A grim mood hung in the air Monday as DuPont Co. workers in Delaware learned whether their positions will be included in a massive round of layoffs that will eliminate 1,700 positions in the First State.

Ron Ozer, an engineer at the DuPont Experimental Station near Alapocas, lost his job Monday after nearly 25 years with the company. He described the atmosphere among DuPont workers as "depressing."

All employees at the Experimental Station had a one-on-one meeting with their supervisor to learn whether or not they will remain with the company, according to Ozer, an Arden resident. The meetings were said to have begun in the morning and continued through late afternoon.

The people who are staying aren't exactly happy, either," Ozer said. "It's not like people came out of those meetings and said, 'Yeah, I've got a job.' They are coming back to a very different organization."

http://www.delawareonline.com/story/money/business/2016/01/04/dupont-workers-learning-their-fate-today/78255924/

Lincolnshire, IL – Illinois has its first “right to work zone” after a vote by trustees in this Chicago suburb. A legal challenge is expected to follow.

The village board of Lincolnshire passed an ordinance Dec. 14 establishing the RTW zone.

When the issue was being pushed earlier this year, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan issued a formal opinion saying such action can only be taken at the state level.

Illinois AFL-CIO political director Bill Looby expects the ordinance to be challenged in court.

http://labortribune.com/chicago-suburb-becomes-illinoiss-first-rtw-zone/

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 3354 is asking all Greater St Louis Area officials, civic, business, labor and religious leaders in Missouri and Illinois to sign-on to a letter requesting the St. Louis Area Congressional delegation to support the Department of Education entering into an inter-agency agreement to bring several hundred jobs to St. Louis to service student loans.

Local 3354 President Steve Hollis urged delegates at last month’s St. Louis Labor Council meeting to sign-on to the letter to bring jobs to the recently designated Promise Zone area of north St. Louis city and county.

“Processing students loans is a huge industry,” Hollis said. “Because of concerns about high costs and mistreatment of some student borrowers, serious consideration is being given toward making it a government loan program, using a public sector alternative to some contractors. We’re trying to bring the student loan servicing work to the Federal Center on Goodfellow.”

Local 3354 is working with USDA/Rural Development, which manages the Centralized Servicing Center at the Federal Center, 4300 Goodfellow, St. Louis, to convince the Department of Education to enter into the agreement.

http://labortribune.com/afge-local-3354-urging-support-for-bringing-student-loan-servicing-jobs-to-st-louis/

Collinsville, IL – These days, unions and their members’ employers often are viewed as much in the light of what they do for others as what they do for themselves.

So it may be fitting that retirees from one of the region’s leading Electrical Workers locals, IBEW 309, based in Collinsville, are working with a union and contractors group to perform some much-needed public service jobs.

The union helps line up jobs, and the contractors help pay for things, but the project – under the ElectricPros.com initiative –really counts on the work of some big-hearted union retirees.

Three of them – Bill Hagene, 60, of Smithton, Danny Sodam of Belleville, 59, and Scott Nicholson of Belleville, also 60 – have already taken on three projects, and they expect to do more and involve more retirees who want to give back to the community that has supported them.

http://labortribune.com/ibew-309-retirees-leading-new-electricpros-com-charity-project/

Jefferson City – State Rep. Michael Butler (D-St. Louis) has pre-filed legislation that would raise the state’s minimum wage from $7.65 an hour to $15 an hour statewide.

Butler said in a statement the state’s current minimum wage has trapped too many Missourians in poverty.

“No one in Missouri should work a full-time job and still be living in poverty. Our core objective as leaders of this state is to improve the quality of life for the citizens of Missouri. I can think of no better way to do that than to increase the minimum wage.

“Thousands of Missourians are suffering from, not a lack of work, but from a lack of livable wages,” Butler added. “We can do something to help that, and we will.”

http://labortribune.com/rep-butler-pre-files-legislation-to-raise-missouris-minimum-wage/

Bean Day Some people believe that Bean Day has no origin and no purpose, but there are plenty of farmers and bean aficionados who would disagree. The day probably has its roots in celebrations of the early bean harvests in farming communities and now Bean Day is a wonderful excuse for a party. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/bean-day/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/january6.html

Epiphany or Twelfth Night Celebrating the day upon which the three kings arrived at Bethlehem, Three Kings Day is twelve days after Christmas day, and marks the end of the Christmas period. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/three-kings-day/

National Shortbread Day On Shortbread Day, one needs to keep things short and sweet! Shortbread (not to be confused with shortcake) is an absolutely delicious kind of cookie (sweet biscuit). It is usually made with one part sugar, two parts butter, and three parts white flour. Slightly less traditional recipes can also see such ingredients as chocolate chips added to the mixture. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/shortbread-day/

Apple Tree Day could also be called ‘Put a Doctor Out of Business Day’ because of the fruit’s health benefits. However, the origin of this day is quite different. Apple Tree Day started as a celebration of an old apple tree almost two centuries old, and has grown to become a celebration of the apple itself. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/apple-tree-day/

After months of speculation, intrigue and public policy contortions, the St. Louis Rams have officially filed to move to the Los Angeles area.

It’s been nearly a year since St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke revealed plans to build a new stadium in Inglewood, Calif., primarily with private dollars. And even though St. Louis and Missouri policymakers put forth a plan to build a new stadium on St. Louis’ riverfront, the Rams were one of three NFL teams that filed the paperwork on Monday to relocate to LA.

In a brief unsigned statement on the team’s website, the Rams declared: “The St. Louis Rams informed the National Football League today that the Rams propose to relocate to the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area. The relocation would be effective for the 2016 NFL League Year.”

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy confirmed that the Rams, Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers had applied for relocation.

http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/its-official-st-louis-rams-want-move-los-angeles

National Whipped Cream Day Whipped cream has been around for ages. But it was in 1946, when the aerosol can was first invented by Aaron Lapin, that sales and popularity of this dessert delight really took off. Whipped cream has continued to transform desserts and hot drinks from the merely ordinary to something truly special. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/whipped-cream-day/

Bird Day The health of the global bird population is a reflection of and early warning system for our wider ecological health, and current research indicates that up to 12% of all species of birds may be at risk of becoming extinct in the next century. Bird Day aims to raise awareness of the plights faced by common and rare birds, from disease and environmental factors to illegal trade and welfare in captivity. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/bird-day/

Weigh-In Day So, Christmas is officially over, and so are both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. You’ve slept off any hangover you may have had, relaxed, and now you’re ready to face the new year ahead of you and all of the challenges and opportunities it will bring. Unfortunately, due to the amount of food and drink consumed during the holiday season, chances are you may have gained a bit of weight during the holidays, so Weigh-In Day is a great time to set your first new year goal: start eating better and exercising more regularly so you can not only shed that weight, but improve your overall health. After all, what could be more important than your health? https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/weigh-in-day/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/january5.html

National Spaghetti Day One of the world’s favorite dishes, spaghetti is more than deserving of its own little holiday. And because it is both simple and delicious, spaghetti is the perfect dish to make to bring out your inner chef, even if you don’t have all that much cooking experience! https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/spaghetti-day/

Pop Music Chart Day When was the last time you checked the pop charts? Pop Music Chart Day is a great excuse to see who’s at number one, and to discover new artists and music. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/pop-music-chart-day/

Trivia Day All those facts you picked up through daytime game shows can finally be put to good use when you astound your friends with your general knowledge! Trivia day is the perfect day to share all of those silly little facts that almost nobody knows, making this day a fun and interesting one to spend with friends or family. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/trivia-day/

World Braille Day Louis Braille, the inventor of braille, was born in France on January 4th, 1809. Blinded in both eyes in an accident as a child, Braille nevertheless managed to master his disability while still a child. Despite not being able to see at all, he excelled in his education and received scholarship to France’s Royal Institute for Blind Youth. During his studies, inspired by the military cryptography of Charles Barbier of the French Army, he developed a system of tactile code that could allow the blind to read and write quickly and efficiently. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/world-braille-day/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/january4.html

Chocolate Covered Cherry Day Just in case you haven’t indulged enough over the festive and new year periods, Chocolate Covered Cherry Day is an excuse to break open another box of cherry liqueurs and dig right in! The idea behind chocolate-covered cherries is incredible simple: chocolate is delicious. So are cherries. So one day someone said, “Why not combine the two and make something even better?” and the chocolate-covered cherry was born! https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/chocolate-covered-cherry-day/

Drinking Straw Day Can you imagine drinking a milkshake without a straw? Or how anyone would manage a juice box? How many soft drinks would you have spilled on yourself in dark movie theaters if it weren’t for straws? I think we can all agree drinking straws have changed our lives for the better enough to deserve their own holiday, and that’s exactly what Drinking Straw day is about: celebrating the invention and patenting of the (paraffin-covered) paper drinking straw! https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/drinking-straw-day/


Fruitcake Toss Day Let’s be honest: nobody really likes fruitcake, and nobody ever really eats it, either. Heavy, flavorless and always too sweet, fruitcake is one of our century’s biggest holiday jokes. So when Christmas is over, and you’ve taken the tinsel down, and thrown out the tree, what should you do with that old fruitcake that you’ve been using to prop open the door/to replace a missing limb/as a headrest? Fruitcake Toss Day has a “fruitful” answer (see what we did there?). The event, which is reported as having originated in Manitou Springs, Colorado, was created in order to help people get rid of unwanted fruitcake after Christmas. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/fruitcake-toss-day/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/january3.html