text:
U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2000 - Sweden
- Document source:
26 February 2001
Sweden is a constitutional monarchy and a multiparty parliamentary democracy. The King is Chief of State. The Cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister, exercises executive authority. The judiciary is independent.
The Government effectively controls the police, all security organizations, and the armed forces.
Sweden has an advanced industrial economy, mainly market based, and a high standard of living, with extensive social welfare services.
The Government generally respected the human rights of its citizens, and the law and judiciary provide effective means of dealing with individual instances of abuse. The Government has longstanding programs to deal with violence against women and abuse of children and took steps against trafficking in women. Neo-Nazi violence remained a problem.
1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no reports of political killings.
In June a police officer was charged with breach of duty, serious ill treatment, and causing the death of another, in a March incident in which he shot a fleeing suspect. The police officer reportedly fired a warning shot, then shot the man from behind because he was convinced that the suspect was armed.
In June a prison escapee died after being caught and restrained by four prison guards. Nongovernmental organizations (NGO's) are concerned that the man may have died as a result of excessive use of force by the guards. The guards were suspended pending the results of a police investigation into the death.
The Prosecutor General closed his review of the initial investigation of a 1995 case in which a man died in police custody, acknowledging that there had been flaws in the investigation. He urged that a further, independent investigation be carried out into how the authorities had handled the different aspects of the case. No one was ever prosecuted for the death, although the two policemen involved were convicted of a minor offense in 1996. A report by the parliamentary Ombudsman concluded that the current procedure for dealing with complaints against the police was inadequate and proposed that an independent system be established. In June the Minister of Justice decided to appoint a commission of inquiry to look into past deaths in custody in order to propose safeguards. NGO's remain very interested in such cases.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The law prohibits such practices, and the authorities generally respect such prohibitions. Complaints of the excessive use of force by the police are infrequent. Thorough investigations have produced no evidence of a systemic problem. Typically, police officers found guilty of abuse are suspended or otherwise disciplined.
Five cases of excessive use of force by policemen during the year were under investigation. Three officers were fined for excessive use of force in October 1999, but there were no reported cases of policemen being fired for committing crimes in the course of their duties – including the use of excessive force.
Prison conditions meet minimum international standards, and the Government permits visits by human rights monitors.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrest, detention, and exile, and the Government observes these prohibitions. Arrests are by warrant. The police must file charges within 6 hours against persons detained for disturbing the public order or considered dangerous, and within 12 hours against those detained on other grounds. The law requires arraignment within 48 hours. The time between arrest and the first court hearing may be extended to 96 hours for detainees considered dangerous, likely to destroy evidence, or likely to flee. In cases involving more than one individual and in the case of foreigners, courts can and do order continued detention for 2 weeks at a time while police are investigating. Such detentions can be protracted, particularly in drug cases. Other than such dangerous suspects, detainees routinely are released pending trial. Bail as such does not exist. If a person files for bankruptcy and refuses to cooperate with an official investigation, a court may order detention for up to 3 months, with judicial review every 2 weeks.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, and the Government respects this provision in practice. The judiciary provides citizens with a fair and efficient judicial process.
The judicial system is composed of three levels of courts: District courts, a court of appeals, and a Supreme Court. All criminal and civil cases are heard first in district court regardless of the severity of the alleged crime.
The Constitution provides for the right to a fair trial, and an independent judiciary vigorously enforces this right.
There were no reports of political prisoners.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
The law limits home searches to investigations of major crimes punishable by at least 2 years' imprisonment. The authorities respect this provision. Normally the police must obtain court approval for a search or a wiretap. However, a senior police official may approve a search if time is a critical factor or the case involves a threat to life. The national police and the Prosecutor General's Office submit a report to Parliament every year detailing all of the electronic monitoring done during the previous year. In April the Minister of Justice presented a proposal to expand the use of police wiretapping. According to the proposal, wiretapping would be allowed only if serious drug crimes or serious crimes that would result in at least 4 years' imprisonment were suspected. A parliamentary decision is likely in 2001. A court must grant permission for wiretaps on a case-by-case basis. NGO's were critical of the Ministry's proposal.
In 1997 journalistic investigations focused attention on the country's pre-1976 practice of forced sterilization. The majority of persons sterilized were disabled either mentally or physically. Such operations were known for years to have taken place under pre-World War II legislation, most of them without force. It initially was reported that between 1934 and 1976, 62,888 forced sterilizations were carried out, 95 percent of them on women. In 1999 a government-appointed commission concluded that approximately 10,000 to 15,000 of these sterilizations were forced. The commission gave priority to the question of damages to victims and also looked into the possible existence of other categories of victims. The commission concluded its inquiry in 1999, and Parliament decided to pay damages of approximately $21,000 (175,000 krona) to each victim. By October 1,925 persons had applied for compensation. By year's end, some 1,300 had received payment. The Government allocated additional resources to pay compensation since the number of applicants far exceeded expectations.
2. Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press, and the Government respects these provisions in practice. Most newspapers and periodicals are privately owned. The Government subsidizes daily newspapers, regardless of political affiliation. Broadcasters operate under a state concession. Until a few years ago, the State had a monopoly over ground-based broadcasting, but a variety of commercial television channels (one ground-based and several via satellite or cable), and several commercial radio stations now exist.
The Government may censor publications containing national security information. A quasi-governmental body excises extremely graphic violence from films, television programs, and videos.
Criticism of child pornography is widespread, and the debate on the legality of ownership of pornographic material continued. A 1999 law criminalizes the possession and handling of child pornography. It also is illegal to publish or distribute such material. The Queen remains a strong and popular advocate of children's rights and an active opponent of child pornography.
Academic freedom is respected.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for freedom of peaceful assembly, and the Government respects this right in practice. Police require a permit for public demonstrations. The authorities routinely grant such permits, with rare exceptions to prevent clashes between antagonistic groups or due to insufficient police resources to patrol an event adequately.
The Constitution provides for freedom of association, and the Government respects this right in practice. The debate that began in 1999 over the possible criminalization of neo-Nazi organizations continued.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government respects that right in practice. The Government does not hamper the practice or teaching of any faith.
The country maintained a state (Lutheran) church for several hundred years, supported by a general "church tax" (although the Government routinely grants exemptions). However, in 1995 the Church of Sweden and the Government agreed to a formal separation, which became effective during the year, but the Church still is to receive some state support. The reform also made it possible for all religious communities to register by fulfilling certain – mainly organizational – requirements. The principles governing state support to all religious communities have been laid down in a new special act of law.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The law provides for these rights, and the Government respects them in practice.
The law and regulations incorporate the precepts of the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. They are also consistent with the European Union's (EU) Dublin Convention. The Government cooperates with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other humanitarian organizations in assisting refugees; it also provides first asylum. In keeping with international agreements, the Government reviewed applications for asylum more thoroughly than before. The number of applications for asylum decreased in 1999 to 11,231 (from 12,844 in 1998). Applicants included 3,576 Iraqi citizens, 1,812 from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and 854 Iranians. The Government approved 5,597 applications in 1999. A total of 6,835 persons sought asylum through July 2000. Nearly 11 percent of the country's population is foreign born.
The Government carries out expeditious returns of asylum seekers from EU countries or from countries with which there are reciprocal return agreements. In many cases, asylum seekers were deported within 72 hours of arrival, and NGO's were critical of their lack of access to legal counsel. To remedy this situation, the Government is experimenting with pilot programs at selected border crossings to provide expeditious legal assistance. Most of these are cases of persons who passed through or have asylum determinations pending in other EU countries. Applications can remain under consideration for long periods of time with applicants in uncertain status. Because of the appeals process in the courts, cases can extend for several years. These cases are few in number.
The principal complaint of NGO's is that the country lacks a transparent process for making decisions in asylum cases. They maintain that the asylum procedures lack rules to guide the conduct of authorities to ensure legal protection for asylum seekers. The procedures accord great discretion to individuals in decisionmaking positions. According to the NGO's, the decisionmakers use arbitrary, unspecified, and inconsistent criteria. NGO's are particularly critical of the unclear burden of proof and the lack of an appeals process to an independent court. Four cases, in which the Government sought to return asylum seekers to countries where they feared persecution, were pending at the U.N. Committee Against Torture; the Committee was expected to review the cases in the fall of 2000.
The Government conducted a review of the safety of countries that are considered safe third countries. NGO's raised the issue of insufficient protection for returnees to countries without a reciprocal return agreement. While these countries provide safe asylum, they are often reluctant to accept asylum seekers deported from European countries. Despite the Government's review, late in the year the authorities ordered the deportation of two Iranian asylum seekers to Tehran. The deportation was halted after the U.N. Committee Against Torture decided to review both cases to determine if the individuals would face torture if returned to Tehran.
A total of 3,752 Kosovar Albanian refugees were granted temporary residence permits in 1999, initially valid for 11 months. By July more than 2,500 of the refugees had returned to Kosovo. The Government has accepted over 100,000 refugees from the former Yugoslavia. The Government provides grants to Bosnians to travel to their homeland in order to determine if they wish to be repatriated. It also provides financial incentives for returnees, but there is no forced repatriation. There were no reports of the forced return of persons to a country where they feared persecution.
In March the Government withdrew a proposal envisaging changes to its temporary protection regulations in a situation of mass immigration. The proposal was withdrawn following massive criticism by the political opposition, the UNHCR, NGO's, and the parliamentary Committee on Social Insurance.
3. Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government
The Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully, and citizens exercise this right in practice through periodic, free, and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage. Citizens exercised this right most recently in 1998. Elections to the 349-member unicameral Parliament are held every 4 years.
Women participate actively in the political process and Government. They constitute 43.6 percent of the Parliament and 55 percent of the Cabinet. The governing Social Democratic Party largely kept its pledge to place women in half of all political appointments at all levels.
4. Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
Several private organizations actively monitor issues such as the impact of social legislation, anti-immigrant or racist activities, and the condition of the indigenous Sami population. The official ombudsmen publicize abuses of state authority and may initiate actions to rectify such abuses. Government agencies are in close contact with a variety of local and international groups working in the country and abroad to improve human rights observance, and they are very open to dialog and input from these groups.
5. Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution provides for equal rights for all citizens, and the Government respects this provision.
A total of 19,982 reported cases of assault against women (excluding rape) were reported in 1999, compared with 20,516 in 1998. Most involved spousal abuse. In three-quarters of the assaults, the perpetrator was an acquaintance of the victim. Reported abuse against women occurs disproportionately in immigrant communities. On average 33 murders of women and girls are reported each year, half of them by men closely related to the victim. The number of reported rapes of persons over age 15 was 1,747 in 1999, compared with 1,386 in 1998. The law does not differentiate between spousal and nonspousal rape. In 1998 (latest statistics available) 4,928 cases of violence against women were prosecuted, as were 243 rape cases, 208 of which were sexual assaults on persons over age 15.
Trafficking in women from Russia and the Baltics for purposes of forced prostitution continues to be a small but serious problem (see Section 6.f.). The purchase or attempted purchase of sexual services became illegal in 1999.
The Government has longstanding programs to deal with violence against women. The law provides complainants with protection from contact with their abusers, if so desired. In some cases, the authorities help women obtain new identities and homes. The Government provides electronic alarms or bodyguards for women in extreme danger of assault. Both national and local governments help fund volunteer groups that provide shelter and other assistance to abused women. The authorities strive to apprehend and prosecute abusers. Typically, the sentence for abuse is a prison term – 14 months on average – or psychiatric treatment. However, women complain about short sentences and the early release of offenders.
The law prohibits sexual harassment and specifies clearly employers' responsibilities to prevent and – if applicable – to investigate sexual harassment in the workplace and to formulate and post a specific policy and guidelines for the workplace. Employers who do not investigate and intervene against harassment at work can be obliged to pay damages to the victim. As with other forms of discrimination, women and men may take complaints to the courts or to their unions. To combat gender discrimination in the longer term, the Equal Opportunities Act requires all employers, both in the public and private sector, actively to promote equal opportunities for women and men in the workplace.
The law requires employers to treat men and women alike in hiring, promotion, and pay, including equal pay for comparable work. According to 1998 statistics, women's salaries were 82 percent of men's salaries. Adjusting for age, education, and occupational differences between men and women, women average 91 percent of men's salaries. The equal opportunity Ombudsman, a public official, investigates complaints of gender discrimination in the labor market. Women and men also may pursue complaints through the courts. A third option, and by far the most common, involves settling allegations with the employee's labor union as mediator. In 1999 gender discrimination cases by 94 women and 16 men were registered with the equal opportunity Ombudsman. The courts did not rule on any of the cases in 1999 (pending the resolution of 1 of the cases in the European Court of Justice), 11 were settled through mediation, 22 were withdrawn, and 72 were dropped. The remainder were pending. In the past, many of these cases involved salary discrimination. All employers with more than 10 employees must prepare an annual equality plan, including a survey of pay differences between male and female employees. The equal opportunity Ombudsman reviews these plans.
Women were trafficked for the purpose of forced prostitution (see Section 6.f.).
Under the country's pre-1976 practice of forced sterilization, thousands of persons were sterilized forcibly between 1934 and 1976. The majority of those sterilized were disabled either mentally or physically, and 95 percent were women. In May 1999, Parliament decided to pay damages in such cases (see Section 1.f.).
The Government demonstrates its strong commitment to children's rights and welfare through its well-funded systems of public education and medical care. The Government provides compulsory, free, and universal primary school education for children for 9 years. It also provides free medical and dental care for all children up to the age of 16 (19 for dental care). Parents receive some $1,000 per year for each child under 16 years of age. An official children's Ombudsman monitors the Government's programs.
The Government allocates funds to private organizations concerned with children's rights. An NGO, Children's Rights in Society, offers counseling to troubled youngsters. The Government remains active internationally in efforts to prevent child abuse.
Although the physical abuse of children appears relatively uncommon, the public and authorities remain concerned by consistent data indicating an increase in cases over the past several years. The number of reported cases for children under the age of 15 rose to 5,919 in 1999, up from 5,642 in 1998. The number of reported cases of sexual abuse of children under the age of 15 was 2,969 in 1999 and 2,756 in 1998. The U.N. Children's Committee criticized the Government, stating that it provides less protection for the children of immigrant and disadvantaged groups.
The law prohibits parents or other caretakers from abusing children mentally or physically in any way. Parents, teachers, and other adults are subject to prosecution if they physically punish a child, including slapping or spanking. Children have the right to report such abuses to the police. The authorities respect these laws, and the usual sentence is a fine combined with counseling and monitoring by social workers. However, if the situation warrants, authorities may remove children from their homes and place them in foster care. Foster parents virtually never receive permission to adopt long-term foster children, even in cases where the parents are seen as unfit or seek no contact with the child. Critics charge that this policy places the rights of biological parents over the needs of children for security in permanent family situations.
People With Disabilities
With one exception, there are no specific laws that prohibit discrimination against persons with disabilities, but considerable efforts are made to ensure that the disabled enjoy equal opportunities. A 1999 act prohibits discrimination against disabled persons in the workplace. In May the Parliament adopted a national plan on disability policy that provides for freedom of access and social support as basic rights for disabled citizens. Since 1994 the country has had an Ombudsman for disability issues. The Government provides disabled persons with assistance aimed at allowing them to live as normal a life as possible, preferably outside an institutional setting. This support may include a personal assistant for the severely disabled, plus improvements in the workplace's accessibility to wheelchairs. Government assistance also encompasses services such as home care or group living. Regulations for new buildings require full accessibility, but the Government has no such requirement for existing public buildings. Many buildings and some public transportation remain inaccessible. Deaf children have the right to education in sign language. The parents of disabled children and disabled workers under the age of 65 receive financial assistance every 7 years to buy a car adapted to the person's disability.
Under the country's pre-1976 practice of forced sterilization, thousands of persons were sterilized forcibly between 1934 and 1976. The majority of those sterilized were disabled either mentally or physically (see Section 1.f.). In 1999 Parliament decided to pay damages in such cases.
Indigenous People
The country counts at least 17,000 Sami (formerly known as Lapps) among its 8.87 million inhabitants (Sami organizations place that number somewhat higher, 25,000 to 30,000). In 1993 the Government allowed the formation of a Sametinget, or Sami Parliament, as an advisory body to the Government. Under the current Government, Sami issues fall under the Ministry of Agriculture.
The Sami continue a protracted struggle for recognition as an indigenous people under a variety of international agreements, such as International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 169. Historically, the Government resisted granting the Sami such rights. For example, Sami children had no right to education in their native language until the provision of such education to immigrant group children under a 1977 law forced the Government to grant Sami at least equal treatment. As a result of such education, northern Sami dialects have enjoyed a recent renaissance. However, Sami dialects in the southern portions of traditional Sami lands now may have too few native speakers to survive as living languages. In 1997 the Government initiated an inquiry into whether the country could ratify ILO Convention 169. The inquiry was published in 1999 and concluded that the country could ratify the convention, but that it should not be ratified until a number of steps relating to Sami land rights are taken. No further steps were taken during the year.
In 1994 the Government removed from the Sami the right to control hunting and fishing activities on Sami village lands, permitting instead totally unlimited hunting and fishing activity on all government property. Sami leaders continued to protest this change during the year.
Some Sami state that they face discrimination in housing and employment on an individual basis, particularly in the southern mountain regions. In January the Government officially recognized the Sami people as a national minority in the context of its ratification of the European Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.
Religious Minorities
The Government continued to take proactive steps to combat anti-Semitism by increasing awareness of Nazi crimes and the Holocaust. Under its living history project, the Government provides educational material on the Holocaust to schoolchildren and families throughout the country. The media are also active in publicizing and condemning neo-Nazi activity.
The Government declared January 27, the anniversary of Auschwitz's liberation, as a national day of remembrance. In January Sweden hosted a large, high-level international conference on Holocaust education. The Stockholm international forum on the Holocaust was attended by over 40 countries and over 20 heads of state and government.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Approximately 11 percent of Sweden's population is foreign born, with the largest groups being from Finland, Iran, and the former Yugoslavia. "Skinhead" and neo-Nazi related violence increased during the year. Neo-Nazi activity in the past was rarely lethal or well organized and was directed mostly at immigrants. However, cases over the last couple of years are notable for the fact that they mainly targeted white, native, non-Jewish citizens. Crimes with racial overtones increased, but only 13 per cent of the racist crimes reported could be linked directly to neo-Nazis. Violent incidents with racial overtones have averaged about 100 per year in recent years, although no official statistics are kept.
Three neo-Nazis were sentenced in January to life imprisonment for killing two police officers during the course of a May 1999 bank robbery. Two young neo-Nazis were sentenced to 11 years in prison in April for the murder of a trade union official in October 1999. A third defendant was sentenced to 4 years' imprisonment for being an accessory.
The public continued to urge a tougher stance against neo-Nazi groups. Several demonstrations against violence and racism were organized all over the country. The Government supports volunteer groups that oppose racism and xenophobia. As a result of the 1999 press campaign against 62 of the country's leading neo-Nazis, 5 were expelled from their unions, and 1 was fired from his job. Most estimates place the number of active neo-Nazis at fewer than 2,000, and there appears to be little popular support for their activities or sentiments. Many citizens doubt whether such youth actually embrace neo-Nazi ideology, and the Government supports activities by volunteer groups working against racism. The Government investigates and prosecutes race-related crimes, although in many clashes between Swedish and immigrant youth gangs, authorities judge both sides to be at fault. Neo-Nazi groups operate legally, but serious discussion has been taking place about outlawing such groups. The Supreme Court ruled that it can be illegal to wear xenophobic symbols or racist paraphernalia. Rightwing groups, which have and exercise the right to demonstrate, are not permitted to display signs and banners with provocative symbols at their rallies.
The Ombudsman for racial discrimination reported in January that complaints of ethnic discrimination in the labor market increased by 50 percent in 1999 to 184 cases, compared with 122 cases in 1998. The increase could be linked to a new law, introduced in May 1999, which provides easier redress.
A government committee presented a report that proposed a tightening of the laws against Nazi and racist crimes. The committee proposed that a new charge be introduced, "seriously disorderly conduct," in order to be able to prosecute people for crimes that do not fall under "agitation against ethnic groups."
In January the Government decided to ratify the Council of Europe's Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. The decision implies that the Sami people, Swedish Finns, Tornedal-Finns, Roma, and Jews are recognized as national minorities. It means that the Government should support and protect minority languages such as Sami, Finnish, and Yiddish. A new law that gave effect to the conventions entered into force on April 1.
6. Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
The work force is approximately 80 percent unionized. Career military personnel, police officers, and civilian government officials, as well as private sector workers in both manufacturing and service industries, are organized. Most business owners belong to counterpart employer organizations.
Unions and employer organizations operate independently of the Government and political parties (although the largest federation of unions has always been linked with the largest political party, the Social Democrats). The law protects the freedom of workers to associate and to strike, as well as for employers to organize and to conduct lockouts. Within limits protecting the public's immediate health and security, public employees also enjoy the right to strike. These laws are respected fully and are not challenged.
Unions have the right to affiliate with international bodies. They are affiliated with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and the European Trade Union Confederation among others.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Management-labor cooperation tends to be excellent and nonconfrontational. Labor and management, each represented by a national organization by sector (for example retailers and engineering industries), negotiate framework agreements every 2 to 3 years. More detailed company-level agreements put such framework agreements into effect at the local level. New framework agreements were signed during 1998, with most valid until 2001. In contrast with the recent past, most agreements with labor unions now provide for a degree of individualized pay, including merit bonuses.
The law provides both workers and employers with effective mechanisms for resolving complaints. The vast majority of complaints are resolved informally. The law protects union officials and members from dismissal or reprisals for official union activities. In some instances, unions even demand collective agreements regardless of the views and union status of employees. The Government is studying ways to strengthen the system of public mediation. During the year, a new government office, the Mediation Institute, began functioning. During 1999 there were seven legal and two illegal strikes. No strikes or lockouts were reported during the year, apart from two small wildcat actions in October.
Agreement was reached in 1997 between 12 employer associations and 8 unions representing 800,000 manufacturing employees on steps to prevent strikes and lockouts, such as requiring serious wage negotiations to start 3 months before a collective agreement expires and appointing a mediator if an agreement has not been reached after 2 months. As a result of this agreement, wages increased by approximately 3 percent in 1998 and a further 3 to 3.5 percent in 1999. Similar agreements were signed in the municipal sector and in the retail-commercial and service sectors.
There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The law prohibits forced or compulsory labor, and the authorities effectively enforce this ban. The law prohibits forced and bonded labor by children, and the Government enforces this prohibition effectively. However, women are trafficked to the country for the purposes of forced prostitution (see Section 6.f.).
d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment
Compulsory 9-year education ends at age 16, and the law permits full-time employment at that age under the supervision of local authorities. Employees under age 18 may work only during the daytime and under supervision. During summer and other vacation periods, children as young as 13 years may work part time or in "light" work with parental permission. Union representatives, police, and public prosecutors effectively enforce this restriction. The law prohibits forced and bonded labor by children, and the Government enforces this prohibition effectively (see Section 6.c.).
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
There is no national minimum wage law. Wages are set by collective bargaining contracts, which nonunion establishments usually observe as well. Even the lowest paid workers can maintain a decent standard of living for themselves and their families through substantial benefits (such as housing or day care support) provided by social welfare entitlement programs. However, cutbacks in these programs have made it harder for some workers to make ends meet, particularly low-paid single women with children.
The standard workweek is 40 hours or less. Both the law and collective bargaining agreements regulate overtime and rest periods. For workers not covered by a labor agreement, the law stipulates a limit for overtime at 200 hours a year, although exceptions may be granted for key employees with union approval; some collective bargaining agreements put the limit at 150 hours. The law requires a rest period after 5 hours of work but does not stipulate a minimum duration; in practice it is usually 30 minutes. The law also provides all employees with a minimum of 5 weeks of paid annual leave; labor contracts often provide more, particularly for higher ranking private sector employees and older public service workers. Amendments to the labor law in 1997 made it easier for employers to hire workers for limited periods, as well as empowering local unions to agree to exceptions to last-in, first-out laws.
Currently the focus of concern is on the psychosocial aspect of health and safety. Occupational health and safety rules are set by a government-appointed board and monitored by trained union stewards, safety ombudsmen, and, occasionally, government inspectors. These standards are very high, making workplaces both safe and healthy. Safety ombudsmen have the authority to stop unsafe activity immediately and to call in an inspector. An individual also has the right to halt work in dangerous situations in order to consult a supervisor or safety representative.
f. Trafficking in Persons
The law does not prohibit such trafficking, although traffickers are prosecuted under other statutes. Women are trafficked to the country for forced prostitution. In 1999 the Government initiated six court cases against individuals involved in trafficking. The 11 cases prosecuted in 1998-99 resulted in 6 convictions. All of the accused traffickers are Swedish residents with family and personal ties to Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East. The affected women in these cases, numbering 200 to 500 per year, came principally from Central Europe, the Baltic states, and Russia. The women typically are recruited in their own countries to come and work as cleaners, babysitters, or similar employment. Some reportedly were "purchased" from other traffickers and brought into Sweden. A 1998 baseline report stated that considerable additional information available to the police suggests that the problem of trafficking is more widespread than the few prosecutions indicate.
The Government and the EU provided funds to the Foundation of Women's Forums to combat trafficking in women in the Nordic and Baltic nations by creating interactive networks that link NGO's and research institutions that deal with prevention and the rehabilitation of trafficked women.
This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.


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On this date in 1748, Arthur Gray and William Rowland — two desperadoes of the Hawkhurst Gang smuggling syndicate — were hanged at Tyburn.
We have in these pages formerly detailed the muscle of this fearsome gang, which having established a lucrative commercial enterprise evading tea duties and distributing its discount leaf did not shrink from brutalizing and murdering the king's own agents to preserve it.*
Britain by the late 1740s was pressing hard to suppress the shocking violence of the smuggling trade. To that end, she had armed herself with legislation permitting the capital prosecution of people for carrying smuggled goods while armed — the attainble bar which was cleared for both of the prosecutions at issue in today's post.
However, as the Newgate Ordinary described, there were much more shocking atrocities to be attributed:
There are numerous Instances might be given of the Barbarity of Smugglers, but I shall confine myself to one or two very remarkable, in which Gray was principally concerned, in Decem. 1744. The Commissioners of the Customs being informed that two noted Smugglers, Chiefs of a Gang who infested the Coast, were skulking at a House in Shoreham in Sussex, they granted a Warrant to Messieurs Quaff, Bolton, Jones, and James, four of his Majesty's Officers of the Customs, to go in Search of them. The Officers found them according to the Information, seized them, and committed them to Goal. But the rest of the Gang, of which Gray was one, being informed of the Disaster of their Friends, convened in a Body the Monday following, and in open Day Light entered the Town with Hangers drawn, arm'd with Pistols and Blunderbusses; they fired several Shot to intimidate the Neighbourhood, and went to a House where the Officers were Drinking; dragg'd them out, tied three of them Neck and Heels (the fourth, named Quaff, making his Escape as they got out of the House) and carried them off in Triumph to Hawkhurst in Kent, treating them all the Way with the utmost Scurrility, and promising to broil them alive. However, upon a Council held among them, they let Mr. Jones go, after they had carried him about five Miles from Shoreham, telling him, they had nothing to object to him, but advised him not to be over busy in troubling them or their Brethren, left he might one Day meet the Fate reserved for his two Companions. They carried the unfortunate Mr. Bolton and James, to a Wood near Hawkhurst, stripped them naked, tyed them to two different Trees near one another, and whipped them in the most barbarous Manner, till the unhappy Men begg'd they would knock them on the Head to put them out of their Miseries; but these barbarous Wretches told them, it was time enough to think of Death when they had gone through all their Exercise that they had for them to suffer before they would permit them to go to the D – l. They then kindled a Fire between the two Trees, which almost scorch'd them to Death, and continued them in this Agony for some Hours, till the Wretches were wearied with torturing them; they then releas'd them from the Trees, and carried them quite speechless and almost dead, on Board one of their Ships, from whence they never return'd.
That's all about Arthur Gray, a butcher by training who had advanced to a leadership role in the Hawkhurst Gang. Juridically, this entire story is nothing but the Ordinary's gossip; the whole of Gray's trial consists not of torturing and disappearing lawmen but an anodyne description of Gray's having formed a convoy of about eight men, armed with blunderbusses and carbines, to carry uncustomed tea and brandy. It's the get Capone on tax evasion school of using whatever tool is available; in fact, the very crime here for Gray is "tax offences".
It's the same for William Rowland, who was a person of much less consequence in the gang; the Ordinary has no scandal of interest to share with the reader, and by his telling Rowland awaiting the gallows seems preoccupied mostly with annoyance at his naivete in surrendering himself upon hearing of the warrant, thinking his involvement in the racket too trivial to have possibly come to hemp.
The Hawkhurst Gang would be broken up by 1749.
* On the lighter side of moral panics, we find philanthropist-noodge Jonas Hanway (who thought a proper Briton ought to fortify himself with robust beer instead of strained leaf-water) amusingly fretting in the 1750s that thanks to the 18th century's tea craze
men were losing their stature, women their beauty, and the very chambermaids their bloom … Will the sons and daughters of this happy isle for ever submit to the bondage of so tyrannical a custom as drinking tea? … Were they the sons of tea-sippers who won the fields of Crécy and Agincourt or dyed the Danube's shores with Gallic blood?
On this day..
- 2012: Zhang Jianfei, job-seeker - 2020
- Feast Day of Saint Mocius - 2019
- 1528: Eitelhans Langenmantel, Thomas Jefferson ancestor - 2017
- Corpses Strewn: New York's slave conspiracy of 1741 - 2016
- 1741: Caesar and Prince, leaders of a plot to burn New York? - 2016
- 1915: Basanta Kumar Biswas, bomber - 2015
- 1928: Clarence "Buck" Kelly, testicle donor - 2014
- 1858: William and Daniel Cormack, for murdering John Ellis - 2013
- 1958: Khosrow Roozbeh - 2012
- 1744: Jan, of Johonnes Van Houten - 2011
- 1939: Evgeny Miller, White Russian - 2010
- 1891: The Namoa pirates - 2009
- 1685: Margaret McLachlan and Margaret Wilson, the Solway Martyrs - 2008

subset: commoncrawl


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July 9, 2014
Graham Nyugen, Office of Communications
Blackmore Continues West Nile Monitoring Project
VALDOSTA – Summer time is known for heat waves and mosquitoes, and it is during this time of year that Dr. Mark Blackmore, professor of biology at Valdosta State University, is his busiest. For 13 years, the professor has tracked mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases in the area.
Blackmore continues his surveillance program this year through funds provided by the City of Valdosta and Lowndes County. Since the start of summer, Blackmore has worked with seven students to collect various species of mosquitoes from different parts of the county to test them.
"Every week, starting on Sunday night, we set traps in 16 different places in Lowndes County," said Blackmore. "The next morning, the mosquitos are collected and examined under a microscope to identify what species they are. Traps are placed in the same locations every year to track what is normal and what is different from week to week and year to year so we can make comparisons with data that was collected from 10 years ago. The ultimate goal is to be able to predict when the conditions may be appropriate for disease outbreak or when mosquitoes may become a nuisance."
The city uses this information to determine the right times to spray pesticides as well as the right amounts to spray.
"This area has about 40 different species of mosquito," Blackmore explained. "They live off different things, feed at different times of day and live during certain times of the summer. We them and then test them in pools of 25. While they are annoying when they bite us, most species are not the kinds that transmit diseases. There are just a few that are. However last year, we had more positive pools of West Nile Virus than we have ever had in more than a decade of testing."
Blackmore asserted that while there were more positive pools reported, the number of human cases remained low.
"We benefit in this area because the type of mosquito that is a vector for West Nile Virus is more common in the western United States," he said. "Sometimes humans can pick up the virus from birds, but it is not common."
Nonetheless, detection of the virus is used to provide warnings for citizens to take preventive measures. Findings from Blackmore's surveillance program are also reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention each year.
Blackmore was sought to assist with West Nile monitoring after the first positive cases were identified in Lowndes County in 2001.
"Officials noticed that several birds had died in the area and after they tested positive for the virus, I was contacted," he said. "I had experience with mosquito-borne diseases from working in northern Indiana so when the virus was identified here I was just at the right place at the right time. The city and county had some federal money available to help me purchase equipment to monitor the mosquitoes and prepare a report. That was the beginning of my involvement."
Blackmore has more than 25 years of experience in the study of mosquito biology and their natural parasites as well as other aspects of vector biology and disease ecology. For more information on this surveillance program, contact him at email@example.com.
- Office of Communications Powell Hall West, Suite 1120
Mailing Address
1500 N. Patterson St.
Valdosta, GA 31698 - General VSU Information
- Phone: 229.333.5800
- Office of Communications
- Phone: 229.333.2163
- Phone: 229.333.5983


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By Lenore Taylor
Is the Labor leadership issue a bizarre beat-up entirely confected by the news media? Certainly not. Is it an unstable and shifting situation, which may lead to a challenge, and which is notoriously difficult to report? Absolutely. Here are some of the dilemmas:
Apparently contradictory things can be simultaneously true. The 103-strong caucus is divided into three camps - those backing Gillard, a growing group who used to back Gillard but who are now unsure what to do, and those backing Rudd. So when Gillard's supporters say Kevin Rudd doesn't have the numbers, that's technically right. And when Kevin Rudd's supporters say support has drifted away from Gillard over the summer, that's true too. Both sides claim more of the undecided camp than they definitely have, meaning when each says the other is inflating their numbers, that's spot-on as well.
MPs can be telling the gospel truth when they say ''no one has called me'' because overt canvassing of individual votes only occurs when a challenge has been declared. Now is the time of how-are-things-going, what-are-your-concerns, read-between-the-lines conversations.
Most MPs publicly insist they support the leader until the second they cast a ballot for somebody else.
In every leadership ballot some MPs tell both candidates they will vote for them.
Most MPs prefer not to declare their hand until they are sure which way the ballot will go, lest they jump the wrong way, and will only discuss their views with journalists on a ''background'', that is, anonymous, basis.
It is in Rudd's interests to talk up momentum, to keep the chance of a challenge alive, but not too much, to avoid challenging before the March 24 Queensland election. It is in Gillard's interests to say nothing is happening, but also to talk up Rudd's ''destabilisation'' to cement antagonism against him.
Momentum is powerful. In the challenge against Rudd, some MPs who had been supporting the prime minister felt that the challenge had gone so far, so fast, that only a change could calm things down.
When the independents say ''all bets are off'' after a leadership change they are trying to head off the destabilisation, but it does not necessarily mean they would refuse to support a Rudd Government and trigger a general election in which most would lose their seats. They would probably want some commitments from the new leader.
All of this means it is a difficult situation for journalists, requiring caution, judgment and the testing of what is said by sources who won't be named. But it does not mean they are making it all up.
Follow the National Times on Twitter: @NationalTimesAU
Is the Labor leadership issue a bizarre beat-up entirely confected by the news media? Certainly not.


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La Casa del Vidrio
Manolo, the boys & I went on a little road trip
to San Miguel de Allende this morning and visited La Casa del Vidrio.
It is a beautiful shop on Correo #11 that sells Mexican hand blown glass.
Manolo was looking for a glass vase to turn into a pendant lamp
for our house and he found a perfect chartreuse one!
I brought home one of those HUGE turquoise glass hearts :-)


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Boost productivity and profits at your dealership with the guidance of a dedicated Performance Manager. Here are the top 10 ways to grow your business.
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June is National Black LGBT month, and The Root celebrates Black and gay notables who made coming out cool. Among the 20 names on the list is former CNN anchor Don Lemon. The journalist came out during a telecast on the network last year, and recently made a move to BET News. Academy-Award nominated director and producer Lee Daniels—most known for his films Precious and The Monstor's Ball—also nails a spot on the list. Daniels is the first Black gay man to be nominated for an Academy Award. Actress and comedienne Wanda Sykes makes the list as well, along with sermonizers Vanessa M. Brown and Joseph Tolton of New York's Rivers and Reboroth Church. The pastors made headlines for creating a ministry for gay and lesbian parishioners. Dee Rivers, writer and director of the award-winning film Pariah also earns a spot.
For the full list of the 20 Black LGBT Movers and Shakers, check The Root now!


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After a hot sweaty 7 mile treadmill run I had to rush over to the post office to send MORE things to Cali for our apartment application. As I was filling out the date for some paperwork I said, "YES" out loud because I realized that it was 7/11, better known as free slurpee day. I drove straight to 7-11, went in and asked for my cup. They looked at me and asked why I would want a slurpee at 8:30 am? Free slurpees don't start until 11.
I was very disappointed and so I went home and cleaned. I would have made it back to 7-11 right at 11 but the stupid stoplight made me two minutes late and it was already so crowded.
It tasted so good. (Billy don't worry I will go again with you later today)
After I enjoyed every last slurp I showered real quick and went to lunch.
Why do people have to move? It is kind of rude. I am going to miss this girl big time because she is moving to Chicago but I am glad I got one last lunch date with her. A Cafe Rio gift card keeping me right on track with my challenge.
Billy sent me THIS article that is pretty darn crazy to me!
That is so much money! I wonder since we are runners if we double the numbers of shoes bought in a lifetime because of our obsession with running shoes? We probably have to add in sports bras and running clothing into those numbers too….
Who else is celebrating SLURPEE DAY? Favorite slurpee flavor?
How often do you buy new clothes? Do you feel like you never have anything to wear? Was it shocking to you that on average women spend that much money on clothes?
Was your run today inside or outside? How far?
Who was your last lunch date with?


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We're coming to your city. Permanently, Tallahassee.
A replica "College GameDay" stage in Florida State's football offices is among a series of planned facilities renovations the university announced last week. Florida State worked with Advent, which has consulted numerous programs about facility renovations, and the upgrades will begin taking shape next month.
The idea to build a "College GameDay" set was one that came internally, though, pitched by Mark Robinson, Florida State's director of football operations.
"It was more we need to show people our historical value of how many times we've been on 'GameDay,'" senior associate athletic director Monk Bonasorte told ESPN.com.
While the ability to take a picture on the "College GameDay" set -- Lee Corso in the background, feathered spear in hand perhaps? -- will provide an unparalleled photo opportunity, it is the new locker room that has recruits buzzing. College football is in the midst of a facilities arms race, and the recruiting benefits are among the chief reasons. Citing a 2012 survey of college football players, Forbes.com reported a program's facilities ranked fourth among the most important factors to recruits. Within the last few years, Arizona, California, LSU, Texas A&M and Washington have all doled out more than $100 million on facility facelifts.
Florida State spent $15 million to build an indoor practice field this past August, and Bonasorte said while the university is taking advantage of the national championship, the administration and coach Jimbo Fisher were discussing the plans prior to January's BCS title win. These latest blueprints redesigning the locker room and football offices have hit their intended mark with elite recruits.
The locker room will showcase silhouette statues of all of players whose jerseys Florida State has retired. Also, above each player's locker will be a list of previous FSU greats who wore the same number, Bonasorte said, although no plans are finalized.
"With our program, we got to be careful, how do you list every person?" Bonasorte said. "We're working through that, but that's an idea we came up with."
One name and number certain to be in the locker room is that of Heisman winner Chris Weinke, whose jersey is retired. Coincidentally, the No. 1 recruit in the 2015 class, Jashon Cornell, wears the same number, and has Florida State among his top schools. Should he sign with the Noles, he would have Weinke's name next to his on his No. 16 locker. (Although the jersey is retired, the No. 16 is not out of circulation.)
Gauging Cornell's response to the new locker room design, the Noles might have moved up on his list of favorites.
"I have one word for you: gorgeous," Cornell said. "I really like the facilities. Maybe 20 percent of my decision [will be based on facilities]."
Stan Wilcox, still in his first year as Florida State athletic director, said in February that FSU needs to monitor what others are doing with facilities to make sure his program is not lagging. Wilcox was hired on Aug. 7, just one day after Florida State cut the ribbon on its indoor practice facility.
"In order to stay in front of the curve, we have to look at our facilities," Wilcox told ESPN.com last month. "… [W]e have to attract the best athletes we possibly can, and student-athletes these days are savvy consumers."
Seminoles.com provided a tour of the proposed designs.


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The economy is still faltering. Cutbacks are the norm. And that may mean no — or very little — new equipment is being purchased. That means you need to know to hold on it, when to let it go, and how to care for it in between it all. It shouldn't be a gamble. And you shouldn't be robbing Peter to pay Paul.
by Tina Grady Barbaccia
Spring equipment tune-ups and fleet maintenance can be likened to the Peter-Paul principle: You rob Peter to pay Paul.
By putting off preventive maintenance, that's essentially what's being done, says John Scharffbillig, director of fleet services for the City of Minneapolis and member-at large for the American Public Works Association (APWA) Technical Committees. "You can either pay now or pay later," he says.
Some agencies and contractors unintentionally adopt this rule by holding off on necessary maintenance. Instead of paying now for a potential problem, they pay later for a major problem that could have been staved off.
It seems like common sense to take care of minor problems. To keep your equipment running properly, you have to keep up maintenance. It's just like putting off vehicle repairs. That odd engine noise could turn into a complete engine replacement if the problem isn't taken care of. Either pay now or pay later.
The same goes for your fleet of equipment. The snowplows and deicing equipment are starting to be put away, and pavers, milling machines, loaders and patch wagons are being brought out of storage. However, many capital equipment purchases — which would supplement current equipment — are being put on hold, making it even more imperative to properly care for the equipment.
According to the Associated General Contractors of America's (AGC) national construction hiring and business outlook released in a conference call attended by Better Roadsin late January, nearly nine-in-10 contractors say there will be no recovery in 2010. As a result, fewer contractors plan to purchase construction equipment, says Stephen E. Sandherr, the association's chief executive officer. (For a full report on the construction business forecast, including links to the survey data, go to http://www.betterroads.com/ and click on "The Roadologist" blog and to http://bit.ly/BetterRoads.)
Agencies and contractors have eliminated capital equipment purchases because of budgetary constraints, says Mark DeVries, maintenance superintendent/superintendent of operations, McHenry County (Illinois) Division of Transportation and APWA Winter Maintenance Committee member. "They are still allowing us to purchase plow trucks," DeVries says, "but they have eliminated everything else. We aren't buying any other equipment…no tractors, etc."
DeVries says his agency has a regular equipment replacement program, which is common for most agencies. Typically, McHenry County purchases new equipment each year, with the type of equipment purchased based on the number of years or hours it has been operated. "We may keep a road grader for 20 years, but other things like a wood chipper may be replaced more often," DeVries says. "But we are putting off purchasing any of this equipment."
The problem, he says, is if a wood chipper or tractor is usually replaced every year, but it's not being replaced this year — or even next year — the agency will be three years behind with equipment replacement. But that doesn't mean three wood chippers or tractors will be able to be purchased in one year to make up for the deferred purchase.
"It's not a huge hit to us right now, but the question is whether we'll get caught up again with our equipment," DeVries says. "I'm worried about two years from now. If we still haven't recovered and have pushed off two, three or four tractors for two years, then it'll be several tractors we haven't replaced…and we can't just go out and buy three tractors in one year. How do you recover? I don't know if you can. You just adjust."
Typically, plow trucks are used 10 years on a route and five years as a spare, making the span about 15 years of operation, DeVries notes. "But if you start changing that routine, you start extending how long the trucks are on a route, that starts playing into what you've traditionally done. It changes your whole maintenance and replacement routine."
Delaying replacement, however, doesn't mean it's just money in the bank. There still needs to be an investment in maintenance, especially because eliminating/putting off the capital equipment purchases means they have to run longer. And just like a vehicle, the longer it's kept, the more likely major repairs will need to be done.
"We expect more repair bills this year because we haven't replaced equipment," DeVries says. "And I know we'll have to do more than just preventive repairs. You have to gear yourself up for an impact on your repair budget."
But sometimes even extreme maintenance and major repairs just won't cut it. How do you know when it's not worth the maintenance and the equipment absolutely must be replaced? "You have to look at the value of the equipment and how much it costs to maintain," DeVries points out. "At some point, it'll cost you more to maintain it than to replace it. Every agency has a threshold. We look at how many hours there are on a piece of equipment and how long we've had it."
The City of Minneapolis' Scharffbillig when ownership and maintenance start to cross, it's "the optimum time" to replace equipment. "Again, it's the Peter-Paul Principle," he says. "It's pay now or pay later."
Scharffbillig says, for example, if there is a problem with a speed sensor, it can either be pulled out and replaced — which may cost about $200 — or the problem can be put off, only to soon see the other components will not function. "Then you're looking at $1,500 or so instead of a few hundred," he says. "It 's the little things that will keep your equipment running. Big money takes care of itself, little money drives you broke."
Wash away or wash in corrosion?
The Peter-Paul principle not only applies to equipment maintenance but also to storage. For snowplows, this is particularly important, Scharffbillig says. Although snowplows endure harsh conditions and corrosive materials when going down the road, he says, corrosion is even more of a problem while it's in storage.
"When it's being stored, it's the most corrosive time after you've rinsed it down, parked it so it dries, and when the temperature is between 40 and 50 degrees [Fahrenheit]," Scharffbillig points out. "The corrosive material leaches in. You can wash it down really well and use rust inhibitors, but I haven't found in my 30 plus years in this business of anything that stops it. The chloride water wicks in. Sometimes when [equipment is stored], the protective boots isn't pushed back and left up to dry. Then it gets corroded there."
Chloride is most effective on the road in liquid format, Scharffbillig. "We're putting it on at the most active rate for the road but also most active for corrosion and causing other incidences to components because it gets caught in all the cracks and crevices and causes deterioration."
To maintain and preserve the equipment — beyond just having a preventive maintenance program — is get make sure the program will be properly implemented, Scharffbillig says.
"You need to get the drivers to buy in and follow the program," he says. "They need to sweep under the accelerator pedals. Once you get salt and material buildup under the pedal it just sit there. Corrosion is accelerated by the heat from the truck and the water off the boots of the operator creates a environment that is perfect for corrosion. But more than that, it's a safety issue. The pedal could stick, Scharffbillig says. "In the old square boxes style with cross bracing, if you don't' get an operator to clean off chunks of salt and debris, it will eat away at the equipment," he says. "It's hard on the bearings and cross members. It's hard on the feeder chains in hopper bottoms too."
Common sense doesn't mean common practice
Some of these inspection points for your equipment fleet may seem like common sense. "If something doesn't look right, then have it looked at further," Scharffbillig says. But he notes that it's surprisingly how many "common sense" points are overlooked or disregarded. "Inspect your brakes, check your tires…," Scharffbillig says. "It seems like common sense, but if you talk to commercial vehicle inspectors, they'll tell us they can't believe what they are beginning to see out there."
Ignoring easy and common repairs not only sets up an agency or contractor for a heftier repair bill down the road, but it means accepting a liability for its employees but for the traveling public, Scharffbillig says.
This is especially true when it comes to equipment maintenance and electronics. By not maintaining the electronics or not following protocol, a potential safety liability has been created. "There are so many safety sensors, from a car to a dump truck to of-road equipment," Scharffbillig says. "If you do any alterations to it, you've accepted a liability."
Scharffbillig gives two examples. The first, he says was drilling a hole in the rollover protection (ROPs) on a loader to hang a coat in the back of the seat. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) were doing and inspection found that the safety equipment was altered and told Scharffbillig's agency that it had to re-weld along with having it re- inspected for to make sure that the integrity of the device was still there.
A second and more serious example was a stuck trailer hitch receiver on a vehicle. "We put a chain around it and hooked it to a pole to pull the receiver out," he says. "This used to be common practice in the feild." But what seemed like no big deal actually created a problem. "We jerked so hard that all the airbag sensors went off," Scharffbillig points out. "An airbag went off and gave the operator a black eye and knocked off the operator's glasses. We ended up spending $5,000 to $6,000 to just repair the airbags, and we didn't even hit anything."
The lesson learned? "Think before you act. If someone runs into a snow drift or drills into equipment to mount an attachment, you need to understand what could happen and where all the electronics are."
With hybrid equipment, such as the cars International Hybrid Trucks, Komatsu Hydraulic excavators have been recently released, Scharffbillig says. Now equipment is powered by electric, compressed natural gas and propane. This affects how maintenance to the fleet can be done.
"We just had a class with our first responders about electric hybrids," Scharffbillig says. "We found out that if there is an accident, the hybrids mustbe properly marked to make sure people don't get hurt or severely shocked. On some of the equipment, you need to be carful with is the Jaws of Life because it could hurt both the first responders and the operators."
It all goes back to proper maintenance, training and adaptability. The operational schedule of fleets is being stretched longer, so more maintenance is needed. And times have changed. This all has to be considered when developing a preventive maintenance plan and determining an equipment care plan.
"You can't always do things the way you've done them," Scharffbillig says. "There has been an evolution of equipment. This isn't your granddad's equipment. Things have changed, and you need to adapt with it."
A Cheat Sheet: Top 5 Tips to Spring Equipment Maintenance
John Scharffbillig, fleet manager with the Minneapolis Department of Transportation and a member-at-large for the American Public Works Association (APWA) Technical Services Committee, shares these quick tips about how to keep your equipment fleet running well and important maintenance guidelines.
1. Make equipment operators realize how important it is to keep equipment clean.
2. Make sure filters are being changed and use quality fuels and lubricants are being used."Make sure you're buying fuel from a reputable vendor, or have a testing program incorporated into your own in-house maintenance program to make sure you're getting what you're paying for," Scharffbillig says. "Oil analysis programs can make sure you're optimizing the most amount of fuel and pre-predict failures."
3. Make sure you have your operators and drivers write up all the minor repairs. "Get them when they are small," Scharffbillig says. "Don't let a minor repair. Become a major repair get it while it's small… It could be just a simple as tightening a bolt instead of just letting them all fall out."
4. Shop is only able to repair equipment if it knows there is a problem.
5. Take time to do it right. "You don't have to do it over," Scharffbillig says. "With workforces being cut, everyone is trying to cut corners and cut costs. But you're not going to get the job done if equipment is sitting in shop.


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If you step outside before dawn during the next week or so, you might try to catch a view of some "cosmic litter" that has been left behind in space by Halley's Comet: the Orionid meteor shower.
The Orionids can best be described as a junior version of the famous Perseid meteor shower. This year's Orionids show is scheduled to reach its maximum before sunrise on the morning of Oct. 22. The meteors are known as "Orionids" because the fireballs seem to fan out from a region to the north of Orion's second brightest star, ruddy Betelgeuse.
Currently, Orion appears ahead of us in our journey around the sun. The constellation does not completely rise above the eastern horizon until after 11 p.m. local daylight time. At its best, several hours later around 5 a.m., Orion will be highest in the sky toward the south.
The Orionids typically produce around 20 to 25 meteors per hour under a clear, dark sky. Orionid meteors are normally dim and not well seen from urban locations, so you'd do best to find a safe rural location to see the most Orionid activity. [Spectacular Leonid meteor shower photos]
Orionid meteors will begin to increase noticeably around Oct. 17, when they'll start appearing at about five per hour. After peaking on the morning of Oct. 22, activity will begin to slowly descend, dropping back to around five per hour around Oct. 26. The last stragglers usually appear sometime in early to mid- November.
Halley's Legacy
Halley's Comet has left a visible legacy in the form of these two annual meteor showers, one of which is the Orionids. This will be a good year to look for them, since the moon will have slimmed down to a crescent on the morning of the Orionids peak, and will not pose much of a hindrance for those watching for Orionids in 2011. This slender moon will not rise until around 2 a.m. local daylight time.
Comets are the leftovers of the solar system's creation, the odd bits and pieces of simple gases — methane, ammonia, carbon dioxide and water vapor — that went unused when the sun and its attendant planets came into their present form. Meteoroids that are released into space out of this debris are the remnants of a comet's nucleus. All comets eventually disintegrate into meteor swarms, and Halley's is well into that process already. [Video: Meteors from Halley's Comet]
These tiny particles — mostly ranging in size from dust to sand grains — remain along the original comet's orbit, creating a "river of rubble" in space. In the case of Halley's Comet, which has likely circled the sun many hundreds, if not thousands, of times, its dirty trail of debris has been distributed more or less uniformly all along its orbit. When these tiny bits of comet collide with Earth, friction with our atmosphere raises them to white heat and produces the effect popularly referred to as "shooting stars."
The orbit of Halley's Comet closely approaches the Earth's orbit at two places. One point is in the early part of May, producing a meteor display known as the Eta Aquarids. The other point comes in the middle to later part of October, producing the Orionids.
What to Expect
The best time to watch begins from 1 or 2 a.m. local daylight time, until around dawn, when the shower's point of origin (in Orion's upraised club, just north of the bright red star, Betelgeuse) is highest above the horizon. The higher this point, called the radiant, the more meteors appear all over the sky.
The Orionids are one of just a handful of meteor showers that can be observed equally well from both the Northern and Southern hemispheres.
This meteor shower is one of the better annual displays, producing about 15 to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. Add the five to 10 sporadic meteors that always are plunging into our atmosphere and you get a maximum of about 20 to 30 meteors per hour for a dark sky location. Most of these meteors are relatively faint, however, so any light pollution will cut the total way down.
The shower may be quite active for several days before or after its broad maximum, which may last from Oct. 20 through Oct. 24. Step outside before sunrise on any of these mornings, and if you catch sight of a meteor, there's about a 75 percent chance that it likely originated from the nucleus of Halley's Comet.
"They are easily identified … from their speed," write David Levy and Stephen Edberg in "Observe: Meteors," an Astronomical League manual. "At 66 kilometers (41 miles) per second, they appear as fast streaks, faster by a hair than their sisters, the Eta Aquarids of May. And like the Eta Aquarids, the brightest of family tend to leave long-lasting trains. Fireballs are possible three days after maximum."
Recent studies have shown that about half of all Orionids that are seen leave trails that lasted longer than other meteors of equal brightness. This is undoubtedly connected in some way to the makeup of Halley's Comet. So it is that the shooting stars that we have come to call Orionids are really an encounter with the traces of a famous visitor from the depths of space and from the dawn of creation.
Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for The New York Times and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York.
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By Jeff Spry


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Migraines Not Linked to Decline in Thinking Skills
No difference seen over long term between those with or without the painful headaches
URL of this page: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_128144.html
(*this news item will not be available after 11/08/2012)
Friday, August 10, 2012
FRIDAY, Aug. 10 (HealthDay News) -- Although they are common and often debilitating, migraine headaches are not associated with declines in thinking skills, researchers say.
"Previous studies on migraines and cognitive [brain] decline were small and unable to identify a link between the two. Our study was large enough to draw the conclusion that migraines, while painful, are not strongly linked to cognitive decline," lead author Pamela Rist, a research fellow in the division of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, said in a hospital news release.
For the study, the researchers examined data previously compiled on nearly 40,000 women aged 45 years and older. They also analyzed new information they collected from more than 6,300 women regarding their migraine status. Based on this information, the women were divided into four groups: no history of migraine; migraine with aura (usually described as a visual disturbance); migraine without aura; and past history of migraine. Every two years for up to six years the women underwent testing of their cognitive, or thinking, skills.
"Compared with women with no history of migraine, those who experienced migraine with or without aura did not have significantly different rates of cognitive decline," Rist explained. "This is an important finding for both physicians and patients. Patients with migraine and their treating doctors should be reassured that migraine may not have long-term consequences on cognitive function."
More research is needed to investigate the affects of migraine on the brain and to improve treatment strategies, the study authors noted.
The study findings were published in the Aug. 8 online edition of the BMJ.
Copyright (c) 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
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- Migraine


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Applicants should complete the online application found on the Human Resources and Jobs page. A kiosk is available at the City's Human Resources counter during regular business hours (Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.). Make sure your application is received by the filing deadline to qualify for consideration.
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Updated: November 11, 2015


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Nats rebound from sweep by clobbering Fish
MIAMI -- After being swept by the Braves over the weekend, the Nationals returned to form behind Jordan Zimmermann on Monday night against the Marlins.
Zimmermann gave up three runs in his first career nine-inning complete game, and Washington's lineup clobbered Miami's pitching staff in a 10-3 win at Marlins Park. It was technically Zimmermann's second complete game, the first being an eight-inning effort in a 1-0 loss to new teammate Dan Haren and the Angels on June 29, 2011.
"This one's a little bit better," Zimmermann said. "For sure."
It was better for a number of reasons. Zimmermann went the distance on 103 pitches in picking up the win -- his third in as many starts this season -- he saved a taxed bullpen and he helped the Nationals bounce back after a rough weekend in which they were swept and outscored, 18-5, by the Braves.
"It means I'm doing my job staying in the ballgame and putting up zeros. That's the kind of pitcher I want to be," said Zimmermann, who struck out six, walked a batter and scattered six hits. "I want to be a workhorse and someone that can eat up innings and stay out there as long as possible."
He did just that, tossing Washington's first complete game since Gio Gonzalez threw two last August.
The right-hander was efficient early, needing only 48 pitches to get through the first five innings. He didn't permit a runner to get on base until the fourth and faced the minimum until the sixth. When the Marlins finally got to him, he battled through it and let his defense do the job behind him. And when he had made 98 pitches after eight innings, he and manager Davey Johnson knew it was time for him to finish what he started.
"It's nice. It's always fun to get a complete game. You enjoy it and all that. But I don't want them to think that their job is done after six, seven innings," pitching coach Steve McCatty said. "They understand, if they keep their pitch count down and their head in the game, they've got a good chance to go deeper in the game. ... That's the whole idea as a starter. That's what you do. That's what you're supposed to do. So it was really good to watch him do it."
Zimmermann felt more comfortable pitching with a lead, and the lineup certainly gave him one, jumping out to a four-run lead in the first inning before tacking on six more over the third, fourth and fifth frames. Shortstop Ian Desmond led the way with four hits, including two doubles, and third baseman Ryan Zimmerman blasted his first homer of the year, igniting an offense that was shut out, 9-0, on Sunday.
"I wouldn't say we needed to be calmed down," Zimmerman said. "We don't really get too out of character, or we don't panic too much. ... [The Braves] took it to us pretty good this weekend. To kind of recover and get off to a good start down here in this series is always good."
Washington's first six batters reached base against lefty Wade LeBlanc. Denard Span singled to lead off the game, and that was followed by a single from Jayson Werth and a walk by Bryce Harper. Zimmerman drove in Span and Werth with a single up the middle, but Harper was thrown out trying to go from first to third. That hardly slowed the Nationals, as Desmond doubled to the left-field corner and Tyler Moore knocked a two-run single to left.
"I executed a lot of pitches. And the pitches that I missed with, they made me pay," LeBlanc said. "This is a good game to just throw away and move on."
The Nationals put up two more runs against LeBlanc in the third on back-to-back-to-back doubles by Desmond, Moore and Steve Lombardozzi. And Zimmerman, playing with a sore left hamstring, made it 8-0 in the fourth, crushing the first pitch he saw from reliever John Maine an estimated 387 feet into the Clevelander bar in left field. Span made it 10-0 in the fifth inning with a two-run single that scored Lombardozzi and Kurt Suzuki.
The Marlins finally broke through in the sixth. Zimmermann hit Donovan Solano with a pitch, and Solano moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Maine. Juan Pierre dropped a bloop double just over Zimmerman to score Solano. Pierre then came around to score on Chris Coghlan's single to shallow right field. Catcher Rob Brantly drove in the Marlins' third run an inning later with a ground-ball single to right, scoring Greg Dobbs.
That was as bad as it got for Zimmermann, who pitched a perfect eighth and retired the final three batters on just five pitches. And with that, he'd gone the distance and put a rough weekend in the Nationals' rearview mirror.
"We don't live in the past. We don't worry too much about things," Johnson said. "We take it one day at a time, and this was a perfect example."