Transcript: March 23, 2023

Introduction

NAT: Man blowing whistle

Nearly half a million students are out of school right now in Southern California – I’ll tell you why. Plus – more science fiction is becoming reality.

Those stories and more today on… Notice News Daily.

Educators on Strike in L.A.

Hey everyone, Jonathan here at Notice News HQ in Brooklyn. Our top story: right now a strike has left schools closed in Los Angeles for three days straight.

SOT: “They can’t get off their butts and negotiate and get this done.”

That’s a teacher in L.A. out in support of education workers, whose union began the three-day strike on Tuesday to demand higher wages.

Around 30,000 education workers have walked off the job in the nation’s second-largest school district, canceling classes for nearly half a million students.

The striking workers include bus drivers, cafeteria workers, custodians, and class assistants. The union says the average salary of its members is just $25,000, and they want a 30% raise—and an extra $2 per hour for the lowest-paid workers.

The service workers’ demands are backed by the L.A. Teachers’ Union, which refuses to cross the picket line—meaning they won’t work either. Experts say education workers have been experiencing high levels of burnout and frustration over low pay.

And they’re not alone.

A survey from last year by the National Education Association found that 55% of educators are considering leaving teaching altogether – and 86% of them have seen colleagues quit since the pandemic started.

The L.A. school district is offering a 23% raise with a 3% bonus.

Today is set to be the last day of the strike, but as of Wednesday, an agreement between the union and the L.A. school district has yet to be reached.

Headlines

Here’s what else is making news right now…

The nation continues to wait for word if former President Trump will be criminally charged in a hush-money scheme. The grand jury that would indict (or bring charges against him) reportedly did not meet yesterday.

Thousands are without power in California again as yet another storm batters the state. The storm also brought as much as 5 feet of snow to higher elevations.

And…

Nat: “I would die for you…”

The Weeknd just grabbed another big honor: the 33-year-old singer is now the most streamed artist on Spotify – and the Guinness Book of World Records has named him the world’s most popular artist.

JetSuit Inventor Introduces International Race Series

Iron Man using his armor to fly around might seem closer to reality in the near future.

This is the JetSuit, designed by inventor Richard Browning.

SOT: “It’s going to look like a mash up of Red Bull Air Race meets, a Marvel superhero film.”

It allows pilots to defy gravity and tops out at speeds of up to 85 miles per hour.

The suit is made up of two jet engines that are attached to each arm, and a 5th engine strapped to the back.

It can carry about 5 gallons of jet fuel and propel a 200 pound person for up to 7 minutes.

Browning has announced an international race series where celebrities and sports personalities race through gates using the JetSuit.

SOT: “The format of the race series is going to consist of guys and girls, many of whom you might notice are familiar faces, joining together in iconic locations over water, pushing the boundaries of human and machine technology. So in terms of race series, we’re very excited about this.”

The series will take place over water in locations across the world.

SOT: “It’s just gonna be a really fascinating melting pot of human and machine against each other seeing how fast or how fast and how far you can push those boundaries but in a safe environment over water.”

And… want one of your own? The JetSuit is available to buy for a cool $440,000.

Conclusion

That’s it for today – but let’s see how closely you were paying attention. Go take the Notice News quiz on our website, noticenews.com.

I’ll be back tomorrow with more from us, Notice News.