DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Amazon and Walmart warehouse employees are so surveilled that they're worried about breaking to use bathroom: Oxfam report
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Data from two recent surveys, funded in part by Oxfam — the National Survey of Amazon Warehouse Workers and the National Survey of Walmart Warehouse Workers — is included in the report. The results show that a substantial amount of Amazon and Walmart warehouse employees surveyed reported being closely watched by technology while in the workplace. Advertisement"The conditions there are absolutely horrific," one Amazon warehouse worker in Alabama was quoted as saying in the report. The Oxfam report says that at Amazon, warehouse workers "are assigned handheld devices or scanners that record, count, and measure every item they move during their day." One Walmart worker quoted in the Oxfam report alleged that the company's warehouse robots "are treated better than human beings."

Persons: —, Soren Larson, Maureen Lynch Vogel, Vogel, Petion, Suzanne Kreiter, Irit Tamir, they're, Tamir, Abby Maxman Organizations: Oxfam, Amazon, Walmart, Service, Securities, Exchange Commission, Oxfam —, National Survey, Amazon Warehouse Workers, National Survey of Walmart Warehouse Workers, Reuters Amazon, BI, Employees, Boston Globe, Getty, Oxfam America Locations: United States, Amazon, Alabama

☆ America’s largest companies are fueling inequality, says new study
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

About 90%, or $1.1 trillion, of that profit went to shareholders through stock buybacks and dividend payments, according to new research from anti-poverty organization Oxfam International. At the same time, the study found, only 10 of those 200 companies have made public statements in support of paying a living wage. For some of those companies, the average CEO-to-worker pay ratio is now above 1,500 to 1, the nonprofit confederation found. Oxfam’s study found that on average, pharmaceutical companies paid just 11.6% in taxes in 2022 (that’s down from 11.8% in 2021). Trump Media generated just $3.4 million of revenue through the first nine months of last year, according to SEC filings.

Persons: —, we’ll, ”, Irit Tamir, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Matt Egan, Devin Nunes, Dave Calhoun, Chris Isidore, Calhoun, Max Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, CME, Oxfam International, Oxfam, Corporations, Institute for Policy Studies, Tax, Truth Social, Trump Media, Trump Media & Technology Group, Corp, Digital, Trump, Nasdaq, Big Tech, ”, overvaluing Trump Media, SEC, Twitter, CNN, Boeing, CNBC, Alaska Airlines, Max Locations: New York, United States

☆ With a low cocoa supply, this Valentine’s Day chocolate prices are up
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( John Towfighi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Rising cocoa prices aren’t the only concern for customers this Valentine's Day. Last Thursday, Hershey Co. said it would cut 5% of its workforce after historic cocoa prices and inflation-weary consumers dampened fourth quarter earnings. “And it looks like it’s not necessarily going to subside anytime soon.”The Supreme Valentine’s Day SweetRoughly 92% of Americans say they plan to share chocolate and candy for Valentine’s Day this year, according to the National Confectioners Association. In 2023, Valentine’s Day chocolate and candy sales exceeded $4 billion, the NCA says. Issaka said that while high demand and low supply raise prices, cocoa farmers are getting squeezed.

Persons: ”, Michele Buck, Billy Roberts, ” Roberts, Lindsey Nicholson, Marnie Ives, Ives, ” Ives, “ It’s, Karl Schneider, Roberts’s, Issifu, Issaka, ” Issaka, “ I’m, Cote, Will Kletter, Sabi Ibarra Guerrero, Uwe Gneiting, Gneiting, Joke Aerts, Aerts, ” Aerts, Sia Kambou, Price, Tony’s, “, they’ve, CNN’s Eva Rothenberg Organizations: CNN, Hershey Co, National Confectioners Association, NCA, Cocoa, Oxfam America, Getty, Fairtrade, Cote d’Ivoire, “ Locations: West Africa, North America, Manhattan, Queens , New York, Neck, NY, Bloomfield , NJ, Ghana, North Region, Cote d’Ivoire, Silicon, Africa, Accra, Cote, Hermankono, AFP

But aid officials expressed concern. The sanctions that come with the formal designation are meant to sever violent extremist groups from their sources of financing. Aid groups during the height of Yemen's war issued repeated warnings that millions of Yemenis were on the brink of famine. Aid groups said that step could have the effect of criminalizing ordinary trade and assistance to Yemenis. At home, the designation helps the Houthis' message to Yemenis that the U.S. is the cause of their suffering, Al-Omeisy said.

Persons: Scott Paul, Jared Rowell, Biden, “, Hisham Al, Omeisy, ’ ” Organizations: Oxfam America, U.S, Nations, International Rescue Locations: Iran, Saudi, Britain, Yemen, Israel, U.S, Gaza, Saudi Arabia, Washington

☆ Premarket stocks: The rich and powerful are meeting in Davos. Here’s what they’re talking about
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Climate catastrophes: Climate change is a hot topic as leaders meet to discuss balancing economic growth with sustainability. Davos comes just days after scientists around the globe reported that the average temperatures last year reached a new record high. The report also said that cooperation among global leaders on the issue is scarce. So while leaders will likely discuss the use of fossil fuels and green development, there may not be much agreement. Leaders gathered in Davos Sunday to discuss Ukrainian President Zelensky’s 10-point peace plan to end Russia’s war with his country.

Persons: Isaac Herzog, Volodymyr Zelensky, Emmanuel Macron, Li Qiang, Antony Blinken, Jake Sullivan, John Kerry, Satya Nadella, Sam Altman, Jamie Dimon, Brian Moynihan, Larry Fink, Donald Trump, ”, Philipp Hildebrand, CNN’s Richard Quest, ” “, ” Nicolai Tangen, CNN’s, “, Kristalina Georgieva, OpenAI’s Altman, Microsoft’s, Zelensky’s, JPMorgan’s Dimon, Herzog, Klaus Schwab, Tami Luhby, Elon Musk, Bernard Arnault, Jeff Bezos, Larry Ellison, Warren Buffett, Nabil Ahmed, ” Ahmed, Jordan Valinsky, Comité Organizations: New, New York CNN, World Economic, National, Business, Microsoft, JPMorgan, Bank of America, BlackRock, Republican, GOP, ” BlackRock, Bank, Norges Bank, International Monetary Fund, IMF, State, Amazon, Oracle, Berkshire Hathaway, Oxfam, Workers Locations: New York, Davos, United States, Iowa, Europe, Taiwan, India, Mexico, China, Covid, Champagne, France

The move comes as the Houthis have launched dozens of attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. In its waning days, the Trump administration designated the Houthis a foreign terrorist organization over the strong objections of human rights and humanitarian aid groups. Yemen, on the tip of the Arabian Peninsula bordering the Red Sea, is the poorest country in the Arab world. While supporters of broad sanctions argue it’s possible to shape any enforcement mechanisms so to exempt food and humanitarian aid, aid organizations worry that fears of running afoul of U.S. regulation could scare away shippers, banks and other players vital to Yemen’s commercial food supply. The Red Sea attacks have already caused significant disruptions to global trade.

Persons: —, Biden, Antony Blinken, Trump, Blinken, ”, Scott Paul, “, Yemen’s Houthi, Jake Sullivan, Linda Thomas Greenfield, Brent, Houthis, Sullivan, Joe Biden's, ” Sullivan, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Al Thani, Mohammed Shia, Masrour Barzani, Jon Gambrell, Edith M, Lederer, Ellen Knickmeyer Organizations: WASHINGTON, White, U.S, Nations, Oxfam America, White House, House, Economic, British, United Nations, Consulate, Islamic, Tuesday, ___ Associated Press Locations: Yemen, Red, Gaza, Israel, Yemenis, U.S, Davos, Switzerland, Iran, Malta, Tehran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al, Qatar, Kurdish, House, Irbil, ___, Jerusalem, Washington

☆ The wealth of the world’s five richest men more than doubled since 2020
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Tami Luhby | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

His wealth soared to $245.5 billion at the end of November, up 737% from March 2020, after accounting for inflation. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos had a fortune of $167.4 billion, up 24%; while Oracle founder Larry Ellison’s wealth totaled $145.5 billion, up 107%. US billionaires, many of whom derive their wealth from the equity in the companies they lead, are $1.6 trillion richer. Seven out of 10 of the world’s largest public companies have either a billionaire CEO or a billionaire as its principal shareholder. What’s more, the top 1% holds 43% of the world’s financial assets, according to Oxfam, drawing on data from Wealth X.

Persons: Nabil Ahmed, ” Ahmed, Elon Musk, Bernard Arnault, Jeff Bezos, Larry, Warren Buffett, Amitabh Behar Organizations: CNN, Forbes, Oxfam, Workers, Tesla, SpaceX, Amazon, Oracle, Berkshire Hathaway, Wealth, Oxfam International’s Locations: Davos, Switzerland, United States, Asia, Europe, “

☆ Democrats want to make the minimum wage $17 an hour and give nearly 28 million workers a raise
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Sen. Bernie Sanders, alongside other progressives, is again trying to raise the federal minimum wage. He's introducing legislation to bring the federal minimum to $17 by 2028; currently, it's $7.25. However, past attempts to raise the minimum wage have been stymied by Republicans and moderate Democrats. Under the latest version of the Raise the Wage Act, the federal minimum would climb to $17 by 2028. "The President shares Congressional Democrats' commitment to put workers first and supports increasing the minimum wage.

Persons: Sen, Bernie Sanders, Sanders, Michael Douglas, Gordon Gekko, Hakeem Jeffries, It's, Democrats —, Biden, Michael Kikukawa, Pramila Jayapal, Jayapal, Frances Holmes, Holmes Organizations: Republicans, Service, Democratic, Senate, Democrats, Institute, Workers, National Employment Law, Congress, White, Congressional Progressive Caucus, Oxfam America, Busch Locations: Wall, Silicon, St Louis , Missouri

☆ Billionaires are collectively adding $2.7 billion to their fortunes daily — and their growing share of wealth shows trickle-down doesn't work
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A new report from Oxfam looks at how much wealth billionaires have accumulated. The report finds billionaires are collectively adding $2.7 billion to their fortunes daily, as inflation eats up workers' wages. As top tax rates fell, billionaire wealth grew — and Oxfam says wealth taxes are one solution. That's based on the difference between billionaires' wealth from March 18, 2020, adjusted for inflation, and November 30, 2022. However, while wealth taxes are popular, they're unlikely to ever advance in the US.

☆ Russia’s war in Ukraine sparked a historic food crisis. It’s not over
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“All the major causes of the food crisis are still with us — conflict, Covid, climate change, high fuel prices,” Cary Fowler, the US special envoy for global food security, told CNN. But high food prices mean that funding can’t go as far, and Russia’s war continues to generate volatility. “The Ukraine crisis has had this ongoing negative impact on world food prices and [added] even more volatility,” said Abby Maxman, CEO of Oxfam America. Russia “is not assisting in alleviating the food crisis in slowing down the grain inspections,” Fowler said. Oxfam’s Maxman, who traveled there in September, said disruptions to food supplies were obvious in markets.

☆ The top 1% captured nearly twice as much new wealth as the rest of the world over last two years: Oxfam
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Tami Luhby | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The top 1% have captured nearly twice as much new wealth as the rest of the world during that period, according to Oxfam’s annual inequality report, released Sunday. At the start of the pandemic, global governments, particularly wealthier countries, poured trillions of dollars into their economies to prevent a collapse. It’s the first time that extreme wealth and extreme poverty have increased simultaneously in 25 years, said Oxfam. Tax the richTo counter this growing inequality, Oxfam is calling on governments to raise taxes on their wealthiest residents. Oxfam believes the rates on the top 1% should be high enough to significantly reduce their numbers and wealth.

☆ U.S. oil giants Exxon Mobil, Chevron and ConocoPhillips challenged over ‘secretive’ tax practices
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Oxfam on Monday filed shareholder resolutions against U.S. oil giants Exxon Mobil, Chevron and ConocoPhillips, saying a lack of transparency over their global tax practices poses a material risk for long-term investors. The international relief charity said the companies' tax practices undermine the public's interest in a fair tax system — especially in Global South countries "with the greatest tax revenue needs." "Exxon, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips's threadbare tax disclosures leave investors, watchdog groups, and the general public in the dark about the companies' secretive tax practices," Daniel Mulé, policy lead on extractive industries and tax at Oxfam America, said in a statement. Chevron, Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips were not immediately available to comment when contacted by CNBC. It comes amid a broader push for greater tax transparency from large corporations, particularly as people around the world feel the squeeze of a cost-of-living crisis.

Search resuls for: "Oxfam America"

12 mentions found