Q: During a tennis tournament such as the U.S. Open, what kind of compensation do the ball boys and ball girls receive? Surely it is more than minimum wage.
— Tim Schnabel, Monroe
A: Ball boys and girls at the U.S. Open are paid between $8 and $9 an hour, but they are not paid at the other three majors: the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon. They are referred to as ball persons or ball people at the U.S. Open, where this year, the ages range from 14 into the 40s. The U.S. Open also is affected by late-night matches, which can be manned only by ball persons 18 years and older. Wimbledon ball girls and boys receive free lunches and snacks. They work one hour on the court, are off an hour, and then go back to work. At the Australian Open, they're called ballkids, and must be between 12 and 15 years old.
Q: We have heard President Barack Obama has proof of chemical weapon use in Syria. Does he have proof who used the weapon?
—Scott Pirnie, Atlanta
A: Most of the information is classified, but Secretary of State John Kerry recently told a Senate panel: "We can tell you beyond any reasonable doubt that our evidence proves the Assad regime prepared for this attack, issued instruction to prepare for this attack, warned its own forces to use gas masks." Kerry added that there's proof the government "issued orders to stop and then fretted openly — we know — about the possibility of U.N. inspectors discovering evidence." France, Germany and Britain back up the U.S. claim that chemical weapons were used.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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