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Amazon increases average pay for warehouse workers
Amazon is raising pay for its hourly warehouse workers from around $20.50 to more than $22, and is also adding Prime memberships to their benefits. Logistics chief Udit Madan said the additional $2.2bn investment in pay and benefits is the company’s largest ever. The online retailer also announced that its next Prime Day sales event…
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Nevada to use Google AI to process a backlog of unemployment cases
Nevada has enlisted Google AI to address its backlog of unemployment claims, using a cloud-based model to analyze appeals hearing transcripts and suggest rulings. Carl Stanfield, the IT administrator of the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR), noted: “The time saving is pretty phenomenal,” as the artificial intelligence (AI) platform can process cases…
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Amazon orders staff back to office five days a week
Amazon has announced that employees will be required to return to the office five days a week from the start of next year, reversing pandemic-era policies and up from a three-day-a-week mandate established in February 2023. The company believes that in-person collaboration enhances learning and company culture. Hot-desking will be eliminated, and management layers will…
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Microsoft’s gaming unit cuts jobs
Microsoft is set to cut approximately 650 positions from its gaming division as part of a restructuring following the $69bn acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft Gaming, wrote in a memo: “Today is one of the challenging days,” as he acknowledged the difficulties these changes bring. The Communications Workers of America (CWA)…
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Share of foreign-born people in U.S. at its highest rate in over a century
In 2023, the share of foreign-born individuals in the U.S. rose to 14.3%, up from 13.9% in 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. The increase marks the highest share since 1910, when it was 14.7%. The growth appears to have been driven by people coming from Latin America, whose share of…
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Labor Secretary promotes protections for undocumented immigrant workers
In Wisconsin, industries including dairy and manufacturing heavily depend on undocumented immigrant labor, yet their rights and safety are often overlooked. At a recent event in Green Bay, Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie Su met with workers who shared their experiences of wage theft and unsafe conditions. Stephanie Bloomingdale, president of the Wisconsin State…
