IRS data show that more than 15,000 Pittsburgh-area residents cannot receive their economic stimulus check because they have yet to file a tax return. Married couples are eligible to receive $1,200, while a single filer could receive as much at $600. Taxpayers who receive Social Security benefits, some veterans benefits and other benefits that total more than $3,000 annually are eligible for the payout. For information, call the rebate hot line at 1-866-234-2942, or visit the Web site www.irs.gov.

Continental Airlines said yesterday that it was charging some coach customers $15 for a first checked bag, matching a similar fee imposed by most other major U.S. carriers. The fee took effect immediately on tickets for travel in the United States and Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Canada for travel starting on Oct. 7 or later. Continental said the fee wouldn't apply to elite members of its frequent-flier program, those in first- or business-class seats, customers traveling on full-fare economy tickets, or military personnel and their families traveling on official orders.

The job picture in the area should be a little brighter for information technology specialists in the fourth quarter, according to a survey by Robert Half Technology. The job placement company said 11 percent of chief information officers surveyed expected to hire IT specialists in the fourth quarter, while 4 percent said they planned to reduce their IT staffs. Eighty-five percent of the respondents said they anticipated no fourth-quarter change in staffing.

Boscov's Inc., the Reading-based department-store chain operating under bankruptcy protection, received court approval for a plan to pay $1.45 million in incentive bonuses to six executives, over the objections of the U.S. Trustee in the bankruptcy case. Under the incentive program, the six executives could receive from 20 percent to 50 percent of their annual salary if a Chapter 11 plan is approved by the end of February or a going-concern sale is completed by early January. Acting U.S. Trustee Roberta A. DeAngelis opposed the plan, which she said appeared to pay the executives for remaining with the company and completing tasks they were required to perform.

Federal aviation officials yesterday said they were investigating 17 cases in which 11 air carriers did not comply with government safety directives. The cases were uncovered during a major effort by the Federal Aviation Administration to verify whether air carriers follow the agency's safety orders as required.

The government yesterday began posting a list of prescription drugs under investigation for potential safety problems in an effort to better inform doctors and patients. The first list is a bare-bones compilation naming 20 medications and the potential issue for each. At least five of the drugs on the list had problems that already have been publicized. These included the blood thinner heparin, recalled earlier this year.