Mobile politicians may put Trump on notice about tariffs
Mobile city and county governments could involve themselves in an ongoing transatlantic trade war that threatens the surging productivity at Mobile’s Airbus manufacturing plant. A resolution, first pitched Tuesday to the Mobile City Council, requests president Donald Trump and the U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to continue with a trade policy “of not applying tariffs on imported aerospace components and assemblies from Europe.” – AL.com
Hyundai improves 2019 production rate by 4 percent
Hyundai’s Alabama auto assembly plant produced 336,000 vehicles in 2019, the company announced today, a total output that rose about 4 percent over the previous year. The Santa Fe SUV was the primary contributor to the production increase at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, as consumer preferences have shifted toward sport utilities. – Made In Alabama
Industrial/tech conference coming to Birmingham in April
Birmingham will host an industrial and technology conference in April expected to draw more than 200 business, government and academic leaders. Frontier Conference 2020 will take place April 1 through 3 at The Lyric Theatre and Hill Event Center. The last Frontier Conference took place in 2018 in New Orleans. – AL.com
Mars Music Hall in Huntsville ready for its opening night
The afternoon before opening night, things are busy at Von Braun Center’s Mars Music Hall. The venue’s outdoor signage, featuring the venue’s headphone-sporting-astronaut logo, has just been installed today. Meanwhile inside Mars Music Hall, production is putting final touches on lighting and staging. – AL.com
Feds say Montgomery recycling center cheated disabled workers of $540,000
A recycling center that employs adults with intellectual disabilities in Alabama cheated its employees out of more than $540,000, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Federal officials say the company, along with an organization that helps people with disabilities in the Montgomery area, were supposed to provide services to the employees in exchange for paying less than minimum wage. In a settlement with the federal agency, the Hanan Center and McInnis Recycling Center, both subsidiaries of Montgomery Arc, ”will pay $541,597 in back wages to 80 employees,” the DOL said. – Columbus Ledger-Enquirer