Friday, March 29, 2024 | Baltimore, MD
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UPS reaches tentative contract with 340,000 unionized workers potentially dodging calamitous strike

UPS has reached a contract agreement with its 340,000-person strong union Tuesday, averting a strike that had the potential to disrupt logistics nationwide for businesses and households alike. The agreement was announced after UPS and the Teamsters came back to the negotiating table Tuesday to talk over remaining sticking points in the largest private-sector contract in North America.

Read More: AP News
empty chairs in theater
What Maryland borrowers need to know about student loan repayments resuming this fall

The Supreme Court struck down the Biden administration’s loan forgiveness plan June 30, and millions of Americans must prepare to start paying back their loan balances this fall. The forgiveness program would have cancelled $10,000 in student debt for individuals making less than $125,000 per year. Another $10,000 in debt would have been wiped away for recipients of the need-based Pell Grants.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
They were wounded in a mass shooting. Then Baltimore Police seized their belongings.

When Patricia learned that her son was one of 28 people injured in a horrific shooting at the annual Brooklyn Day block party in South Baltimore, her first reaction was disbelief.“Boy, you’re lying,” she told her teenage son when he called her from the hospital. In the dead of night, Patricia raced to MedStar Harbor Hospital, where many of the victims were treated. On arrival, she was crying and desperate for information but couldn’t find her son.

Food Bank notes inflation leads more people to seek help

Officials of the Maryland Food Bank say inflation is leading more people to seek help feeding their families U.S. Census data analyzed by the food bank finds 45% of Maryland adults say their children were skipping meals because of rising food costs and 36% have trouble meeting expenses. Maryland Food Bank president and CEO Carmen Del Guercio tells WBAL NewsRadio recent cuts in government benefits offered during the COVID-19 pandemic are also leading more people to turn to the soup kitchens and food pantries that are supported by the food bank.

 

Md. disability advocates on what can be done to improve service animal access, address shortage

There’s been a lot of progress to accommodate people with disabilities in Maryland, but there is still more room for improvement — including what to do about the nationwide shortage of service dogs. Disability advocacy groups from across the state held a meeting Monday afternoon about the important and essential animals that help those with disabilities. The forum, in honor of Disability Pride Month, aimed to educate the public about the growing use of service animals in the state.

 

Read More: WTOP
Entertainment industry strikes touches MoCo

Richie Moriarty, cast member of the CBS show Ghosts, should be in Montreal this month beginning the filming of the third season of the show. Instead, production has been delayed as the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to reach a resolution with writers and actors on strike the past two months. Moriarty, 43, a Thomas S. Wootton High School graduate, is part of that strike, which he says comes at a critical time for those in the acting profession.

 

Read More: MOCO360
Frederick County health department to offer free back-to-school vaccines

Students in Frederick County who are uninsured or have insurance that does not cover the cost of immunizations can access free vaccines at the county health department’s clinics next month, the department announced Monday. The department will hold free back-to-school vaccination clinics on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from Aug. 1 to Sept. 11.

 

Food Aisle on Supermarket
More than 300,000 Maryland families say their kids did not eat enough due to high grocery costs

Estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey show that hundreds of thousands of Maryland families say their kids sometimes do not eat enough due to high costs of groceries, according to an analysis from a Maryland-based hunger relief non-profit. The Maryland Food Bank has been analyzing survey data from the Household Pulse Survey to track the level of food insecurity many Marylanders are facing, and the most recent analysis of June data shows that a higher percentage of families have struggled with feeding their children enough food than in previous months.

 

Baltimore’s youth being shot at highest rate in a decade as ‘new type of violence’ takes hold

Niara Mollett found out about the shooting that killed her 16-year-old cousin on Instagram. Ray Mason keeps the funeral program for his 19-year-old sister in his car. Da’Quane Gilliam doesn’t like to go outside. All of them are under 21 and each understands the devastating toll gun violence takes on Baltimore’s young people. “You don’t really see how bad it is until it actually hits you,” Mollett, 16, said.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
Blueprint board slated to approve school systems’ updates to comprehensive plans next week

The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Accountability and Implementation Board recommends that local health and social service agencies share names and contact information with local school systems for families with children who could be eligible to enroll in free prekindergarten. However, to be eligible under terms of the Blueprint plan, a family needs to apply for “economic services” and a child must turn 3 or 4 years old by Sept.1.

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