Author: completebodyneeds

One person has died after a fire and two explosions Friday at a New York City shipyard, officials say. Officials said 36 people were injured, most of them firefighters and other first responders, and one civilian died at the scene. A firefighter and a fire marshal were inside the structure when a second explosion happened, and both were seriously injured by the shock wave from the blast. “This was a complex, fast-developing emergency situation,” New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said during a news conference Friday evening. Multiple people called the fire department around 3:30 p.m., reporting smoke and two workers…

This edition of International People Moves details appointments at Markel and Aon. A summary of these new hires follows here. Markel Taps Talbot’s O’Donoghue to Lead Fine Art & Specie for London Operations Markel Insurance, the insurance operation within Markel Group Inc., announced the appointment of Danny O’Donoghue as head of Fine Art & Specie, effective immediately. Danny O’Donoghue O’Donoghue will be responsible for leading the strategic and sustainable expansion of Markel’s fine art & specie portfolio to further enhance the organization’s position in London as a fine art & specie insurer. O’Donoghue will be based in London, reporting to…

California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to attempt to deal with the impacts of artificial intelligence on workers and businesses. Related: Acrisure to Cut 2,250 Employees, Citing Advances in Technology and AI The order directs the state to explore policies that include severance standards, employment insurance and transition support for displaced workers, worker ownership models, universal basic capital concepts, expanded workforce training and better tracking of hiring and payroll trends to help respond to potential layoffs and economic disruption. The order directs the certain state agencies to: Evaluate and support opportunities to expand and enhance worker ownership models…

A West Virginia uninsured motorist policy specified that the policyholder must report an accident to police within 24 hours. But that’s not enough to negate a claim, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals decided this week. The West Virginia National Auto Insurance Co. policy for Danny and Jackie Dobbins also noted that the insurer has no duty to provide coverage if the failure to report the incident “is prejudicial to us,” the court explained in overturning a lower appeals court decision in the case. The couple did report the crash to the insurance company within four days, and West…

In late 2024, Gretchen Holloway was approved for a new federally funded program that promised to cut her $900 utility bills by helping repair her nearly century-old home. For years, the retired teacher in Valley, Alabama, had been trying to hold together the house where she’s lived her entire life, but her pension and Social Security income weren’t enough. Floors had collapsed. One bathroom no longer worked. Gaps around doors and windows let air pour in and out, sending her heating and cooling costs soaring. The program offered a way out. It was going to “help me get my home…

Acrisure’s CEO told employees that about 2,250 of them won’t be with the company by the end of 2027. The Grand Rapids, Michigan-based global broker is planning to reduce its headcount by about 11%, mostly in the U.S., said a memo from CEO Greg Williams to employees. Acrisure has about 19,000 team members, according to its website. Layoffs at the private equity-backed company started May 21 and will “continue in phases into 2027,” said Williams. Acrisure did not immediately respond to a request for comment but Williams’ memo said the company is entering a “new phase of execution.” “Advances in…

Citing a need for the financial services industry to be prepared for increased cybersecurity threats, New York’s regulator has issued new guidance. The guidance from the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) identifies risk management and compliance efforts that banking, insurance and other financial services organizations and individuals should consider taking when they become aware of a “heightened cybersecurity threat environment.” DFS defines a “heightened threat environment” as a period when cybersecurity risks are “significantly elevated and therefore have a high likelihood” of impacting information systems, nonpublic information or operations. As an example of a heightened threat environment…

When two workers died last month in a violent chemical reaction at Ames Goldsmith Catalyst Refiners near Charleston, federal records showed the facility had previously been cited for safety violations in 2018. But that doesn’t mean inspectors had regularly checked on the operation in the years between. In fact, the facility had not been inspected again before the fatal incident, highlighting a problem with workplace safety in West Virginia and across the country: federal inspectors do not regularly inspect the most dangerous workplaces. Here’s how workplace safety inspections work in West Virginia, and why labor advocates are calling for more…

A federal judge on Wednesday refused to postpone a trial that is scheduled to start next month for civil claims stemming from the 2024 collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, rejecting a request for a delay by companies involved in the deadly disaster. U.S. District Judge James Bredar said the civil trial will start as scheduled on June 1 despite the recent filing of criminal charges against companies that managed the container ship Dali, which lost power and crashed into the Key Bridge in the early-morning hours of March 26, 2024. Six construction workers who had been filling potholes…

Activist investors are pushing technology companies to explain how they’re reconciling surging electricity demand for AI with their climate commitments. Shareholders at Amazon.com Inc. voted on a proposal asking the firm to disclose more information. Voting is open for shareholders at Meta Platforms Inc. and Alphabet Inc. and will conclude later this month and in early June at each company’s annual meeting. Support for such initiatives has declined in recent years amid underwhelming outcomes and a broader political backlash in the US against environmental, social and governance investing. Heavyweight investment firms, including BlackRock Inc., Vanguard Group Inc. and State Street…