BUSINESS BRIEFS
Employers trained in drug testing
Advertiser Staff and News Services
About 100 people turned out for the first in a series of workshops sponsored by the Pacific Resource Partnership to train and certify employers in the construction industry on how to use an oral screening kit to test their employees for drug use.
"We want to provide employers with information about oral fluid drug screening, which will help deter drug use in all industries," said Kyle Chock, executive director of Pacific Resource Partnership, an alliance between contractors and the Carpenters Union Local 745
"We are confident that it will create safe work environments, not only for the construction industry, but for all sectors of business, he said.
PHISHING E-MAILS WANT YOUR MONEY
Hawai'i residents report receiving the newest variant of so-called phishing e-mails, those that try to trick people into disclosing bank and other information by saying they have a tax refund.
A Hawai'i Kai resident reported receiving what appeared to be an official-looking message from the Internal Revenue Service that said he was eligible to receive a $268.32 tax refund. It asked him to click on a link to a Web page hosted in Russian that asked for his Social Security number and credit card information.
Another resident received an e-mail that looked like it was sent by Bank of America. It said a review of his account activity determined he was eligible for a $288.40 refund. It asked him to sign into his online account and fill out a form.
The IRS posted a message on its Web site (www.irs.gov) to warn of the bogus e-mails.
BARNWELL BUYING BACK STOCK
Honolulu-based Barnwell Industries Inc. yesterday announced that it will buy back up to 150,000 shares of its stock between Sept. 24 and March 24.
The company said its board of directors believes that the current market price for Barnwell's common stock does not reflect the intrinsic value of the shares. Barnwell's shares closed up 38 cents at $15.38 a share on the American Stock Exchange.
ALOHA ADDING ORANGE COUNTY FLIGHT
Aloha Airlines said it will add a second daily flight between Honolulu and Orange County during the holiday season.
The state's No. 2 airline said the new daily service to John Wayne Airport will operate between Nov. 16 to Jan. 5, except during the Nov. 28 to Dec. 5 period when Aloha will only have one daily Honolulu-Orange County flight.
"This added trip will give holiday travelers more options for going to Southern California and beyond," said Thom Nulty, Aloha's senior vice president for marketing and sales.
HEALTH GRANT FOR PACIFIC ISLANDERS
The University of Hawai'i's John A. Burns School of Medicine has been awarded an $850,000 grant to begin a healthcare initiative aiding residents of U.S.-affiliated Pacific islands.
The grant will be used to create a Pacific Center of Excellence in the Elimination of Disparities, said Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, who announced the grant.
The program will aid the people of Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Marshall Islands, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia as well as more than 100,000 others who have migrated to Hawai'i and the Mainland.
