Fulham Broadway underground station in London, Thursday March 3, 2022, during a strike by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) for 24 hours in a deadlocked dispute over jobs, pensions and conditions. (John Walton/PA via AP)
Londoners faced travel chaos Thursday after around 10,000 transport workers walked off their jobs for the second day this week, leaving almost all of the capital's subway lines suspended or severely disrupted.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union were on strike for 24 hours in a dispute over jobs, pensions and working conditions. Picket lines were set up outside subway stations, and huge queues built up at bus stations and taxi ranks across the city as people tried to get to work by other means.
Transport for London asked people to work from home if they could.
A strike on Tuesday led to the underground network, known as the Tube, being suspended during rush hour, and disruptions continued on Wednesday. Officials have warned that a knock-on impact to services will continue until Friday morning.
The transport union says it wants assurances that spending cuts linked to a government funding deal will not cause hundreds of job losses, reduced pensions and worse working conditions.
Britain's government has had to bail London transport out because of huge losses in revenue caused by the pandemic. As part of that funding deal, London's mayor has had to find millions in savings and review transport workers' pensions.
Union leaders say they are open to talks if officials can offer a “concrete solution.”
But Andy Lord, Transport for London's chief operating officer, stressed that no changes have yet been tabled and said “this action is completely unnecessary."
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
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