The Californian from Salinas, California • 13

BUSINESSNATIONWORLD Tuesday, July 29, 2008 Gas watch Lcca! stocks July 28, 2008 Dow Jones industrials 14.000 13.500 13,000 12,500 12.000 11,500 11,000 A 11,131.08 FOB as of July 28 shipping point. BROCCOLI: Salinas and Watsonvllle. DEMAND CROWN CUT GOOD OTHERS MODERATE. MARKET HIGHER. Extra services included.

Wide range in price, cartons bchd 14s 5.45-7.48 mostly 6.00-6.50 occasional lower bchd 18s 5.95-7.98 mostly 6.50-7.00 occasional lower 20 lb cartons loose Crown Cut 7.50-10.50 mostly 7.50-9.45 Short Trim 9.00-10.48 CAULIFLOWER: Salinas and Watsonvllle. DEMAND GOOD. MARKET HIGHER. Extra services included, cartons film wrapped 9s 9.45-11.50 occasional higher and lower 12s 10.45-12.55 few 13.45-13.50 occasional higher 16s 8.45-11.50 CELERY: Salinas and Watsonvllle. DEMAND MODERATE.

MARKET 3-4 DOZEN LOWER OTHERS ABOUT STEADY. Filmbag charges extra other services included. Wide range in price, cartons 2 dz 7.35-10.50 mostly 7.35-8.56 few 5.75-6.75 2 12 dz 8.35-10.75 mostly 8.45-10.56 occasional lower 3 dz 12.05-16.50 mostly 12.05-14.56 occasional lower 4 dz 13.05-16.56 mostly 13.05-14.50 occasional higher and lower cartons film bags Hearts 18s 17.45-20.25 mostly 17.45-19.50 occasional lower LETTUCE-ICEBERG: Salinas and Watsonvllle. SUPPLY FILMWRAPPED SOS LIGHT. DEMAND FAIRLY GOOD.

MARKET FILMWRAPPED AND FILMLINED SLIGHTLY HIGHER OTHERS ABOUT STEADY. Precooling Included. Palletizing included for filmlined and filmwrapped. Wide range in quality and appearance, cartons 24s 8.35-9.50 mostly 8.35 occasional higher flm lined 24s mostly 9.00-10.00 occasional lower 24s flmwrpd 9.50-11.56 mostly 10.00-11.00 occasional lower 30s flmwr-pd 9.00-10.50 mostly 9.00-10.25 occasional higher and lower, LETTUCE-OTHER: Salinas and Watsonvllle. DEMAND FAIRLY GOOD.

MARKET HIGHER. Extra services included. Wide range in price, cartons Boston 24s 5.35-7.50 mostly 6.35-6.95 few high as 10.05 Green Leaf 24s 6.35-10.50 mostly 6.35-8.56 occasional higher Red Leaf 24s 6.00-9.00 mostly 6.00-7.35 occasional higher and lower LETTUCE-ROMAINE: Salinas and Watsonvllle. DEMAND VERY GOOD. MARKET HIGHER.

Extra services included. Wide range in price and quality, cartons 24s 10.56 13.45 mostly 10.56-12.35 occasional higher and lower cartons 12 3-count packages Hearts 12.55-17.55 mostly 13.35-16.50 previous commitments lower cartons film lined Hearts 48s 13.55-18.55 mostly 14.35-17.50 previous commitments lower Federal State Market news Monday's per-gallon price for unleaded at a sampling of Salinas-area stations: Station 721 728 Rotten Robbie, Salinas $4,379 $4,079 Soledad Valero, Soledad $4,499 $4,399 Pilot Travel Center, Salinas $4,339 $4,139 Safeway Gas, Salinas $4,379 NA Salinas Gas, Salinas $4,399 $4,199 'GAS WATCH appears Tuesday In Business. To suggest a station, call 754-4260 or e-mail to GAS WATCH at newsroomsalinas.gannett.com. July 28, 2008 Nasdaq composite Publicly traded companies with a presence in Monterey County: Stock Close Chng. ConAgra 21.68 0.06 Chiquita 15.52 California Water 35.19 0.26 Diageo 70.43 Gannett Co.

Inc. 17.20 Granite Const. 31.00 HSBC Holdings 81.40 0.75 Macerich 54.85 McGrawHill 37.22 McCormick 39.37 0.05 Pac. Cap. Bnc.

12.00 Mo. Gourmet 1.90 P. Valley Bank 8.01 Constellation 21.40 Sysco 28.36 Union Bank 50.30 0.13 3,000 1 -qj 2,800 f-r 1 1 2.600 2,000 A 2,264.22 Gotowww.thecalifornian.com for up-to-the-minute stock prices Employers win one on breaks WORKPLACE HAW Kelly McCarthy Sutherland 2 Justice investigating From Page 6B Plaintiffs' attorneys have favored class-action lawsuits for meal and rest periods because they can provide enormous fees, but the California Fourth District Court of Appeal issued an opinion last week that may deter them from bringing these claims as often. The appellate court's opinion also provides helpful language for employers regarding meal and rest periods. Blinker v.

Superior Court had five individual plaintiffs. The plaintiffs claimed, among other things, that Brinker Restaurant Corp. had not required its employees to take meal and rest periods as provided in the Labor Code and Industrial Welfare Wage Orders. Blinker's employee policies stated the employees understood they were to take a half-hour meal peri- take their meal and rest periods. Gov.

Arnold Schwarzenegger and employers across the state have been pleased with this decision. The California Supreme Court reversed an earlier decision in this matter by the appellate court, and it is likely that the plaintiffs will appeal this decision, so it may not be wise for employers to rely too much on the appellate court's ruling here. But for now, employers can enjoy having won at least one round in the ongoing meal-and-rest-peri-od battle. KELLY MCCARTHY SUTHERLAND is an attorney with Lombardo Gilles who specializes in employment law. This article is provided for general public information and does not constitute legal advice.

To suggest future topics, contact Sutherland at kellylomgil.com. cient for the court to try the matters as a class action than to have each employee bring his or her own claim. The trial court certified the class. The appellate court reversed the trial court's certification. As the appellate court noted, because the employer's policies indicated it provided rest and meal periods, there would not be common issues, because each employee would have to explain how or why they were denied rest and meal periods.

These would not be common questions of fact, but would vary with each individual The appellate court's decision further holds that employers must only authorize and permit their employees to take meal and rest periods. Employers are not required to force their employees to od if they worked more than five hours, and that they understood they were to take a 10-minute rest period for every 3.5 hours they worked. Brinker's employee policies stated that employees who did not take their meal and rest periods would be subject to discipline, up to and including termination of their employment The plaintiffs' attorneys sought to certify a class of more than 59,000 people who had or still worked for Brinker. The lawyers argued the class members had common issues and questions in their claims, so it would be more effi ATTACKS US. blames al-Qaida to Oracle's legal brief.

"For years, SAP profited from (TomorrowNow's) illegal business model, without breathing a word about it to Oracle, SAP AG's existing and prospective customers, or the investing public," Oracle's lawyer wrote in Monday's filing. SAP spokesman Saswa-to Das declined to address Oracle's latest allegations. "Ultimately, it is the court that will determine the facts and remedies in this case and we prefer that this discussion take place in the legal system," Das said. Signaling its disappointment with TomorrowNow's performance, SAP last week disclosed plans to close the subsidiary in October. But TomorrowNow could saddle SAP with legal headaches beyond the Oracle lawsuit, which is scheduled for a February 2010 trial Prompted by Oracle's allegations, the U.S Justice Department also has been collecting documents from both companies to determine whether any laws were broken.

A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment on the inquiry Monday. SAP's acquisition of TomorrowNow and Oracle's subsequent lawsuit reflects the ill will that has been building between the two rivals during the last three years as Oracle has spent more than $35 billion to gain more market share in the business applications software market. biggest rival in business applications software. Those products automate a wide range of administrative tasks. But Oracle alleges that TomorrowNow relied on a "corrupt" strategy that included breaking into Oracle's computers to obtain confidential information.

After reviewing internal SAP documents obtained during the discovery phase of its lawsuit, Oracle became convinced that its rival's top executives were warned about TomorrowNow's outlaw behavior before the acquisition and then embraced the conduct after buying the subsidiary. Oracle's allegations contradict some of the public statements of SAP's chief executive, Henning Kagermann, who said the company's hierarchy in Germany and the United States never had access to any "inappropriate" material obtained by TomorrowNow. In the documents filed Monday, Oracle alleged that SAP executives could enter TomorrowNow's system through an internal Web site and also routinely exchanged material with the subsidiary through e-mail In June 2005, SAP executives even considered conspiring with TomorrowNow's management to cover up the covert activity as part of a plan called "Project Blue," Oracle alleged Monday. The project was eventually scrapped, according From Page 1 tal began about 7:15 a.m., when three of the women detonated their explosives belts in quick succession less than half a mile apart. The bombers were walking among pilgrims streaming toward the golden domed shrine of the eight-century imam.

The shrine, the focus of a major Shiite festival this week, gives its name to the northern neighborhood of Kazimiyah which surrounds it Iraqi security forces had deployed about 200 women this week to search female pilgrims in Kazimiyah, but the attacks took place along the procession some six miles southeast of the shrine. There were too few women guards to search people in the procession itself. sucked on a pacifier as he was held by a man. "I heard women and children crying and shouting and I saw burned women as dead bodies lied in pools of blood on the street," Mustapha Abdullah, a 32-year-old man who was injured in the stomach and legs, said from his hospital bed. At least 32 people were killed and more than 100 were wounded, Iraqi police and hospital officials said.

It was the deadliest attack in the capital since June 17, when a truck bombing killed 63 people in Hurriyah. In a throwback to more violent times, the Iraqi' government announced a 24-hour curfew in Baghdad, banning all vehicle movement starting 5 a.m. today. The attacks in the capi The U.S. military blamed al-Qaida in Iraq for the Baghdad bombings.

It was still investigating the Kirkuk attack, underscoring the more complicated nature of the tensions there. But city police spok-seman Brig. Gen. Sarhat Qadir said the terror network was behind that attack as well The Baghdad bombings left piles of rubble and shattered glass on the streets alongside crumpled cars and sandals from panicked pilgrims, many of whom had slept at rest areas before rising at dawn to begin their annual march to the golden domed shrine of Imam Moussa al-Kadhim. Hospital emergency rooms were overwhelmed with bloodied victims, including a young boy with a bandaged head who female bombers because their billowing, black robes easily hide explosives and they are less Likely to be searched.

U.S. military "figures show at least 27 female suicide bombings this year, compared with eight in 2007. Monday's attacks tapped into two different sets of fears. The three nearly simultaneous bombings in Baghdad undermined public confidence in recent security gains that have tamped down sectarian bloodshed. The attack in Kirkuk, 180 miles to the north, showed that ethnic rivalries can turn into mass slaughter in a city that is home to Kurds, Turkomen, Arabs and other minorities.

PAR a good DEFICIT Candidates take shots at Bush Dilbert JURY SELECTION time, go to Florida From Page IB YOU WITH THE BIG EYEBROWS, ARE YOU AS DUtAB AS YOU LOOK? BACKGROUND The Princeton Review is a New York company known for its test preparation courses, educational services and books. The Princeton Review is not affiliated with Princeton University. www.dilbert.cam cotUKtenMatoi.eom I'rA NOT SURE. I DON'T REIAEMBER WHAT I LOOK LIKE. McCain wants to extend the tax cuts passed in 2001 and 2003, most of which are due to expire at the end of 2010.

Obama offers new breaks for middle-class and lower-income workers. The report pointed out that both candidates have said they would cut spending, but Burman said he is "skeptical." Greg Valliere, chief political strategist for the Stanford Financial Group, said many economists would put the budget deficit lower on the list of pressing economic challenges. Higher priorities include foreclosures, falling home values, problems in the credit market and high gas prices. The projected deficit does create political opportunities. "It gives McCain a chance to differentiate himself from Bush," Valliere said.

"For Obama, it gives him a chance to rip into Republican economic policies," and health care prices, stagnant wages, a weak dollar and a depressed housing market "America needs a broad-based strategy to jump-start the economy in the short run while addressing our long-run challenges," the Illinois senator said. Financial analysts said either future president will be hard-pressed to reduce the deficit in light of their plans for tax cuts and less-specific talk of spending cuts. "Based on what they said they would do, they would both create more deficits," said Len Burman, director of the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. In a revised report dated July 23, the Tax Policy Center said the tax-cutting plans of both campaigns could increase the total federal debt substantially over the next decade: McCain by $5 trillion and Obama by $3.4 trillion. have a lot of time to celebrate.

"We do party and have a good time, but I have to study or my Dad will kill me," he said. The annual rankings also list the nation's "Stone-Cold Sober Schools." Topping that list was Utah's Brigham Young University for the 11th consecutive year. The Princeton Review's annual guide, "The Best 368 Colleges," also ranks schools on scores from 60 to 99 based on admissions, financial aid, and a new category called the Green rating, which surveys colleges in part on their environmentally friendly practices. The book has 62 categories in all, including: Best Professors, Middle-bury College in Vermont; Tastiest Campus Food, Wheaton College in Illinois; and Best Dorms, From Page IB He defended the school's academic climate, noting Florida's incoming students have a weighted grade-point average of 4.1 and an average SAT score of 1,300. Florida also came in first this year in the categories of students who study the least and students who pack the stadiums.

Joseph Milano, 21, a finance major from Palm Harbor, said a mostly young student body of 51,000 students and successful athletic programs make it easy to party. "With a lot of people on campus, fun things happen," he said. Chris Hickox, 22, of Fort Lauderdale, said he is working hard to try to get into veterinary school, so he doesn't AM W4 lOOBaconAdffttt.lnc.DM.byUFS.ftw. Loyola College in Maryland. The students happiest with their financial aid attend Princeton University, which also tops the list for the most beautiful campus, the survey found.

The Princeton Review says the guide to the best schools is intended to help applicants who can't visit every school in person. "In our opinion, each school in this book is first-rate academically," said Robert Franek, the book's author. OKAY, YOU'RE IN. AND ON AN UNRELATED NOTE. ITA THE ONLY PERSON WHO EVER LOVED YOU.