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Poll: Bad time to hunt for jobs in US

Americans’ outlook on the job market has turned increasingly pessimistic, a surprisingly negative shift given the low unemployment rate but one that likely reflects an ongoing hiring drought. Just 28% of workers in a quarterly Gallup survey conducted late last year said now is a “good time” to find a quality job, with 72% saying it is a bad time. Those figures are a sharp reversal from just a few years ago, in mid-2022, when 70% said it was a good time. Americans have quickly gotten more pessimistic: As recently as late 2024, just under half of workers still said it was a good ...

Briefcase: Juniata opens Aspire Center

HUNTINGDON Juniata College has opened the Aspire Center in Ellis Hall, a new multipurpose space designed to support the college’s growing population of transfer and commuter students by providing a dedicated hub for connection, community and engagement on campus. “The Aspire Center serves to centralize and accelerate support for transfer students, fostering critical connections that students make at Juniata — with one another and with faculty and administrators that are fundamental to their success,” said Matthew Damschroder, vice president for student life and dean of ...

Early tax prep can buy you relief

Every year, tax day sneaks up in a hurry. Whether you use tax preparation software or outsource to a certified public accountant, here are some key strategies to ensure a smooth and worry-free tax season. Use a tax checklist Using a tax checklist or organizer can help you avoid that paper chase and assemble all the key documents in advance; completing your return is then a matter of filling in data. Tax checklists abound online. If you use an accountant, it’s a good bet they send you a tax organizer, either paper or digital; such forms often come prepopulated with your tax data ...

Trade with Cuba collapses as Trump steps up pressure

MIAMI — The Cuban Communist Party has shown an astonishing resilience over six decades in power. Whether it’s the United States trade embargo to counter Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution, or the widespread starvation of the “special period” that followed the breakup of its Cold War patron, the Soviet Union, both U.S. hostilities and calamities of its own making have proven no match for the country’s leadership. But perhaps none of those crises pose as grave a threat as the one triggered by an all-but-declared naval siege by the Trump administration as it seeks to force ...

Briefcase: Business news of local interest

PITTSBURGH Peoples looks to drop rates Peoples Natural Gas Company LLC is filing a request with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission to decrease natural gas rates as of Oct. 1. Peoples Natural Gas has requested an overall gas cost decrease of $131 million per year. If the company’s entire request is approved, the total bill for a residential customer using 86 Mcf per year would decrease from $122.20 to $106.94 per month or by 12.5%. The PUC will examine the requested rate change and can prevent existing rates from changing until it investigates and/or holds hearings on ...