Costa Rica’s ongoing strike hits tourism industry hard The dialogue between the government and public sector unions that aimed to end the general strike stalled this Monday. There were mutual accusations of inflexibility between the parties, which are preparing to resume talks another day.The fifth session of dialogue, held Monday and mediated by the Catholic church, ended at around midnight with accusations. Both parties were nowhere closer to ending the strike that started Sept. 10 against a proposed tax-reform bill.The Labor Minister, Steven Núñez, who is leading the government delegation, accused the block of public sector unions of rejecting the path drafted with the church’s support to start negotiations on tax reform. Unions and government start talks to end strike In the same tone, the union coalition said in a statement that “the government was not able, till this day, to reach agreements.”The workers’ representatives proposed inviting the leaders of other legislative factions to participate in negotiating a new tax reform.The reform seeks to contain an increasing deficit in public accounts that reached 6.2 percent of the gross domestic product (Gross domestic product) of last year and is going to reach 7.2 percent of the gross domestic product this year without the plan, according to the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR).The unions claim that the discussed project is onerous for the sectors of lower incomes, although the government argues that 80 percent of the new taxes will fall on the richest 20 percent. Facebook Comments
In a statement released Tuesday, the government said that the rejected path aimed to take advantage of a deadline granted by the legislative process where agreements on fiscal issues could be reached in the form of decrees, guidelines, regulations and other administrative measures.The government insisted that unions should stop the strike during these negotiations. The strike has provoked road blockades, class suspensions in schools and universities, and disruptions in hospitals and state clinics.“Despite the government’s efforts to reach a consensus, the unions gave a resounding no to this path of dialogue and understanding,” the official statement said. Related posts:Unions and government start talks to end strike Costa Rican government seeks agreement with unions to end strike Cats march through streets, rats scared, milk supply runs low General strike enters second week; Legislative Assembly starts discussing tax-reform
Bottoms up! Enjoy a cold one for International Beer Day Construction begins on Chandler hospital expansion project But Portugal is scrapping its long-standing rent controls in one of the government’s most radical economic and social reforms since the ailing country needed a (EURO)78 billion bailout last year, when it was engulfed by Europe’s financial crisis. Critics say the anticipated rent hikes from next month could price thousands of families out of their homes. At the very least, the change _ aimed at boosting and modernizing the economy _ will add to the financial burden on those struggling to cope with pay cuts and tax hikes designed to ease the country’s crippling debt load.“I’m already having trouble paying (EURO)100,” says Dourado. “I don’t want charity. I’ve worked all my life. I shouldn’t have to beg for anything.”The new rent law casts aside protections that date from the early 1900s, and are seen as one of the reasons for Portugal’s economic decay. It’s all part of a plan to jettison a way of life that has been handcuffed to the past, holding back the dynamism needed to put the nation on the path of growth. The measure, long delayed due to its political toxicity, also illustrates how Europe’s financial crisis is snatching away old certainties and expectations _ in this case, over something as basic as having a roof over your head. Associated PressLISBON, Portugal (AP) – The peaceful retirement of Teresa Dourado is about to be shattered.The 77-year-old widow raised two children with her husband in their fourth-floor apartment behind Lisbon’s Campo Pequeno bull-ring. It has been the family home since 1966. Living alone there now among black-and-white photographs of her children and with her husband’s framed paintings, she pays a controlled rent of (EURO)100 ($128) a month. That just about allows her to get by on her monthly pension of (EURO)414. Sponsored Stories “It’s an absurd situation,” Gago da Graca said. “This is a prime, sought-after area.”For Dourado, the elderly widow, times are hard and will likely get harder.She vows to keep fighting the center-right government’s policies, joining street demonstrations that have become almost a weekly event.“They’re not getting me out of here,” she says of her home, and adds a dark threat: “If I have to go I’ll go through the window, not the door.”(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) That is also a key to the mystery of downtown Lisbon’s shabby charm. It’s a western European capital trapped in 100-year-old laws that deny landlords the income to refurbish decaying buildings. Portugal’s National Statistics Institute, in a report last year, bluntly stated the consequences: “Lisbon can be used as a textbook case on how to destroy a city without bombing it,” it said.Luis Menezes Leitao, president of the Lisbon Property Owners’ Association, a national body with some 10,000 members, notes that foreigners find the old law hard to believe. Some people in central Lisbon, he says, pay as little as (EURO)5 a month in rent.“This had to be done sooner or later,” Menezes Leitao said of the legal changes. “Economically speaking, it’s unsustainable.”Examples of what he calls “a gigantic distortion of the market” are not hard to find.Susana Paiva’s family owns a building on Lisbon’s central Rossio square which is partly occupied by a hotel. The building’s estimated real estate value is (EURO)4.5 million, which at market prices should bring in about (EURO)30,000 a month in rent. But the 34-room hotel, whose room prices start at around (EURO)150 and rise to almost double that, pays her just (EURO)633 a month. The rental contract dates from 1919. Top Stories Comments Share Portugal’s rent controls aren’t unique in Europe. Germany and the Netherlands, for example, also place some modest limits on rent increases. But their laws are nowhere near as old, comprehensive and rigid as in Portugal, where lifelong contracts with minimal, inflation-linked rent hikes have been handed down through generations.The government says the new law contains safeguards for low earners. Increases in the rents paid by people like Dourado will be limited to between 10-25 percent over the next five years before full liberalization.Even so, the scale of the threat to many residents is huge. Last year’s national census showed about 250,000 families are in houses with old contracts, which will now come up for price review. That’s about 1 million people _ or almost 10 percent of the population.Romao Lavadinho, president of the Lisbon Tenants’ Association, has held dozens of public meetings to explain the new law to worried tenants. In one, hundreds of people packed into Lisbon’s Sao Jorge cinema on the capital’s main avenue.“People are in a terrible state of anxiety,” said Lavadinho, whose association has around 20,000 paying members. It’s not just low earners who are nervous, he says _ lawyers, teachers and architects are among those turning up at meetings.
Former Arizona Rep. Don Shooter shows health improvement The change in rent laws was one of the steps demanded in return for the financial lifeline provided by foreign lenders. They identified rent controls as one of the handicaps keeping Portugal mired in stagnation. Similarly, their insistence on labor reforms is taking away long-standing entitlements, such as jobs for life, which choked development, consigning Portugal to low growth and mounting debt. These are precisely the kinds of measures that have triggered massive protests across Europe in recent years, raising questions about the viability of the European project.The goal of the new law is to free up rental accommodation, making it easier for workers to seek jobs around the country. It also aims to help people avoid racking up mortgage debt; put prime real estate to more productive uses; encourage owners to renovate buildings that are crumbling because they don’t earn enough rent money; and provide work for hard-up construction companies.Rent controls have long enabled those on a low income to live cheaply in one of western Europe’s poorest countries. The minimum salary, earned by more than 600,000 workers, is (EURO)485 ($624) a month before tax. The average salary is around (EURO)800 ($1,030). That compares with the U.S. minimum wage of $1,317 a month and an average monthly wage of $3,500. The vital role family plays in society Paiva has one word to describe that: “ridiculous.”She says the old-fashioned mom-and-pop stores which still abound in the area around her building are surviving only because they pay a handful of euros in rent per month. In effect, landlords are subsidizing businesses, she says.“Low rents for businesses are pernicious in the 21st century,” Paiva said. “It means that the people running them don’t need to modernize, find new markets, become more competitive.”By contrast, the Lisbon Commercial Association, which represents the capital’s shopkeepers, predicts the new law will bring “dramatic consequences” as stores, suddenly at the mercy of market forces, shut down and add to the country’s record unemployment rate of 15.9 percent.Elsewhere in the center of town, a seven-story apartment building owned by Jose Gago da Graca’s family offers another bizarre example.The tenant in apartment 2E pays (EURO)196 a month rent for a three-bedroom apartment. The occupant of 2D, across the hall, pays (EURO)1,600 a month for an identical second-floor flat.That’s because the elderly widow in 2E has been there since 1962 and her faded blue rental contract guarantees her tenancy in perpetuity, with controls on the initial rent which was the equivalent of (EURO)14. Her neighbor, who recently moved in when the previous occupant moved out, pays the market price. Mary Coyle ice cream to reopen in central Phoenix The rent reform hits as Portuguese struggle with other woes.The cost of living has climbed, even as incomes have fallen sharply due to the country’s austerity drive. The sales tax on gas and electricity, for instance, has jumped to 23 percent from 6 percent, leaving people short for other expenses.A wholesale reassessment of property values by the tax authorities will establish by how much landlords can begin to charge their tenants. Lavadinho notes that step will also hurt the middle class. In apartment blocks along Lisbon’s main avenues, he reckons, rents could jump from (EURO)200-300 a month to (EURO)1,000.The main thrust of the new law is to unfreeze pre-1990 rental contracts. Those contracts still come under a 1910 law that, in the turmoil following the end of the Portuguese monarchy and the establishment of a Republic, sought to contain inflation. It stipulated that the initial rent could be increased only by a government-decreed annual rate, usually just a few percent.Mindful that there are more tenants than landlords, and eyeing their electoral prospects, governments have long shied away from changing the law to any meaningful extent. The result: 150,000 households currently pay less than (EURO)50 in monthly rent, some of them in prime real estate areas, according to census data. Arizona families, Arizona farms: working to produce high-quality milk 4 ways to protect your company from cyber breaches
On if he likes playing against the Seahawks with their playoff aspirations at stake:“I don’t think it changes our approach. That might motivate you a little bit more, but at the end of the day, we’re professionals. We’re paid to do a job, and we need to go out there and fulfill that. Now, the icing on the cake might be trying to spoil them and their chances to go to the playoffs, but at the end of the day, I don’t think that’s the biggest thing that we’re playing for.”On if he’d return as a “bridge” quarterback and mentor a younger quarterback should Palmer retire:“At this point, you could play a lot of what-ifs. So, I’m not going to go down that road. Today, we’ve got to focus on the end of this year, and like I’ve said before, I’ve gone through this a couple of times. At the end of the day, that’s the time to be selfish. When the offseason hits and you’re a free agent, and right now I’m not. So, I’ll worry about that when the time comes.”On if there’s something especially challenging for him with the noise at CenturyLink Field:“I think just communicating our hots and sights. That’s a big factor for us, being able to be on the same page with those guys. I remember going up there a few years ago and being like, ‘I want to try and yell as loud as I can.” I couldn’t even hear myself in the huddle, let alone try and break the huddle and get out there.” TEMPE, Ariz. — The season finale is nearly here for the Arizona Cardinals and it isn’t with the starting quarterback they expected.After Blaine Gabbert got his chance, Drew Stanton is closing out the last two games of the season for Arizona, including the finale in Seattle. With help from the Cardinals’ media relations staff, we’ll highlight many of the key topics and personnel conversations he has with reporters following practice. On a lot of teams implementing Seattle’s defensive system and if the Seahawks still do it the best:“Without a doubt. They do it so well because of who they have personnel-wise. They try and replicate it, and I can only talk about the experience that I’ve had against the teams that I’ve played that run similar systems.”But, those guys are special just because of the dynamic personnel that they have at each level – all three levels – as far as getting after the quarterback. Two linebackers as good as you’ll find, a duo, in the league.”And then on the backend, having a ball hawk like Earl (Thomas) is something that you always have to be aware of where he is, because he’s not just going to be sitting in the middle of the field letting you take everything you want.” Former Cardinals kicker Phil Dawson retires So, we’re prepared for that. We’re fully prepared for an onslaught of noise for the entire game. We’ll try and mix in noise the next couple of days to really hone in on those things, those specific things that we’re looking for and the looks, and just go out there and try and win one-on-one matchups.”On what he has taken away from working with Palmer over the last five years:“That’s a really broad question. That’s a lot of time, too. Five years is an eternity for an NFL quarterback room to stay together. I just think his approach, the way he approaches the game, his mentality, his preparation, everything.”I’ve got a lot of respect for him, probably as much as anybody that I’ve ever played with, and genuinely look up to him on and off the football field. He taught me a lot about being a father and what the balance is like, being able to put your family first, but when you step in here in these walls, everything is football-oriented.”So, finding all of those things, I’m so thankful for the time we’ve had together and being able to learn from him and take a lot away from him.”On how close he will be with Palmer after both retire from football: “I don’t know. I don’t hunt. So, I don’t know. I don’t like being cold now that I moved here. So, I don’t think you’re going to find me in Idaho too often. I grew up in Michigan. I grew up in Michigan. I don’t need to go back to the cold. I know what it’s like.”On what WR Larry Fitzgerald has been able to accomplish in 2017:“It’s remarkable You look at him at his age and what he’s able to do and go out there and produce. People know we’re trying to get the ball in his hands. He’s so dynamic when you get the ball in his hands and being able to do that. People have tried to find different ways to contain him.”In certain games, it just seems like the ball was constantly going to him, and that was case in point last week. But, I think the nice thing about him is he does all that grunt work, as I’ve alluded to, so he should reap the benefits. He’s in there doing it.”I just wish we could get everybody on the same page with that because it sometimes feels like the scale’s tilted in his favor, but those other guys are out there doing their part and really dictating a lot of coverage, as well, with J.J. (Nelson) and Smoke (John Brown) being able to take the top off of coverages and let him work underneath.” “I don’t know. I think that there’s a lot of different reasons why. You could point your finger at a few different things, but it usually comes down to who can run the football. That Thursday night game that they were here earlier in the year, we didn’t make enough plays offensively.”Our defense played fantastic. We did some stuff, and that’s just the way that it goes unfortunately. Going up there, you look at Carson’s (Palmer) history up there, he’s played phenomenally well. I think the only time we lost up there maybe was when I played.”On QB Carson Palmer throwing four interceptions in the 2013 road win over Seattle:“Well, I’m sure he remembers the victory, not the four picks.”On if he can take anything away from what Palmer has done against the Seahawks in Seattle:“I think each game’s different. That’s a different team that we’re facing up there, and we’re a different team now. Each year, especially when you get to this point in the season, they’ve got a lot left to play for.”They’re trying to win that final playoff spot, and so we know what we’re going up against – a really good defense with a lot of really good football players that we need to be prepared for and try and find a way to score one more point at the end of the game.” Derrick Hall satisfied with D-backs’ buying and selling Top Stories The 5: Takeaways from the Coyotes’ introduction of Alex Meruelo On if starting at CenturyLink Field is different than other stadiums:“Yeah, it definitely is. Noise and communication is of the utmost importance, and when they limit that because of how much it can affect it, you have to take the necessary steps throughout the course of the week to be able to prepare for that.”On games against Seattle coming down to one big play and if that puts more pressure on a player:“I feel like that’s any game. Maybe it’s one or two plays in this game, though. I think in a typical NFL game, you’ll see four or five plays, whether or not you make it or it’s made on you. This one typically comes down to one or two because we know what we’re getting when we go up against them.”They know that we’re going to try and run the football, and they’re going to try and stop it. And we need to do our part offensively. Sometimes, it’s a field game battle – or a field position battle – and you’re getting there trying to set yourself up and be smart. I’ve got to do a good job of taking care of the ball and putting us in the best possible situation to move down the field and get points.”On why the Cardinals and Seahawks have been successful playing at each other’s stadiums: 0 Comments Share Grace expects Greinke trade to have emotional impact
Renewed calls to update archaic swimming pool regulationsLast summer, the private apartment complex, the Royal Seacrest in Kato Paphos, fell victim to Cyprus’ overly stringent regulations on swimming pools and had to close one of its major attractions.Barring a miracle, summer 2019 promises more of the same: swimming will be banned.The Royal Seacrest is a 104-apartment complex with two communal pools. Most of the apartments are used by holiday makers and only three owners and a handful of long-term renters live at the complex full time.There was no warning that the two pools, which are separated by a bridge, may not be ‘legal’ until the municipality turned up to do an inspection last August. They told stunned owners the complex didn’t have the necessary swimming pool operating licence because the pools are regarded as public ones.“This might be their definition, but it is only for use of our complex,” said Eoin Morgan, owner of one of the apartments and chairman of the complex’s management committee.Authorities recognise only two types of pools. Private pools are those at a house that exclusively serves the needs of the family living there and their guests. Public pools are all other types, including shared pools catering for complexes like the Royal Seacrest. As such they are bound by the welter of regulations one would expect for obviously public facilities such as municipal swimming pools.This means separate changing and shower rooms for men and women, drinking water fountains, foot baths and independent water analysis.The list goes on.“We also need a sanitation certificate, three lifeguards, a health and safety supervisor and a responsible person, and this cannot be a committee or association under the law,” said Morgan.“In the unfortunate case of a drowning, this person can be liable for criminal negligence and could be prosecuted. This is a big stumbling block for us.”He added that it is also impossible to find a lifeguard as they are in high demand and even Paphos municipality struggles to employ enough for their needs.The Royal Seacrest pools are deemed public and are subject to strict regulationsSuch stipulations all add up to thousands of euros in extra costs each year and has long led to calls for changes to the swimming pool law so that they are in line with more generous EU regulations.Cyprus’ current swimming pool regulations date back to 1992.“All swimming pools are regulated by the legislation and those not complying are in the process for legal action,” said Christos Christou, Paphos municipality’s public health Inspector.Measures taken by the municipality vary depending on the seriousness of violations. They include both temporary and permanent closure of pools.“There are also provisions to take the case to the court,” he said.He said that municipal health inspectors visited almost all of the ’public’ pools within the municipal boundaries in 2018 and discovered that more than 170 were not covered by any pool licence.“The absence of lifeguard, no building permits or a certificate of final approval and so on, means that the municipal services are obliged to take the owners or managers to court,” he said.Paphos municipality is following the law and local authorities have to implement the legislation, he said.“So whether the legislation is against the European one or there are problems arising from the implementation, this is nothing to do with the municipality.”Christou added that swimming pools operating at hotels or large projects normally have an operating licence and no serious deficiencies were identified during the inspections of 2018.Peyia councillor, Linda Leblanc, told the Cyprus Mail that she has long been campaigning to get Cyprus legislation to differentiate between private yet communal pools and those clearly open to the public at large.She said the process to change the law should be easy enough as EU standards differentiate between pool use and does not allow for just two ‘types’ of pools as Cyprus does.“I have been lobbying for this law to be changed for years and now it’s time to bring it up again. Cyprus has an obligation to adopt the EU regulations and I have been campaigning for this since 2007,” she told the Cyprus Mail.Extensive requirements need to be met in order to be granted a licence, and most communal pools in Cyprus fall short of meeting them. It includes particular construction requirements and facilities, a qualified lifeguard on duty and a professional pool maintenance supervisor. The lifeguard, for each pool, must be on duty at all times during the pool’s operating hours.But under EU standards, complexes that share a swimming pool for the use by the property owners, their guests and families are classed as a Type 3 swimming pool. This means it is covered by different standards to that of a public swimming pool.“It wouldn’t require lifeguards and the other stipulations.”Under this European standard, ‘public’ pools are defined as “open to everyone or to a defined group of users, not solely for the owner’s/proprietor’s/operator’s family and guests independently from paying an entrance fee”.Twelve years ago, Leblanc, along with members of the Cyprus Property Action Group, wrote a letter to the then minister of the interior raising the issue, which she has brought up intermittently since, but as yet, nothing has happened.In the meantime, Peyia municipality has taken an easier line than Paphos. After discussion with the mayor, Marinos Lambrou, Leblanc was assured that no prosecutions of communal pools in Peyia would be made.“The mayor and council and very aware of the situation and something need to be done, this law needs to be amended urgently, the law is used all over Europe.”None of which helps Morgan and others like him.The complex’s committee decided it had no choice but to close the Royal Seacrest’s pools, surrounding them with locked fencing, which cost 7,500 euros, and a large sign reading ‘Swimming strictly prohibited’. Owners were informed that it would remain closed until a licence is obtained which under current legislation seems a highly unlikely outcome.“It’s not that we don’t want to comply with the law, we do, but it seems impossible to do so and the cost is astronomical. The start of the season is fast approaching and we can’t see a light at the end of the tunnel,” Morgan said, adding that many of the apartment owners rely on income from renting out their proprieties.Around one thousand visitors went through the complex during the high season last year and he said many won’t return because the pool is closed, although tantalisingly full of water and maintained.“This will have a real impact on tourism if it continues, especially businesses nearby,” he said.“We estimate that our communal fees would have to increase at least a 25 per cent to be able to comply with all of the requirements.”Morgan said that despite numerous ‘polite’ meetings with the municipality, their position is that the law is followed. He said he is aware that many other people are flouting the law and their pools remain open, but since the committee has been made aware of the requirements, they wouldn’t take that stance.“Imagine if we ignored the law and something happened.”Green party MP, Charalambous Theopemptou, told the Cyprus Mail that no new legislation has recently been discussed at Parliament.“The issue has been discussed for more than a decade and draft regulations were proposed but nothing came of it,” he said. A petition calling for a fair and reasonable review of the swimming pool regulations for apartment complexes and resorts was set up last August. It has so far garnered over 4,400 signatures but needs another 4,000 to ensure that the government will investigate the matter. 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