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2020-3-27 English Reading.

As Americans hunkered down at home to protect themselves from the spread of novel coronavirus last week, they filled their pantries with toilet paper, sanitizing products and…oat milk?
pantries (食品)储藏室
 
The milk alternative surged in U.S. sales by 477% during the week ending March 14 compared to the same period last year—one of the biggest increases of any food product, according to new data compiled by Nielsen.
During ordinary times, this increase might seem to have been caused by the milk alternative’s trendiness. But during a pandemic, consumers might have had more practical concerns.
Oat milk is shelf-stable—which means that consumers can keep it in their homes longer.
milk alternative 牛奶替代品
 

Nielsen’s data shows that last week, Americans bought an unusually large amount of non-perishable food, as well as cleaning products, health goods, and lots and lots of toilet paper as they got ready to keep themselves and their homes clean and stocked with food.

non-perishable 不易腐烂的
 

As states    discouraged   Americans from being in large crowds, consumers increasingly shopped for groceries online. Instacart, which delivers goods from local grocery stores, reported that order volume is up by 150% compared to the same period last year; customers were also buying more, with average baskets 15% bigger compared to last month. About 40% of orders used the company’s “leave at my door option” last week—perhaps to reduce contact with the delivery person.

Laura McCullough, at executive vice president of U.S. manufacturer client success at Nielsen, said that Nielsen’s data shows that Americans rearranged their lifestyles last week.

“Early on we saw spikes in health safety product sales correlating with major announcements in those areas and shifts from shopping the perimeter of the store to the center,” McCullough said. “Drastic out-of-stocks may rise if concerns over healthcare provider and government preparedness grow.”

Besides oat milk, Americans also stocked up on dried beans, up 231% compared to last year; canned meat, up 188%; tuna, up 142%, and soup, up 127%, according to Nielsen.

canned meat肉罐头

Snack foods are also up in popularity as consumers geared up to munch at home.

Popcorn is up 48%, pretzels 47%, pastries 24% and ice cream 23%.

Certain fresh fruits and vegetables have also ticked up, as consumers perhaps started to realize they’d rather not live on canned food alone. Apples were up 20%, bananas by 17%, and papayas and celery by 3% each.

Unsurprisingly amidst a pandemic, consumers are also focusing their spending on health products. Thermometers are up 498%; cold and flu remedies 159% and vitamins 93%.

hand sanitizer洗手液

there are also sign还有迹象表明

Though hand sanitizer is very much in high demand (up 208%), there are also signs that Americans are trying to make their own versions at home.

Two ingredients used in DIY recipes, hydrogen peroxide and rubbing alcohol, are up 212% and 277% respectively (although consumers may also be using them for other cleaning purposes).

Other cleaning products, especially aerosol disinfectants, up 519%, and multi-purpose cleaners, up 243%, also saw strong increases in demand.

As consumers spend more time alone and indoors, the pandemic also appears to have repressed demand for certain goods. Perfume is down by 18%; sunscreen by 17%, and vegetable party platters by 7%.

repressed 抑制
sunscreen 防晒霜

2020-3-26 English Reading.

(DES MOINES, Iowa) — Hoping to escape all the coronavirus-caused economic uncertainty by winning a giant lottery jackpot?

a giant lottery jackpot彩票大奖  lottery彩票  jackpot头奖

Think again. Those jackpots are going to shrink as the pandemic tamps down lottery sales.

The group that oversees the Powerball game announced Wednesday night that it would cut minimum jackpots in half, from $40 million to $20 million, after there is a winner of the current big prize.

The jackpot also could grow more slowly, with minimum increases of $2 million instead of the normal $10 million after each twice-weekly drawing.

“Powerball players in many U.S. lottery jurisdictions are under shelter-in-place orders or recommendations from their governors or mayors, which have affected normal consumer behaviors,” said Gregory Mineo, the director of the Maine lottery and chairman of the Powerball Product Group. “Just like other enterprises around the world that are making adjustments, we are making proactive changes to continue to offer the world’s premier lottery product.”

the world’s premier lottery product. 世界一流的产品(彩票)

 

The other national lottery game in the United States, Mega Millions, is considering a similar move.

“The Mega Millions Consortium has begun internal discussions about potential changes to address the slowdown in sales during the current health crisis,” said Gordon Medenica, who heads the Maryland lottery and is director of the national game.

Medenica notes, however, that Mega Millions has a minimum increase of $5 million after each drawing so is in better position to weather the decreased sales.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.

The move by Powerball won’t affect the current $160 million jackpot, which will continue to rise by at least $10 million until there is a winner.

Another thing that won’t change is the odds of winning a jackpot, and they’re puny for both games.

puny 弱小的 微弱的

For Powerball, the odds are one in 292.2 million, and for Mega Millions they’re one in 302.6 million.

Powerball and Mega Millions are played in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball also is offered in Puerto Rico.

2020-3-25 English Reading.

Companies in other, “safer” sectors are also staffing up.

As Americans suddenly find themselves depending more than ever on technology platforms for work and entertainment, listings for temporary tech jobs rose through the end of February into March, according to data from employment marketplace ZipRecruiter.

Tech companies are seeing a surge in demand for their services and their technologies,” says ZipRecruiter labor economist Julia Pollak.They’re seeing kinds of demand that they really didn’t plan for.” Non-tech companies are also beefing up their IT departments as they scramble to move operations online to keep employees home.

Still, these hirings are hardly likely to offset the sobering losses in other areas. And for those without technology expertise, jobs requiring engagement with large numbers of people, some of whom could potentially be infected, may be the only way to survive, even as officials urge people to stay home as much as possible.

Still, these hirings are hardly likely to offset the sobering losses in other areas.
即使如此,他们的招聘 几乎不能抵消 其他领域的严重损失
requiring engagement with large numbers of people需要大量人参与

Even when some degree of normality begins to return, the economic effects of all this will reverberate for years. “Personally I’m expecting a big spike in unemployment, because I think there’s going to be a big drop in spending,” says Richard Rogerson, an economist at Princeton University.

He points out that, even if people find a way to survive the financial fallout from the pandemic, their employers may not. “What you would like is, everyone just goes back to their job,” says Rogerson, about the post-health crisis period. “But what if some of those businesses don’t exist anymore?”

what if  (用于疑问句句首,尤用于询问不希望看到的事发生时的结果)如果…怎么办

For now, there are a variety of efforts afoot to help laid-off workers make ends meet in the short term.

afoot 进行中
make end meet 收支相抵

Massive new relief legislation from Washington may help.

In the meantime, workers are banding together. 

The National Domestic Workers Alliance and UNITE HERE, a union representing hotel, gaming, food service and other employees, are launching relief funds to help the hardest hit, for instance.

hardest hit 重灾区

Other ad-hoc efforts, like donation-based freelancer and creative emergency funds, could also help.

Efforts like these suggest that those who are able are finding ways to help people in need.

“There’s a lot of vulnerable people out there,” says Diaz, the bartender. “It’s going to be up to us normal folks to step in and do what’s right.”

2020-3-24 English Reading.

 

Like Diaz, Liliana Hernandez, a 42-year-old housekeeper, is also taking that risk.

Her employer, the Fairmont Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica, told her to stop coming to work this week after bookings dried up. Her husband, a restaurant worker, recently lost his job as well.

The couple has just two months’ worth of savings to support themselves and their teenage son. “Everybody is panicking,” says Hernandez, who’s going to try to find a job at a grocery store.

“I’m concerned about getting infected or something like that, but we have to go on and continue to work. My fear, I have to put it away.”

My fear, I have to put it away我必须把我的恐惧收起来

Many others, including the 78% of American workers who live paycheck-to-paycheck, have even less cushion.

“As a single mother, I don’t know what I’m going to do,” says Mélissa St Hilaire, 37, a home healthcare worker in Miami. She was asked to stay home starting Friday, but she only has enough money to get her family through next week.

“I don’t know how long it’s going to take,” she says of the pandemic. “I’m just here waiting.”

workers who live paycheck-to-paycheck月光族
cushion缓冲
 

The businesses that are hiring are largely doing their best to keep employees safe and vital services flowing, though no strategy is foolproof.

John DeCicco Jr., co-owner of New York supermarket chain DeCicco & Sons, has brought on about 100 additional employees to meet demand, including many laid off from a friend’s restaurant food supplier.

vital services 重要服务

Among other measures, he’s limiting his stores to 30-40% the normal occupancy rates, sanitizing regularly, and providing customers and employees with gloves.

“They’re on the front line, so you’ve gotta protect them,” DeCicco says. He’s also given employees two weeks of paid sick leave, in addition to their normal sick and personal days.

“They’ll take care of the customers as long as we take care of them,” says DeCicco of his workers. “That’s our philosophy, and that’s what we’re trying to do.”

in addition to 此外

 

Others are under even more pressure. Caleb Ferling, co-owner of Seattle-area commercial cleaner Cleanstart, recently hired 20 new employees to meet surging demand as clients seek to clean their potentially contaminated offices.

as clients seek to因为客户希望

He outfits his workers in full personal protective equipment, including respirators and biohazard suits, when they go out on a COVID-19 cleaning job.

But he’s running out of essential supplies like disinfectant, and says he’ll have to let workers go if he can’t find more.

“We probably have enough for maybe a handful more jobs, and then we’re done, we’re out,” Ferling says.

running out of  用尽

disinfectant 消毒剂

 

2020-3-22 English Reading.

 
Vincent Diaz, 38, has lived his whole life in Flatbush, Brooklyn, but he can’t remember his city ever being this quiet. “Even when you see people, the energy is different,” he says. Diaz lost his bartending job after New York Mayor Bill de Blasio ordered bars and restaurants to switch to takeout and delivery only. The overall mood in his neighborhood is somber amid what’s essentially a shelter-in-place order. “Nobody is smiling and happy, even on sunny days,” he says. “There’s always this sense of dread hanging in the air.”
bartending 调酒
takeout and delivery only. 只能外卖送货
 

As companies shutter and the economy grinds to a halt, Diaz is just one of the many thousands of Americans who have been, or are in danger of being, laid off amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aside from the hospitality industry, massive layoffs are expected in travel, manufacturing, and more. Some experts are predicting that the unemployment rate which had been functionally nil before this crisis  could climb as high as 20%, an unprecedented figure in the modern era.

hospitality industry酒店业

But even as the nation’s automakers stop building cars, airlines park most of their fleets and stadiums shut their doors, other companies are staffing up in a big way.

Facing a crushing surge in demand, companies that provide “essential” services like grocery stores and delivery firms are urgently seeking temporary help.

grocery stores and delivery firms杂货店和送货公司

Amazon is adding 100,000 new full-time and part-time positions to keep up with a surge in online shopping.

Walmart has announced it will hire 150,000 new associates. Kroger, a grocer, is hiring 10,000 new employees nationwide, while Safeway is bringing on more than 2,000.

Fittingly, some of the job postings read more like calls to war than hiring notices.

“We are currently experiencing a monumental surge in our sales & foot traffic,” read a March 13 letter from Costco management seeking temporary worker referrals from staff.

monumental 极其巨大的、纪念碑的
foot traffic,人流量
temporary worker referrals 临时工介绍

But many of the jobs being created amid the pandemic involve working at the front lines of the crisis.

For those who grab hold of one of these economic lifelines, it could mean putting themselves and their loved ones at risk of contracting the potentially deadly illness. “It would be a calculated risk,” says Diaz, who’s trying to find a job before he burns through his four months worth of savings.

As he sees it, we’ll all need people willing to expose themselves to danger to keep the rest of us going. “We need each other more than ever nowadays, and I think there’s going to have to be somebody, a lot of somebodies, who are going to be willing to go out there and engage.”

2020-3-21 English Reading.

 

Ford, GM and Fiat Chrysler Are Shutting Down All U.S. Factories to Curb Coronavirus


General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co., and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV will temporarily shut down their U.S. plants in an effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
in an effort to 为XXX而努力

Ford will halt operations at all North American manufacturing facilities after Thursday evening shifts, according to a statement. GM and Fiat Chrysler also plan to idle their factories, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified ahead of official announcements.

familiar熟悉
people familiar with the matter,熟悉此事的人  即知情人士
asked not to be identified要去不能透露姓名
 

The three companies said late Tuesday that they would partially shut down facilities on a rotating basis to protect members of the United Auto Workers union from the spread of Covid-19. But by Wednesday morning, Honda Motor Co. announced its plan to suspend North American production for six days.

partially部分地
shut down facilities on a rotating basis轮流关闭
 
Amazon.com Inc. is prioritizing the stocking and shipping of household staples and medical supplies as it struggles to deal with a surge in demand for online orders from customers avoiding stores during the coronavirus pandemic.
household staples and medical supplies 家用必需品和医疗用品
stocking and shipping 库存和运输
prioritizing优先
 

The online retailer said in a blog post updated on Tuesday morning, that it was making the move “so we can more quickly receive, restock, and ship these products to customers.”

Also on Tuesday, Amazon told third-party sellers on its marketplace that the company wouldn’t accept shipments from sellers in other product categories through at least April 5. Amazon said it was taking a similar approach with the big brands it buys directly from. Business Insider reported the restrictions on other product categories earlier.

”We understand this is a change for our selling partners and appreciate their understanding as we temporarily prioritize these products for customers,” an Amazon spokesman said in an emailed statement. Products already on their way to Amazon warehouses will be accepted, he said.

warehouses仓库

2020-3-19 English Reading.

China Announces Expulsion of U.S. Journalists


The Chinese government moved Tuesday to strip credentials from American reporters working for the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, in a tit-for-tat exchange with the U.S. that has escalated in recent weeks. Beijing also demanded those outlets, as well as TIME and Voice of America, hand over details about personnel and operations.
The Chinese government moved 中国政府行动…to strip credentials 剥夺资格
tit-for-tat  针锋相对

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs instructed Americans working for the three U.S. newspapers whose credentials expire at the end of the year to turn in their press passes within 10 days. Those reporters would then be barred from reporting inside China, as well as in China’s semi-autonomous regions of Hong Kong and Macau. The ministry also demanded information “in written form” about staff, operations, finances and real estate of the five American news organizations, including TIME, in China, Hong Kong and Macau.

in written form以书面形式

The Chinese government said that the move to send reporters out of the country was taken in response to the U.S. not allowing more Chinese nationals working for state-run media to work in the U.S. On March 2, the Trump administration put a cap on the number of Chinese nationals allowed to be employed by five Chinese state-run news outlets operating inside the U.S. That action by the U.S. followed China’s decision to expel three reporters from the Wall Street Journal following the publication of an opinion article critical of the Chinese government.

expel three reporter驱逐三个记者

China’s “measures are entirely necessary and reciprocal countermeasures that China is compelled to take in response to the unreasonable oppression the Chinese media organizations experience in the U.S.,” the ministry wrote in a statement.

compelled 被迫的

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called China’s announcement “unfortunate,” adding in remarks to the press Tuesday that he hopes “they will reconsider.”

Pompeo defended the State Department’s actions to limit the staff of Chinese state-run media in the U.S. “The individuals that we identified a few weeks back were not media,” Pompeo said, “but were part of Chinese propaganda outlets.”

defended辩护
propaganda outlets.机构

2020-3-18 English Reading.

How is the shipping and delivery industry affected?

In late February, Shippers Transport Express alerted 145 drivers who work at the port of Los Angeles that they would be reducing hours beginning on Feb. 28, because of the decreased volumes of cargo moving through the port.

Ron Herrera, the director of the Teamsters Union Port Division of the Western Region, told TIME on March 13 that roughly 30% of those drivers have been allowed to keep driving. He says the decreased hours are driven by the low volume of cargo coming from Asia. ABC 7 reports that Phillip Sanfield, spokesperson for the Port of LA, said that they saw a roughly 25% decline in volume in February 2020 compared to February 2019.
driven by 因为 源于

A spokesperson for Shippers Transport Express told TIME in an email on March 13, “We have in good faith worked to alert our workers to the reduced volume situation facing our industry as a result of the [coronavirus].”

“We’ve informed [drivers] that we will be providing hours as volume arrives and we have more work. Hopefully, volume returns to normal shortly and we will have volume and hours for all our drivers. This will be done on a seniority basis, as hours materialize, which is the Teamster’s process,” he continued.

Read more: Why Can’t I Get Tested for Coronavirus?

One of those workers is 35-year-old Wendy Cruz, who has driven for Shippers Transport Express for four years. She told TIME on March 13 that she’s “definitely” worried about job security going forward. “We don’t know what’s going to happen,” she explains. “And I recently just purchased a home.”

Herrera told TIME on March 13 that the Teamsters Union anticipates more layoffs because of low manufacturing rates in China. “I don’t think we’ve seen the bottom of this yet,” he says. As NBC News reports, some economists say the coronavirus could have a bigger effect on U.S.-China trade than the Trump-era trade war did.|
anticipates more layoffs 预期更多的裁员

How is the ride-sharing industry affected?

Uber and Lyft have also taken a hit from the spread of COVID-19.

Uber has announced that if any driver or delivery person contracts coronavirus or is asked to self-isolate the company will provide financial assistance for up to 14 days. Uber has also announced that it’s working to provide drivers with disinfectants to help clean their cars. Similarly, Lyft has announced that it plans to deliver cleaning supplies to its drivers and will “provide funds to drivers” with COVID-19 or in quarantine “based on the rides they provided on the Lyft platform over the last four weeks.”
it’s working to provide drivers with disinfectants  正在努力提供消毒剂
disinfectants  消毒剂

But many U.S.-based Uber and Lyft drivers have expressed frustration that their companies have no done enough to protect them from the virus or from severe economic losses.
expressed frustration 表示沮丧

Steve Gregg, who has been driving for Uber and Lyft in California’s Bay Area for a little over three years, told TIME on March 13 that he’s “not in a position” where he can stop driving. Even though he says his fear over the coronavirus has caused him to have mild panic attacks, he’s had to keep driving because he depends on the income to support his children. Gregg adds that the two-weeks compensation he would receive if he got sick would be “a little too late.”

Yash — an Uber and Lyft driver whose full name TIME is withholding to protect his job — says his income went down last week by 30%. He adds that as his income has gone down, his costs have gone up; he now takes his car to get washed every day.

“We are at the front line of this epidemic. On a daily basis we deal with 20-30 people,” he says. He says he’s been suffering from insomnia since the crisis began, but he can’t stop driving because he can’t afford to.

When asked for comment on March 12 about the impact the spread of the virus has had on drivers, Uber directed TIME to a speech the company’s CEO Dara Khosrowshahi gave at Morgan Stanley last week, where he said, “As far as the impact to date, first of all, we are completely focused on the operational side of the business, making sure that our riders are safe, our drivers are safe, they understand what are best practices to make sure you stay safe. Our employees are taken care of. Our partners are taken care of.”

When asked for comment on March 12 about the virus’ impact on drivers, a Lyft spokesperson told TIME in a statement, “We are monitoring the coronavirus situation closely, and taking action based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control. Our focus is on keeping our riders, drivers and team members safe. We have an internal task force dedicated solely to this issue, and are prepared to take action as needed.”
monitoring  监视
dedicated solely 专用的

Responding to the concerns raised by the drivers TIME spoke with, a spokesperson for Uber said in a March 14 in a statement, “The mounting fear and uncertainty caused by the coronavirus is being felt by everyone around the world. We know it’s especially concerning for people who drive and deliver with Uber. In these difficult times, their well-being is at the top of our minds, and we have a dedicated team working around the clock to support them the very best we can.”

Lyft did not return a March 13 request for comment on the drivers’ comments.

2020-3-17 English Reading.

How is the cruise industry affected?

 

Joe Raedle—Getty Images

The spread of COVID-19 has been devastating for the cruise industry. In a tweet on Friday, President Donald Trump announced that four major cruise lines — Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, and MSC — have agreed to not sail from U.S. ports for thirty days. This comes after ports around the world have begun to temporarily ban cruise ship arrivals out of fear about the spread of coronavirus.

Read more: Why Are So Many Politicians Testing Positive With COVID-19?

Cruise Lines International Association, a trade organization that includes over 50 cruise lines, announced on Friday that all CLIA ocean-going cruise lines will be temporarily suspending cruise ship operations from U.S. ports of call for 30 days.

 

Multiple cruise ships have suffered high profile outbreaks of the virus. The Diamond Princess was quarantined for weeks off the coast of Japan and at least 700 people on board ended up contracting coronavirus. Another cruise ship, the Grand Princess, was prevented from docking off the coast of California for days out concerns about spreading the virus, and 21 people on board ended up testing positive by the time they disembarked in Oakland on March 9.

Princess Cruises

On Thursday, Princess Cruises — which is owned by Carnival Corp. — announced it was suspending all its global operations through early May, meaning 18 ships will cancel trips that were scheduled to begin between March 12 and May 10.

When asked what would happen to the employees scheduled to work these voyages, a spokesperson for Princess Cruises told TIME on Thursday, “Shoreside employees may temporarily take on new duties to support this change and the refund process. Most shipboard teammates will return home until service resumes in 60 days.”

“Our teammates are our Princess family and we are committed to the care of our team. This is an unprecedented action in the history of our company, so we do not know how everything will play out. We ask for understanding as we work through the specifics regarding compensation and other details,” the spokesperson continued.

On Friday, Carnival Corp. announced four more cruise lines would suspend their activity for a month: Carnival Cruise Line, Cunard North America, Holland America Line and Seabourn. Carnival Corp. did not immediately respond to TIME’s request for comment about what would happen to its workers.

Disney Cruises

On Friday, Disney Cruise Lines announced that it would suspend all new departures of Disney cruise ships beginning March 14 through the end of the month. “While we know this decision may be disappointing, the health and wellbeing of our guests is of the greatest importance,” Disney Cruise Line said in a statement.

“We are equally committed to the wellbeing of our incredible crew members who live and work aboard our ships and on Castaway Cay. During the suspended operations, Disney Cruise Line will continue to compensate our Crew Members and shoreside Cast Members,” the statement continued.

Read more: ‘Only a Matter of Time.’ At This Washington State Immigrant Detention Center, Attorneys Believe a Coronavirus Outbreak Is Inevitable

Viking Cruises

Viking Cruises also announced that it would suspend all ocean and river cruises until May 1.

Viking directed TIME’s request for comment to a message sent to all employees on March 11: “Viking’s guests and our crew always come first; we stand by you. The Company is financially strong, and we have experience in handling adversity. We have no plans to reduce our crew levels as they currently are and will use the next weeks to improve our procedures to handle future challenges presented with the new coronavirus.”

 

2020-3-16 English Reading.

How is the rail industry affected?

On Saturday, Amtrak announced its Northeast Corridor — which runs between Boston and Virginia — would run its Saturday schedule beginning March 16 through March 29. The Keystone Service in Pennsylvania will also be operating on a Saturday schedule with no service to the Ardmore Station.

On Wednesday, Amtrak announced it had temporarily suspended three trains that run between New York and Washington “due to lower demand.” It added that “additional changes to our schedule are under consideration.”
additional changes 额外的改变

John Feltz, director of the Transport Workers Union Train Division, told TIME on Friday there’s a possibility that onboard service workers on Amtrak he represents — such as cafe car workers — may have to prepare for a “furlough or a layoff situation.” He says the the union is “still trying to work that out with Amtrak right now” and “they are cooperating and they are working hand-in-hand.”
“furlough or a layoff situation.” 休假或裁员
still trying to work that out with Amtrak right now
work that out 解决这个问题

Feltz says that, if furloughed, workers would be able to collect unemployment under the Railroad Retirement Board, but their health insurance would be only last three months from their time they first left work.
furlough 休假

Amtrak told TIME on Friday night that they are “working closely with the unions right now as we adjust our schedules as a result of reduced demand that has cut hundreds of millions of dollars from our revenue estimates.”
revenue estimates.” 预估收入

“We will soon be rolling out a voluntary unpaid leave program where non-essential employees can volunteer to take unpaid leave in order to contribute to reducing our expenses,” the spokesperson continued. She added they’ve taken other cost cutting measures “as we work hard to offset the revenue loss while minimizing the impact on our employees.” These measures include: ending all non-safety critical hiring; cutting discretionary travel, cutting professional fees, cutting consultant spending, cutting advertising spending, and cutting deferred non-priority capital projects.
rolling out 推出

Read more: President Trump Says He Was Tested for Coronavirus

Anthony Simon, general chairman of the transportation division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation workers, who represents workers on the Long Island Railroad, writes TIME in an email that they have “been in constant contact with management and local officials. We have the full support of our international Union as well, and our work is secure moving forward as decisions and conditions are constantly changing.”

 as well常用作状语,作“又;也”解,相当于too或also,常位于句末,无须用逗号与句子分开。
如: I am going to London and my sister is going as well(=going,too).
我要到伦敦去,我妹妹也要去。 
as well as常用来连接两个并列的成分,作“也,还”解。它强调的是前一项,后一项只是顺便提及。因此连接并列主语时,谓语动词与前一项一致;而用not only ...but also...连接时,谓语动词与后一项一致。 

“Our first priority is for everyone’s safety and to prepare for whatever is necessary to restore normal. While there have been no threats to cut service as of yet, we will be prepared for whatever comes our way,” he writes.