive, part of a consent order signed by the company's president and the state's Department of Environmental Protection. Freedom Industries has agreed not to contest the state's jurisdiction in the matter, the governor said. The spill from a Freedom Industries tank was about a mile upriver from the area's main water plant, West Virginia American Water, a unit of American Water Works Company Inc. Tomblin declared a state of emergency while the chemical, used in coal processing, was flushed out of the water system. Full Story | Top |
| Tunisia premier lacks consensus on new caretaker cabinet Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 04:32 PM PST  By Tarek Amara TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisia's new Prime Minister Mehdi Jomaa on Sunday was forced to delay naming a caretaker government to lead until elections after failing to reach a consensus over the key post of interior minister. Jomaa had planned to present his cabinet before the president on Saturday, but just after midnight the premier told at a press briefing there was no consensus over the cabinet list and he could not name the government. "It is not a question of a person, but rather I am looking for a real consensus in the government. It was a setback for Tunisia after its assembly finished the country's new constitution last week, progress widely praised as a model in contrast to upheaval in Libya, Egypt and Yemen who also ousted leaders in 2011 uprisings. Full Story | Top |
| Coogan, Brydon embark on culinary odyssey in 'The Trip to Italy' Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 04:07 PM PST  By Piya Sinha-Roy LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The food is better, the weather is warmer and the landscapes are more exquisite, but middle-aged comedians Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon are still in a funk in new film "The Trip to Italy." British actors Coogan and Brydon, both 48, reunited with director Michael Winterbottom in Italy for a sequel to their cult comedy "The Trip," a mockumentary where the two play fictionalized versions of themselves on a week-long culinary trip for a newspaper. In the new film, which premiered this week at the Sundance Film Festival, Coogan and Bryon take a Mini Cooper car to roam idyllic Italian landscapes, with a soundtrack provided by Alanis Morissette's "Jagged Little Pill" album, the only CD the men have in their car. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine opposition seek more after offer of top government posts Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 03:35 PM PST By Richard Balmforth and Jack Stubbs KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich offered the opposition several top government posts on Saturday, hoping to coax his opponents into ending protests that threaten to bring the country to a standstill. But opposition leaders, whose power base is among thousands of protesters massing in Kiev's city centre, continued to press for further concessions, including early elections and the repeal of an anti-protest law. After meeting opposition leaders, Yanukovich offered former economy minister Arseny Yatsenyuk the post of prime minister to replace Mykola Azarov, whose government would be expected to resign, the presidential website said. Full Story | Top |
| Police identify two killed in Maryland mall shooting Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 02:34 PM PST (Reuters) - Police identified the two Zumiez skate shop employees killed at a mall shooting near Baltimore on Saturday as Brianna Benlolo, 21, and Tyler Johnson, 25. Benlolo was from College Park, Maryland, and Johnson was from Ellicott City, Maryland, the Howard County Police Department said on its Twitter page. Full Story | Top |
| French President Hollande announces separation from Trierweiler Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 02:33 PM PST  By Emmanuel Jarry and Leila Abboud PARIS (Reuters) - French President Francois Hollande announced his separation from first lady Valerie Trierweiler on Saturday following a media storm over allegations he is having an affair with an actress. "I wish to make it known that I have ended my partnership with Valerie Trierweiler," he told Agence France Presse news agency. Hollande sought to put an end to turbulence that began two weeks ago when celebrity magazine Closer published a report that he was having an affair with film actress and Socialist Party supporter Julie Gayet. Questions over Hollande's personal life - and whether Trierweiler was still first lady - have diverted public attention from a shift the president made this month towards more business-friendly policies aimed at reviving the euro zone's second-biggest economy in the face of high unemployment. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. retailer Michaels warns of possible payment card breach Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 02:24 PM PST By Jim Finkle BOSTON (Reuters) - Michaels Companies Inc, the biggest U.S. arts and crafts retailer, said it is investigating a possible security breach on its payment card network and advised customers to check their financial statements for fraudulent activity. If confirmed, it would mark the second known data breach since 2011 at Michaels, which is preparing to sell shares in an initial public offering. "We are concerned there may have been a data security attack on Michaels that may have affected our customers' payment card information," Michaels Chief Executive Chuck Rubin said in a statement on Saturday. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine opposition says ready to lead country Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 01:25 PM PST A Ukrainian opposition leader who was offered the post of prime minister by embattled President Viktor Yanukovich on Saturday said the opposition was ready to lead the country. "We are ready to take on this responsibility and take the country into the European Union," Arseny Yatsenyuk told crowds on Kiev's Independence Square after emerging from talks with Yanukovich. But he added that this would entail the freeing of former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko who was jailed in 2011. Earlier on Saturday, Yanukovich, whose government is facing violent street protests against his rule, offered Yatsenyuk the post of head of government and proposed that another opposition leader, Vitaly Klitschko, be made a deputy prime minister for humanitarian issues. Full Story | Top |
| Thai government wants end to protests but promises no crackdown Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 10:46 AM PST  Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has called an election for February 2 in the hope of cementing her hold on power in the face of more than two months of protests trying to shove her from office. He also heads the government's crisis committee, the Centre for the Administration of Peace and Order (CAPO). He said CAPO would talk with protest leaders to ask them to stop occupying government offices. The ruling was sought by the Election Commission, which argues that the country is too unstable at the moment to hold a vote and that it would anyway result in too few legitimately elected MPs to form a parliamentary quorum. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine president offers government posts to opposition leaders Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 10:42 AM PST By Richard Balmforth KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich offered two opposition leaders top government posts on Saturday, the presidential website said, after the two sides met for talks aimed at seeking an end to a violent political crisis. Former economy minister Arseny Yatsenyuk would be offered the post of prime minister and Vitaly Klitschko, an internationally known boxer, would be proposed as deputy prime minister responsible for humanitarian issues, the website said. If Yatsenyuk accepts the post of prime minister the president would be ready to accept the resignation of the government of Mykola Azarov, the website said. There was no immediate reaction from the opposition leaders, who have been calling for the dismissal of Azarov's government since unrest broke out in Kiev two months ago. Full Story | Top |
| India, Japan seek early agreement on nuclear cooperation Saturday, Jan 25, 2014 10:19 AM PST  India and Japan's talks on nuclear cooperation have gained momentum over the past few months and the two hope for an agreement on civilian nuclear energy soon, leaders of the countries said after meeting on Saturday. "Our negotiations towards an agreement for cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy have gained momentum in the last few months," India's prime minister, Manmohan Singh, said in a statement after meeting his Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe. Full Story | Top |
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