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First Quality provides support for Penn College student-parents

WILLIAMSPORT — The First Quality Group of companies, a leader in personal health care products and a longtime corporate partner of Pennsylvania College of Technology, has donated a number of sought-after items to the campus food pantry. In coordination with the college’s Inclusion Task Force, First Quality contributed feminine hygiene products, diapers and wipes to The Cupboard’s inventory. Operated by Dining Services in the Bush Campus Center and supported solely by community donations, the pantry assists students who are struggling with food insecurities and hygiene ...

Geisinger Health Plan ranked best commercial health plan in state

DANVILLE — For the second year in a row, Geisinger Health Plan (GHP) ranked best among commercial health plans in Pennsylvania for member satisfaction in J.D. Power’s 2021 U.S. Commercial Member Health Plan Study. Now in its 15th year, the annual study measures satisfaction among members of 150 health plans in 22 regions throughout the United States. Results are based on responses from 32,066 commercial health plan members from January through March 2021. Six key factors are examined through the study, including billing and payment, cost, coverage and benefits, customer ...

US will restore $1B for California’s troubled bullet train

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The federal government has reached an agreement to restore nearly $1 billion in funding for California’s troubled bullet train, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced. The U.S. Department of Transportation finalized settlement negotiations to restore the money for the high-speed rail project that was revoked by the Trump administration in 2019, Newsom said Thursday night. The restoration of $929 million in grant funding “will continue to spur job creation, advance the project and move the state one step closer to getting trains running in California as soon as ...

Amy Wensel is PennDOT Employee of the Month

JERSEY SHORE — Amy Wensel of Jersey Shore, has been named PennDOT District 3 Employee of the Month for June. Amy is a residential real estate appraiser working in the Right-of-Way Unit. She is responsible for completing real estate appraisals for land acquisition offers to property owners ...

US adds 559K jobs as firms still struggle to fill positions

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers added a modest 559,000 jobs in May, an improvement from April’s sluggish gain but still evidence that many companies are struggling to find enough workers as the economy rapidly recovers from the pandemic recession. Last month’s job growth was above April’s revised total of 278,000, the Labor Department said Friday, yet well short of employers’ need for labor. The unemployment rate fell to 5.8% from 6.1%. The speed of the rebound from the recession has caught employers off guard and touched off a scramble to hire. The reopening of the ...

Forecast: Global economy rebounding, faces multiple threats

FRANKFURT, Germany— The global economic rebound from the pandemic has picked up speed but remains uneven across countries and faces multiple headwinds. Most worrisome: the lack of vaccines in poorer nations, which could lead to new virus variants and more stop-and-go lockdowns. Those were ...