DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Canada moves to end rail shutdown quickly; CN workers to return to work Friday
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

A striking Teamsters union worker pickets outside Canadian National Railway's (CN) headquarters after being locked out by the company in Montreal, Quebec, Canada August 22, 2024. REUTERS/Evan BuhlerWorkers at Canadian National Railway will begin returning to work on Friday, the Teamsters union said, hours after the Canadian government moved to end an unprecedented rail stoppage. In a new statement during the early hours on Friday, the Teamsters union posted on X that it had taken down picket lines at CN. The rail companies previously said they were forced into the lockouts to avoid strikes at short notice. Paul Boucher, head of the Teamsters rail union, had accused CN and CPKC of being "willing to compromise rail safety and tear families apart to earn an extra buck".

Persons: Evan Buhler, CPKC, Steven MacKinnon, MacKinnon, Jonathan Abecassis, Justin Trudeau, Trudeau, Paul Boucher, Jagmeet Singh Organizations: REUTERS, Evan Buhler Workers, Canadian National Railway, Teamsters, Canadian Pacific, Canadian Industrial Relations, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian, Labour, CN, Canadian Broadcasting Corp, Liberal, Reliant, Canadian Manufacturers, New Democratic Party, Ottawa Locations: Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, United States, Toronto, Vancouver

☆ Business Insider seeks tips regarding potential abuses by corporate landlords across the US
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-08 | by ( Cecilia Reyes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Business Insider is investigating the rental practices of corporate landlords. We'd like to hear from current or former tenants or employees of corporate landlords or management companies. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Go to newsletter preferences Thanks for signing up! This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Cecilia Reyes, — Organizations: Service, Business Locations: confidentially

☆ Small Landlords Are Using New Tech Tools to Raise Tenants Rents
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-17 | by ( James Rodriguez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

The past few years have solidified single-family rental homes as genuine moneymaking enterprises, not just ho-hum nest eggs. Related storiesWhen everyone was scrambling for their piece of the suburbs during the pandemic, mom-and-pop landlords pounced, using these newfound tools to collect more cash. The company, which estimates only one-fourth of single-family-rental landlords use professional management services, now manages more than 28,000 rentals on behalf of small landlords. As the Wall Street ethos trickles down to small rental owners, it'll be harder and harder to tell them apart. But the gap is narrowing as small rental owners capitalize on the innovations that the institutional class has already embraced.

Persons: Daniel doesn't, Daniel, hasn't, he's, Bryan Smith, —, Zers, John Burns, Rick Palacios Jr, Palacios, Jordan Kavana, Rich Ford, you've, Ford, Devin Redmond, doesn't, Philip Garboden, It's, Garboden, Roofstock Organizations: Atlanta, Corporate, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, John Burns Research, Consulting, Ark Homes, Rent, Vesta Ventures, University of Chicago Locations: Zillow, Atlanta, Raleigh, Chattanooga , Tennessee, Grand Rapids , Michigan

☆ Illegal Eviction Complaints Rise As Police Fail to Enforce
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Cecilia Reyes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +44 min

The nature of illegal lockouts means they are hard to track directly. One of the responding officers calls a sergeant over, who says there's nothing else they can do. While only 14% of lockout calls led to a police report, 86% of calls about shoplifting did. As they walk over, one of the officers tells the other to look up "illegal lockout" on his phone. A 2006 bill that would have defined illegal lockouts for all Illinois residents was defeated.

Persons: Alfred Perry, He'd, Perry, Dan Wright, Perry didn't, Wright, Bridget Bennett, Dan hadn't, I'd, he'd, Charlie Bliss, Matthew Desmond, Lockouts, Jersey City's, haven't, he's, David Leibowitz, Leibowitz, —, Pretium —, Kristi DesJarlais, Siegel, Sean Thueson , , Thueson, Blackstone, lockouts, Pretium, Katherine Kelly, RealPage, Jennifer Bowcock, William Prosser ,, they're, Donna Rossi, Sara Heymann, Meghan Aguilar, Misty Skinner, Skinner, Levi Wilhelm, It's, hasn't, I've, Wilhelm, they'd, Jeffrey Uno, Deirdre Orange, isn't, Daniel Benavidez, Jenny Chavez, criminalizing, Rob Bonta, Eric Carter, John Bartlett, Carter, Fred Fuchs, Steve Cohen, Michael Bennet, Sarah Saadian, Douglas Farrar, Kelly, Fuchs, Heymann, who've Organizations: Labor, Chrysler, Social Security, Business, North Las Vegas Police Department, Child Protective Services, Las Vegas Justice, Atlanta Legal, Atlanta Police Department, Atlanta, Supreme, Department of Housing, Los Angeles Police Department, Houston —, Arizona, Housing Association, Invitation Homes, Siegel, Siegel Group, Blackstone ., Progress, Homes, Union, city's Housing Department, Miami, Police, Houston, Houston Police Department, Phoenix, Criminal, Chicago, Chicago Department, LAPD, Records, Jersey City, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Las Vegas Metro Police, Legal, Foundation of Los, Phoenix Police Department, Fulton County Marshal's Department, Avondale Police Department, Avondale Police, Metropolitan Tenants Organization, Texas Justice Court, Court Training Center, Illinois, National Weather Service, Democratic, Senate, Income Housing Coalition, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Trade Commission, FTC, AGs Locations: Las Vegas, Detroit, Vegas, United States, Perry's, Princeton, Milwaukee, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, South Chicago, Phoenix, Jersey, New Jersey, Jersey City, Houston, Nevada, . Texas, Harris County, Texas, Arizona, Washington, city's, Atlanta , Miami, California, New York City, Spring Valley, Spring Valley , Nevada, Las, Foundation of Los Angeles, Avondale , Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia , Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Wyoming, In Connecticut , Massachusetts, Minnesota , New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Illinois

☆ When Tenants Get Illegally Locked Out, Landlords Often Win.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Cecilia Reyes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +32 min

A handful of states, including Texas and Nevada, have set up dedicated systems designed to restore tenants to their homes after an illegal lockout. She and her family still don't have a new apartment, she said, and the eviction cases on her record don't help. BI reviewed two years' worth of lockout cases from the department and found city lawyers routinely dismissed tickets, often without documenting why. Bridget Bennett for Business InsiderThat afternoon, Brown had three cases on his docket in which tenants were alleging they'd been illegally locked out and dozens of cases in which landlords were seeking formal evictions. In 2022, Miami-Dade County passed a tenant's bill of rights that underlines the illegality of lockouts and limits a landlord's ability to harass tenants.

Persons: Henisha Dunn, Dunn, Zion Griffin, Griffin, Dunn's, Alyssa Pointer, —, Caryn Schreiber, Paul Panusky, He's, Jeffrey Uno, Uno, David Brogan, Griffin's, didn't, Brandon Johnson, Abel Uribe, Rolando Quebrado, lockouts, Quebrado, Pangea, Troy Marr, Marr, James Byczek, Byczek, Michael Dudek, wasn't, Dudek, Marr's, lockouts that's, David Brown, Bridget Bennett, Brown, they'd, They're, doesn't, Dana Karni, Karni, Brooke Boyett, Harris, Marlon Coleman, Coleman, Shay Awosiyan, Mr, Awosiyan, he'd, Callaghan O'Hare, Schreiber, Jay Trumbull, Trumbull, Tom Butler, Ron DeSantis, Joe Raedle, Florida's, Austin, Coleman's Organizations: Business, BI, Survey, Department of Justice, Legal, Foundation of Los, New, Apartment Association, Atlanta Legal, Chicago police, Police, Chicago, Nevada Business, Regional Justice Center, Las Vegas Regional Justice Center, Las Vegas Justice, Justice, Lone Star Legal, Harris County's, Administration, Houston, Texas Excel Property Management, Houston Police Department, Excel's Villa Nueva, Texas Excel, Apartments, Republican, Florida Realtors, Gov Locations: Georgia, New Jersey, Minnesota, California, Texas, Nevada, New York, Atlanta, Michigan, Foundation of Los Angeles, Fulton County, Chicago, Chicago's Jefferson, They're, Las Vegas, Harris County, Houston, In Texas, Harris, Greater Inwood, Miami, Dade County, Florida, Dallas, Applebee's

☆ Unprotected at the margins of the rental market
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Cecilia Reyes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +31 min

Officers interviewed two motel residents who called 911; they said they did not want to leave their homes. Alyssa Pointer for Business InsiderIn Georgia, an eviction requires a court order, but the law doesn't explicitly make lockouts illegal. In this case, an officer classified the incident as a "crime against property" — a crime committed by the residents themselves. In unincorporated Clark County, where the property is located, operating a short-term rental without a license is illegal. Matthew Main is an attorney who has represented residents in similarly precarious housing situations in New York City, where state law also grants residents tenants' rights after 30 days.

Persons: they'd, Alyssa Pointer, doesn't, Eric Tars, Marshall Rancifer, Rancifer, Larry Johnson, Johnson, Lindsey Siegel, Freddie Mac, Rausch, Bridget Bennett, Harrison Bohn, Charlie Bliss, Andrew Cauthen, Brandon Turner, Darlene DeLaRoca, she'd, Mike Rausch, Harry Reid, DeLaRoca, Luis Barraza, Barraza, haven't, Stacey Welling, David Brown, Eric Dunn, Neason, Lynetrice Preston, Altonese Weaver, that's, Bliss, Roy Barnes, Barnes, Tera Strawter, Khari Varner, Strawter, Varner, Puentes, Guy Girardin, Girardin, Brown, Brian Michael Schwalbe, Schwalbe, you've, Natalie Bergevin, Bergevin, Matthew Main, gamesmanship, Main, Paul Panusky, Sara Heymann, I've, Michael Duckworth, Duckworth, he'd, Abel Uribe, Matthew Walberg Organizations: Labor, Business, National Homelessness Law, Justice, All Coalition, for Disease Control, Police, Housing Justice League, Atlanta, Atlanta Legal, US Department of Education, Pratt Center for Community Development, UCLA, Legal, Center of Southern, Natson, Facebook, Harry, Walmart, BI, Las Vegas Justice Court, National Housing Law, Atlanta Legal Aid, Atlanta . Tenants, DeKalb County Police Department, Georgia Supreme, Lutheran Social Services of, Las Vegas, Regional Justice Center, Go Locations: Dekalb County, Panthersville, Atlanta, Dekalb, Georgia, United States, Florida , Kentucky, DeKalb County, DeKalb, New York City, Los Angeles, Clark County , Nevada, Center of Southern Nevada, Nevada, California, Las Vegas, Clark County, Clark, Lutheran Social Services of Nevada, Las Vegas . Nevada, Chicago, Chicago's Roseland, Cook, City, DeLaRoca, Vegas

The number of U.S. workers on strike more than doubled last year. But about half of 2023's total striking workers were on the picket line for more than a month, Thursday's report notes. And the amount of strikes and lockouts with a first contract demand more than doubled compared to 2022, the Labor Action Tracker found. According to Thursday's report, accommodation and food services saw more work stoppages than any other industry last year, accounting for 33.4% of the total strikes and lockouts. But the information industry had the highest number of striking workers and strike days — making up for 34.5% of all workers on strike and 83.8% of strike days.

Persons: Johnnie Kallas, “, ” Kallas, Alexander Colvin Organizations: — Auto, Labor, Cornell University, University of Illinois, Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, U.S . Bureau of Labor Statistics

Officials with the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association say they too will ask for the right to strike if they don't have a contract deal with the airline in the next few days. “We definitely don't feel any equality here,” said Erik Harris, treasurer of the flight attendants' union. “How come the pilots have gotten their deal and we haven't?”Because of pattern bargaining, Southwest pilots are likely to wind up with raises like those approved for American Airlines pilots. The Southwest pilots' union has already tried and failed once this year to get permission to strike. On Thursday, several dozen American Airlines flight attendants picketed along a thoroughfare outside company headquarters in Texas, some carrying signs reading, “Ready to strike."

Persons: ”, “, Erik Harris, Tom Nekouei, Harris Organizations: —, Airlines, The, Professional, Southwest, Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, U.S, Spirit Airlines, National, Board, American Airlines, Boeing, ”, United Auto Workers, Hollywood, Teamsters, United Parcel Service Locations: Texas, Dallas, Fort Worth, Southwest, ” Dallas

☆ Workers' strikes in the US are at their highest point since 2000, with 4.1 million days lost in August to labor activism
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

UAW strikes are just the latest in a wider trend of increased labor action across the US. Over 4.1 million working days were lost to strikes in August, the highest in almost 25 years. Public approval of labor unions is also up, reaching its highest point since 1965 in recent years. This August 4.1 million workdays were lost to strikes and lockouts, according to analysis of Labor Department data by The Wall Street Journal. In August, 67% of Americans said they approved of labor unions in a Gallup poll, up from 54% in 2013.

Persons: Ashley Landis Organizations: UAW, Service, Labor Department, Wall Street, Hollywood, NBC, United Auto Workers, Detroit, General Motors, Ford, Unions Locations: Wall, Silicon, Hollywood

☆ Everything you need to know about UAW's targeted strike plans – and possible lockouts
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Targeted, or bottleneck, strikes are an alternative to national actions in which the union only strikes select plants. Targeted strikes typically focus on key plants that can then cause other plants to cease production due to a lack of parts. They include initiating targeted strikes at select plants and then potentially increasing the number of strikes based on the status of the negotiations. "We will strike all three companies, a historic first, initially at a limited number of targeted locations that we will be announcing. While "historic," the targeted strikes could have unintended ripple effects.

Persons: Shawn Fain, Rebecca Cook, Fain, Dennis Devaney, Clark, Devaney, Plant, Jeffrey S, Kopp, Lardner, everything's, UAW hasn't, Ben Dictor, Dictor Organizations: United Auto Workers, Sterling Heights Assembly, Reuters DETROIT, Ford, General Motors, UAW, NLRB, GM, Exxon Mobil, Foley, Detroit, National Labor Relations Board Locations: Sterling Heights, Sterling Heights , Michigan, U.S, Texas, Michigan

☆ 28 Things Every Student Needs to Pack for College
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Lisa Lombardi | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +12 min

One of these plug-in air fresheners will keep a dorm room smelling good, and each scent refill lasts for over a month. Aromatherapy diffuserTakeout meals from the dining hall and dirty laundry sure can stink up a tiny dorm room. But with an aromatherapy diffuser, you can keep a dorm room smelling great and exude calm vibes. Bed risers with USB portsHold N' Storage Bed Risers with Power Outlet and USB Ports $48 at AmazonTo add under bed storage, you can’t beat bed risers, says Saltman. These Hold N’ Storage bed risers elevate a bed by 7.25 inches, providing room for extra bins and luggage.

Persons: Lisa Lombardi, —, ”, Barbara Reich, “, Lauren Saltman, Will, Jamie Vacca, Decker, expanders Max, Covid, Vacca’s, Covid —, they’re, it’s, ” Vacca, Command Hooks, Tuck, Clay White, Bellamy Richardson Organizations: Facebook, YouTube, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Walmart, Apple Cider, Amazon, University of Wisconsin, Emory University, Washington University, “, Command, Target, tote Locations: New York City, Newfields, Florida, Alaska, Ikat

☆ Supreme Court ruling could chill labor strikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( John Kruzel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Angela Cornell, a Cornell Law School labor law professor, called it "another decision that undermines the capacity of unions to function." MORE STRIKESThe ruling comes at a time of increasing strikes called by U.S. labor unions. Some experts pointed out that the ruling largely preserved the existing legal scaffolding for deciding labor law preemption cases of this kind. The Supreme Court, with its 6-3 conservative majority, has dealt setbacks to organized labor in key cases in recent years. Brudney said Thursday's ruling "was not comparable to that broader trendline" of decisions weakening labor unions.

Persons: Amy Coney Barrett, Angela Cornell, Cornell, Kenneth Dau, Schmidt, Benjamin Sachs, Sachs, Dan Altchek, Saul Ewing, Altchek, James Brudney, Brudney, Anne Marie Lofaso, Lofaso, John Kruzel, Will Dunham Organizations: U.S, Supreme, Taiheiyo Cement Corp, Cornell Law School, Indiana University Maurer School of Law, Harvard Law, Glacier, Inc, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, National Labor Relations, U.S . Bureau of Labor Statistics, Fordham University Law, West Virginia University College of Law, Thomson Locations: Japan, Washington, Philadelphia, California

☆ US agency closes investigation into Tesla game feature
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shortly after NHTSA opened its investigation into Tesla's "Passenger Play" in December 2021, Tesla agreed to stop allowing video games to be played on vehicle screens while its cars are moving. NHTSA said that a month after Tesla voluntarily disabled Passenger Play capability with an over-the-air software update it reported a 97% completion rate. NHTSA's investigation covered Tesla vehicles sold since 2017 that had the feature. NHTSA has an ongoing investigation into 830,000 Tesla vehicles with driver assistance system Autopilot and involving crashes with parked emergency vehicles. NHTSA said Tuesday in the Autopilot investigation it aims "to better understand human factors with respect to Tesla interfaces and the dynamic driving task."

Amy Edwards demonstrates against the live entertainment ticket industry outside the U.S. Capitol January 24, 2023 in Washington, DC. The Senate Judiciary Committee slammed concert giant Live Nation on Tuesday, calling on activists and artists to speak to competition in the ticketing industry following a botched sale of Taylor Swift tickets in November. Opponents intensified their complaints in November when presale tickets for Swift's Eras Tour were plagued by disruptions and slow queues. Live Nation was supposed to open up sales for 1.5 million verified fans ahead of general public ticket sales. The Justice Department has opened an antitrust investigation into Live Nation's practices, however, that probe predates the Swift ticket sale fiasco.

☆ Live Nation exec will face lawmakers about Taylor Swift concert tickets fiasco
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“It goes without saying that I’m extremely protective of my fans,” Swift wrote on Instagram in November. The mergerCriticism of Ticketmaster’s dominance dates back decades, but the Swift ticketing incident has once again turned that issue into a dinner table discussion at many households. Concert promoter Live Nation and ticketing company Ticketmaster, two of the largest companies in the concert business, announced their merger in 2009. ‘Customers are the ones that pay the price’While irate fans were left scrambling to wade through the Swift ticket confusion, their collective anger caught lawmakers’ attention. To me, what happened with the Swift concert tickets was not necessarily the result of Ticketmaster being the dominant player in the industry,” he said.

☆ Taylor Swift signs on to direct a movie for Disney as she campaigns for short film Oscar
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Taylor Swift accepts the Artist of the Year award onstage during the 2022 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on November 20, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. Taylor Swift has only just begun an Oscar campaign for her short film "All Too Well," and she's already struck a deal with Disney to make her feature directorial debut. The short film is based on Swift's song "All Too Well" and follows a manipulative boyfriend played by Dylan O'Brien and a young woman played by Sadie Sink as they fall in love and ultimately have a devastating breakup. The news of Swift's feature film directorial debut comes just a few months after the singer made history as the only solo artist to win two best direction awards at MTV's Video Music Awards. Ticketmaster, owned by Live Nation , was supposed to open up sales for 1.5 million verified Taylor Swift fans last month ahead of general public ticket sales.

☆ Lawmakers tell Live Nation CEO they want answers on the Taylor Swift Ticketmaster fiasco
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Taylor Swift accepts an award onstage during the MTV Europe Music Awards 2022 held at PSD Bank Dome on November 13, 2022 in Duesseldorf, Germany. Lawmakers have some questions for Live Nation's CEO after Ticketmaster bungled the recent sale of Taylor Swift tour tickets. Ticketmaster was supposed to open up sales for 1.5 million verified Taylor Swift fans last month ahead of general public ticket sales. Ultimately, 2 million tickets were sold during the presale and the general public sale was canceled, company representatives said. Eras tour tickets were priced from $49 to $450, with VIP packages starting at $199 and reaching $899.

☆ Congress wants to grill Live Nation’s CEO over the Taylor Swift Ticketmaster fiasco
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

It also wants answers about how Ticketmaster plans to improve in the future. Swift’s Eras tour kicks off March 17 and will have 52 concerts in multiple stadiums across the United States over five months. In its letter to Rapino, the committee also said it wants information about the fees Ticketmaster charges customers. Rapino and Live Nation have caught the ire of Congress before. Senator Amy Klobuchar criticized Ticketmaster in an open letter Rapino in the days following the ticket snafu, saying she has “serious concerns” about the company’s operations.

☆ I make up to $15,000 a month as a freelance locksmith. It only took 6 months to get trained and I use an app to find all my clients.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Perri Ormont Blumberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Dakota Crownover is a locksmith who makes up to $15,000 a month working on the Jobox app. I'm an independent locksmith who works on the Jobox app, a marketplace for vetted home-service professionals around the US. On average, I make $10,000 a month solely using the Jobox app. Typically, my fee for a locked car is $80, however, being an emergency locksmith means that people will pay premium prices in dire situations. I've learned a lot from using the Jobox app since it helps me manage my income and balance my finances.

Search resuls for: "lockouts"

19 mentions found