Kansas Vaccine Mandate Foes Rally
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Hundreds of people opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates have rallied at the Kansas Statehouse and pushed state lawmakers to quickly counter them. The rally kicked off ahead of a rare weekend legislative committee hearing on mandates from President Joe Biden that affect as many as 100 million Americans. The hearing gave dozens of mandate opponents a chance to vent their frustration and anger. A few critics have likened the mandates to the Holocaust that killed millions of Jews, including a Kansas machinists union leader. But the International machinists and aerospace workers union disavowed those comments and called the comparison offensive. Many speakers want legislators to convene a special session.
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Deere, UAW Reach Tentative Pact
UNDATED (AP) - Farm equipment manufacturer Deere & Co. reached a tentative labor agreement Saturday with the United Auto Workers union. But a UAW strike that began October 14th will continue -- and details of the proposed contract will not be released -- while workers study the terms of the agreement in advance of a vote. The pact would cover more than 10,000 production and maintenance workers at 12 Deere sites in Kansas, Iowa, and Illinois. The strike began after UAW workers overwhelmingly rejected an initial proposed contract that would have delivered immediate 5% raises for some workers and 6% for others depending on their positions at Deere
factories.
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KC Women's Soccer Team Unveils New Name
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - The Kansas City women's professional soccer team has a new name. After playing its first season as KC NWSL, the team announced that it is now the Kansas City Current. The name was announced Saturday at halftime of its final match of the year. The name was selected from hundreds of suggestions made by fans and stakeholders. The team also unveiled a new crest and colors. The move comes the same week that the team announced it will play in a new $70 million stadium, the first U.S. stadium built specifically for a professional women's soccer team.
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Missouri Sports Teams Push Referendum on Betting
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri sports teams want voters to weigh in on whether to legalize sports betting in the state. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports nine ballot proposals on the issue were filed this week. The Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals, St. Louis Blues, and the St. Louis City soccer club are behind the push. Efforts to pass a law allowing sports betting have failed for years in Missouri's Legislature. So the teams want to take the issue directly to voters. In Missouri, proposals need a certain number of voter signatures to be put on the ballot. Proponents haven't started collecting signatures yet.