Saturday night, in his 182nd outing for the club, will mark his first start for the Chiefs in 1037 days, dating back to the 2018 quarterfinal defeat to the Hurricanes in Wellington – Messam’s last match in New Zealand before leaving for French club Toulon. A week earlier he had played his final game in Hamilton (off the bench against the Hurricanes), while his last start on home turf was another week before that, when he lined up at No 8 against, coincidentally, the Brumbies. “It is a surreal feel, it’s quite buzzy,” Messam admitted ahead of running back out on FMG Stadium Waikato again, in that blindside flanker role he had made his name so prominently in.
Cheika watches brave Tahs lose to Brumbies theroar.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theroar.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Unemployment tax relief bill gets warm reception
Some business groups want state lawmakers to go further on a hammered-out compromise.
Oregon businesses, business lobbyists and lawmakers from both parties blessed a bill that would let some businesses defer part of their unemployment payroll taxes and pay a little less to a reduced state trust fund in future years.
House Bill 3389, which the House Rules Committee heard Thursday, April 1, also would set the payroll tax rates for the next three years (2022 to 2024) at 2020 levels, which were determined before the coronavirus pandemic resulted in a sharp economic downturn a year ago.
The closure and curtailment orders affected the 10 Washington County and two Clackamas County shops in The Barbers chain owned by Kimberly Spiegelberg. Her payroll tax rate was a relatively low 1.3%, given the high turnover in the industry, but jumped to 2.1% after the pandemic induced layoffs.