Wednesday, March 04, 2009

International Women's Day March 8th is International Women's Day (IWD)- a time intended to spread the word and awareness on women's issues across the globe. This day has been observed since the early 1900's and is an official holiday in China, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzebekistan, and Vietnam. Traditionally in these places men honor their mothers, wives, and girlfriends etc. with flowers and small gifts. In some places it is the equivalent of Mother's Day. In the U.S., Women's History Month was chosen to be in March to coincide with IWD. While there is no one overall theme for IWD, each year organizations, governments, and women's groups choose different themes to reflect global and local gender issues. This year the United Nation theme is: Women and men unite to end violence against women and girls. For a list of IWD events, click HERE. What women's issues do you think are most important? What do you do to celebrate IWD? - Colleen [Gov Gab: Your U.S. Government Blog] 12:06:42 PM     Unemployment Insurance Agency Still Having Trouble Dealing With Phone Calls. Hundreds of new workers have been hired by the state's Unemployment Insurance Agency to handle claims, but jobless workers trying to file for unemployment insurance still are having trouble getting help. On Tuesday morning, calls to the agency's toll-free lines set up for those filing for unemployment or recertifying their benefits were answered by recorded messages saying all lines were busy. The agency's director says hundreds of new phone lines and about 275 new workers have been added to help with claims. Stephen Geskey says telephone wait times have dropped from 14 minutes to six. But the system still is straining under the need to service about 405,000 Michigan workers receiving or applying for unemployment benefits. For the full article, see Kathy Barks Hoffman, "Glitches continue for Michigan unemployment seekers", MLive, March 3, 2009. [Red Tape Blog] 11:55:16 AM

© Copyright 2009 Jocelyn Shaw. Last update: 4/1/2009; 2:33:33 PM. Photo curtesy of Marjorie O'Brien