UNION EMPLOYEES MAKE UP 7% OF IOWA’S WORKFORCE
The latest federal data shows about 105-thousand union members were in Iowa’s workforce last year. That’s seven percent of the entire workforce according to the U-S Bureau of Labor Statistics — and it’s the first increase in statewide union membership in four years. Paul Iverson at the University of Iowa Labor Center says it’s partly due to the impact of the pandemic and the increased militance of workers in places like Starbucks and Amazon that are saying we’re not going to take the same pay and working conditions we had before COVID.
BUILDING PERMITS
Building activity in Plymouth County was at 1.25 million dollars in the month of August. Building permits worth some 800-thousand dollars were approved for five farm projects, ranging from a garage to machine, equipment and fertilizer storage. Non-farm permits worth some 450-thousadn dollars, were for a house, a shop and a utility building.
ANOTHER HOT DAY
There’s one more day of hot weather, fittingly, on the last day of summer. Le Mars has a forecast of 97 degrees today. It will be breezy as well, with winds blowing up to 30 miles per hour. Then, a cold front moves through by early Tuesday, bringing a chance of thunderstorms early morning. Temperatures will top in the 80s and 70s through the rest of the week. Even though there are no heat advisories out for today, you are still urged to take precautions against the high temperatures today. Don’t spend excessive time in the sun today, and drink plenty of fluids.
SHALLOW RIVERS
An Iowa Department of Natural Resources expert says many of the state’s rivers may not be deep enough for canoes and kayaks right now. The D-N-R’s Todd Robertson is a certified canoe instructor.
Temperatures are expected to return to the 90s, another factor that makes heat exhaustion and heat stroke a possibility if someone is forced to drag a canoe, a kayak or an inner tube down the river.
If you do have paddling plans on a river this weekend, Robertson suggests checking with the county’s conservation officials to see if water levels in the area are safe. And Robertson says wearing a life jacket is essential — even if water levels are relatively low.
TODDLER DEATH
A 28-year-old Emmetsburg woman has been charged in connection with the death of a toddler. On January 19th, Emmetsburg Police and E-M-Ts responded to a report of an unresponsive child. The 23-month-old was transferred to a hospital in Des Moines, where he died five days later. The state medical examiner has concluded Sebastian Jesperson died of head injuries that were inflicted on him. Hannah Priest, the boy’s daycare provider, was arrested Friday and charged with child endangerment resulting in death.
