Central Perk: 12 apr. 2014

sâmbătă, 12 aprilie 2014

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis

France Prohibits Sending Work Emails, Answering Cell Phones, Outside Working Hours

Posted: 12 Apr 2014 06:50 PM PDT

Events in France keep getting sillier and sillier. Wasn't these new Prime minister Manuel Valls supposed to be pro business?

So how does nonsense like this happen: France Prohibits Sending Work Emails Outside Working Hours

Via translation from La Vanguardia

Your boss sends you emails when you've already left work? Will you answer? In France, this is prohibited if the workday is finished.

This is stated in an agreement between the two unions, the French Democratic Confederation of Labour (CFDT) and the French Confederation of Managerial Staff Executives (CFE-CGC), and two sector employers technical consulting, engineering, computer services, human resources and consulting for an end to the endless day workers.

The advent of smartphones has been a positive change in many ways, but has also enabled the 'meddling' in our private lives of our working lives, something that the French authorities want to avoid.

Therefore, workers must turn off the phone and computer work for eleven hours and therefore have the right to ignore work emails sent out of hours. Meanwhile, companies are obliged to ensure that this measure is met.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

Armed Men Seize Police Station in Slavyansk; Ukraine Prepares Armed Response; Ukraine Suspends Gas Payments to Russia

Posted: 12 Apr 2014 01:47 PM PDT

The crisis in Ukraine took a turn for the worse this weekend. Many distinct events are in play. Here are a few top headlines

Armed Men Seize Police Station in Slavyansk

The Wall Street Journal reports Pro-Russia Protests Spread, Police Station Seized.

Pro-Russia protests spread Saturday in eastern Ukraine as armed men, some in unmarked, military-style uniforms, moved to commandeer more government buildings—a dramatic escalation that the Ukrainian government and Washington tied to Moscow.

Ukraine's acting president called an emergency meeting of the country's top security officials in the capital, Kiev, as police clashed with attackers in several spots in the largely Russian-speaking, eastern part of the country.

Some 20 men wearing camouflage, some with military-style equipment and weapons, commandeered a police station and security-service office early Saturday in Slavyansk, a small city that previously hadn't seen the kind of pro-Russian fervor that erupted anew in the area last weekend.

Ukraine's Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Saturday evening that police were fighting with attackers in the nearby town of Kramatorsk and had repelled a similar attack in a third town, Krasny Liman.

Saturday afternoon, police in Poltava Region said they had stopped several buses carrying what they said were pro-Russian activists carrying gasoline bombs and makeshift weapons. They were headed to Kharkiv, where protests were scheduled. Police detained about 70 of the activists.

Protesters remain barricaded Saturday in the regional government headquarters in Donetsk and the security-service offices in Luhansk, which they had occupied last Sunday. Authorities pushed a group out of a government building in Kharkiv earlier in the week.

Western officials say Moscow has tens of thousands of troops on its side of the border that could invade Ukraine in a matter of hours. Moscow denies that.

Ukraine Prepares Armed Response

Reuters reports Ukraine Prepares Armed Response as City Seized by Pro-Russia Forces.

Armed separatists took virtual control of a city in eastern Ukraine on Saturday and Kiev prepared troops to deal with what it called an "act of aggression by Russia".

Pro-Russian activists carrying automatic weapons seized government buildings in Slaviansk and set up barricades on the outskirts of the city. Official buildings in several neighboring towns were also attacked.

The developments have increased concerns of a possible "gas war" that could disrupt energy supplies across the continent.

Washington backed Kiev's assessment that Moscow was responsible. "Worrisome violence in ... Ukraine today. Russia again seems to be behind it," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Twitter.

ROADBLOCKS AROUND CITY

On a road leading into Slaviansk, other members of the group, armed with automatic rifles, set up a roadblock and checked vehicles entering the city, a Reuters reporter said.

There was no sign of any Ukrainian law enforcement officials in the city.

Ukraine's Western-backed government warned of tough action if the militants did not lay down their weapons, but it was unclear if the local law enforcement agencies were taking orders from Kiev any more after the local police chief quit.

Kostyantyn Pozhydayev came out to speak to pro-Russian protesters at his offices in the regional capital, Donetsk, and told them he was stepping down "in accordance with your demands". Some of his officers left the building.

The occupations are a potential flashpoint because if protesters are killed or hurt by Ukrainian forces, that could prompt the Kremlin to intervene to protect the local Russian-speaking population, a repeat of the scenario in Crimea.

Ukraine's acting foreign minister, Andriy Deshchytsia, said he had spoken by telephone with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and demanded Moscow stop what he called "provocative actions" by its agents in eastern Ukraine.

Lavrov, in a statement issued by his ministry, said there were no Russian agents in the region and that it would be "unacceptable" if Ukrainian authorities were to order the storming of the buildings.

Ukraine Suspends Gas Payments to Russia

Reuters reports Ukraine Suspends Gas payments to Russia

Ukraine's state-run energy company Naftogaz has suspended gas payments to Russia until the conclusion of price talks, chief executive Andriy Kobolev was quoted as saying on Saturday.

Russian gas giant Gazprom earlier this month increased gas price for Ukrainian consumers to $485 per 1,000 cubic meters (tcm) from $268 for the first quarter, saying Kiev was no longer eligible for previous discounts.

"The question of repayment of debt is directly linked to the maintenance of gas prices at the level of the first quarter," Kobolev told the Zerkalo Nedely weekly in an interview, referring to the original price of $268 per tcm.

"We see no reason to revise the price. We consider the price at around $500 as non-market, unjustified and unacceptable. Accordingly, we have suspended payments for the period of the price negotiations."

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned on Thursday that Moscow could cut off gas to Ukraine, potentially threatening European supplies, but later played down the threat.

"I want to say again: We do not intend and do not plan to shut off the gas," he said on Friday.

Gas Wars

Given that Ukraine has suspended payments, I find Putin's statements puzzling. If Putin will not shut off the gas, then Ukraine has no incentive to pay.

Expect Putin to quickly change his mind about shutting the pipeline if Ukraine does indeed refuse to pay. He will have a legitimate reason.

As for market prices, Russia can charge what it wants in my opinion. Countries can either pay or not pay.

This is the consequence of being dependent on a single supplier.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

Ensuring Equal Pay for Equal Work

Featured

Weekly Address: Ensuring Equal Pay for Equal Work

In this week's address, the President underscored the importance of ensuring equal pay for equal work and highlighted the steps his Administration has taken to expand opportunity and narrow the pay gap that exists between men and women.

Click here to watch this week's Weekly Address.

Weekly Wrap Up

President Obama at Fort Hood: "Love Never Ends"

On Wednesday, President Obama spoke at a memorial service for the soldiers who lost their lives during last week's shooting at Fort Hood Military Base.

In his remarks, the President explained that we must honor their lives "not in word or talk, but in deed and in truth."

The President celebrated Equal Pay Day on Tuesday by doing something only he can: picking up his pen and signing two executive actions to help ensure equal pay for all.

The executive actions President Obama signed will protect federally contracted employees from retaliation if they broach the topic of unequal compensation and will require federal contractors to submit more data on employee compensation, making sure employers take proactive efforts to ensure fair pay for all their employees. Way back in January during the State of the Union address, the President said this would be a year of action, and these executive orders on equal pay are just another reminder that he is keeping that promise.

READ MORE

44 Honors 36

This year marks the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon Baines Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act. President Obama traveled to the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, Texas to reflect on the historic piece of legislation and the legacy of the 36th president.

"Because of the Civil Rights movement, because of the laws President Johnson signed, new doors of opportunity and education swung open for everybody -- not all at once, but they swung open. Not just blacks and whites, but also women and Latinos; and Asians and Native Americans; and gay Americans and Americans with a disability," said President Obama. "They swung open for you, and they swung open for me. And that's why I'm standing here today -- because of those efforts, because of that legacy."

Vice President Biden met with Trevor, a Navy SEAL, and Chopper, the military dog who saved Trevor's life, this week. In this episode of Being Biden -- the audio series where the Vice President gives you a window into his daily life and shares some of his most memorable experiences -- he shares more about that meeting.

Can't get enough of the Vice President? Check out every episode of Being Biden.

READ MORE

We've Got Tools For You!

There are a lot of government agencies and web sites out there; sometimes it's hard to keep track. But scattered on those sites are some helpful resources that can make your life easier.

We've searched through the .gov websites out there to find some of the tools that you might just find useful. Head to WhiteHouse.gov/Tools and you can find the farmers' markets near you, determine if a hybrid car will save you money, and much more.

READ MORE

As always, to see even more of this week's events, watch this week's episode of West Wing Week:

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Seth's Blog : Steal, don't invent

Steal, don't invent

Steal your business model. We don't have a shortage of business models, it's okay if you pick one that's already working for someone else.

Steal your web design. There will always be enough people brave enough to invent whole new ways of interacting online. But unless you're an interaction designer or your business model depends on something new, do us all a favor and use something that already works.

Steal your tools. You probably don't need to build a new email delivery engine, a new overnight shipping method or a new way to run payroll. Once someone has a reliable, cost-effective building block, feel free to use it.

When it comes down to the thing you will be known for, your uniqueness, your gift, your thing worth talking about--don't steal that. Writers shouldn't steal words from other writers, and chemists have no need to steal the research of other chemists. Sure, go ahead and invent.

For the rest, honor those that came before and use their work as a building block for yours.