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It's been a year of heartbreak and chronic worry since the most destructive wildfires in the Los Angeles area's history scorched neighborhoods and displaced tens of thousands of people. The two blazes that ignited during fierce winds on Jan. 7, 2025, killed 30 people and destroyed nearly 17,000 structures, including homes, schools, businesses and places of worship. Rebuilding will take years. People whose homes were left standing are still living with the hazards, including new trauma for those afraid of what still lurks inside. A crowdsourced data effort by Altadena residents has found many homes still standing remain unsafe.

Working five days a week has long been the corporate cultural norm. But some companies are exploring the option of letting employees work four days a week. The chief executive of an organization that promotes the idea says they're hoping to reduce workplace burnout and retain talent seeking a better work-life balance. Dale Whelehan is CEO of 4 Day Week Global, which coaches companies through the process of shortening their employees' work hours. Whelehan says five-day workweeks weren't designed for jobs requiring a lot of thinking and sitting, and that one less day doing that improves mental and physical health.

President Joe Biden has proposed a new rule to address excessive heat in the workplace. The Democrat warns as tens of millions of people in the U.S. are under heat advisories that high temperatures are the country's leading weather-related killer. If finalized, the measure unveiled Tuesday by the Democratic president would protect an estimated 36 million U.S. workers from injuries related to heat exposure on the job — establishing the first major federal safety standard of its kind. Those affected by excessive heat in the workplace include farmworkers, delivery and construction workers, landscapers, gardeners and workers in warehouses, factories and kitchens. Biden says more people die from extreme heat than from floods, hurricanes and tornadoes combined.