Hahn Calls for Ethics Panel Probe of Villaraigosa
Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn called Wednesday for the city’s Ethics Commission to investigate $41,000 in campaign contributions given to Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa from individuals linked to Travel Traders, a Miami-based hotel gift shop company, Copley News Service reported. Hahn made his comments in response to a Copley News Service article yesterday in which some employees of Travel Traders either refused to say or had difficulty explaining why they supported a mayoral candidate 3,000 miles away.
Governor Keeps Slipping in Polls
In a sign of the beating he is taking in the court of public opinion, a poll released today found that only 45 percent of California voters approve of the job Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is doing and only 30 percent approve of the way he is handling public-education issues, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported. The sharp decline in Schwarzenegger’s rating, down from 60 percent approval in January, comes as Democrats, unions and other constituencies have mounted a blistering advertising assault on his policies. San Francisco-based PPIC surveyed more than 2,500 adults by telephone in five languages between April 4 and April 17.
Talks Stall on Safeway Buyouts
Plans by Vons and Pavilions to offer buyouts to some 7,000 veteran supermarket workers in Southern California have stalled because union officials say the program will deplete health and pension funds, the Los Angeles Times reported. Safeway Inc. announced in December that it wanted to offer buyouts to workers at its 293 local Vons and Pavilions stores, allowing the company to hire cheaper workers under its two-tier union pay scale. Safeway has earmarked $50 million for the program, which analysts say, could save an average of $6 per employee per hour, plus millions in healthcare costs. The sticking point in the Safeway negotiations is whether the company must first come to an agreement over terms of the severance with the UFCW before offering it.
American Funds Nets Most Cash
Los Angeles-based American Funds remained the nation’s most popular stock and bond mutual funds in March, despite the company’s high-profile battles with regulators, the Los Angeles Times reported. American Funds’ portfolios took in a net $7.2 billion in fresh cash last month. The total was down from $7.9 billion in February, but still was $2 billion more than that received by the most-popular fund company, Vanguard Group. The cash inflows helped American Funds pass Fidelity Investments and become the second-largest U.S. fund company ranked by assets in stock and bond funds at the end of March.
Writers Guild Branches Sue Each Other
The two branches of the Writers Guild of America are suing each other over whether arbitration is required to address their ongoing money dispute, the Los Angeles Times reported. In court papers filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, the WGA, West said union rules required arbitration over its claim that it was subsidizing the WGA, East by more than $1 million. The eastern group, which has termed the financial demands a shakedown, claimed that arbitration was not required in its lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York.
