Entries for 03 August 2020
Guyana Politics: Irfaan Ali sworn in as President – Mark Phillips as PM, Jagdeo as Vice President
Pres. Irfaan Ali
Stabroek News – August 2, 2020
Mohamed Irfaan Ali, 40, was today declared the 9th Executive President of Guyana by GECOM Chairperson, Claudette Singh.
He was later sworn in as President at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre after a series of fast-moving events. Former GDF Chief of Staff Mark Phillips was sworn in as Prime Minister and former President Bharrat Jagdeo was sworn in as Vice President. Anil Nandlall was sworn in as Attorney General and Gail Teixeira as Minister of Parliamentary Affairs.
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Guyana Politics: President Ali promises unity, transparency, accountability
— Western Nations urge bridging of divisions
Demerara Waves- by: Denis Chabrol — August 2, 2020
Newly-elected President of Guyana, Dr. Irfaan Ali on Sunday August 2, promised to work towards national unity but he gave no indication of when he would reach out to the Chairman of the opposition A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC), David Granger..Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo earlier Sunday insisted that, in keeping with his People’s Progressive Party’s (PPP) 2020 elections campaign manifesto, talks would be held with the opposition only after the Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM) declaration of a result.
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BUSINESS: Air travel’s sudden collapse will reshape a trillion-dollar industry
The Economist – Business – Aug 1st 2020 edition
The pandemic has knocked the airline-industrial complex harder than it has most sectors
Like most international jamborees these days the Farnborough air show wrapped up on July 24th as a virtual event. Webinars featuring grim-faced executives were not as entertaining as noisy acrobatic displays by fighter jets. But commercial aviation’s most important showcase at least marked a point when heads began to turn away from the devastation wrought by covid-19 and towards what comes next.
As airlines sell fewer tickets, owing to pandemic travel restrictions or travellers’ fear of infection, the industry that makes flying possible faces a reckoning. Aircraft-makers will make fewer passenger jets and so need fewer parts from their suppliers. Ticket-sellers will see less custom and airport operators, lower footfall. Many firms have cut output and laid off thousands of workers. The question now is how far they will fall, how quickly they can recover, and what will be the long-lasting effects. Continue reading →
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BUSINESS: CANADA: Governments and some major companies are promoting “remote work”
— REMOTE WORK WILL AFFECT ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE
[blogTO -August 2, 2020] Scotiabank and Shopify are among the major Canadian companies asking employees to work from home until at least 2021, presumably prompting many staff members to rush out and stock up on pyjamas.
Canada is experiencing an unprecedented shift to remote work, with about one-third of Canadians now officially working from home throughout the pandemic.
While some jobs require that employees be physically present at work (e.g. mail couriers, healthcare workers, retail assistants, plumbers), many office jobs can transition to remote work with minimal difficulty. Continue reading →