As COVID-19 restrictions get lifted and Pennsylvania’s economy tries to get back on track, businesses ranging from fast-food restaurants to manufacturing are clamoring to fill job vacancies and many are saying they are having trouble luring workers.
Labor advocates, though, say businesses are not offering workers enough money in a competitive hiring market still under a pandemic cloud, and there remain obstacles for many lower-wage earners to return to jobs, such as childcare and transportation.
In Beaver County, Gregg Troian said he’s encountering a worker shortage firsthand as president of PGT Trucking, a long-haul operator. Troian said he needs 100 drivers, or about 10% of his fleet, but he struggles to find qualified people even though a new driver can make $70,000 a year.
Westminster College celebrated its 167th annual commencement on Saturday, May 8, conferring degrees on nearly 300 students at two socially-distanced outdoor ceremonies on Weisel Senior Terrace on the College’s campus.
Denver players had to sit in the stands in the season opener to adequately social distance.
Scenes From a Season on the Fly
Thu Apr 29 2021 | Nelson Rice | College
This story appears in the April edition of US Lacrosse Magazine. Don t get the mag? Join or renew today. Thanks for your support!
Bill Tierney has seen a lot.
You’re bound to when your coaching career began in 1976 at Great Neck South High on Long Island. But nothing in the intervening 45 years during which Tierney has reached the height of his profession several times over not the seven NCAA Division I championships, the nine title game appearances or the 15 final four berths as a head coach prepared him for when he looked up into the stands of Denver’s Peter Barton Stadium on Jan. 30 after the longest offseason he’s ever experienced.
Though college students are known to have an affinity for shots, leaders at area colleges and universities aren t mandating they receive a COVID-19 vaccination this fall.
Members of Gov. Tom Wolf s administration announced earlier this month that the state will not require COVID-19 vaccinations for college and university students but are highly encouraging the vaccine, and local schools, both public and private, are following suit and only recommending the shot.
For state schools, like Slippery Rock University, recommendation is the only option. As part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), they can t require the vaccine. The state system has always recommended vaccination, but not required it beyond meningitis, said Kristina Benkeser, the director of Health and Wellness and Student Health Services at SRU. So, it s a little bit different at public universities.