Ariana Perez-Castells

2 days ago | inquirer.com | Ariana Perez-Castells

Tyrone Patterson, 67, has worked as a security guard for 21 years — but still wants job training. When Patterson first joined the workforce, he didn’t really get “hands-on training,” he says. One area he’s most interested in getting guidance is how to engage with individuals experiencing mental health issues.

2 days ago | inquirer.com | Ariana Perez-Castells

Insomnia Cookies plans to add 1,500 new stores across the country in the next decade, according to its founder. Seth Berkowitz, who founded the late-night cookie delivery business in 2003 as a student at the University of Pennsylvania, said in a recent interview that Insomnia’s presence in the United Kingdom and Canada was also growing with the expected addition of new stores by the end of 2025. There are now nearly 350 Insomnia Cookies in the United States and abroad.

1 week ago | inquirer.com | Ariana Perez-Castells

For some Philadelphia-area employees at the IRS, the last few months have raised big questions about the fate of their work. One of them, a King of Prussia employee, was laid off in February. He applied for unemployment and started interviewing for other jobs, he said. But before he got his first unemployment check, he was reinstated to his IRS role and placed on paid leave. He was also offered an opportunity to resign from the federal government and continue getting paid for several months.

1 week ago | inquirer.com | Ariana Perez-Castells

A 23-year-old man was arrested Saturday in West Chester after police got a tip that a person was concealing a firearm at a “No Kings” rally, authorities said. The person was reported walking around North High Street. After police questioned a man, they found an unlicensed firearm in his possession, according to a statement issued Sunday by the Chester County District Attorney’s Office. The man did not have a permit to carry a concealed firearm, the statement said.

1 week ago | inquirer.com | Ariana Perez-Castells

Craig LaBan, restaurant critic and columnist at The Inquirer, has won the James Beard Foundation’s Craig Claiborne Distinguished Criticism Award for his expert assessments of Philadelphia’s dining scene, from food carts to some of the city’s most exclusive reservations.