In Brief
[naviga:h2]Alcoa returning to Pittsburgh[/naviga:h2]
PITTSBURGH — Alcoa said Wednesday it is moving its headquarters back to Pittsburgh, the city where it was born, as part of an effort to reduce costs.
The aluminum producer said the decision will bring 10 people from its current headquarters in New York City to its Pittsburgh office, where 205 employees and contractors work.
The company shares the space with employees of Arconic, the new company created in November when Alcoa separated its mining, refining and aluminum businesses from downstream businesses that produce aluminum and titanium parts for the aerospace, automotive and other industries.
Alcoa moved its headquarters to New York in 2006.
The relocation will take effect Sept. 1. Alcoa expects the shift and other office consolidations to occur within the next 18 months will generate annual savings of $5 million once they are implemented.
Another five employees at Alcoa’s current New York headquarters will work from home, a spokesman said.
[naviga:h2]Unemployment system gets fix[/naviga:h2]
HARRISBURG — Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf will sign legislation to flush $15 million into a chaotic state unemployment compensation system that’s forcing the jobless to wait longer to get questions answered or benefits checks.
Wolf’s office said Wednesday, however, that the money is a short-term fix and that lawmakers must find a long-term solution. The Senate passed the bill 41-8 on Wednesday, a day after the House overwhelmingly approved it.
The money is designed to stabilize the system until next year.
The state laid off 499 workers in December after the Senate’s Republican majority blocked a $57.5 million funding bill over concerns the money was propping up an inefficient system.