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Verizon Communications Inc. and two unions representing 65,000 workers who had threatened to strike within hours agreed Sunday on a new three-year contract that provides 10.5 percent wage increases and changes in retirement benefits.The union workers are in the traditional telephone part of the company, which is engaged in the labor-intensive process of replacing most of its copper phone lines with optical fiber. Verizon Wireless, the company's big growth driver..

Using three different methods of calculating market potential, results for residential fire sprinkler installations in the United States ranged from $2.9 billion to $3.2 billion annually. Further, four types of labor were analyzed to project the number of additional positions needed as residential fire sprinkler requirements are adopted across the country. "There's no question that the recent passing of residential fire sprinkler requirements to the International Residential Code will change the industry in a breath and timeline never experienced before,"

General Motors (GM) announced that it is adding the world's largest rooftop solar photovoltaic power installation to its car assembly plant located in Figueruelas, Zaragoza, Spain. When the project is completed in fall 2008, the Zaragoza solar installation will cover about 2 million square feet of roof at the plant and include about 85,000 solar panels. When fully operational, the Zaragoza solar installation will generate about 12 megawatts of power at its highest output. The installation will generate about 15.1 million kWh of power annually, which is equivalent to the demand of 4,575 households with an average annual consumption of 3,300 kWh in Spain. "The Zaragoza project demonstrates proof that GM is actively accelerating our efforts to be part of the solution to the environmental issues and challenges facing our world," said Gary Cowger, GM group vice president of global manufacturing and labor relations. "We are proud to be a global leader in the usage of renewable energy."

Low labor costs could lead to relocations of large producers coupled with the depreciation of the national currency leu. It could boost exporters' business despite negative impact on consumption, the report said, citing Lucian Anghel, chief economist of the Romanian Commercial Bank.

The price rises have added to explosives companies' profits but for miners it is an added cost, along with higher diesel, energy and labor expenses, narrowing their margins at a time when metals and coal are in big demand.