CGI, a tech company in Lafayette, is adding 400 new jobs in a planned expansion. Matt Doyle has more.
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A new study out of LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center shows health benefits for people who only eat early in the day. Matt Doyle has the story.
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The special session is back on after a failed attempt in February to solve the fiscal cliff. Michael Farrar has more.
Cut 3 (32) “I’m Michael Farrar”
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Vacation once held the luxury of being offline, but more workers are admitting they cannot stop checking into the office. A recent study by staffing firm Accountemps reports that 56-percent of vacationing workers check in with the office. Spokesperson Carrie Lewis says this is an increasing trend.
There is a generational gap that governs whether you will follow this trend. Lewis says that millennials are more prone to being tethered to their phones. 70-percent of respondents ages 18-34 will keep in touch with work, while only 39-percent of 55 and older respondents staying plugged in.
Vacations are vital for successful employees, but disconnecting can be more stressful. There are different recipes for everyone, so Lewis advises we set our own limits.
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A pilot study from LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center has shown there are noticeable, positive drop in blood pressure and blood sugar when restricting your eating to early in the day. The study had participants restrict eating to 6 hours a day, starting in the morning. Associate Executive Director for Clinical research Dr. Eric Ravussin has a suggestion if you’re interested in trying out fasting.
Ravussin says this is because the body evolved to undergo intermittent periods of fasting, due to the scarcity of food. He says fasting helps cut back on the unhealthy habit of snacking.
The study did not have participants undergo a fasting period that began later in the day.
But the Doctor says this type of dietary plan may not work for everyone, specifically those who have to engage in strenuous early morning activity.
The study did not focus on how fasting effected individuals weight loss.
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The special session is underway and lawmakers can now replace one-point-four-billion dollars in sales taxes that are set to expire June 30th. Those expiring sales taxes are at the heart of the impending fiscal cliff that threatens to wreck healthcare and higher ed. But LaPolitics.com Publisher Jeremy Alford says don’t expect a deal to be reached any time soon.
The session is set to run until June 4th. Another session could be called to give lawmakers time to fill the 648 million dollar budget gap.
Speaker Taylor Barras ripped into the Governor, calling his decision to hold the speech outside of the capital a political stunt. Barras accused the Governor of resisting bipartisan offers, and being personally responsible for legislative gridlock of the regular session.
He went after the governor, who he says is trying to scare Louisianans into higher taxes, with a little one liner.
Reports say a consensus is building around a compromise plan to renew a portion of the one cent sales tax that was raised two years ago to plug the last fiscal cliff. But Alford says that might be easier said than done.
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CGI, an international tech company, has announced a big expansion, bringing 400 new jobs to the Lafayette area as part of its IT Center of Excellence. Another Lafayette Parish site will add an additional 100 jobs, bringing the company’s total to 900 employees in Acadiana. Louisiana Secretary of Economic Development Don Pierson says the expansion comes down to ULL’s partnership with the company.
Pierson says they’ve been emphasizing a program that pairs companies with universities, technical colleges, and community colleges to build a pipeline program that gets graduates good paying jobs, and guarantees companies a steady stream of qualified workers.
Pierson says the program has yielded results such as DXC Technology’s decision to locate in New Orleans. It’s even led to the creation of a pipeline that leads New Orleans Delgado students on a path to putting people back in space.