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☆ US wants a recall of 67 million airbag inflators, but the manufacturer disagrees
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is calling for an immediate recall of 67 million airbag inflators due to a dangerous defect, the agency said in a letter to ARC Automotive, a major manufacturer of the component. The 67 million airbag inflators that NHTSA wants recalled were all produced in the 18-year period prior to January 2018, when ARC installed equipment to help inspect inflators, according to the company. The airbag inflators are used by at least 12 vehicle manufacturers, but NHTSA did not specify which ones. “Airbag inflators that project metal fragments into vehicle occupants, rather than properly inflating the attached airbag, create an unreasonable risk of death and injury,” the agency said in the letter. “None of the 918 inflators ruptured in the tests,” Gold wrote in response to NHTSA’s request for a recall.

☆ Disney begins largest wave of layoffs, targeting thousands at ESPN, Parks, and other divisions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Jon Passantino | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The company had suspended its dividend payments during the pandemic, but Iger announced in February that he expects them to return. The cuts this week are expected to take place Monday through Thursday, affecting employees from coast to coast, Disney said. The layoffs, however, are not expected to affect hourly frontline employees at Disney’s theme parks and resorts. A third and final wave of layoffs to reach the 7,000 total is expected before the beginning of summer, the company said. Disney had about 220,000 workers as of October 1, of which approximately 166,000 were employed in the United States.

☆ These CEOs offer a master class in how to not read the room
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Just this week, there have been two high-profile face-plants by company leaders who ostensibly wanted to inspire their staffs and wound up doing…the opposite of that. In a statement to CNN, Clearlink declined to address Clarke’s remarks in the video, though the company did not challenge its authenticity. And who could forget Better.com’s CEO laying off 900 people over Zoom? But I’d propose a simple mantra for executives when weighing in on unpopular topics like returning to the office or laying people off. (OK, most nights — we believe in a four-day work week around here.)

☆ Deal close for Washington Commanders football team
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

If finalized, the sale would mark the end of the controversial ownership of the Washington franchise by embattled billionaire Daniel Snyder. News of the near deal was first reported by Sportico, which reported the team sold for $6 billion, a record for a North American sports franchise. Snyder purchased the team, then named the Washington Redskins for a reported $750 million in 1999. It adopted the Commanders name last year, after playing two seasons with the name Washington Football Team. “Today marks the end of a long, difficult chapter for all employees and fans of the Washington football organization,” read a statement from Lisa Banks and Debra Katz, two attorneys representing more than 40 former Washington Commanders employees.

☆ Premarket stocks: CEOs are tired of being held responsible for gun regulation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Dick’s Sporting Goods stopped selling semi-automatic, assault-style rifles at stores and Citigroup put new restrictions on gun sales by business customers after the mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida, in 2018. But Yale professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a vocal advocate of corporate social responsibility who has a direct line to major CEOs around the globe, said that top executives are forlorn. Before the Bell: CEOs have been quiet about gun reform since the latest mass school shooting in Nashville, have you heard anything about plans to speak out? Enough already on saying ‘what are the CEOs doing?’ Social capital is as valuable as financial capital. But don’t these CEOs hold the purse strings in terms of donating to powerful politicians?

☆ GM to stop making Chevy Camaro, leaving muscle car’s future uncertain
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Peter Valdes-Dapena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Stellantis had earlier announced it would stop production of the larger Dodge Challenger at the end of this year. Around the same time, Dodge executives revealed an electric muscle car concept car that, they said, provided a preview of a future model. GM has not announced any future versions of the Camaro, although it teased that there will be some future for the brand. After five generations of redesigned models, the Camaro was dropped from the lineup in 2002, but brought back in 2010. These muscle cars or pony cars are also among the last car models – as opposed to SUVs or trucks – manufactured by the three automakers.

☆ Federal safety regulator probing fatal Tesla crash
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The agency is investigating the crash of a 2014 model year Tesla involving a fire truck in Contra Costa County, California. The fire department said a Tesla struck one of its fire trucks and the Tesla driver was pronounced dead at the scene. Since 2016, NHTSA has opened more than three dozen Tesla special crash investigations where driver assistance systems were suspected of being used, with 20 crash deaths reported. In this photo released by Contra Costa County Fire Protection District in California, firefighters work the scene of a fatal accident involving a Tesla and a Contra Costa County fire truck on February 18. NHTSA is reviewing whether Tesla vehicles adequately ensure drivers are paying attention.

☆ GM employees are ‘strongly encouraged’ to consider its voluntary separation program
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The voluntary separation program will be offered to all US salaried employees with at least five years of service and global executives that have been with the company for at least two years, a GM spokesperson told CNN. In a statement, the company said that employees are “strongly encouraged to consider” the program. A person familiar with the plans told CNN that those job cuts would affect a few hundred white-collar employees globally. GM has 167,000 employees globally, with 124,000 in North America. GM (GM) has said it will invest $35 billion between now and 2025 in the shift to EVs.

☆ NLRB prohibits employers from including clauses that silence workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Jeanne Sahadi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Employers can no longer include a broadly written confidentiality clause that requires you to keep mum about the terms of your severance agreement. And they can no longer include a broadly written non-disparagement clause that prohibits you from discussing the terms and conditions of your employment with third parties. With the exception of railroads and airlines, US business employers are subject to the NLRB’s authority. While the labor board’s ruling this week could be appealed, the ruling is effective immediately. That means employers must review — and, if necessary, revise — their severance agreements to ensure they don’t include overly broad language that would restrict workers’ rights in the two ways the board ruling indicates.

Taipei/Hong Kong CNN —Shares in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company fell as much as 4% on Wednesday, after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway disclosed that it had sold most of its holdings in the chip giant. Just months before, in November, the company held about 60 million American depository shares of TSMC worth $4.1 billion, according to an SEC filing. Berkshire Hathaway did not provide a reason for the sale and did not immediately respond to a CNN request for comment. Shares in TSMC, which accounts for an estimated 90% of the world’s super-advanced computer chips, ended Wednesday more than 3% lower. TSMC announced last year that it’s building a second semiconductor factory in Phoenix and increasing its investment there.

☆ Southwest Airlines is testing a software fix it developed after the Christmas travel meltdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Gregory Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Washington CNN —Southwest Airlines said it is testing software fixes that the company developed after its Christmas travel meltdown, as the airline faces multiple federal investigations. The software fixes are an “upgrade,” rather than a replacement of the crew scheduling system, Southwest executives said on a conference call with reporters Thursday. The company decided to keep the underlying software system because it “generally worked as designed” even during the meltdown, CEO Bob Jordan said. “We haven’t even talked cost, so I don’t know if it’s going to cost us anything or not,” said Southwest Chief Operations Officer Andrew Watterson. That external report should be delivered in the coming weeks and “we will attack it with a sense of urgency,” Jordan said.

CNN —The US Transportation Department said it is in the early stages of an investigation into the Southwest Airlines holiday travel meltdown in December. The probe includes an examination of whether Southwest is scheduling more flights than it can handle. “DOT is in the initial phase of a rigorous and comprehensive investigation into Southwest Airlines’ holiday debacle that stranded millions,” a spokesperson for the department said. Various Southwest employees will also receive additional “gratitude” pay for working through the meltdown. DOT is also probing whether Southwest executives engaged in unrealistic scheduling of flights which under federal law is considered an unfair and deceptive practice.

New York CNN Business —From retailers and computer chip makers to the oil-and-gas industry, businesses are scrambling to find workarounds where possible for a potentially devastating freight rail strike. Retailers, which rely on rail to move cargo from ports to warehouses, are considering shifting the timing of orders and shipments. Critically, the rail strike could disrupt the supply of chlorine and other critical chemicals used to keep drinking water safe. The oil-and-gas industry, for instance, warns a rail shutdown would spark fuel supply crunches and price spikes. “Congress appears likely to intervene in the coming days to avert a rail strike,” economists at Goldman Sachs wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday.

☆ Tesla heads to court to defend Elon Musk’s pay
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Matt Mcfarland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Washington, DC CNN —Tesla headed to court today to defend the huge compensation package that helped make CEO Elon Musk the richest person on Earth. Even in the rarified air of CEO pay, Musk’s compensation plan stood apart. The Tornetta complaint alleges that the board of directors that created Musk’s compensation plan lacked sufficient independence from him. “This is a huge package,” Hayn said of the compensation plan. Tesla leadershipHayn noted that Musk’s close relationships with the board members could be problematic for Tesla in the case.

☆ Elon Musk heads to court over Tesla pay that made him the world’s richest person
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( Matt Mcfarland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Washington, DC CNN —Tesla and CEO Elon Musk will spend this week in court to defend the massive compensation package that helped make him the world’s richest man. The week-long trial in Delaware Court of Chancery will examine the 2018 compensation plan that the automaker’s board of directors created for Musk. Even in the rarified air of CEO pay, Musk’s compensation plan stood apart. The Tornetta complaint alleges that the board of directors that created Musk’s compensation plan lacked sufficient independence from him. “This is a huge package,” Hayn said of the compensation plan.

☆ Elon Musk announces Tesla Semi production after Twitter deal returns
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-07 | by ( Matt Mcfarland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Washington, DC CNN —Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Thursday that production of its Semi truck has begun, and deliveries to one customer, Pepsi, will occur in December. Tesla first announced the Semi in November 2017 and production was said to begin in 2019. Musk, the world’s richest man, has sold about $15 billion in Tesla stock this year, but it’s still not clear if Musk has sufficient liquid funds to close the Twitter deal. Musk, who has received commitments for debt and equity financing, may need to sell additional shares of Tesla to finance the purchase. Tesla shares fell roughly 5% in trading Friday morning.

New York CNN Business —Hurricane Ian is the latest natural disaster to impact food prices. Florida is a leading citrus producer, including oranges and grapefruit. At least 75% of the Florida citrus belt is under threat of heavy flooding rains over the next 36 hours, according to satellite imagery provider Maxar Technologies. And the timing of the storm is difficult for farmers in Florida as citrus crops are nearing harvest season. Citrus production was already under significant pressure even before Hurricane Ian.

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