Horizon Cutting-room Links: Tuesday, 7 January 2025

Federal Offices in the Washington, DC area are Closed. Maximum Telework is in effect.

• Telework Employees are expected to work. Generally, telework employees may not receive weather and safety leave. Remote Workers are expected to work. Generally, remote workers may not receive weather and safety leave.
• Non-Telework Employees generally will be granted weather and safety leave for the number of hours they were scheduled to work. However, weather and safety leave will not be granted to employees who are on official travel outside of the duty station or on an Alternative Work Schedule (AWS) day off or other non-workday.
• Emergency Employees are expected to report to their worksite unless otherwise directed by their agencies.
• Employees on Preapproved Leave (paid or unpaid) or other paid time off generally should continue to be charged leave or other paid time off and should not receive weather and safety leave.

Mostly clear, with a low around 18. Northwest wind around 13 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph.

“Microsoft is using Bing to trick people into thinking they’re on Google,” the Verge

“It’s a clear attempt from Microsoft to make Bing look like Google for this specific search query, and other searches just list the usual Bing search results without this special interface. … While Bing still surfaces search results for Google underneath this spoofed Google UI, a lot of people will see this interface when they configure a new PC and search for Google in the address bar of Microsoft Edge.”

“Oyo's New Rule: Unmarried Couples Not Allowed Hotel Stays in Meerut, More Cities Could Follow,” Skift

“The policy change was driven by requests from local hotel owners who wanted the discretion to deny access to unmarried couples – something Oyo did not previously allow them to do. Oyo said that the policy’s rollout in Meerut could expand to other cities.”

“In August 2015, the Malwani police in Mumbai raided hotels and lodges, rounding up 40 couples. This sparked an outrage and the Mumbai Police Commissioner ordered a probe. The Bombay High Court ruled that the police cannot take a moral stand without the backing of law or legislative policy.”

“Condor Quickly Remakes Its Summer Network,” Cranky Flier

“Lufthansa no longer has to provide interline connectivity, and that means Condor is in a world of hurt. It has to make big changes in light of this shift. So, what is happening? Well, it did add some nonstops from Frankfurt to those cities in green on the map above. Berlin, Hamburg, Milan, Munich, Prague, Rome, Vienna, and Zurich are all the kinds of cities that are likely to provide a decent amount of long-haul feed for North Americans traveling to Europe. … Over the Atlantic, six markets are being dropped: Baltimore, Edmonton, Halifax, Minneapolis/St Paul, Phoenix, and San Antonio.”

“Korean Air SkyPass First Class Awards Are Back!” One Mile at a Time

“It looks like Korean Air has turned over a new leaf in the new year, as the SkyPass program is once again making first class award seats available. I don’t want to say that availability is excellent, or anything, but within a month of departure, there’s a fair amount of first class award space.”

“McDonald's is the latest company to roll back diversity goals,” Associated Press

“Four years after launching a push for more diversity in its ranks, McDonald’s is ending some of its diversity practices, citing a U.S. Supreme Court decision that outlawed affirmative action in college admissions. McDonald's is the latest big company to shift its tactics in the wake of the 2023 ruling and a conservative backlash against diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Walmart, John Deere, Harley-Davidson and others rolled back their DEI initiatives last year.”