Latest news with #overtime
The National
a day ago
- Business
- The National
Dubai Basketball take ABA League semi-final against Partizan to decider following OT win
Dubai Basketball kept their hopes of reaching the ABA League Finals alive with a dramatic 100-95 overtime victory against Partizan on Thursday to take the best-of-three semi-final down to a decider on Sunday. Partizan led by six points with five minutes left and by four with 90 seconds remaining of regulation time. But after Carlik Jones missed a potential game-winner, Dubai clawed their way back to force the game into overtime. Klemen Prepelic, who led from the front with a game-high 30 points, nailed a free throw in OT as Dubai held on to take the series back to Belgrade. An ecstatic Dubai head coach Jurica Golemac said: "I'm very proud. We didn't surrender, we didn't give up. We didn't want the season to end, and you could see that in the players – in their emotions and in their eyes. 'We played against an unbelievable opponent, a very good team. But the job is not done. We've got one more game to play. We need to rest, analyse, and move forward." It was Dubai's second victory over Partizan at the Coca-Cola Arena having also beaten the Serbian team in Round 23 of the regular season. Golemac acknowledged the part the home fans played. 'Last but not least, the fans were unbelievable today – like every game – but tonight it felt like 10,000 people were inside, breathing and playing the game with us. I truly felt that they wanted to succeed just as much as we did.' The game was a rollercoaster from the start. Partizan led in the opening minutes but it was the home side that finished the first quarter strong, taking a 29–23 lead after an excellent three-point shooting, hitting six of their first 10 attempts. Prepelic led from the front with Nate Mason each contributing two triples in the early surge. Despite struggling from deep, Partizan stayed competitive behind the efforts of Duane Washington and especially Frank Ntilikina, who hit three three-pointers without a miss in the second quarter. However, Dubai hung on to a 50–47 lead at half time with Davis Bertans sinking three threes, including one at the buzzer. Prepelic delivered a sterling performance, emerging as a constant offensive threat and one of the key reasons Dubai were able to even the series. The captain hit five shots from three, pulled down three rebounds and got two steals. 'In Game 1, we came in empty,' Golemac reflected on Monday's 102-72 defeat. 'The third game of the quarter-finals [ against Cedevita Olimpija ] was a must-win, and after we won it, we had a let-down [Partizan]. 'We came into the first game with confidence, but we weren't ready – for the fight or for the battle. 'We gave Partizan too much space. We lacked aggressiveness and the energy we showed today. When Partizan gets hot, you can't stop them – they were scoring from all positions. 'We watched the video and analysed it. The good thing about the play-offs is you get another chance. We got ours at home, and in the end, it doesn't matter by how much you wini – t only matters that you put a point on the board and get the win.' Golemac's men will have a massive task when they face seven-time ABA champions Partizan in front of their home crowd at Stark Arena. 'That's great. It's unbelievable. We deserve to play in a full gym, with great fans, against one of the best teams in Europe – for the finals,' Golemac added. 'All season long, our players have approached every game with the right mindset. I'm very proud of how they refuse to surrender. Playing in that kind of atmosphere is a reward for us. 'Motivation will be higher. They'll be under pressure, but we're going there to play the best game of our season.' Partizan coach Zeljko Obradovic said the defeat felt like a lost opportunity but insists his side will be better prepared for the decider in Belgrade. 'We won by 30 points in the last game. This one was very tight. It's obvious they played much better today,' he said. 'We knew they would try to be aggressive here, and they were. In the first half, they scored a lot of three-point shots. In the second half, we tried to cover that, but there were situations where we committed fouls. 'They have great shooters, and they showed that tonight. That was the first difference. If you want to play well against Dubai, you need to defend their three-point shots very well.'
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Employees Get 46% Less Focus Time Than They Need, Research Reveals
Time to focus getty Modern work can be characterized by a level of busyness unseen in previous years. Our time can get snapped up by sitting in meetings, replying to emails, and responding to urgent requests. For anyone who has sat through a meeting you didn't need to be in, who was cc'd in a group email (for your reference), or feels frustrated by the lack of time to focus, think, and reflect, this article is for you. The recent Microsoft Office Trends Report, sampling over 10,000 Microsoft Office users, revealed some alarming findings about how busy employees are at work. Employees are averaging 6.6 hours of overtime each week, attending 29.6% more meetings than they would like to, and are experiencing an average of 4.7 cancelled and rescheduled meetings per week. Even with working overtime, the results indicate that busy work is up, and focused work is down. Employees surveyed reported that they can access 46% less focus time than they report needing. These statistics are heightened for leaders. The C-suite spends, on average, 10.2 hours per week working overtime. This is 35.3% more overtime than the average employee and adds up to over 50 hours per week. Executives also attend the greatest number of meetings per week, at 11.5, compared with someone in a non-managerial role attending 8.2. Focus time is the time needed for often independent work dedicated to achieving long-term goals or simply getting things done. When asked about challenges relating to scheduling, respondents ranked 'defending enough focus time to get stuff done' as the number one issue (63.9%), followed by managing and syncing multiple calendars (62.9%), and keeping schedules flexible to accommodate urgent changes (60.1%). Providing boundaries to protect work-life balance also featured in the list (47.4%, which is unsurprising when looking back at the amount of overtime workers are racking up each week. Executives, managers, non-managers, consultants, and even students all reported attending more meetings per week than they indicated as their ideal number. This difference between ideal and actual meetings suggests that there is work to do to minimize unnecessary meetings. This could be achieved by better delegation, by asking for higher order summaries and action items to be shared with a larger number following a meeting with only the crucial players, or with technology. AI scheduling tools, such as Calendly, or ClickUp Calendar, can help to automate scheduling, block time for focused tasks, and limit distractions by automatically coordinating schedules and aligning optimal windows in different time zones. According to the report, employees spend an average of 4.2 hours per week just managing their calendars. Executives top this figure with 4.5 hours per week. In their average 50.2-hour work week, that equates to 9.1% of executives' overall work time spent on managing their own time. Strategic thinking occurs when we dedicate time to the important, but non-urgent goals. If it constantly feels like we're putting out fires, when everything is urgent and reactionary, we don't have the time or focus to plan strategically for the big, longer-term goals. While individuals can play a role in protecting their own boundaries, pushing back on unnecessary meetings, and adopting technological scheduling assistants, organizational cultural shifts are needed to stop this trend of busyness from collecting further momentum. Leaders can do this by role-modelling healthy work-life boundaries, encouraging staff to consider their own wellbeing as well as the wellbeing of their colleagues, and by allowing real time for focus by eliminating non-essential practices and procedures.
CBS News
3 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
Costly Baltimore City job vacancies addressed during budget negotiations
Baltimore City leaders are figuring out ways to address hundreds of vacant jobs that are costing the city millions of dollars. Those unfilled positions are a concern as council members work to approve the Fiscal Year 2026. "We have several hundred vacancies in the city of Baltimore," said Faith Leach, the Baltimore City administrator. Leach told WJZ the city is aiming to reduce the number of vacant jobs, and it starts with competitive wages. "We know wages are a big part," Leach said. "It's just one part of what we can do to recruit new people into our fire and police department, as well as the city department." Exceeding overtime budgets WJZ previously reported that Baltimore City has paid millions of dollars in overtime costs, with some agencies outspending their budgets. "That ultimately winds up to about $33 million that is going to go into overtime within these city budgets," Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen recently told WJZ. City leaders said there are more than 2,700 vacant positions, and 530 of those positions have gone unfilled for at least 18 months. The city is still down 20% when it comes to job vacancies compared to 2024. "As long as there's a vacant position in the city, there's an opportunity for someone to be hired," said Baltimore councilmember Jermaine Jones. City Administrator Leach said hundreds of the vacancies are within the police, fire, and EMS departments. And, oftentimes, those departments rely on overtime pay to get by with officers and first responders working extra shifts. "As people work longer hours, the quality of work goes down, so I think this isn't a sustainable approach as we continue to fill those vacant positions with overtime hours," councilmember Jones said. Impact on the police department's shortage City Council President Cohen told WJZ during a recent hearing that one option, dissolving vacant city jobs, could put more pressure on the already short-staffed police department. The police department remains under a consent decree following the in-custody death of Freddie Gray. One of the mandates is to hire more officers. "But there are certainly other agencies, including the fire department, where we're not under a consent decree, where I certainly think there could just be a more honest accounting of what's going on within the agency," Cohen said. City agency needs Cohen said this budget season allows the city council to see what each city agency needs. "Making sure that we have enabled each city agency to fulfill their mission to do what they need to do to provide great services for the residents of this city but that they are being honest about their needs and that they're not coming back six months, a year, two years later and asking the council to approve supplemental budgets that they've already spent," Cohen said.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Canada Post strike: Quebec rolls out cheque delivery operation in case of walkout
Canada Post and CUPW still at odds as overtime ban continues without a deal. With negotiations between Canada Post and its union members still ongoing, the Quebec government announced on Monday that it is deploying a cheque delivery operation in its Services Québec offices. The cheques, according to Noovo Info, will be issued to people receiving benefits from the Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), Crime Victims Compensation (IVAC), the Ministry of Employment and Social Solidarity, including the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP), the Ministry of Immigration, Francization and Integration and the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ). The Quebec government says the cheques will be issued gradually, starting this Thursday, and will be delivered on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8.30 a.m. to 12 p.m., and from 1 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. Revenu Québec and Retraite Québec cheques will not be distributed at Services Québec offices. If an agreement is reached between the parties, they will be delivered as per usual by Canada Post. 'All people registered for direct deposit will automatically receive the amounts to which they are entitled on the usual dates,' the government notes. 'All claimants who are not registered for direct deposit are invited to do so.' Social benefit cheques from the Government of Canada will also not be delivered to Services Québec offices. Cheques to be collected at Services Québec: Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST) Reimbursement of expenses Personal injury Compensation for victims of crime Permanent partial compensation Income replacement indemnity Ministry of Employment and Social Solidarity Social assistance program (monthly) Social assistance program (adjustments and new applications) Social solidarity program (monthly) Social solidarity program (adjustments and new applications) Employment objective program (monthly) Employment objective program (adjustments and new applications) Basic income program (monthly) Basic income program (adjustments and new applications) Financial support for pregnant minors program (monthly) Financial support for pregnant minors program (adjustments and new applications) Specific assistance program for Ukrainians Specific assistance program for Ukrainians (adjustments and new applications) Special benefits for social assistance recipients Employment assistance and additional expenses allowance Allowance for participation in the employment objective program Benefit under the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP) Ministry of Immigration, Francization and Integration Financial assistance program for skills recognition - allowance Quebec program for French language learning - allowance for a full-time French course Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) Death benefit Lump-sum death benefit Personal assistance at home Income replacement benefit Compensation for after-effects Child care expenses Cheques to be delivered at home: Retraite Québec Public sector pension plans Family allowance Quebec Pension Plan Revenu Québec Alimony Housing benefit Solidarity tax credit To find out when to pick up your cheques, visit the Quebec government's page on the Canada Post strike, and to find out where to pick up your cheques, go to Negotiations ongoing Negotiations between Canada Post and its unions are expected to resume in the next few days, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) announced on Sunday, following a meeting between the two parties. The CUPW says its negotiators have 'worked hard to carefully evaluate' Canada Post's latest offer. Canada Post presented its latest offers to the union last Wednesday, which included wage increases and plans to add a fleet of part-time workers. As negotiations continue, the national overtime ban on Canada Post union members remains in effect.
CBC
5 days ago
- Sport
- CBC
Minnesota Frost defend PWHL title and defeat Ottawa Charge in overtime
Minnesota forward Liz Schepers scores overtime winning goal gives Frost a 2-1 win over Ottawa Charge in game 5 to capture a second Walter Cup PWHL title.
