Tag: work

  • Gaza photographer’s work wins World Press Photo of the Year

    Gaza photographer’s work wins World Press Photo of the Year

    Reuters photographer Mohammed Salem from Gaza won the prestigious 2024 World Press Photo of the Year award on Thursday for his image of a Palestinian woman cradling the body of her five-year-old niece in the besieged strip.

    The picture was taken on October 17, 2023, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, where families were searching for relatives killed during Israeli bombing of the Palestinian enclave.

    Salem’s winning image portrays Inas Abu Maamar, 36, sobbing while holding Saly’s shrouded body in the hospital morgue.
    “Mohammed received the news of his WPP award with humility, saying that this is not a photo to celebrate but that he appreciates its recognition and the opportunity to publish it to a wider audience,” Reuters Global Editor for Pictures and Video, Rickey Rogers, said at a ceremony in Amsterdam.

    “He hopes with this award that the world will become even more conscious of the human impact of war, especially on children,” Rogers said, standing in front of the photo at the Nieuwe Kerk in the Dutch capital.

    Announcing its annual awards, the Amsterdam-based World Press Photo Foundation said it was important to recognise the dangers facing journalists covering conflicts.

    It said 99 journalists and media employees had been killed covering the war Israel has unleashed on Gaza.

    “The work of press and documentary photographers around the world is often done at high risk,” said Joumana El Zein Khoury, the organisation’s executive director.

    “This past year, the death toll in Gaza pushed the number of journalists killed to a near-record high. It is important to recognise the trauma they have experienced to show the world the humanitarian impact of the war.”

    Salem, a Palestinian aged 39, has worked for Reuters since 2003. He also won an award in the 2010 World Press Photo competition.
    The jury said Salem’s 2024 winning image was “composed with care and respect, offering at once a metaphorical and literal glimpse into unimaginable loss.”

    “I felt the picture sums up the broader sense of what was happening in the Gaza Strip,” Salem said when the image was first published in November.

    “People were confused, running from one place to another, anxious to know the fate of their loved ones, and this woman caught my eye as she was holding the body of the little girl and refused to let go.”

  • Canada to reduce number of temporary foreign workers

    Ottawa, Canada – Canada for the first time is planning to curb the number of temporary foreign workers it welcomes, officials announced Thursday, after years of lofty immigration levels.

    Ottawa is proposing to reduce the number of temporary residents to five percent of the population over the next three years, down from the current 6.2 percent (2.5 million people).

    That target will be firmed up after consultations with Canada’s provinces, some of which have been pushing back on large migrant inflows amid a housing crunch and soaring demands for services.

    Restrictions on temporary foreign worker permits will start on May 1.

    This follows a recently announced cap on new permits for international students and visa requirements for some Mexican travellers.

    “Canada has seen a sharp increase in the volume of temporary residents in recent years, from a rise of international students to more foreign workers filling job vacancies to those fleeing wars and natural disasters,” Immigration Minister Marc Miller told a news conference.

    However, Canada’s labour market is now much tighter, with its population growth, fueled by massive immigration, outpacing job creation.

    According to government data, job vacancies fell 3.6 percent to 678,500 in the last three months of 2023, marking the sixth straight quarterly decline from a record high of 983,600 reached in the second quarter of 2022.

    “Changes are needed to make the system more efficient and more sustainable,” Miller said.

    Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault urged employers to consider hiring refugees before seeking to bring in temporary foreign workers.

    He said businesses that are currently allowed to have temporary foreign workers make up to 30 percent of their workforce will see that proportion drop to 20 percent, except in the health care and construction sectors.

    Canada’s immigration department, meanwhile, has been ordered by Miller to conduct a review of existing programs that bring in temporary labourers to better align them with labour needs and weed out abuses.

    amc/bfm

    © Agence France-Presse

  • Agha Ali reveals actresses refused to work with him

    Agha Ali reveals actresses refused to work with him

    Actor Agha Ali has revealed that many times actresses were not allowed to work with him by their fiancés. The actor shared this information during a recent appearance on Geo News’ show ‘Hansna Mana Hai,’ where host Tabish Hashmi asked him various questions about his life and career.

    In response to a question, Agha Ali said, “It was in 2016- 2017 during which time I would sign any drama, after that I would get a call from the producer saying, ‘Agha, do you have any quarrel with such and such heroine?’ On this, I would tell them that I have not even met this heroine yet, on which the producer would ask that ‘You don’t have any quarrel with her fiance?’ I tell them that I don’t know who their fiancés are.”

    He further said that during this time he was also going to work with Humayun Saeed’s production house. “He also called me and asked me what are you doing that the fiances and husbands of the actresses are afraid of you?”
    Agha Ali said, “There is no specific reason for my image, but I think many times people misunderstand the actor because of the characters in his dramas. It plays such a negative role.”

    He further said that when he came into the industry, he was not very familiar to people. “So maybe that’s why they were afraid of me, but now it’s not like that, everything is fine.”

    Responding to another question, Agha shared that he was banned from working in Lahore years ago due to giving strong answers in an interview, which led to a producer dropping him from a signed project. Following the ban, a friend’s request prompted him to move to Karachi.

  • Mansha Pasha open to working in Bollywood with one actor

    Mansha Pasha open to working in Bollywood with one actor

    Popular Pakistani actress Mansha Pasha has said that she is open to the idea of working in Indian films. In a recent interview on a private TV show, Mansha talked about her life, career, and future plans in the entertainment world.

    She expressed excitement about the idea of working in Bollywood and specifically mentioned her interest in collaborating with Indian actor Jaideep Ahlawat if the opportunity arises.

    She stated, “I admire Jaideep as an actor, and I would be thrilled to work with him because a talented actor can elevate the entire project.”

    In response to another question, the ‘Surkh Chandni’ actor shared that she had never thought about choosing acting as a profession and was always more interested in behind-the-camera jobs, including direction, production and screenwriting.
    Mansha Pasha thanked veteran actor Adnan Siddiqui for recognizing her talent while they were working together. He encouraged her to step in front of the camera and pursue acting.

  • Govt to send one million Pakistanis abroad for employment

    Govt to send one million Pakistanis abroad for employment

    The Government of Pakistan will send 1 million citizens abroad for employment, Tikka Sani has reported for Samaa. Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, Sajid Hussain Turi, while talking to Samaa said that the ministry is working on signing work visa agreements with fifty countries including Germany.

    He continued by adding that Saudi authorities are coming to Pakistan soon to issue visas and citizens who pass technical training tests will be able to get the visa.

    The minister further said that Japan has also opened visas for Pakistani workers while South Korea has a demand for 10,000 skilled workers from Pakistan.

    The Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis said that 27,000 blocked passports of overseas Pakistanis have also been restored.

  • Want to earn money working online? Here are 10 highly demanded skills you should learn

    Want to earn money working online? Here are 10 highly demanded skills you should learn

    A number of ‘once dedicated’ corporate workers are taking matters into their own hands and taking more control over their professional future. They are switching to freelancing, either by reskilling and going in a completely other direction, or by performing the same tasks for numerous clients as they did for a single company previously.

    For those who don’t know, the internet economy is expanding quickly and in 2020 it produced 17 million jobs in the US alone. The consumer takeaway Whether you use the internet for a side business or a full-time career, you can do pretty much anything online, including earning good money.

    According to Forbes, every month since the spring of 2021, four million American employees have left their jobs.

    Here are 10 high in-demand skills that can help you earn well online:

    Web Development 

    Web development is one of the best skills to master to earn money online because it is in high demand and there are numerous methods to capitalise on your expertise. It can be learned through online classes, boot camps, or even independent study. And if you’re excellent at it, you might be able to make a lot of money; hourly fees for web developers working as freelancers range from $10 to $80.

    Graphic Designing

    Learning Adobe Illustrator is a terrific approach to start working online and making money. This is helpful because almost everyone who manages a website, creates their own website, or engages in online activities like advertising, creating YouTube videos, etc. will eventually require some design work done. And learning this skill takes more than a few days. It does require some commitment, but it is easily accomplished.

    It should be a no-brainer for you to choose to learn how to utilise Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign if you have the aptitude for design and illustration. Additionally, installing AdobeSuite on your PC is crucial.

    Since people are more drawn to compelling pictures than to simple texts, graphic designers are always in demand.

    Every business needs art of some kind, whether it’s for creating their corporate identity (logos, brands, etc.), selling their goods or services (websites, brochures, etc.), or connecting with customers (ads, promos, etc.).

    Even without a college degree in fine arts or visual communications, you can succeed in this industry if you are creative, passionate, and competent at designing.

    Photography

    You can learn Photography for free by taking a variety of online courses and watching videos on YouTube. This will enable you to take photos that are more inventive, captivating, and distinctive. From street photography to images of food and animals, practically any form of photograph may be sold online. Alamy images typically sell for $75 each, although their prices can range from $17 to $416 depending on their intended usage.

    Audio Editing for Podcasts

    From a niche trend for tech-savvy individuals, podcasts have grown to become a mainstream phenomenon with a market value in the tens of millions of dollars. As a result of that money, many people have expressed a desire to launch their own podcasts; however, the majority of people lack the skills necessary to independently edit audio, which is where you come in.

    You can improve another person’s audio so that their listeners won’t provide them negative feedback. There will always be a need for your services because podcast listeners routinely voice unhappiness with the sound quality.

    Voice Modulation 

    One of the most lucrative skills to acquire to earn money online is voice modulation. The marketplaces for voice actors, narrators, and other professionals are those that still need to be explored. For the recording of audiobooks, narrative narration, videos, etc., voice actors are required. On internet job boards, there are many positions that specifically require this talent.

    Social Media Marketing 

    Planning and overseeing a brand’s social media strategy across a variety of channels will be your role as a social media marketer, according to Jensen. Any company that doesn’t leverage social media’s power will lose out on brand-building opportunities as customers use social media platforms at an increasing rate. Social media marketing is growing in popularity as a result. If you are knowledgeable about the mechanics of how social media works, learning this skill could be a great idea.

    Web Scraping and Data Entry

    All you need for the job is a basic understanding of using Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, etc.) or its equivalent in Google Drive and other open sources, aside from diligence and attention to detail. Of course, you also need to know how to use the internet.

    The straightforward procedure of web scraping entails conducting online research for clients and compiling the results on a worksheet. Many businesses compile data about their target markets, including contact information (phone numbers, email addresses, websites, Linkedin and other social media profiles, etc.). They can now send business proposals, even ones that are personalised, to the appropriate recipient.

    For this skill to be mastered, no college degree is necessary. In reality, data encoding allows even high school dropouts to support themselves.

    Creative writing

    You can definitely earn a life writing if you have the talent for it. This is a talent that you begin developing in elementary school and just keep honing as you advance academically.

    Therefore, by the time you earned your high school certificate, you ought to be able to write essays and other types of literary works without much difficulty.

    After that, there are several ways to develop writing skills, like enrolling in classes, reading books and other materials, watching online tutorials, and, of course, writing. When you reach a particular level of expertise, you’ll find that there are many chances available to you online and even outside of the virtual environment.

    Proofreading and Editing

    Of course, having writing skills is required for this position. It’s similar to how you cannot adjust a swimmer’s strokes if you do not yourself know how to swim properly.

    Simply identifying and fixing grammatical, typographical, and spelling mistakes in someone else’s writing is proofreading.

    On the other hand, editing may entail rewriting sentences or even paragraphs to increase readability, eliminate repetitions, and improve the flow of ideas.

    The two may not be identical, but they do kind of overlap. Thus, they might constantly expect you to perform both tasks when they hire you to do one or the other.

    Vlogging

    Consider vlogging if you have the gift of gab rather than the inclination to write or design.

    Using video creation and editing software as well as online resources for free video and audio samples, you may make engaging YouTube content even if you lean more toward the introverted side of things.

    Developing a sizable audience is the key to making your material interesting to sponsors and marketers. Alternatively, you might sell this skill to businesses that want for a popular internet video to advertise their products or services and raise brand recognition.

    Even if you largely rely on freelance markets to identify and work with clients, you will still attract a lot of potential clients by being active on LinkedIn. Every month, set aside a few hours to update your profile with recent samples of your work, ask former clients for references and recommendations, establish new relationships, and reply to job advertisements for contract work.

  • Man fired for coming 20 minutes late to office for the first time in 7 years

    Man fired for coming 20 minutes late to office for the first time in 7 years

    A man was allegedly fired for arriving 20 minutes late to work for the first time in more than seven years. One of the sacked employee’s coworkers posted about the incident.

    Reddit user @No_StopItStepbro in a post wrote, “Co-worker who has never been late in 7+ years, gets fired for the first time being late.”

    “This happened last week and today Monday we just found out he was fired for being 20 minutes late FOR HIS FIRST TIME EVER… tomorrow me and ALL my coworkers will be late and will continue to come in late until they rehire him.”

    The post added that as a mark of protest, all the employees of the company have decided to come late to the office until the person is rehired by the company.

    The post has generated at least 4.1k comments with several people sharing their stories of coming late to work.

  • What workplaces will look like after lockdowns

    Around the world countries are hitting their coronavirus peaks and starting to grapple with questions about when and how to reopen their economies.

    But those people fortunate enough to have not lost their jobs should be prepared for a “new normal” when they finally go back to work, say experts.

    Here is a preview of what to expect.

    No handshakes, fewer meetings

    Handshakes are out “indefinitely,” said Tom Frieden, the former director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Next, offices will need to start thinking about practical measures.

    “Can we have doors that don’t have to be opened by people? Should we be taking the temperatures of all people who enter?” he said in a call with reporters.

    No-touch hand sanitizer dispensers will become common. Steps may be taken to reduce overcrowding in common spaces, and computers and phones may no longer be shared.

    Mask use will be encouraged, and some workplaces may provide them.

    Businesses like supermarkets are already keeping down the number of people who can enter, placing clear plastic barriers between employees and customers and enforcing physical distancing — this could be extended to all shops, cafes and face-to-face engagements.

    Offices may also stagger employee hours and have workers come in on different days so that fewer people are present at a given time — and cut meetings.

    “One of the positive impacts of COVID I hope will be fewer meetings, because there are just too many meetings,” added Frieden.

    More sick days

    “Staying at home if you are sick may be encouraged vs discouraged,” said Brandon Brown, a University of California Riverside epidemiologist.

    The US has a famously brutal work culture driven in part by the fact there is no federally mandatory sick leave.

    As a result, people tend to power through despite illness: an October 2019 nationwide survey of 2,800 workers by the accounting firm Robert Half found that 33 percent always go in when sick. That may change.

    Telework may become more common for many, especially as people have learned during enforced lockdowns that it is possible.

    “One thing that we found out from this pandemic and sheltering in place at home, is that in-person meetings are not always necessary. Virtual meetings should be an ongoing option from here on out,” added Brown.

    Counseling provided? –

    The pandemic has already extracted a devastating death toll, particularly in the hardest-hit region New York, and the onus for providing counselling may fall to a great extent on employers.

    “Don’t forget a lot of people are gonna go back to work having lost family members,” said Marc Wilkenfeld, a doctor who specializes in occupational medicine at NYU Langone Health.

    “I think the bigger companies or even the smaller companies are going to need to address these issues, because you do want a workforce coming back healthy, physically and mentally.”

    Toilet lids and better plumbing

    Workplaces will continue to hammer home the message to wash hands regularly and thoroughly, said Brown.

    Often touched surfaces will be cleaned more frequently, but greater attention will need to be placed on keeping bathrooms clean and improving plumbing, since there is some evidence that the coronavirus can be spread via feces.

    A recent Lancet paper recommended “do not ignore unexplained foul smells in bathrooms, kitchens, or wash areas” and included tips for improving plumbing like having functioning U-bends that prevent the outflow of sewage gases.

    One step toward mitigating the risk is flushing the toilet with the lid down, since a flush can release up to 80,000 contaminated droplets and leave them suspended in the air for hours if it’s not covered, according to a recent Hong Kong study.

    But many toilets in modern workspaces lack lids — a trend that may be reversed.

    Who returns first

    People over the age of 65 or who have underlying conditions like heart disease or diabetes are at higher risk for complications arising from COVID-19 — and their return to offices will come later.

    “When people start to go back to work, I think that it’s going to be that not everyone goes back at the same time,” Wilkenfeld said.

  • Finland’s PM proposes four-day, six-hour workweek

    Finland’s PM proposes four-day, six-hour workweek

    Finland’s 34-year-old Prime Minister Sanna Marin has proposed cutting down the workweek and reducing it to four days consisting of six-hour workdays in a bid to transition the country to what she called “the next step for us in working life.”

    According to CNBC, the PM said, “I believe people deserve to spend more time with their families, loved ones, hobbies and other aspects of life, such as culture. This could be the next step for us in working life.”

    Specific details of Marin’s proposal are yet to be announced.

    Finland has long been advocating flexible work schedules. In 1996, the government introduced a law that gave employees the right to shift their hours up to three hours earlier or later than their employers’ typical requirements.

    Since taking office and becoming the world’s youngest prime minister in December, Marin has advanced that agenda. Marin sits at the helm of Finland’s Social Democratic Party and leads the country’s five-party, all-woman center-left coalition government.

    However, Finland is not the first country to propose this. In 2015, Sweden tested out the six-hour workweek in Gothenburg. Results revealed that though happiness levels included it put a burden on public coffers.

    Meanwhile, in November 2019, Microsoft Japan revealed that a trial four-day workweek boosted productivity by 40%.

  • Four-day workweek increases productivity by 40%, reveals Microsoft experiment

    One of the world’s leading technology company Microsoft tested out a four-day workweek in its Japan offices and discovered that employees were not only happier – but significantly more productive.

    According to The Guardian, Microsoft experimented with a new project called Work-Life Choice Challenge Summer 2019 in the month of August. Under the program, the company’s entire 2,300-person workforce were given five Fridays off in a row without decreasing pay.

    The shortened weeks led to more efficient meetings, happier workers and boosted productivity by a whopping 40%.

    In addition to the increased productivity, employees took 25% less time off during the trial and electricity use was down 23% in the office. Employees printed 59% fewer pages of paper during the trial. The vast majority of employees – 92% – said they liked the shorter week as it led to a better work-life balance.

    Read more: ‘Burn-out’ is real, WHO recognises it as a medical condition

    This is not the first time long weekends have been experimented with in the corporate world. Previously in 2018, a New Zealand trust management company also trialled a four-day workweek over two months for its 240 staff members. Employees reported experiencing better work-life balance and improved focus in the office while staff stress levels decreased by 7%.

    Meanwhile, an experiment published by the Harvard Business Review shows that shorter workdays, a decrease from the average 8-hour workday to a 6-hour workday, increased productivity.