It's spreading like wildfire. Fast food workers from different chains around the St. Louis region are expected to walk off their jobs—or not show up for their shifts— through Thursday. It's a push for respect through better pay, improved working conditions. Shannon Garth-Rhodes, spokesperson with the effort, also said this is part of a fight for the right to form a union without retaliation. "Workers will strike for a $15 per hour wage floor and to take a stand against unfair retaliation targeting workers who are sticking together to speak out for better jobs," she said. Gerneisha Clark has …

The Boeing Co., which has a defense sector located in the City of Hazelwood, is one of a handful of large companies that has set out to employ veterans. Along with General Electric, Alcoa, Lockheed Martin and a national industry group, Boeing plans to get thousands of veterans into high-paying manufacturing careers, according to a USA Today report. The Manufacturing Institute, a nonprofit branch of the National Association of Manufacturers, will manage the project. Mlitary skills will be matched with civilian jobs, along with training for veterans  to fill skill gaps. The pooled resources are…

It appears the City of Hazelwood may be getting closer to housing another automotive manufacturing plant as Emerald Automotive progresses in its plan to build a $175 million plant in Hazelwood to make hybrid delivery vans. Tuesday, the company released a state-of-the-company report as to what its plans for 2012 include, as well as testing currently in the works on two prototypes of its t-001 vehicles in the United Kingdom. “2012 will be a pivotal year for Emerald Automotive as we build toward production in 2014,” said Andy Tempest, CEO of Emerald Automotive in the statement. “Our team has …

Boeing just sealed the deal on a government-to-government $30 billion arms negotiation with Saudi Arabia that promises to have a significant impact on the City of Hazelwood at the company's Defense, Space and Security sector with a base here in city limits. The agreement calls for Boeing to build 84 new F-15 fighter jets in addition to upgrading five dozen F-15s the company delivered to the Saudi Arabia government in a 1992 transaction worth $9 billion, according to Bloomberg. The deals means job security through at least 2020 to about 2,000 Boeing production workers not only here in …

Tuesday's Hazelwood School District Board of Education meeting, the final meeting of the year, began like any other: there was the Pledge of Allegiance, a moment of silence for retired elementary school teacher Connie Rice—who just so happened to be my fifth-grade teacher—who recently passed away and the usual reports. Four schools gave student performance monitoring reports regarding progress and areas for improvement on the MAP tests, and faculty and staff received accolades for fundraising efforts with the United Way. Discrimination claims  Then, during the patron participation section of …

For those who have been awaiting some word related to the July announcement that a new hybrid vehicle manufacturer would be bringing a significant amount of jobs to Hazelwood, the wait is over. Well, kind of. The first initial 11 jobs have appeared on a newly launched website for Emerald Automotive, the British automaker who has made the City of Hazelwood its North American base. “After months of secrecy about the t-001, we are delighted to launch a comprehensive website that details all of the product attributes, technical details, the team, and, most importantly, the first job opportunities…

The longest road in the St. Louis area, Lindbergh Boulevard runs roughly 30 miles through north, central and south county, touching nine of our Patch sites. On this anniversary of namesake Charles Lindbergh's death, we wanted to take a look at this road from our nine different perspectives. Each Patch editor has a different take on how Lindbergh touches that community. Drive along with us through our Lindbergh Links — and we hope you'll add your own observations along the way. Lindbergh Boulevard is one of the longest stretches of road throughout the Greater St. Louis Area. Like any stretch …

We're excited to inaugurate a new series for our Patch Readers: "Dispatches: The Changing American Dream." Every day, the national media is full of stories about how American families, businesses, and neighbors are adjusting to these trying times. There are so many changes happening so fast that it's dizzying: national debates about unemployment, foreclosures, debt, religion, government and private enterprise all touch on fundamental ways in which we see ourselves and our communities. At Patch, we want to explore that conversation on a daily basis so we can better understand how our neighbors…

You could call Tuesday's Hazelwood School District Board of Education meeting short and sweet. It lasted all of 20 minutes, but some meaty subjects were discussed and approved, including some changes to the district's supplier diversity program. The board of education approved a change to the verification process of companies that submit proposals on district bids. The change means companies will have to include certifications proving its Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), or Women-Owned Business Enterprise (WBE) status. The companies will have to provide certifications from the Missouri …