Wednesday, February 19, 2020

Oklahoma is requiring that medical marijuana be tested in lab

Beginning April 1, all marijuana products sold by a grower or processor will be required to be tested by an Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority licensed laboratory. The mandatory testing requirements were created by the Oklahoma Legislature and went into effect November 1st, 2019. Since then, the OMMA has been creating rules and guidelines. The OMMA has 10 fully licensed and inspected labs in Oklahoma, with plans to build more in the future. Any dispensary customer may request the certificate of analysis in paper or electronic format. A processor or grower must retain results and records for at least two years. (Fox 25)

Substitute teacher accused of giving kids ‘lap dances’ at elementary school

In Baltimore County, Maryland, a substitute teacher is accused of giving kids “lap dances,” and more. Baltimore County school officials say a fourth-grade substitute teacher at Halethorpe Elementary School has been removed from class over “inappropriate behavior.” A parent who’s 10-year-old daughter was in that classroom said the teacher “grabbed my daughter under her armpits..lined up other kids, told them to point to their breasts. She even kissed other kids [on the face]”. A spokesperson with Baltimore County Police said they are investigating the matter. The Baltimore County Public Schools spokesman said the allegations came from students on the day the incident allegedly occurred. The woman in question has been removed from the system’s pool of substitute teachers. (WBFF)

Air Force updates its dress code policy to include turbans, beards and hijabs

The US Air Force has updated its dress code policy to outline a clear approval process for Sikhs and Muslims who want to serve while wearing their articles of faith. Under the new guidelines, which were finalized last week, Sikhs and Muslims can seek a religious accommodation to wear turbans, beards, unshorn hair and hijabs, and expect to be approved as long as their appearance is “neat and conservative,” except under extremely limited circumstances. The final review for the accommodation must take place within 30 days for cases in the United States, and 60 days for all other cases, according to the guidelines. And for the most part, airmen can expect the religious accommodation to follow them through their career. (KCTV)

Bus Driver Abandons 14 Kids, Leaves Them At Her Home In Another City

A New Jersey school bus driver, after dropping some of the elementary school children on the bus near their homes, reportedly drove to her own home in another city with the 14 children still left on the bus and abandoned them, telling the bus attendant, “handle these kids yourself.” Police officers responding to calls of a school bus that had missed designated stops found the bus, Newark police said. The bus driver was issued a summons for driving with a suspended license. Police took the children to a nearby precinct where parents picked them up. Newark Public Schools issued a statement saying that the bus company’s contract was canceled: “The District has removed this vendor from transporting students to Avon Avenue School and is in the process of determining next steps regarding future services. In addition, because established guidelines were not adhered to, the District has also imposed liquated financial damages for this infraction. This continues to be an active investigation.” (WABC)

Dealing with divorce at work

Determining how to navigate a divorce is deeply personal, yet the emotional toll of a marriage breakdown often seeps into your work life, according to experts. For senior leaders, the issue is even more acute, as shifting emotions caused by divorce could impact their decision-making on matters with company-wide ramifications. For the rest of us, experts say it can be beneficial to inform trusted colleagues about your situation as you will likely experience “less productivity and focus,” and more emotion or sensitivity, and will possibly need time to decompress. (The AFR)

Why a regional accent will cost you

If you’ve got a regional accent you’re likely to earn a fifth less than your colleagues with relatively neutral accents, according to research from the universities of Chicago and Munich. The researchers also found that workers with distinctive regional accents tend to stay away from jobs that require high levels of face-to-face contact. A professor of sociolinguistics at Queen Mary University of London said accents not only influence the kind of roles people have, but can impact their chances of promotion, too. (Telegraph)

Young people don’t like job hopping

The workforce’s youngest employees may be viewed as job hoppers, but a new survey found that U.S. millennials and Gen Zers want to stay at their current companies for an average of 10 years and six years, respectively. Additionally, they say work is a major part of their lives, with 65% of people in Gen Z and 73% of millennials saying it’s part of their identities, according to a recent poll. The age groups’ actions reflect the findings: Seven in 10 say they constantly check work messages outside the office. (Zapier)

Kentucky to pay atheist $150G for rejecting ‘IM GOD’ license plate

A federal judge ordered the state of Kentucky to pay more than $150,000 to groups representing a self-described atheist for denying him a personalized “IM GOD” license plate. The Judge issued the decision three months after he declared the state’s action unconstitutional. The man was represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) sued the state in 2016 after he moved from Ohio, where he had “IM GOD” as a personal message on a state plate that read “One Nation Under God.” He was denied getting the same personal message on his new plate, which in Kentucky reads “In God We Trust.” The state said it rejected the plate because it was “not in good taste,” and argued it could distract drivers and create confrontations. (Fox News)

Men still won’t grab the vacuum

Our traditional view of who does chores at home remains stagnant. Younger opposite-sex couples in the U.S. are just as likely as their older peers to be in relationships where women do more work out of the office, according to a new survey from Gallup. Despite widespread support for women to pursue ambitious careers, women spend about two hours more a day than men on housework and child care. (The New York Times)

You may have a brain bank one day

A new initiative aims to keep track of the skills people acquire during their lifetimes. The Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Learning Economy wants to use blockchain technology to let schools, employers, organizations and businesses report the skills a person has gained to their “universal learner wallet”. They say the data would be secure and only users would control who gets to see the record. The system could verify a person’s qualifications instantly. Additionally, it can help identify skill gaps at the individual and systemwide levels. (BBC)

Wednesday Battles On With:

• Best Friends Day
• Chocolate Mint Day
• National Lashes Day
• Iwo Jima Day (Landing)
• Vet Girls RISE Day