Media reports show that global chipmaker Qualcomm has begun laying off its employees. The layoffs are a part of the company's efforts to 'support long-term growth and success.'

5% of the workforce to be laid off at Qualcomm

<p>A report by the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, on Friday (February 17) claimed that Facebook parent company Meta gave thousands of employees below-average ratings in a recently concluded round of performance review. This comes months after the tech giant announced that it would fire 11,000 employees and after the recent poor reviews the company leadership believes that it would prompt more workers to quit in the upcoming weeks, reported the WSJ.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The people speaking to the publication also said that the company has also cut a bonus metric which is one of the several steps senior executives are taking after CEO Mark Zuckerberg dubbed 2023 as the “year of efficiency”. Additionally, the sources also told WSJ that the company leadership is hoping that the subpar reviews would lead to employees quitting in the upcoming week. However, if enough people do not quit, Meta may consider another round of layoffs, said the report.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>ALSO READ |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/laid-off-meta-employees-at-loss-of-words-ask-for-work-opportunities-on-social-media-532946">Laid off Meta employees 'at loss of words', ask for work opportunities on social media</a></strong></p>

<p>“Realistically, there are probably a bunch of people at the company who shouldn’t be here,” said Zuckerberg, in a town hall last year. The sources also said that at least 10 per cent of employees in the company have been given a “meets most” rating and that this is the second lowest of the five possible ratings at Meta. Therefore, some employees have taken this as a sign to look for new job opportunities, reported WSJ citing anonymous sources.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>ALSO READ |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/explained-why-did-meta-fire-13-per-cent-of-its-employees-whats-in-store-for-the-facebook-parent-company-533887">Meta layoffs EXPLAINED: Why did Meta fire 13% of its employees? What next for the Facebook parent company?</a></strong></p>

<p>This also comes months after a report by Insider citing two people familiar with the matter had made a similar claim and said that Meta wanted their managers to rank double the number of employees as low performing in their annual performance review. Additionally, the publication also reported that Meta will roughly double the number of employees receiving the downgraded “needs support” (the lowest rating) from “met most” expectations when compared to last year’s review cycle.&nbsp;<br />
&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>WATCH WION LIVE HERE</strong></p>

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A report by the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, on Friday (February 17) claimed that Facebook parent company Meta gave thousands of employees below-average ratings in a recently concluded round of performance review.

A report by the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, on Friday (February 17) claimed that Facebook parent company Meta gave thousands of employees below-average ratings in a recently concluded round of performance review. This comes months after the tech giant announced that it would fire 11,000 employees and after the recent poor reviews the company leadership believes that it would prompt more workers to quit in the upcoming weeks, reported the WSJ. The people speaking to the publication also said that the company has also cut a bonus metric which is one of the several steps senior executives are taking after CEO Mark Zuckerberg dubbed 2023 as the “year of efficiency”. Additionally, the sources also told WSJ that the company leadership is hoping that the subpar reviews would lead to employees quitting in the upcoming week. However, if enough people do not quit, Meta may consider another round of layoffs, said the report. ALSO READ | Laid off Meta employees 'at loss of words', ask for work opportunities on social media “Realistically, there are probably a bunch of people at the company who shouldn’t be here,” said Zuckerberg, in a town hall last year. The sources also said that at least 10 per cent of employees in the company have been given a “meets most” rating and that this is the second lowest of the five possible ratings at Meta. Therefore, some employees have taken this as a sign to look for new job opportunities, reported WSJ citing anonymous sources. ALSO READ | Meta layoffs EXPLAINED: Why did Meta fire 13% of its employees? What next for the Facebook parent company? This also comes months after a report by Insider citing two people familiar with the matter had made a similar claim and said that Meta wanted their managers to rank double the number of employees as low performing in their annual performance review. Additionally, the publication also reported that Meta will roughly double the number of employees receiving the downgraded “needs support” (the lowest rating) from “met most” expectations when compared to last year’s review cycle. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Thousands of employees at Facebook parent company Meta receive subpar reviews, signals more job cuts: Reports

According to a survey, nearly 4 in 10 French business leaders admit to working long and intense hours without regular breaks.

Gravitas: Where do most workaholics live?

<p>The Federal Trade Commission, a US regulator, on Thursday proposed to ban non-compete clauses stating that employer restriction suppresses wages artificially for workers who are interested in changing employments.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The proposal would bar businesses from signing non-compete agreements with employees and the employers will have to rescind any such existing clauses.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As per the FTC, around 30 million Americans are currently working under such agreements. It stated that the proposal can increase the wages of employees by around $300 billion per year.</p>

<p><strong>ALSO READ|</strong> <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/biden-govt-to-turn-away-cubans-nicaraguans-and-haitians-at-us-border-549845">Biden govt to turn away Cubans, Nicaraguans and Haitians at US border</a></p>

<p>FTC chairperson Lina Khan said, “The freedom to change jobs is core to economic liberty and to a competitive, thriving economy.”&nbsp;</p>

<p>"Non-competes block workers from freely switching jobs, depriving them of higher wages and better working conditions, and depriving businesses of a talent pool that they need to build and expand," she stated.</p>

<p>The FTC stated that the measure will not apply to other restrictions in employment like non-disclosure agreements.&nbsp;</p>

<p>However, the proposal received the US Chamber of Commerce's scathing response which called it "blatantly unlawful" in its statement.</p>

<p><strong>WATCH|&nbsp;WION Fineprint | Massive hike in U.S. Visa fees expected</strong></p>

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<p>Senior vice president of the business lobby Sean Heather said, "Since the agency's creation over 100 years ago, Congress has never delegated the FTC anything close to the authority it would need to promulgate such a competition rule. The Chamber is confident that this unlawful action will not stand."</p>

<p>FTC Commissioner Christine Wilson, who voted against the proposed rule, said that the measure is a "radical departure from hundreds of years of legal precedent" that appeared unsupported by evidence, predicting it will "lead to protracted litigation in which the Commission is unlikely to prevail."</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>

<p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/live-tv/embed?autoplay=1&amp;mute=1" width="100%"></iframe></p>


The Federal Trade Commission, a US regulator, on Thursday proposed to ban non-compete clauses stating that employer restriction suppresses wages artificially for workers who are interested in changing employments.

The Federal Trade Commission, a US regulator, on Thursday proposed to ban non-compete clauses stating that employer restriction suppresses wages artificially for workers who are interested in changing employments. The proposal would bar businesses from signing non-compete agreements with employees and the employers will have to rescind any such existing clauses. As per the FTC, around 30 million Americans are currently working under such agreements. It stated that the proposal can increase the wages of employees by around $300 billion per year. ALSO READ| Biden govt to turn away Cubans, Nicaraguans and Haitians at US border FTC chairperson Lina Khan said, “The freedom to change jobs is core to economic liberty and to a competitive, thriving economy.” "Non-competes block workers from freely switching jobs, depriving them of higher wages and better working conditions, and depriving businesses of a talent pool that they need to build and expand," she stated. The FTC stated that the measure will not apply to other restrictions in employment like non-disclosure agreements. However, the proposal received the US Chamber of Commerce's scathing response which called it "blatantly unlawful" in its statement. WATCH| WION Fineprint | Massive hike in U.S. Visa fees expected Senior vice president of the business lobby Sean Heather said, "Since the agency's creation over 100 years ago, Congress has never delegated the FTC anything close to the authority it would need to promulgate such a competition rule. The Chamber is confident that this unlawful action will not stand." FTC Commissioner Christine Wilson, who voted against the proposed rule, said that the measure is a "radical departure from hundreds of years of legal precedent" that appeared unsupported by evidence, predicting it will "lead to protracted litigation in which the Commission is unlikely to prevail." (With inputs from agencies)

US regulator proposes to ban non-compete clauses with workers

1 in 5 employees face harassment, psychological abuse at work. What does this do to the employee's self-esteem? How can managers make the workspace safer?

Gravitas: 1 in 5 employees face harassment at work

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{c0f141fd-2767-4fb4-ae69-572dfcf259ff}{207}" paraid="2029494500" >A new survey shows that only 32 per cent of employees around the world are happy with their current salary. The survey, conducted by consulting firm Gartner Inc, also showed that the feeling of unfairness among the employees mainly stems from a deep lack of trust towards their employers. During the course of the survey, the company spoke to 3500 employees from various fields of work.&nbsp;</p>

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{4297acb9-1f9a-474e-a44a-33b70dc74d2e}{233}" paraid="1370997787" >Toxic culture, poor inclusivity, inadequate work-life balance&nbsp;and unfair experiences&nbsp;were found to be the top reasons behind the lack of trust seen in the employees. The main reason behind the survey was to determine the reasons behind the rise in resignations in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.&nbsp;</p>

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{4297acb9-1f9a-474e-a44a-33b70dc74d2e}{233}" paraid="1370997787" >Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/police-force-takes-over-the-streets-of-china-to-prevent-covid-demonstrations-538372">Police take over the streets of China to prevent Covid demonstrations</a></p>

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{e581e2b0-32e9-4135-a0c3-a54492ef16a2}{226}" paraid="1808603937" >The Great Resignation – a name given to the phenomenon – involved almost all major companies in various sectors and the survey found that the salaries paid a big role in employees opting for other opportunities. It was also clear from the salary negotiations that were studied in the survey.&nbsp;</p>

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{79ce7150-d85f-40a6-996d-6eda424c6cfa}{9}" paraid="1877192916" >“Employee perceptions of pay equity aren’t rooted in compensation," Tony Guadagni, senior principal in the Gartner human resources practice, said in a statement according to The Mint. &nbsp;</p>

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{79ce7150-d85f-40a6-996d-6eda424c6cfa}{9}" paraid="1877192916" >Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-willing-to-build-closer-partnership-with-russia-on-energy-issues-says-xi-jinping-538497">China willing to build closer partnership with Russia on energy, says Xi</a></p>

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{79ce7150-d85f-40a6-996d-6eda424c6cfa}{141}" paraid="2101267538" >“Instead, the main driver of perception is organizational trust —&nbsp;when employees don’t trust their employers, they don’t believe their pay is fair or equitable," he added.&nbsp;</p>

<p lang="EN-US" paraeid="{79ce7150-d85f-40a6-996d-6eda424c6cfa}{151}" paraid="1872393965" >However, the survey also said that the general perception is not in sync with the reality. Official data suggests that companies have worked towards closing pay gaps. According to the survey, eight in 10 organisations conducted annual pay equity audits to understand the situation better in 2022.&nbsp;</p>

<p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="350" loading="”lazy”" src="https://www.wionews.com/live-tv/embed?autoplay=1&amp;mute=1" width="100%"></iframe></p>


A new survey shows that only 32 per cent of employees around the world are happy with their current salary. The survey, conducted by consulting firm Gartner Inc, also showed that the feeling of unfairness among the employees mainly stems from a deep lack of trust towards their employers.

A new survey shows that only 32 per cent of employees around the world are happy with their current salary. The survey, conducted by consulting firm Gartner Inc, also showed that the feeling of unfairness among the employees mainly stems from a deep lack of trust towards their employers. During the course of the survey, the company spoke to 3500 employees from various fields of work. Toxic culture, poor inclusivity, inadequate work-life balance and unfair experiences were found to be the top reasons behind the lack of trust seen in the employees. The main reason behind the survey was to determine the reasons behind the rise in resignations in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Also read | Police take over the streets of China to prevent Covid demonstrations The Great Resignation – a name given to the phenomenon – involved almost all major companies in various sectors and the survey found that the salaries paid a big role in employees opting for other opportunities. It was also clear from the salary negotiations that were studied in the survey. “Employee perceptions of pay equity aren’t rooted in compensation," Tony Guadagni, senior principal in the Gartner human resources practice, said in a statement according to The Mint. Also read | China willing to build closer partnership with Russia on energy, says Xi “Instead, the main driver of perception is organizational trust — when employees don’t trust their employers, they don’t believe their pay is fair or equitable," he added. However, the survey also said that the general perception is not in sync with the reality. Official data suggests that companies have worked towards closing pay gaps. According to the survey, eight in 10 organisations conducted annual pay equity audits to understand the situation better in 2022.

Only one in three employees around the world are happy with their salary - Survey

Companies are roping in "Chief Purpose Officers" to help employees fight burnout. Is the strategy working? Molly Gambhir brings you an assessment.

Gravitas: Employee Burnout: What can employers do?

<p><meta name="uuid" content="uuidxt9PdUW9V0b7" /><meta charset="utf-8" /></p>

<p>A marketing company in the US is breaking the wheel regarding how employees and employers deal with the resignation of the former. Reportedly, Jon Franko, the founder of a marketing company named Gorilla has come up with a novel idea that makes the quitting process, a rather stress-free process.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Franko took to Linkedin to share a post where he stated that at his company, employees can quit, and search for a new job whilst simultaneously receiving a ten per cent pay raise. However, the caveat is that the employee quitting should leave the company within three months.&nbsp;</p>

<p>"From the moment an employee tells us of their decision to leave Gorilla and that they are in the search for a new job, any full-time employee who gives us at least six weeks' notice will be given a 10 per cent salary increase for the remainder of their time at Gorilla. We ask that they leave within three months. And we promise, no hard feelings," wrote Franko in the post.</p>

<p>Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/after-wipro-infosys-warns-employees-of-consequences-if-found-to-be-moonlighting-515717" target="_blank">After Wipro, Infosys warns employees of consequences if found to be moonlighting</a></p>

<p>Franko added that this process allows individuals to pursue something different if they are feeling stuck in the wrong place.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Citing an <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jonfranko_companyculture-activity-6975113535303360512-EWip/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_android">example </a>of how a similar process was executed in the company, Franko asserted, "Recently, this was exercised by one of our own. Great person, great Gorilla, and extremely talented in the role. But, he was ready for something different. So, he came to us, told us he was seriously looking, and that he would be gone within three months. We "shook hands", bumped his salary 10% and began our search."</p>

<p>When quizzed if an employee wanted to return after quitting, Franko asserted that they were 'absolutely' welcome.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Looking for a new job, and putting in the notice period while the company gives you the side eye and attempts to fill your position, all within a few weeks' time is a miserable cycle that many of us have gone through.&nbsp;</p>

<p>This transition period extracts a heavy toll on both parties and more often than not, it leaves things on an acrimonious note. Franko's idea looks brilliant on paper and with limited scale, it appears doable as well.</p>

<p>However, in big companies where employees quit and join in masses, it will be interesting to observe if such a system can be implemented.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>WATCH WION LIVE HERE:&nbsp;</strong></p>

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<p>&nbsp;</p>


A marketing company in the US is breaking the wheel regarding how employees and employers deal with the resignation of the former. Reportedly, Jon Franko, the founder of a marketing company named Gorilla has come up with a novel idea that makes the quitting process, a rather stress-free process.

A marketing company in the US is breaking the wheel regarding how employees and employers deal with the resignation of the former. Reportedly, Jon Franko, the founder of a marketing company named Gorilla has come up with a novel idea that makes the quitting process, a rather stress-free process. Franko took to Linkedin to share a post where he stated that at his company, employees can quit, and search for a new job whilst simultaneously receiving a ten per cent pay raise. However, the caveat is that the employee quitting should leave the company within three months. "From the moment an employee tells us of their decision to leave Gorilla and that they are in the search for a new job, any full-time employee who gives us at least six weeks' notice will be given a 10 per cent salary increase for the remainder of their time at Gorilla. We ask that they leave within three months. And we promise, no hard feelings," wrote Franko in the post. Read more: After Wipro, Infosys warns employees of consequences if found to be moonlighting Franko added that this process allows individuals to pursue something different if they are feeling stuck in the wrong place. Citing an example of how a similar process was executed in the company, Franko asserted, "Recently, this was exercised by one of our own. Great person, great Gorilla, and extremely talented in the role. But, he was ready for something different. So, he came to us, told us he was seriously looking, and that he would be gone within three months. We "shook hands", bumped his salary 10% and began our search." When quizzed if an employee wanted to return after quitting, Franko asserted that they were 'absolutely' welcome. Looking for a new job, and putting in the notice period while the company gives you the side eye and attempts to fill your position, all within a few weeks' time is a miserable cycle that many of us have gone through. This transition period extracts a heavy toll on both parties and more often than not, it leaves things on an acrimonious note. Franko's idea looks brilliant on paper and with limited scale, it appears doable as well. However, in big companies where employees quit and join in masses, it will be interesting to observe if such a system can be implemented. WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

A company that gives 10% pay hike to its employees to leave, here's why

Is work from home coming to an end? Companies in India and around the world are asking employees to return to office. Experts say with a looming recession employees may lose the the bargaining power with regard to flexible working. Palki Sharma tells you more.

Gravitas: Are we nearing the end of work from home?

<p>Eagerly waiting for the credit of salary every month is usual. But getting paid around 286 times of your salary is certainly not. A man recently witnessed this anomaly in the credit of the salary last month in Chile. When the employer, Consorcio Industrial de Alimentos (CIAL), realised the mistake, the staffer was asked to return the excess money but it seems it was too late by then as the person not only resigned from the company but has also disappeared.</p>

<p>To report the error in payment, the employee also informed a deputy manager in the human resources department of the company. After checking the records, the management of the company confirmed the mistake. &nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>WATCH WION LIVE HERE</strong></p>

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<p>In this peculiar case, the firm had accidentally paid the employee 165,398,851 Chilean pesos instead of the 500,000 pesos, as per the local media. The employee seems to have also promised the employer that he would return the excess amount by going to his bank. When the refund did not come, the worker was contacted. He said that he had overslept and would do it soon. Then on June 2, he resigned and reportedly disappeared. &nbsp;</p>

<p>The firm has started legal action against the employee to recover the money. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;</em></p>

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Eagerly waiting for the credit of salary every month is usual. But getting paid around 286 times of your salary is certainly not. A man recently witnessed this anomaly in the credit of the salary last month in Chile.

Eagerly waiting for the credit of salary every month is usual. But getting paid around 286 times of your salary is certainly not. A man recently witnessed this anomaly in the credit of the salary last month in Chile. When the employer, Consorcio Industrial de Alimentos (CIAL), realised the mistake, the staffer was asked to return the excess money but it seems it was too late by then as the person not only resigned from the company but has also disappeared. To report the error in payment, the employee also informed a deputy manager in the human resources department of the company. After checking the records, the management of the company confirmed the mistake. WATCH WION LIVE HERE In this peculiar case, the firm had accidentally paid the employee 165,398,851 Chilean pesos instead of the 500,000 pesos, as per the local media. The employee seems to have also promised the employer that he would return the excess amount by going to his bank. When the refund did not come, the worker was contacted. He said that he had overslept and would do it soon. Then on June 2, he resigned and reportedly disappeared. The firm has started legal action against the employee to recover the money. (With inputs from agencies) You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. ×

Chile firm mistakenly credits 286 times of salary to employee. Check out what happens next

<p>Many of us apply for leave every other day. Be it for attending a marriage ceremony or going for a vacation, people generally tell the real motive. But at times, this doesn’t happen. These are the times when you are going for an interview in another company or have a date. People try to give any other reason but not reveal the truth. But everybody is not the same, right? This is true as a leave application e-mail, where an employee has shown courage to reveal the real reason to the boss, has surfaced on social media. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">My juniors are so sweet, asking me for leave to attend an interview. 😉😁 <a href="https://t.co/gcBELHIuAG">pic.twitter.com/gcBELHIuAG</a></p>
— Sahil (@s5sahil) <a href="https://twitter.com/s5sahil/status/1536922964213477377?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2022</a></blockquote>
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<p>The screenshot of the e-mail has been shared on Twitter by a person called Sahil. In it, his employee has asked for leave by saying that he has to attend an interview in another company. In the email, the employee wrote, “Dear sir, I’m sending you this email to inform you that I need leave for today to attend an interview for another company.” &nbsp;</p>

<p><strong><em>WATCH WION LIVE HERE</em></strong></p>

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<p>The caption of the post said, “My juniors are so sweet, asking me for leave to attend an interview.” &nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">They are faithful sir ji</p>
— abhishek a (@abhishe76096300) <a href="https://twitter.com/abhishe76096300/status/1536945606526062592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2022</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Such a honest person 😁</p>
— Mallikarjuna.B (A+ve) (@Mallikarjun2891) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mallikarjun2891/status/1536986349655314438?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2022</a></blockquote>
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<p>The honesty of the person has stumped the netizens. It will surely do the same for you. Now, social media is abuzz and people are praising the person. "Such an honest person," said a user. &nbsp;</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;</em></p>

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Many of us apply for leave every other day. Be it for attending a marriage ceremony or going for a vacation, people generally tell the real motive. But at times, this doesn’t happen.

Many of us apply for leave every other day. Be it for attending a marriage ceremony or going for a vacation, people generally tell the real motive. But at times, this doesn’t happen. These are the times when you are going for an interview in another company or have a date. People try to give any other reason but not reveal the truth. But everybody is not the same, right? This is true as a leave application e-mail, where an employee has shown courage to reveal the real reason to the boss, has surfaced on social media. My juniors are so sweet, asking me for leave to attend an interview. 😉😁 pic.twitter.com/gcBELHIuAG — Sahil (@s5sahil) June 15, 2022 × The screenshot of the e-mail has been shared on Twitter by a person called Sahil. In it, his employee has asked for leave by saying that he has to attend an interview in another company. In the email, the employee wrote, “Dear sir, I’m sending you this email to inform you that I need leave for today to attend an interview for another company.” WATCH WION LIVE HERE The caption of the post said, “My juniors are so sweet, asking me for leave to attend an interview.” They are faithful sir ji — abhishek a (@abhishe76096300) June 15, 2022 × Such a honest person 😁 — Mallikarjuna.B (A+ve) (@Mallikarjun2891) June 15, 2022 × The honesty of the person has stumped the netizens. It will surely do the same for you. Now, social media is abuzz and people are praising the person. "Such an honest person," said a user. (With inputs from agencies) You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. ×

Employee’s honest application for leave garners praise on social media. Find out why  

<p>We've all worked in places with bosses from hell, the ones who make your life hell, and your personal time non-existent but have you ever had an employer penalise you for being just a minute late to work? An employer has come under fire online after a former employee revealed an unusual rule that penalises employees for arriving one minute late to work.&nbsp;Taking to the Reddit forum r/antiwork the former employee posted a notice that detailed that employees would be fined "for every minute you are late to work", and that employees "will be required to work 10 minutes after 6pm" as a penalty.</p>

<p>It goes on to say “For example, if you arrive at 10:02, you will have to stay an extra 20 minutes until 6:20pm. Thanks.”</p>

<p><strong>Watch |&nbsp;The Good Life: Are you anti-work? Rise of 'anti-work' movement in a post-pandemic era</strong></p>

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<p>User u/MinionsAndWineMum posted a picture of a piece of paper that their old boss had printed out detailing the new workplace rule, along with the caption, “Shout out the worst place I ever worked (minimum wage, of course)”.</p>

<p>The post went viral rapidly, garnering over 70,000 upvotes and over 5,000 comments from shocked Reddit users.</p>

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<p>One of the users commented, "Please post that sign as a photo on their google reviews!". Others said that they would ignore the rule and leave on time anyway, while others stated that the boss would swiftly lose employees if they were forced to perform unpaid work.</p>

<p>Another observed that even coffee and bathroom breaks could lead to overtime "Every minute you go out for coffee? 10 minutes overtime. Every minute you go to the bathroom? Yep, 10 minutes overtime. Every minute of overtime? You better believe, 10 minutes of overtime."</p>

<p>“If you show up at 9:58 do you get to leave at 5:40?”, asked another. If being a minute late means remaining late for 20 minutes, then being early should imply that you can leave early.</p>

<p><strong>Watch WION LIVE HERE:</strong></p>

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<p>You can <strong>now write for wionews.com</strong> and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us <strong><a href="https://www.wionews.com/content-contribution-registration-form">here</a>.</strong></p>


We've all worked in places with bosses from hell, the ones who make your life hell, and your personal time non-existent but have you ever had an employer penalise you for being just a minute late to work?

We've all worked in places with bosses from hell, the ones who make your life hell, and your personal time non-existent but have you ever had an employer penalise you for being just a minute late to work? An employer has come under fire online after a former employee revealed an unusual rule that penalises employees for arriving one minute late to work. Taking to the Reddit forum r/antiwork the former employee posted a notice that detailed that employees would be fined "for every minute you are late to work", and that employees "will be required to work 10 minutes after 6pm" as a penalty. It goes on to say “For example, if you arrive at 10:02, you will have to stay an extra 20 minutes until 6:20pm. Thanks.” Watch | The Good Life: Are you anti-work? Rise of 'anti-work' movement in a post-pandemic era User u/MinionsAndWineMum posted a picture of a piece of paper that their old boss had printed out detailing the new workplace rule, along with the caption, “Shout out the worst place I ever worked (minimum wage, of course)”. The post went viral rapidly, garnering over 70,000 upvotes and over 5,000 comments from shocked Reddit users. × One of the users commented, "Please post that sign as a photo on their google reviews!". Others said that they would ignore the rule and leave on time anyway, while others stated that the boss would swiftly lose employees if they were forced to perform unpaid work. Another observed that even coffee and bathroom breaks could lead to overtime "Every minute you go out for coffee? 10 minutes overtime. Every minute you go to the bathroom? Yep, 10 minutes overtime. Every minute of overtime? You better believe, 10 minutes of overtime." “If you show up at 9:58 do you get to leave at 5:40?”, asked another. If being a minute late means remaining late for 20 minutes, then being early should imply that you can leave early. Watch WION LIVE HERE: You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

'Boss from hell' penalises employees for being one minute late

<p>To show how much it cares about its employees, an Indian IT firm gifted BMW cars, each costing around US $130,000, to honour their loyalty and commitment to the company.</p>

<p>Five senior executives of global software-as-a-service company Kissflow Inc, which is headquartered in southern Chennai city, received BMW 530d on Friday.</p>

<p>The company appreciated them for assisting their boss in 'digging gold' and making the firm weather the COVID-19 storm that threatened the firm’s existence, as even some of the investors were doubtful of the firm’s success.</p>

<p>According to Kissflow Inc CEO Suresh Sambandam, these five employees were with him right from the inception of the company and stayed with him during the course of the journey, news agency PTI reported.</p>

<p>“There were difficult times. Even during the pandemic, the investors were not sure whether this company will sustain and build a future. Today we are very happy that we have paid back the investors and now it has become a fully owned privately held company," he was quoted as saying.</p>

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<p>Notably, not many were aware of the event on Friday, even those who received the cars were kept in the dark.</p>

<p>All the employees who were present at the event reportedly thought that they were being called in to discuss the future of the company.</p>

<p>"The cars are for these five who were with me when I dug 100 feet for gold (setting up Kissflow while others left the organisation midway)," Sambandam said.</p>

<p>When asked if the other would be handsomely rewarded, Sambandam, owner of a BMW 6 Series vehicle said, "this is an inspiration to them. We want to motivate them (to perform much better). We take care of our employees much better".</p>

<p>"For example, there is no sick leave or casual leave here unlike other companies. It is just one leave for them. If they do not want to come and work, they can work from home. There is no attendance system like biometric system and all...we know our employees", he said.</p>

<p>(With inputs from agencies)</p>


To show how much it cares about its employees, an Indian IT firm gifted BMW cars, each costing around US $130,000, to honour their loyalty and commitment to the company.

To show how much it cares about its employees, an Indian IT firm gifted BMW cars, each costing around US $130,000, to honour their loyalty and commitment to the company. Five senior executives of global software-as-a-service company Kissflow Inc, which is headquartered in southern Chennai city, received BMW 530d on Friday. The company appreciated them for assisting their boss in 'digging gold' and making the firm weather the COVID-19 storm that threatened the firm’s existence, as even some of the investors were doubtful of the firm’s success. According to Kissflow Inc CEO Suresh Sambandam, these five employees were with him right from the inception of the company and stayed with him during the course of the journey, news agency PTI reported. “There were difficult times. Even during the pandemic, the investors were not sure whether this company will sustain and build a future. Today we are very happy that we have paid back the investors and now it has become a fully owned privately held company," he was quoted as saying. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kissflow (@kissflowinc) × Notably, not many were aware of the event on Friday, even those who received the cars were kept in the dark. All the employees who were present at the event reportedly thought that they were being called in to discuss the future of the company. "The cars are for these five who were with me when I dug 100 feet for gold (setting up Kissflow while others left the organisation midway)," Sambandam said. When asked if the other would be handsomely rewarded, Sambandam, owner of a BMW 6 Series vehicle said, "this is an inspiration to them. We want to motivate them (to perform much better). We take care of our employees much better". "For example, there is no sick leave or casual leave here unlike other companies. It is just one leave for them. If they do not want to come and work, they can work from home. There is no attendance system like biometric system and all...we know our employees", he said. (With inputs from agencies)

Watch: This Indian IT firm gifted BMW cars to employees for their loyalty

<p>Celebrating its new $1.2 billion valuation, the CEO of Spanx, a US shapewear company, surprised its employees by gifting two first-class plane tickets and $10,000 each.</p>

<p>On Wednesday, Spanx announced that the private equity firm Blackstone would buy a majority stake in the company, a deal valuing it at $1.2 billion.</p>

<p>The company’s CEO Sara Blakely posted a video on social media to capture the reactions of her employees while announcing&nbsp;the gifts to employees, who gathered in person and over Zoom.</p>

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<p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/tv/CVT1zswDZIL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Sara Blakely (@sarablakely)</a></p>
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<p>In remarks posted to social media, Blakely said: “To stand here today, and [to] think about what we’ve been able to create and what we’ve been able to do by being authentic and kind and delivering amazing products to women to use their very feminine principles in a very masculine space which is business, leading with intuition, vulnerability … this marks a moment for female entrepreneurs.”</p>

<p>During her speech, she honoured other women in business. "I want to toast the women that came before me and all of the women in the world who have not had this opportunity," Blakely said.</p>

<p>Blakely started the company in 2000 with $5,000 she made selling fax machines door-to-door.</p>

<p>"I wrote a goal down, and I said this company will one day be worth $20 million, and everybody laughed at me," Blakely says in the video.</p>

<p>Spanx, which started out by selling stretchy, body-smoothing undergarments, has grown into a gigantic brand with a wide product line and men's offerings over the past 21 years. Kim Kardashian West launched a rival shapewear company called Skims in 2019.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>


Celebrating its new $1.2 billion valuation, the CEO of Spanx, a US shapewear company, surprised its employees by gifting two first-class plane tickets and $10,000 each.

Celebrating its new $1.2 billion valuation, the CEO of Spanx, a US shapewear company, surprised its employees by gifting two first-class plane tickets and $10,000 each. On Wednesday, Spanx announced that the private equity firm Blackstone would buy a majority stake in the company, a deal valuing it at $1.2 billion. The company’s CEO Sara Blakely posted a video on social media to capture the reactions of her employees while announcing the gifts to employees, who gathered in person and over Zoom. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sara Blakely (@sarablakely) × In remarks posted to social media, Blakely said: “To stand here today, and [to] think about what we’ve been able to create and what we’ve been able to do by being authentic and kind and delivering amazing products to women to use their very feminine principles in a very masculine space which is business, leading with intuition, vulnerability … this marks a moment for female entrepreneurs.” During her speech, she honoured other women in business. "I want to toast the women that came before me and all of the women in the world who have not had this opportunity," Blakely said. Blakely started the company in 2000 with $5,000 she made selling fax machines door-to-door. "I wrote a goal down, and I said this company will one day be worth $20 million, and everybody laughed at me," Blakely says in the video. Spanx, which started out by selling stretchy, body-smoothing undergarments, has grown into a gigantic brand with a wide product line and men's offerings over the past 21 years. Kim Kardashian West launched a rival shapewear company called Skims in 2019. (With inputs from agencies)

WATCH: Moment when CEO of shapewear company gifts staff $10,000 cash, air trips 'to anywhere'

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="3">Not surprisingly, traditional offices appear to have been radically altered by the pandemic, perhaps forever.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="5">According to Grant Christofely, North American associate director of workplace strategy at M Moser Associates, a workplace design company, some organizations still design their offices the same way they did 50 to 70 years ago: static, inflexible spaces where employees perform individual, task-oriented work more than eight hours a day.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="6">"But that’s not how works gets done, how you make money today," he said. "You make money from ideas being exchanged. And technology has had a huge impact on the way people work, the way ideas are exchanged. The way ideas were exchanged was changing before the pandemic — people are realizing that the time to change is now."</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="7">For example, M Moser’s 10,000-square-foot Manhattan headquarters in the Woolworth Building was designed in 2018 and revamped in 2020 to create a healthier workplace. Employees do not have assigned seats but rather choose a place to work every morning. Instead of sitting at desks, they sit at mobile tables; their portable electronic equipment is powered by portable battery packs.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="8">The firm’s headquarters have been open, with limited capacity, since June 2020; its flexible workspace enabled it to adapt quickly when it reopened.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="9">Similarly, M Moser’s new "living lab" for its offices in Shenzhen, China, offers diverse work settings and choices, as well as a virtual meeting device with real-time connection but no advance booking requirement.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="10">Christofely said he believes companies "must move the dial on how much space is dedicated to individual versus collaborative work. The social aspect of work is one of the most important parts of the physical workplace." His firm’s "more progressive" clients are dramatically reducing individual workspaces from 70% of the total to 30%, with 70% now collaborative; at least one client is dedicating only 10% of its workspaces to individuals.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="11">And M Moser, of course, is not the only firm envisioning a flexible office environment.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="12">John Harrison, design director of the Houston office of Gensler, an architectural firm, believes "the biggest shift in the post-pandemic workplace will be the radical change in flexibility. People’s behavioral habits are going to be different. The physical office must accommodate that in a forward-thinking, creative way," he said. What will emerge will be "a blended workforce where some people will work from home, some in the office on certain days," he added.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="13">Eric Gannon, the workplace studio leader for Gensler’s Chicago office, warned: "If we don’t give them a reason to commute in, they’ll return to their basement to do their work."</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="14">To make offices attractive to those who choose to work there either occasionally or full time — rather than at home — companies are creating spaces for employees to socialize and meet, either in person or virtually.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="15">For the headquarters in London’s Chiswick Business Park of pladis, a global confectionary company whose brands include McVities and Godiva, Gensler created what it calls a "heart space, bakery meets hotel." This contains an open kitchen and ovens as well as a digital screen that links to pladis’ bakeries in Carlisle, England. The company says this screen celebrates bakers’ key role and shows the process behind its products. Its headquarters opened in June.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="16">Lois Wellwood, global interiors practice leader of the architecture firm Skidmore, Owings &amp; Merrill, known as SOM, said that before the pandemic, "the workplace tended to migrate to one-size-fits-all. There is now the opportunity to start thinking about a return to the office that’s authentic to the organization. People are better supported when things are movable and changeable, with more options for places to work throughout the day. In doing so, the workplace becomes more adaptable, elastic and responsive to what individuals and teams are doing."</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="17">For a 95,000-square-foot tech company office in the Grace Building in midtown Manhattan, SOM created what it describes as a "city within a building." This includes a stairwell that ascends into the office’s atrium and acts as its central nervous system.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="18">A media wall spans all three of the company’s floors and can be used for companywide Zoom sessions and to display other information to employees around the world. The office also contains a combined reception, living room, cafe and pantry at its entrance; work areas are open plan, allowing employees to decide when and how they want to work. There is also a wellness room for employees with newborns, as well as a shower for those who bike or skateboard to work.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="19">SOM’S Central Place project in Sydney, scheduled to be completed in 2028, will encompass 1,620,000 square feet of office and retail space and create a workplace environment closely tied to nature, with multiple terraces and a facade designed to minimize interior solar heat gain.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="20">For its clients, the firm further recommends what it calls the "anti-anxiety office entry." This would entail redesigning an office building’s lobby so it contains "breathable and easily navigable spaces (so) we can choreograph the arrival experience to reduce crowding," according to a document titled "10 Ideas for Post-Pandemic Design." "Employees and visitors, messengers and deliveries and people arriving by foot or by bike, each will have a clear and dedicated arrival path." SOM also recommends that this entry contains "more generously planned bicycle facilities," as well as showers and locker storage.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="21">Similarly, a 13,000-square-foot New York office — currently being designed by Gensler for the Rizzo Group, a building code consulting firm, scheduled to open in February 2022 — will place a major focus on wellness and well-being. Its outdoor space, which has tables and seats for meetings, will be as large as its indoor space, maximizing employees’ access to the elements year-round.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="22">Composting collected from bins in the pantry will fuel gardens on the terrace, where vegetables and herbs will be grown for employee consumption; bike storage also will be available on the terrace for the company’s commuter bikers. There will be an "everyone sponsors a plant" initiative in the office’s central cafe; each employee will be responsible for an individual plant’s upkeep, including watering. And the cafe’s location will be based on sun studies, offering the best, most consistent and longest-lasting light in the office.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="23">For the 330 North Green Street in Chicago, for which ground will be broken soon, SOM has designed a southern facade that is set back to create what it calls "the porch," a gathering area with retractable doors, lounge, workspaces, fireplaces and an outdoor fitness area and paddle courts, to be used when temperatures allow.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="24">So why are companies going to such lengths? Robin Klehr Avia, New York-based regional managing principal for Gensler, said she believes there is a "war for talent" going on now among employers. She said companies of all sorts and sizes — ranging from ad agencies and small financial firms to consulting and media companies and nonprofit organizations — are asking their employees when, where and how they want to work, hoping to make themselves attractive to them as well as to prospective employees. "Employees can script their own workplace experience — it’s not one size fits all," she said.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="25">Gensler’s clients outside the United States also are looking for flexibility, fresh air and daylight, Avia added, noting that "the best designs are flexible and fluid."</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="26">She said no one knows if the changes being instituted will be short-term and temporary or permanent.</p>

<p data-changed="false" data-paragraphid="27">"The biggest challenge," she suggested, "is that the office environment is continually evolving. We cannot return to business as usual. It’s a transition time for companies and employees — they have to be patient with the evolution."</p>


Not surprisingly, traditional offices appear to have been radically altered by the pandemic, perhaps forever. According to Grant Christofely, North American associate director of workplace strategy at M Moser Associates, a workplace design company, some organizations still design their offices the same way they did 50 to 70 years ago: static, inflexible spaces where employees perform individual, task-oriented work more than eight hours a day.

Not surprisingly, traditional offices appear to have been radically altered by the pandemic, perhaps forever. According to Grant Christofely, North American associate director of workplace strategy at M Moser Associates, a workplace design company, some organizations still design their offices the same way they did 50 to 70 years ago: static, inflexible spaces where employees perform individual, task-oriented work more than eight hours a day. "But that’s not how works gets done, how you make money today," he said. "You make money from ideas being exchanged. And technology has had a huge impact on the way people work, the way ideas are exchanged. The way ideas were exchanged was changing before the pandemic — people are realizing that the time to change is now." For example, M Moser’s 10,000-square-foot Manhattan headquarters in the Woolworth Building was designed in 2018 and revamped in 2020 to create a healthier workplace. Employees do not have assigned seats but rather choose a place to work every morning. Instead of sitting at desks, they sit at mobile tables; their portable electronic equipment is powered by portable battery packs. The firm’s headquarters have been open, with limited capacity, since June 2020; its flexible workspace enabled it to adapt quickly when it reopened. Similarly, M Moser’s new "living lab" for its offices in Shenzhen, China, offers diverse work settings and choices, as well as a virtual meeting device with real-time connection but no advance booking requirement. Christofely said he believes companies "must move the dial on how much space is dedicated to individual versus collaborative work. The social aspect of work is one of the most important parts of the physical workplace." His firm’s "more progressive" clients are dramatically reducing individual workspaces from 70% of the total to 30%, with 70% now collaborative; at least one client is dedicating only 10% of its workspaces to individuals. And M Moser, of course, is not the only firm envisioning a flexible office environment. John Harrison, design director of the Houston office of Gensler, an architectural firm, believes "the biggest shift in the post-pandemic workplace will be the radical change in flexibility. People’s behavioral habits are going to be different. The physical office must accommodate that in a forward-thinking, creative way," he said. What will emerge will be "a blended workforce where some people will work from home, some in the office on certain days," he added. Eric Gannon, the workplace studio leader for Gensler’s Chicago office, warned: "If we don’t give them a reason to commute in, they’ll return to their basement to do their work." To make offices attractive to those who choose to work there either occasionally or full time — rather than at home — companies are creating spaces for employees to socialize and meet, either in person or virtually. For the headquarters in London’s Chiswick Business Park of pladis, a global confectionary company whose brands include McVities and Godiva, Gensler created what it calls a "heart space, bakery meets hotel." This contains an open kitchen and ovens as well as a digital screen that links to pladis’ bakeries in Carlisle, England. The company says this screen celebrates bakers’ key role and shows the process behind its products. Its headquarters opened in June. Lois Wellwood, global interiors practice leader of the architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, known as SOM, said that before the pandemic, "the workplace tended to migrate to one-size-fits-all. There is now the opportunity to start thinking about a return to the office that’s authentic to the organization. People are better supported when things are movable and changeable, with more options for places to work throughout the day. In doing so, the workplace becomes more adaptable, elastic and responsive to what individuals and teams are doing." For a 95,000-square-foot tech company office in the Grace Building in midtown Manhattan, SOM created what it describes as a "city within a building." This includes a stairwell that ascends into the office’s atrium and acts as its central nervous system. A media wall spans all three of the company’s floors and can be used for companywide Zoom sessions and to display other information to employees around the world. The office also contains a combined reception, living room, cafe and pantry at its entrance; work areas are open plan, allowing employees to decide when and how they want to work. There is also a wellness room for employees with newborns, as well as a shower for those who bike or skateboard to work. SOM’S Central Place project in Sydney, scheduled to be completed in 2028, will encompass 1,620,000 square feet of office and retail space and create a workplace environment closely tied to nature, with multiple terraces and a facade designed to minimize interior solar heat gain. For its clients, the firm further recommends what it calls the "anti-anxiety office entry." This would entail redesigning an office building’s lobby so it contains "breathable and easily navigable spaces (so) we can choreograph the arrival experience to reduce crowding," according to a document titled "10 Ideas for Post-Pandemic Design." "Employees and visitors, messengers and deliveries and people arriving by foot or by bike, each will have a clear and dedicated arrival path." SOM also recommends that this entry contains "more generously planned bicycle facilities," as well as showers and locker storage. Similarly, a 13,000-square-foot New York office — currently being designed by Gensler for the Rizzo Group, a building code consulting firm, scheduled to open in February 2022 — will place a major focus on wellness and well-being. Its outdoor space, which has tables and seats for meetings, will be as large as its indoor space, maximizing employees’ access to the elements year-round. Composting collected from bins in the pantry will fuel gardens on the terrace, where vegetables and herbs will be grown for employee consumption; bike storage also will be available on the terrace for the company’s commuter bikers. There will be an "everyone sponsors a plant" initiative in the office’s central cafe; each employee will be responsible for an individual plant’s upkeep, including watering. And the cafe’s location will be based on sun studies, offering the best, most consistent and longest-lasting light in the office. For the 330 North Green Street in Chicago, for which ground will be broken soon, SOM has designed a southern facade that is set back to create what it calls "the porch," a gathering area with retractable doors, lounge, workspaces, fireplaces and an outdoor fitness area and paddle courts, to be used when temperatures allow. So why are companies going to such lengths? Robin Klehr Avia, New York-based regional managing principal for Gensler, said she believes there is a "war for talent" going on now among employers. She said companies of all sorts and sizes — ranging from ad agencies and small financial firms to consulting and media companies and nonprofit organizations — are asking their employees when, where and how they want to work, hoping to make themselves attractive to them as well as to prospective employees. "Employees can script their own workplace experience — it’s not one size fits all," she said. Gensler’s clients outside the United States also are looking for flexibility, fresh air and daylight, Avia added, noting that "the best designs are flexible and fluid." She said no one knows if the changes being instituted will be short-term and temporary or permanent. "The biggest challenge," she suggested, "is that the office environment is continually evolving. We cannot return to business as usual. It’s a transition time for companies and employees — they have to be patient with the evolution."

One size doesn’t fit all: Employees’ needs are changing workspaces

<p>An employee of Apple who led a fellow workers movement against alleged patterns of discrimination, racism and sexism at the tech company was fired.</p>

<p>Janneke Parrish, an Apple program manager and one of the leaders behind the #AppleToo movement, said she was terminated for “non-compliance” after she deleted personal files from her work device amid an internal investigation, according to the Guardian.</p>

<p>Parrish, who worked at Apple for five years, claims that she was fired for speaking out publicly about "issues within the company".</p>

<p>“I’ve been very vocal, I’ve been very public. I have not been afraid to put my name and attach my face to #AppleToo,” she told the Guardian. “This feels very much like retaliation for having the courage to speak out.”</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">There are consequences for speaking out. There are consequences for doing the right thing.<br />
<br />
But we do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AppleToo?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AppleToo</a> is about asking Apple to do better, to end systemic discrimination, abuse, and pay inequity.<br />
<br />
Do the right thing. <a href="https://t.co/nhxFlflSvR">https://t.co/nhxFlflSvR</a></p>
— Janneke Parrish (@JannekeParrish) <a href="https://twitter.com/JannekeParrish/status/1449066853314224129?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 15, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Apple said Friday it does not discuss specific employee matters.</p>

<p>Recently, Apple has been experiencing other examples of employee unrest. Last month, two employees told Reuters they had filed charges against the company with the National Labor Relations Board for alleged retaliation and halting discussion of pay among employees, among other allegations.</p>

<p>Apple has said that it is “deeply committed to creating and maintaining a positive and inclusive workplace” and that it takes “all concerns” from employees seriously.</p>

<p>In September, Parrish said the company had informed her that she was under investigation for leaking information to the media. Parrish had been involved with employee advocacy efforts at Apple for months, but did not leak information, she said.</p>

<p>As part of the investigation, Apple confiscated her devices. Apple encourages employees to use work devices as personal devices, Parrish said, and before handing over devices she deleted files that contained personal information, such as financial data.</p>

<p>Parrish said she did not expect to be fired, but believed her work with #AppleToo would have a negative impact on her career.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>


An employee of Apple who led a fellow workers movement against alleged patterns of discrimination, racism and sexism at the tech company was fired. Janneke Parrish, an Apple program manager and one of the leaders behind the #AppleToo movement, said she was terminated for “non-compliance” after she deleted personal files from her work device amid an internal investigation, according to the Guardian.

An employee of Apple who led a fellow workers movement against alleged patterns of discrimination, racism and sexism at the tech company was fired. Janneke Parrish, an Apple program manager and one of the leaders behind the #AppleToo movement, said she was terminated for “non-compliance” after she deleted personal files from her work device amid an internal investigation, according to the Guardian. Parrish, who worked at Apple for five years, claims that she was fired for speaking out publicly about "issues within the company". “I’ve been very vocal, I’ve been very public. I have not been afraid to put my name and attach my face to #AppleToo,” she told the Guardian. “This feels very much like retaliation for having the courage to speak out.” There are consequences for speaking out. There are consequences for doing the right thing. But we do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. #AppleToo is about asking Apple to do better, to end systemic discrimination, abuse, and pay inequity. Do the right thing. https://t.co/nhxFlflSvR — Janneke Parrish (@JannekeParrish) October 15, 2021 × Apple said Friday it does not discuss specific employee matters. Recently, Apple has been experiencing other examples of employee unrest. Last month, two employees told Reuters they had filed charges against the company with the National Labor Relations Board for alleged retaliation and halting discussion of pay among employees, among other allegations. Apple has said that it is “deeply committed to creating and maintaining a positive and inclusive workplace” and that it takes “all concerns” from employees seriously. In September, Parrish said the company had informed her that she was under investigation for leaking information to the media. Parrish had been involved with employee advocacy efforts at Apple for months, but did not leak information, she said. As part of the investigation, Apple confiscated her devices. Apple encourages employees to use work devices as personal devices, Parrish said, and before handing over devices she deleted files that contained personal information, such as financial data. Parrish said she did not expect to be fired, but believed her work with #AppleToo would have a negative impact on her career. (With inputs from agencies)

Apple fires employee who led movement against racism & sexism

<p>It was a hot morning in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the day that Peter Naughton woke up on the floor.</p>

<p>Sore, disoriented, he’d already grasped what his mother was now telling him: He’d had another seizure. But he also grasped a larger truth: He needed to pull it together and somehow go to work.</p>

<p>A cashier and self-checkout host at the nearby Walmart, Naughton dreaded depleting his limited paid time off in the midst of a pandemic. His mother, for her part, insisted that her epileptic son, then 44, stay home and rest. The hours after a seizure were difficult enough. Toss in the stress of COVID-19 and a customer base that largely — and often angrily — rejected mask use, and a day at work seemed anything but recuperative.</p>

<p>In the end, Naughton’s growing headache and general fogginess were intense enough that he conceded to his mother’s wishes. He dialled once, twice, three times. No answer. Given the penalty for missing work without giving notice — and the fear of risking his job during uncertain times — he saw what he had to do. Reeling, he made the trip to the store and clocked in.</p>

<p>That was the summer of 2020, and in the bewildering year since, the stakes and strain around low-wage frontline jobs like Naughton’s seem only to have multiplied.</p>

<p>As shuttered offices cautiously debate the merits and logistics of reopening, a parallel sphere of workers — retail employees, day labourers, emergency personnel, medical staff, and so on — seemingly inhabit another country entirely. In their case nothing ever shuttered. Often their jobs just got really, really hard.</p>

<p>“Every day is frightening,” Naughton said recently, now nearly two years into his employment at Walmart.</p>

<p>Naughton said this in the dark, his power still out days after Hurricane Ida had barreled through Louisiana. It was 93 degrees. Later he would take another cold shower, also in the dark, in hopes of cooling off before bed.</p>

<p>Naughton lives on a quiet, grassy street of low brick homes with his ageing parents, not far from where he attended high school some two decades prior. He had an apartment of his own for a while last year, but his $11.55 hourly wage wasn’t enough to pay the rent, even working full time. So he moved back in with his mother and father, and now lives in fear of bringing the highly contagious delta variant home to them. (Naughton is fully vaccinated. But at 78, his father has health issues that prevent him from getting the shots, Naughton said — health issues that make severe illness likelier should he contract the disease.)</p>

<p>Elsewhere in the country, the conversation has begun to move on, away from early Covid alarm and into something more guardedly speculative. What will post-pandemic life look like? How have our priorities shifted? But for vast swaths of the nation, largely untouched by doses from Pfizer and Moderna, it remains late 2020 in many ways.</p>

<p>“A lot of people here still don’t believe the virus is real — even when the hospitals are full, even when they have family dying,” Naughton said. “With the vaccines, one co-worker told me getting it would go against her faith. Another told me it contains baby fetuses and mercury. Someone else said it was created by Bill Gates to insert microchips to track you. I said, ‘Why would he want to track&nbsp;<em>you</em>?’”</p>

<p>The conversations Naughton describes may be epidemiologically out of step, but he and thousands of others seem trapped in an America-right-now vortex, a swirl of politics, belief, resentment and fear. At fast-food restaurants, grocery stores, warehouses, nursing homes and anywhere else frontline workers show up each day, a deep schism has taken hold. Workers nervous about the virus find themselves at the mercy of those who aren’t.</p>

<p>“If I ask people to wear a mask or socially distance at work, they get mad and tell the manager. Then I have to get coached. If you get coached too many times, you lose your job,” Naughton said, referring to the company’s system for managing worker infractions. (Charles Crowson, a Walmart spokesman, did not dispute that an accumulation of coachings could lead to termination.)</p>

<p>Draped over this dynamic are often the stark realities of poverty, and the stresses of navigating a low-paying job in a high-pressure situation. And so an already strained situation strains further. Bitterness over masking requests, job insecurity, a run on bottled water, vaccine politics — tensions routinely boil over in his store and beyond, Naughton said.</p>

<p>“It wasn’t always like this. It used to be more friendly here. It’s become hostile. People are really on edge. They fight with you in the store, or with each other,” he said. “The other day a woman wanted to fight over the price of potatoes. You can even see it in how people drive, like they have a death wish.”</p>

<p>These days Naughton passes a fair amount of time alone. He burns off stress at the gym, goes on hikes, reads books on politics. (By flashlight, in the days after Hurricane Ida.) The delta resurgence also dealt a blow to his social life — at one point, concerned about the alarming spread in Louisiana, he cancelled plans to see live comedy with a co-worker. She went on without him; “she wasn’t worried about it,” he said.</p>

<p>Over the last few months, Naughton has pinned his hopes on a transfer — there’s another nearby Walmart he believes to be less stressful. After extensive lobbying, he said the move was finally approved. Coincidentally, it’s to the same store where his father routinely shops, Covid&nbsp;risks and all.</p>

<p>“He’s stubborn. He goes there for pastries, for Coke. He spends hours there. We tell him not to, it’s not safe,” Naughton said.</p>

<p>With nearly 1.6 million workers, Walmart is the largest private employer in the country. It employs 35,954 people in Louisiana alone, working for one of the 137 Supercenters, discount stores, neighbourhood markets or Sam’s Clubs across the state. Covid appears to have been good for the bottom line: During fiscal 2020, the company generated $559 billion in revenue, up $35 billion from the previous year. But labour activists say too little of that money has gone toward workforce protections, which in turn has prolonged the pandemic.</p>

<p>According to United for Respect, a nonprofit labour advocacy group for Walmart and Amazon workers — Naughton is an outspoken member — safety measures remain deeply insufficient.</p>

<p>“Thousands of Walmart associates across the country like Peter have been forced to endure poverty wages and abysmal benefits while working through a deadly pandemic, managing panic-buying sprees and culture wars over mask mandates,” said Bianca Agustin, the accountability director for United for Respect.</p>

<p>In a survey the group conducted of Walmart associates — the term the company uses for all non-temporary employees — in May 2020, nearly half said they had come into work sick or would do so, fearing retaliation otherwise. This past April the group released a report with the public health nonprofit Human Impact Partners, finding that Walmart could have prevented at least 7,618 Covid&nbsp;cases and saved 133 lives with a more robust paid sick time policy. (Researchers have estimated that some 125,000 Walmart workers nationwide likely contracted Covid between February 2020 and February 2021.)</p>

<p>United for Respect is pushing for five measures in response: hazard pay of $5 per hour; access to adequate paid and unpaid leave; immediate notification of positive cases within a given store; the inclusion of workers in the creation of safety protocols; and protection from retaliation. In the meantime, it has created a Covid reporting tool for workers at Amazon and Walmart. So far almost 1,900 cases have been claimed at 360 stores and facilities.</p>

<p>“Walmart lets in people without masks all the time, and social distancing isn’t enforced,” Naughton said. “Our lives are constantly in danger. They have ‘health ambassadors,’ but all they do is sit at the door offering customers masks. I’ve had to fill in for them. A lot of people just ignore you, or else get angry.”</p>

<p>In response, Crowson, the Walmart spokesman, replied that the company “has worked hard to protect the health and safety of associates and customers. This includes administering no-cost vaccinations, enhanced cleaning practices, daily health screenings and temperature checks for our associates, special bonuses and an emergency leave policy.”</p>

<p>For his part, Naughton continues fearing work while also fearing the idea of missing any. That’s partly the work ethic he inherited from his father, who never once called in sick to the chemical plant where he spent his career. But it’s also basic survival in perilous economic times. Putting aside any medical implications for him or his loved ones, he worries that contracting Covid could cost him his job. At 45, reliant on Medicaid for health coverage and having no retirement plan to speak of, he continues to don his yellow “Proud Walmart Associate” vest each morning.</p>

<p>Over the years Naughton has worked at fast-food restaurants, grocery stores and an amusement park. The idea of finding a more COVID-safe work-from-home gig appeals to him, but his hours at Walmart leave little time for job hunting. Regardless, he says the positions he comes across are “the kind you can’t get without experience, but you can’t get experience without a job.”</p>

<p>Asked about the distant universe of office careers and mask-wars-free remote work, Naughton, he replied that it all feels “unfair.”</p>

<p>“They say we’re essential,” he said, “but they treat us like we’re disposable.”</p>


It was a hot morning in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the day that Peter Naughton woke up on the floor. Sore, disoriented, he’d already grasped what his mother was now telling him: He’d had another seizure.

It was a hot morning in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the day that Peter Naughton woke up on the floor. Sore, disoriented, he’d already grasped what his mother was now telling him: He’d had another seizure. But he also grasped a larger truth: He needed to pull it together and somehow go to work. A cashier and self-checkout host at the nearby Walmart, Naughton dreaded depleting his limited paid time off in the midst of a pandemic. His mother, for her part, insisted that her epileptic son, then 44, stay home and rest. The hours after a seizure were difficult enough. Toss in the stress of COVID-19 and a customer base that largely — and often angrily — rejected mask use, and a day at work seemed anything but recuperative. In the end, Naughton’s growing headache and general fogginess were intense enough that he conceded to his mother’s wishes. He dialled once, twice, three times. No answer. Given the penalty for missing work without giving notice — and the fear of risking his job during uncertain times — he saw what he had to do. Reeling, he made the trip to the store and clocked in. That was the summer of 2020, and in the bewildering year since, the stakes and strain around low-wage frontline jobs like Naughton’s seem only to have multiplied. As shuttered offices cautiously debate the merits and logistics of reopening, a parallel sphere of workers — retail employees, day labourers, emergency personnel, medical staff, and so on — seemingly inhabit another country entirely. In their case nothing ever shuttered. Often their jobs just got really, really hard. “Every day is frightening,” Naughton said recently, now nearly two years into his employment at Walmart. Naughton said this in the dark, his power still out days after Hurricane Ida had barreled through Louisiana. It was 93 degrees. Later he would take another cold shower, also in the dark, in hopes of cooling off before bed. Naughton lives on a quiet, grassy street of low brick homes with his ageing parents, not far from where he attended high school some two decades prior. He had an apartment of his own for a while last year, but his $11.55 hourly wage wasn’t enough to pay the rent, even working full time. So he moved back in with his mother and father, and now lives in fear of bringing the highly contagious delta variant home to them. (Naughton is fully vaccinated. But at 78, his father has health issues that prevent him from getting the shots, Naughton said — health issues that make severe illness likelier should he contract the disease.) Elsewhere in the country, the conversation has begun to move on, away from early Covid alarm and into something more guardedly speculative. What will post-pandemic life look like? How have our priorities shifted? But for vast swaths of the nation, largely untouched by doses from Pfizer and Moderna, it remains late 2020 in many ways. “A lot of people here still don’t believe the virus is real — even when the hospitals are full, even when they have family dying,” Naughton said. “With the vaccines, one co-worker told me getting it would go against her faith. Another told me it contains baby fetuses and mercury. Someone else said it was created by Bill Gates to insert microchips to track you. I said, ‘Why would he want to track you?’” The conversations Naughton describes may be epidemiologically out of step, but he and thousands of others seem trapped in an America-right-now vortex, a swirl of politics, belief, resentment and fear. At fast-food restaurants, grocery stores, warehouses, nursing homes and anywhere else frontline workers show up each day, a deep schism has taken hold. Workers nervous about the virus find themselves at the mercy of those who aren’t. “If I ask people to wear a mask or socially distance at work, they get mad and tell the manager. Then I have to get coached. If you get coached too many times, you lose your job,” Naughton said, referring to the company’s system for managing worker infractions. (Charles Crowson, a Walmart spokesman, did not dispute that an accumulation of coachings could lead to termination.) Draped over this dynamic are often the stark realities of poverty, and the stresses of navigating a low-paying job in a high-pressure situation. And so an already strained situation strains further. Bitterness over masking requests, job insecurity, a run on bottled water, vaccine politics — tensions routinely boil over in his store and beyond, Naughton said. “It wasn’t always like this. It used to be more friendly here. It’s become hostile. People are really on edge. They fight with you in the store, or with each other,” he said. “The other day a woman wanted to fight over the price of potatoes. You can even see it in how people drive, like they have a death wish.” These days Naughton passes a fair amount of time alone. He burns off stress at the gym, goes on hikes, reads books on politics. (By flashlight, in the days after Hurricane Ida.) The delta resurgence also dealt a blow to his social life — at one point, concerned about the alarming spread in Louisiana, he cancelled plans to see live comedy with a co-worker. She went on without him; “she wasn’t worried about it,” he said. Over the last few months, Naughton has pinned his hopes on a transfer — there’s another nearby Walmart he believes to be less stressful. After extensive lobbying, he said the move was finally approved. Coincidentally, it’s to the same store where his father routinely shops, Covid risks and all. “He’s stubborn. He goes there for pastries, for Coke. He spends hours there. We tell him not to, it’s not safe,” Naughton said. With nearly 1.6 million workers, Walmart is the largest private employer in the country. It employs 35,954 people in Louisiana alone, working for one of the 137 Supercenters, discount stores, neighbourhood markets or Sam’s Clubs across the state. Covid appears to have been good for the bottom line: During fiscal 2020, the company generated $559 billion in revenue, up $35 billion from the previous year. But labour activists say too little of that money has gone toward workforce protections, which in turn has prolonged the pandemic. According to United for Respect, a nonprofit labour advocacy group for Walmart and Amazon workers — Naughton is an outspoken member — safety measures remain deeply insufficient. “Thousands of Walmart associates across the country like Peter have been forced to endure poverty wages and abysmal benefits while working through a deadly pandemic, managing panic-buying sprees and culture wars over mask mandates,” said Bianca Agustin, the accountability director for United for Respect. In a survey the group conducted of Walmart associates — the term the company uses for all non-temporary employees — in May 2020, nearly half said they had come into work sick or would do so, fearing retaliation otherwise. This past April the group released a report with the public health nonprofit Human Impact Partners, finding that Walmart could have prevented at least 7,618 Covid cases and saved 133 lives with a more robust paid sick time policy. (Researchers have estimated that some 125,000 Walmart workers nationwide likely contracted Covid between February 2020 and February 2021.) United for Respect is pushing for five measures in response: hazard pay of $5 per hour; access to adequate paid and unpaid leave; immediate notification of positive cases within a given store; the inclusion of workers in the creation of safety protocols; and protection from retaliation. In the meantime, it has created a Covid reporting tool for workers at Amazon and Walmart. So far almost 1,900 cases have been claimed at 360 stores and facilities. “Walmart lets in people without masks all the time, and social distancing isn’t enforced,” Naughton said. “Our lives are constantly in danger. They have ‘health ambassadors,’ but all they do is sit at the door offering customers masks. I’ve had to fill in for them. A lot of people just ignore you, or else get angry.” In response, Crowson, the Walmart spokesman, replied that the company “has worked hard to protect the health and safety of associates and customers. This includes administering no-cost vaccinations, enhanced cleaning practices, daily health screenings and temperature checks for our associates, special bonuses and an emergency leave policy.” For his part, Naughton continues fearing work while also fearing the idea of missing any. That’s partly the work ethic he inherited from his father, who never once called in sick to the chemical plant where he spent his career. But it’s also basic survival in perilous economic times. Putting aside any medical implications for him or his loved ones, he worries that contracting Covid could cost him his job. At 45, reliant on Medicaid for health coverage and having no retirement plan to speak of, he continues to don his yellow “Proud Walmart Associate” vest each morning. Over the years Naughton has worked at fast-food restaurants, grocery stores and an amusement park. The idea of finding a more COVID-safe work-from-home gig appeals to him, but his hours at Walmart leave little time for job hunting. Regardless, he says the positions he comes across are “the kind you can’t get without experience, but you can’t get experience without a job.” Asked about the distant universe of office careers and mask-wars-free remote work, Naughton, he replied that it all feels “unfair.” “They say we’re essential,” he said, “but they treat us like we’re disposable.”

‘Every day is frightening’: Working for the top US employer amid Covid

<p>Fast-food chain giant McDonald’s was one of the biggest corporations in the hospitality sector that laid off employees during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic. However, the company is now struggling to lure employees back.</p>

<p>A lot of the McDonald’s outlets are owned by franchises&nbsp;that had to lay off staff to stop the outlets from closing down permanently. When the pandemic hit and employees were laid off to save costs, the outlets didn’t think it would be this difficult to call back the workforce.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/we-all-quit-burger-king-employees-quit-at-same-time-by-putting-a-public-sign-397911">'We all quit': Burger King employees quit at same time by putting a public sign</a></strong></p>

<p>Now, to lure employees back, some of these franchises have started offering benefits to workers, with some help from the brand.</p>

<p>‘Employee Value Proposition’, the new plan, aims at providing a more employee-friendly workspace. Under this plan, employees who are called in for work at the last minute will be provided with the facility of emergency child care service.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/friend-in-need-burger-king-urges-customers-to-order-from-mcdonalds-340030">Friend in need: Burger King urges customers to order from McDonald's</a></strong></p>

<p>The franchises are now aiming to provide free meals to employees on shift. They will also help with education costs for those hoping to complete their high school degree and higher education.</p>

<p>In addition to this, McDonald’s has also decided to increase the daily wage to nearly $15 per hour.</p>

<p>While all benefits sound good, it remains to be seen whether the workforce will be attracted back or not by these promises. Several surveys have revealed that workers are scared to re-enter the hospitality sector due to excessive hours, immense workload, unemployment benefits, and increased healthcare risks.</p>


Fast-food chain giant McDonald’s was one of the biggest corporations in the hospitality sector that laid off employees during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic.

Fast-food chain giant McDonald’s was one of the biggest corporations in the hospitality sector that laid off employees during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic. However, the company is now struggling to lure employees back. A lot of the McDonald’s outlets are owned by franchises that had to lay off staff to stop the outlets from closing down permanently. When the pandemic hit and employees were laid off to save costs, the outlets didn’t think it would be this difficult to call back the workforce. Also read | 'We all quit': Burger King employees quit at same time by putting a public sign Now, to lure employees back, some of these franchises have started offering benefits to workers, with some help from the brand. ‘Employee Value Proposition’, the new plan, aims at providing a more employee-friendly workspace. Under this plan, employees who are called in for work at the last minute will be provided with the facility of emergency child care service. Also read | Friend in need: Burger King urges customers to order from McDonald's The franchises are now aiming to provide free meals to employees on shift. They will also help with education costs for those hoping to complete their high school degree and higher education. In addition to this, McDonald’s has also decided to increase the daily wage to nearly $15 per hour. While all benefits sound good, it remains to be seen whether the workforce will be attracted back or not by these promises. Several surveys have revealed that workers are scared to re-enter the hospitality sector due to excessive hours, immense workload, unemployment benefits, and increased healthcare risks.

McDonald's to help in child care, education costs and better wage to lure employees back

<p>An employee opened fire on Wednesday at a California rail yard serving Silicon Valley, killing eight people. The gunman was also dead, authorities said.</p>

<p>The suspect was an employee of the Valley Transportation Authority, which provides bus, light rail and other transit services throughout Santa Clara County, the largest county in the Bay Area, Santa Clara County sheriff’s authorities said.</p>

<p>Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith said it was “undetermined” how the shooter died.</p>

<p>The attacker was identified as Sam Cassidy, according to two law enforcement officials.</p>

<p>The shooting took place around 6:30 a.m. at a light rail facility in San Jose next door to the sheriff’s department and across a freeway from the airport. The facility is a transit control centre that stores trains and has a maintenance yard.</p>

<p>Sheriff's spokesman Deputy Russell Davis said the attack resulted in “multiple major injuries.” He did not know the type of weapon used or whether the gunfire happened indoors or outdoors. He said the victims included VTA employees. Authorities did not release any of the victims' names.</p>

<p>“These folks were heroes during COVID 19, the buses never stopped running, VTA didn’t stop running. They just kept at work, and now we’re calling on them to be heroes a second time to survive such a terrible, tragedy,” Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chavez.</p>

<p>Police vehicles and orange crime-scene tape blocked off the area where the shooting happened, and reporters were kept at a distance The rail yard is in the city’s administrative neighbourhood, near the sheriff's office and city and county offices.</p>

<p>Bomb squads were searching the rail complex after receiving information about possible explosive devices inside the building, Davis said.</p>

<p>VTA trains were already out on morning runs when the shooting occurred. Light rail service was to be suspended at noon and replaced with bus bridges, agency Chairman Glenn Hendricks told a news conference.</p>

<p>“It’s just very difficult for everyone to be able to try to wrap their heads around and understand what has happened,” Hendricks said.</p>

<p>Two patients were transported to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, according to spokesperson Joy Alexiou. One person was pronounced dead upon arrival, and the other was in critical condition.</p>

<p>Outside the scene, Michael Hawkins told The Mercury News that he was waiting for his mother, Rochelle Hawkins, who had called him from a co-worker’s phone to assure him that she was safe.</p>

<p>When the shooting started, “she got down with the rest of her coworkers” and dropped her cellphone, Michael Hawkins told the newspaper. Rochelle Hawkins did not see the shooter, and she was not sure how close she had been to the attacker, her son said.</p>

<p>The attack was the county’s second shooting in less than two years. A gunman killed three people before killing himself at a popular garlic festival in Gilroy in July 2019.</p>

<p>At a news conference, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo lamented the “horrific day for our city.” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a tweet that his office was “in close contact with local law enforcement and monitoring this situation closely.”</p>

<p>Agents from the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were responding to the crime scene, officials said.</p>


An employee opened fire on Wednesday at a California rail yard serving Silicon Valley, killing eight people. The gunman was also dead, authorities said. The suspect was an employee of the Valley Transportation Authority, which provides bus, light rail and other transit services throughout Santa Clara County, the largest county in the Bay Area, Santa Clara County sheriff’s authorities said.

An employee opened fire on Wednesday at a California rail yard serving Silicon Valley, killing eight people. The gunman was also dead, authorities said. The suspect was an employee of the Valley Transportation Authority, which provides bus, light rail and other transit services throughout Santa Clara County, the largest county in the Bay Area, Santa Clara County sheriff’s authorities said. Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith said it was “undetermined” how the shooter died. The attacker was identified as Sam Cassidy, according to two law enforcement officials. The shooting took place around 6:30 a.m. at a light rail facility in San Jose next door to the sheriff’s department and across a freeway from the airport. The facility is a transit control centre that stores trains and has a maintenance yard. Sheriff's spokesman Deputy Russell Davis said the attack resulted in “multiple major injuries.” He did not know the type of weapon used or whether the gunfire happened indoors or outdoors. He said the victims included VTA employees. Authorities did not release any of the victims' names. “These folks were heroes during COVID 19, the buses never stopped running, VTA didn’t stop running. They just kept at work, and now we’re calling on them to be heroes a second time to survive such a terrible, tragedy,” Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chavez. Police vehicles and orange crime-scene tape blocked off the area where the shooting happened, and reporters were kept at a distance The rail yard is in the city’s administrative neighbourhood, near the sheriff's office and city and county offices. Bomb squads were searching the rail complex after receiving information about possible explosive devices inside the building, Davis said. VTA trains were already out on morning runs when the shooting occurred. Light rail service was to be suspended at noon and replaced with bus bridges, agency Chairman Glenn Hendricks told a news conference. “It’s just very difficult for everyone to be able to try to wrap their heads around and understand what has happened,” Hendricks said. Two patients were transported to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, according to spokesperson Joy Alexiou. One person was pronounced dead upon arrival, and the other was in critical condition. Outside the scene, Michael Hawkins told The Mercury News that he was waiting for his mother, Rochelle Hawkins, who had called him from a co-worker’s phone to assure him that she was safe. When the shooting started, “she got down with the rest of her coworkers” and dropped her cellphone, Michael Hawkins told the newspaper. Rochelle Hawkins did not see the shooter, and she was not sure how close she had been to the attacker, her son said. The attack was the county’s second shooting in less than two years. A gunman killed three people before killing himself at a popular garlic festival in Gilroy in July 2019. At a news conference, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo lamented the “horrific day for our city.” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a tweet that his office was “in close contact with local law enforcement and monitoring this situation closely.” Agents from the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were responding to the crime scene, officials said.

California rail yard shooting: Employee opens fire, kills eight, suspect dead

<p>Bill Gates left the Microsoft board in 2020 as the board pursued an investigation into the billionaire's romantic relationship with a female employee, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.</p>

<p>The founder and former head of the US technology giant stepped down as board chair in March 2020.</p>

<p>"Microsoft Corp. board members decided that Bill Gates needed to step down from its board in 2020 as they pursued an investigation into the billionaire's prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate," the Journal reported, citing people close to the matter.</p>

<p>This was "an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably," a spokeswoman for Gates told the Journal.</p>

<p>According to the spokeswoman, Gates left Microsoft to focus more on his philanthropic organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.</p>

<p>Gates and his wife Melinda, who co-founded their charity two decades ago to battle global poverty and disease, announced their divorce on May 3 after 27 years of marriage.</p>

<p>A spokesperson for Microsoft told AFP that the company was alerted in the second half of 2019 that "Bill Gates sought to initiate an intimate relationship with a company employee in the year 2000. A committee of the Board reviewed the concern, aided by an outside law firm, to conduct a thorough investigation."</p>

<p>The employee, an engineer, claimed in a letter to have had a sexual relationship with Gates "over years," the Journal reported.</p>

<p>According to the Journal, some board members also asked about links between Gates and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for allegedly trafficking minors.</p>

<p>Gates's team assured the board the Microsoft founder had met Epstein for "philanthropic reasons" and "regretted doing so," the Journal said.</p>

<p>Gates, who founded Microsoft in 1975, stepped down as the company's CEO in 2000, saying he wanted to focus on his foundation.</p>

<p>He left his full-time role at Microsoft in 2008.</p>

<p>His seat as a board director, which he left in March 2020, was the last position that officially linked him to the company.</p>


Bill Gates left the Microsoft board in 2020 as the board pursued an investigation into the billionaire's romantic relationship with a female employee, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.

Bill Gates left the Microsoft board in 2020 as the board pursued an investigation into the billionaire's romantic relationship with a female employee, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. The founder and former head of the US technology giant stepped down as board chair in March 2020. "Microsoft Corp. board members decided that Bill Gates needed to step down from its board in 2020 as they pursued an investigation into the billionaire's prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate," the Journal reported, citing people close to the matter. This was "an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably," a spokeswoman for Gates told the Journal. According to the spokeswoman, Gates left Microsoft to focus more on his philanthropic organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates and his wife Melinda, who co-founded their charity two decades ago to battle global poverty and disease, announced their divorce on May 3 after 27 years of marriage. A spokesperson for Microsoft told AFP that the company was alerted in the second half of 2019 that "Bill Gates sought to initiate an intimate relationship with a company employee in the year 2000. A committee of the Board reviewed the concern, aided by an outside law firm, to conduct a thorough investigation." The employee, an engineer, claimed in a letter to have had a sexual relationship with Gates "over years," the Journal reported. According to the Journal, some board members also asked about links between Gates and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for allegedly trafficking minors. Gates's team assured the board the Microsoft founder had met Epstein for "philanthropic reasons" and "regretted doing so," the Journal said. Gates, who founded Microsoft in 1975, stepped down as the company's CEO in 2000, saying he wanted to focus on his foundation. He left his full-time role at Microsoft in 2008. His seat as a board director, which he left in March 2020, was the last position that officially linked him to the company.

Bill Gates left Microsoft board amid probe into relationship with an employee: Report

Who is an employee? Uber says its drivers aren't employees, they are self-employed. Drivers disagree. Does this categorisation matter? WION's Palki Sharma tells you why it does.

Gravitas: Who is an employee?

<p>California regulators sued Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO.O) on Tuesday, accusing it of discriminating against an Indian-American employee and allowing him to be harassed by two managers because he was from a lower Indian caste than them.</p>

<p>US employment law does not specifically bar caste-based discrimination, but California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing contends in the lawsuit that the Hindu faith’s lingering caste system is based on protected classes such as religion.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/nepalese-govt-forms-high-level-committee-to-investigate-dalit-killings-over-arranged-marriage-dispute-305934"><strong>Also read:&nbsp;Nepalese govt forms high-level committee to investigate Dalit killings over arranged marriage dispute</strong></a></p>

<p>The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Jose, does not name the alleged victim. It states he has been a principal engineer at Cisco’s San Jose headquarters since October 2015 and that he was born at the bottom of caste hierarchy as a Dalit, once called “untouchables.”</p>

<p>Like other large Silicon Valley employers, Cisco’s workforce includes thousands of Indian immigrants, most of whom were born Brahmins or other high castes.</p>

<p>Former Cisco engineering managers Sundar Iyer and Ramana Kompella also are defendants in the lawsuit, which accuses them of harassment for internally enforcing the caste hierarchy.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/yuvraj-singh-issues-statement-after-alleged-casteist-remark-on-yuvzendra-chahal-303644"><strong>Also read:&nbsp;Yuvraj Singh issues statement after alleged casteist remark on Yuvzendra Chahal</strong></a></p>

<p>\Cisco spokeswoman Robyn Blum said the network gear maker followed its process to investigate employee concerns in this case and would “vigorously defend itself” against the lawsuit.</p>

<p>“Cisco is committed to an inclusive workplace for all,” she said. “We were fully in compliance with all laws as well as our own policies.”</p>

<p>Iyer and Kompella did not immediately respond to requests for comment. It was not immediately known if the two have retained attorneys.</p>

<p>The civil rights group Equality Labs in a 2018 report cited in the lawsuit found that 67% of Dalits surveyed felt treated unfairly at their US workplaces.</p>

<p>At Cisco, the unnamed employee reported Iyer to human resources in November 2016 for outing him as a Dalit to colleagues. Iyer allegedly retaliated, but Cisco determined caste discrimination was not illegal and issues continued through 2018, the lawsuit states.</p>

<p>Cisco reassigned and isolated the employee, rejected a raise and opportunities that would have led to one and denied two promotions, according to the lawsuit.</p>

<p>Hindus traditionally grouped people into four major castes based on ancestry, and Dalits in India still struggle with access to education and jobs 65 years after India banned caste-based discrimination.</p>


California regulators sued Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO.O) on Tuesday, accusing it of discriminating against an Indian-American employee and allowing him to be harassed by two managers because he was from a lower Indian caste than them.

California regulators sued Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO.O) on Tuesday, accusing it of discriminating against an Indian-American employee and allowing him to be harassed by two managers because he was from a lower Indian caste than them. US employment law does not specifically bar caste-based discrimination, but California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing contends in the lawsuit that the Hindu faith’s lingering caste system is based on protected classes such as religion. Also read: Nepalese govt forms high-level committee to investigate Dalit killings over arranged marriage dispute The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Jose, does not name the alleged victim. It states he has been a principal engineer at Cisco’s San Jose headquarters since October 2015 and that he was born at the bottom of caste hierarchy as a Dalit, once called “untouchables.” Like other large Silicon Valley employers, Cisco’s workforce includes thousands of Indian immigrants, most of whom were born Brahmins or other high castes. Former Cisco engineering managers Sundar Iyer and Ramana Kompella also are defendants in the lawsuit, which accuses them of harassment for internally enforcing the caste hierarchy. Also read: Yuvraj Singh issues statement after alleged casteist remark on Yuvzendra Chahal \Cisco spokeswoman Robyn Blum said the network gear maker followed its process to investigate employee concerns in this case and would “vigorously defend itself” against the lawsuit. “Cisco is committed to an inclusive workplace for all,” she said. “We were fully in compliance with all laws as well as our own policies.” Iyer and Kompella did not immediately respond to requests for comment. It was not immediately known if the two have retained attorneys. The civil rights group Equality Labs in a 2018 report cited in the lawsuit found that 67% of Dalits surveyed felt treated unfairly at their US workplaces. At Cisco, the unnamed employee reported Iyer to human resources in November 2016 for outing him as a Dalit to colleagues. Iyer allegedly retaliated, but Cisco determined caste discrimination was not illegal and issues continued through 2018, the lawsuit states. Cisco reassigned and isolated the employee, rejected a raise and opportunities that would have led to one and denied two promotions, according to the lawsuit. Hindus traditionally grouped people into four major castes based on ancestry, and Dalits in India still struggle with access to education and jobs 65 years after India banned caste-based discrimination.

California accuses Cisco of job discrimination based on Indian employee's caste

<p>The Supreme Court, while hearing a batch of petitions challenging the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) notification on payment of wages, observed that some negotiations have to happen between employers and workers to iron out what has to be done for the salary for these 54 days.</p>

<p>The Centre told the Apex Court that the payment of wages to workers during this lockdown period is a matter between employers and employees. It further said that it would not interfere. In contrast, the Centre had directed payment of full wages during the lockdown.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/supreme-court-rejects-plea-to-change-indias-name-to-bharat-302982"><strong>Also read:&nbsp;Supreme Court rejects plea to change India's name to 'Bharat'</strong></a></p>

<p>A bench of the Apex Court, headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan, and also comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M R Shah was hearing a batch of petitions seeking a direction to pay wages to the employees during this lockdown period.</p>

<p>Justice Kaul said: "On one hand you (Centre) are trying to put money in the pocket of worker. So now some negotiation is required for a solution."&nbsp;</p>


The Supreme Court, while hearing a batch of petitions challenging the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) notification on payment of wages, observed that some negotiations have to happen between employers and workers to iron out what has to be done for the salary for these 54 days.

The Supreme Court, while hearing a batch of petitions challenging the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) notification on payment of wages, observed that some negotiations have to happen between employers and workers to iron out what has to be done for the salary for these 54 days. The Centre told the Apex Court that the payment of wages to workers during this lockdown period is a matter between employers and employees. It further said that it would not interfere. In contrast, the Centre had directed payment of full wages during the lockdown. Also read: Supreme Court rejects plea to change India's name to 'Bharat' A bench of the Apex Court, headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan, and also comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M R Shah was hearing a batch of petitions seeking a direction to pay wages to the employees during this lockdown period. Justice Kaul said: "On one hand you (Centre) are trying to put money in the pocket of worker. So now some negotiation is required for a solution."

Employers and employees to negotiate themselves for wages during lockdown: SC

<p>A recent survey suggested that 8.6 million people claimed sick days last year because they thought their jobs were ''too painful'', &nbsp;the BBC reported.</p>

<p>February 3 is considered National Sickie Day, whereby most people are likely to call in sick.&nbsp;</p>

<p>According to research, the numbers may be owing to work culture, colleagues, and workload.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The report also added that about 12 million workers went to work while sick.</p>

<p>An international technology company called ''Insight'' undertook the research and warned of ''serious issues within organisations' culture'', while endorsing flexible hours for working.</p>

<p>The survey took into account 1,250 adults done over a week in January.</p>

<p>The survey intends to reflect a picture of the working population, which currently stands at 33 million.&nbsp;</p>

<p>"Employers have a duty of care to their employees to look after their safety and wellbeing, and this includes their physical and mental health," said Tom Neil, Acas Senior Adviser to the BBC.</p>

<h6><img alt="ppp" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="635bd7a0-8319-4a5b-b55d-d9d367fc978b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Untitled%20design_62.jpg" /><br />
<em>People taking precaution in New York City in the midst of a coronavirus outbreak | AFP</em></h6>

<p>"For people to be able to be honest about how they feel at work, good work practices including having an inclusive culture and effective people management are key", Neil added.</p>

<p>According to the survey data, a quarter of respondents had taken an off day last year owing to workspace dissatisfaction.</p>

<p>Many felt overworked and claimed that bureaucratic roadblocks made effective work difficult.</p>

<p>Almost 37 per cent&nbsp;respondents had gone to work even on a sick day. This can be attributed to many being unable to afford unpaid sick leave. A big chunk also claimed that they feared being judged by their employer.</p>

<p>About a fifth of the responders, reflective of 6.5 million people, stressed on the need to allow working from home on sick days.&nbsp;</p>

<p>An estimated 215,000 people called in sick on the first Monday of February last year, a common phenomenon yearly, as more people call sick on this day than any other.</p>

<p>However, this was disputed by an employment law firm Elas. According to them, the top ten days for absence all fell on a Monday, with September 16 witnessing most sick call-ins.</p>

<h6><img alt="pp" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d7550577-e96f-43ba-a690-48b303abf7fb" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%282%29_51.jpg" /><br />
<em>Masks are seen on a production line manufacturing masks at a factory in Shanghai, China | AFP</em></h6>

<p>As BBC reported, stomach trouble accounted for the majority of cases (24 per cent), followed by cold and cough (16 per cent), with people skipping work owing to a headache at 7 per cent.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As per the data of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the number of sick days for an average employee dropped to 5.9 last year, lowest in the institute's 19-year-old history of conducting surveys.</p>

<p>Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/death-toll-in-coronavirus-rises-to-361-as-man-dies-in-philippines-278197">Death toll in coronavirus rises to 361 as man dies in Philippines</a></p>


A recent survey suggested that 8.6 million people claimed sick days last year because they thought their jobs were ''too painful'', the BBC reported. February 3 is considered National Sickie Day, whereby most people are likely to call in sick.

A recent survey suggested that 8.6 million people claimed sick days last year because they thought their jobs were ''too painful'', the BBC reported. February 3 is considered National Sickie Day, whereby most people are likely to call in sick. According to research, the numbers may be owing to work culture, colleagues, and workload. The report also added that about 12 million workers went to work while sick. An international technology company called ''Insight'' undertook the research and warned of ''serious issues within organisations' culture'', while endorsing flexible hours for working. The survey took into account 1,250 adults done over a week in January. The survey intends to reflect a picture of the working population, which currently stands at 33 million. "Employers have a duty of care to their employees to look after their safety and wellbeing, and this includes their physical and mental health," said Tom Neil, Acas Senior Adviser to the BBC. People taking precaution in New York City in the midst of a coronavirus outbreak | AFP "For people to be able to be honest about how they feel at work, good work practices including having an inclusive culture and effective people management are key", Neil added. According to the survey data, a quarter of respondents had taken an off day last year owing to workspace dissatisfaction. Many felt overworked and claimed that bureaucratic roadblocks made effective work difficult. Almost 37 per cent respondents had gone to work even on a sick day. This can be attributed to many being unable to afford unpaid sick leave. A big chunk also claimed that they feared being judged by their employer. About a fifth of the responders, reflective of 6.5 million people, stressed on the need to allow working from home on sick days. An estimated 215,000 people called in sick on the first Monday of February last year, a common phenomenon yearly, as more people call sick on this day than any other. However, this was disputed by an employment law firm Elas. According to them, the top ten days for absence all fell on a Monday, with September 16 witnessing most sick call-ins. Masks are seen on a production line manufacturing masks at a factory in Shanghai, China | AFP As BBC reported, stomach trouble accounted for the majority of cases (24 per cent), followed by cold and cough (16 per cent), with people skipping work owing to a headache at 7 per cent. As per the data of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the number of sick days for an average employee dropped to 5.9 last year, lowest in the institute's 19-year-old history of conducting surveys. Also read: Death toll in coronavirus rises to 361 as man dies in Philippines

Today is National Sickie Day: 8.6 million claimed sick days last year due to 'painful' jobs

<p>Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday allayed the concerns of job losses in the wake of the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/finance-minister-nirmala-sitharaman-announces-4-state-run-banks-mergers-246642">merger of public banks</a>.</p>

<p>"Absolutely ill-informed. I want to assure every union in each one of these banks to recall what I said last Friday. When we spoke about the amalgamation of banks, each time I have very clearly underlined the fact that not even one employee shall be removed," she said while addressing media persons here.</p>

<p>"We are not looking at any employee being removed. I am reiterating that. Therefore, they need not have any concern on this issue," said the Finance Minister, adding that there is no closure of any bank. "No bank is being asked to do something different from what they were doing earlier," she added.</p>

<p>On Friday, the Central government announced the merger of 10 public sector banks (PSBs) into four strong lenders with countrywide networks and global reach to boost credit and revive economic growth in the nation's bid to become a five trillion dollar economy in the next five years.</p>

<p>After this, the total number of PSBs will come down to 12 from 24 banks, Finance Minister Sitharaman had said. Apart from this, the government had also announced Rs 55,250 crore upfront as capital infusion in the PSBs.</p>

<p>Talking about the economy, which reported a sluggish growth of 5 per cent in the last quarter of the current financial year, Sitharaman said that her government was prepared to respond to the industry's "needs and suggestions."</p>

<p>When asked if the government acknowledges there is a slowdown in the economy, she said: "I am meeting industries and taking their inputs, suggestions on what they want and expect from government. I am responding to them. I have already done this twice. I will do it more number of times so that every industry which has approached me, I will respond."</p>

<p>"Across the board there is no one particular answer that I can give, saying this is the magic wand. Sectorally, what they want, we are responding.</p>

<p>Agriculture, for instance, after this monsoon hopefully, overall we feel that monsoon will meet the basic requirement of agriculture. Even for the farming sector, we have consultations going on. I am sure we will able to respond to them also," she said.</p>

<p>She said that the government is in consultation with sectors which wanted to speak to us about various measures they expect. "Having heard them and having spent some time on how we can respond, the first tranche of announcements were made on August 23. Last Friday, I made another set of announcements. The process of consultations is over. We have worked on how we can respond," she said.</p>

<p>The Finance Minister said the issues of each sector vary. "Automobile (sector) has an issue. Agriculture has a different issue. So each sector has a sectoral requirement, which we want to respond," she said.</p>

<p>Earlier in the day, former Prime Minister hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi led BJP government at the Centre, alleging that its "all-round mismanagement" is responsible for the "worrisome" state of the economy.</p>

<p>"The state of the economy today is deeply worrying. The last quarter's GDP growth rate of 5 per cent signals that we are in the midst of a prolonged slowdown. India has the potential to grow at a much faster rate but all-round mismanagement by the Modi government has resulted in this slowdown," said Singh in a statement.</p>

<p>"Our youth, farmers and farmworkers, entrepreneurs and the marginalised sections deserve better. India cannot afford to continue down this path. Therefore, I urge the government to put aside vendetta politics, and reach out to all sane voices and thinking minds, to steer our economy out of this man-made crisis," Singh added.</p>


Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday allayed the concerns of job losses in the wake of the merger of public banks. "Absolutely ill-informed. I want to assure every union in each one of these banks to recall what I said last Friday.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday allayed the concerns of job losses in the wake of the merger of public banks. "Absolutely ill-informed. I want to assure every union in each one of these banks to recall what I said last Friday. When we spoke about the amalgamation of banks, each time I have very clearly underlined the fact that not even one employee shall be removed," she said while addressing media persons here. "We are not looking at any employee being removed. I am reiterating that. Therefore, they need not have any concern on this issue," said the Finance Minister, adding that there is no closure of any bank. "No bank is being asked to do something different from what they were doing earlier," she added. On Friday, the Central government announced the merger of 10 public sector banks (PSBs) into four strong lenders with countrywide networks and global reach to boost credit and revive economic growth in the nation's bid to become a five trillion dollar economy in the next five years. After this, the total number of PSBs will come down to 12 from 24 banks, Finance Minister Sitharaman had said. Apart from this, the government had also announced Rs 55,250 crore upfront as capital infusion in the PSBs. Talking about the economy, which reported a sluggish growth of 5 per cent in the last quarter of the current financial year, Sitharaman said that her government was prepared to respond to the industry's "needs and suggestions." When asked if the government acknowledges there is a slowdown in the economy, she said: "I am meeting industries and taking their inputs, suggestions on what they want and expect from government. I am responding to them. I have already done this twice. I will do it more number of times so that every industry which has approached me, I will respond." "Across the board there is no one particular answer that I can give, saying this is the magic wand. Sectorally, what they want, we are responding. Agriculture, for instance, after this monsoon hopefully, overall we feel that monsoon will meet the basic requirement of agriculture. Even for the farming sector, we have consultations going on. I am sure we will able to respond to them also," she said. She said that the government is in consultation with sectors which wanted to speak to us about various measures they expect. "Having heard them and having spent some time on how we can respond, the first tranche of announcements were made on August 23. Last Friday, I made another set of announcements. The process of consultations is over. We have worked on how we can respond," she said. The Finance Minister said the issues of each sector vary. "Automobile (sector) has an issue. Agriculture has a different issue. So each sector has a sectoral requirement, which we want to respond," she said. Earlier in the day, former Prime Minister hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi led BJP government at the Centre, alleging that its "all-round mismanagement" is responsible for the "worrisome" state of the economy. "The state of the economy today is deeply worrying. The last quarter's GDP growth rate of 5 per cent signals that we are in the midst of a prolonged slowdown. India has the potential to grow at a much faster rate but all-round mismanagement by the Modi government has resulted in this slowdown," said Singh in a statement. "Our youth, farmers and farmworkers, entrepreneurs and the marginalised sections deserve better. India cannot afford to continue down this path. Therefore, I urge the government to put aside vendetta politics, and reach out to all sane voices and thinking minds, to steer our economy out of this man-made crisis," Singh added.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman allays concerns of job losses over merger of public sector banks

<p>An Italian intelligence agency's employee has been found dead near his hotel in Paris, sources said on Tuesday.</p>

<p>His body was discovered was on Sunday night in the northern 18th district of Paris, not far from the hotel he had been staying in since May 3.</p>

<p>The investigators have ruled out any foul play, for now, The Paris prosecutor's office has opened an inquiry into the matter.</p>

<p>"We're talking about a classic search for the cause of death," a source close to the inquiry said.</p>

<p>The 50-year-old man has been identified as a "high-ranking civil servant in Italian intelligence," one source told AFP.</p>

<p>He was found in a pool of vomit, and had a gaping wound on his chin, possibly suffered during a fall, according to investigators.</p>


An Italian intelligence agency's employee has been found dead near his hotel in Paris, sources said on Tuesday. His body was discovered was on Sunday night in the northern 18th district of Paris, not far from the hotel he had been staying in since May 3.

An Italian intelligence agency's employee has been found dead near his hotel in Paris, sources said on Tuesday. His body was discovered was on Sunday night in the northern 18th district of Paris, not far from the hotel he had been staying in since May 3. The investigators have ruled out any foul play, for now, The Paris prosecutor's office has opened an inquiry into the matter. "We're talking about a classic search for the cause of death," a source close to the inquiry said. The 50-year-old man has been identified as a "high-ranking civil servant in Italian intelligence," one source told AFP. He was found in a pool of vomit, and had a gaping wound on his chin, possibly suffered during a fall, according to investigators.

Italian intelligence employee found dead in Paris

<p>IT services firm Wipro said on Tuesday some of its employee accounts may have been hacked due to an advanced phishing campaign and that the company had launched an investigation to contain any potential impact.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Bengaluru-based company was responding to a Reuters query after cybersecurity blog KrebsOnSecurity said Wipro's systems had been breached and were being used to launch attacks against some of its clients.</p>

<p>KrebsOnSecurity, citing anonymous sources, said Wipro's systems were being used to target at least a dozen customer systems.</p>

<p>"We detected a potentially abnormal activity in a few employee accounts on our network due to an advanced phishing campaign," Wipro said in an emailed statement.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The company also said it had retained an independent forensic firm to assist in the investigation</p>

<p>Wipro did not say which clients, if any, had been compromised. Wipro is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results later in the day.</p>

<p>Larger rivals Tata Consultancy Services Ltd and Infosys Ltd kicked off the corporate results season on Friday, saying they expect continued strong growth in the new financial year after posting strong fourth-quarter numbers.</p>


IT services firm Wipro said on Tuesday some of its employee accounts may have been hacked due to an advanced phishing campaign and that the company had launched an investigation to contain any potential impact.

IT services firm Wipro said on Tuesday some of its employee accounts may have been hacked due to an advanced phishing campaign and that the company had launched an investigation to contain any potential impact. The Bengaluru-based company was responding to a Reuters query after cybersecurity blog KrebsOnSecurity said Wipro's systems had been breached and were being used to launch attacks against some of its clients. KrebsOnSecurity, citing anonymous sources, said Wipro's systems were being used to target at least a dozen customer systems. "We detected a potentially abnormal activity in a few employee accounts on our network due to an advanced phishing campaign," Wipro said in an emailed statement. The company also said it had retained an independent forensic firm to assist in the investigation Wipro did not say which clients, if any, had been compromised. Wipro is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results later in the day. Larger rivals Tata Consultancy Services Ltd and Infosys Ltd kicked off the corporate results season on Friday, saying they expect continued strong growth in the new financial year after posting strong fourth-quarter numbers.

Wipro investigating potential breach of employee accounts

<p>Employees of Indian company Infrastructure Leasing &amp; Financial Services (IL&amp;FS) taken hostage by local staff in Ethiopia fear for their safety, with some being confined to a company campus north of the African nation's capital Addis Ababa.</p>

<p>India has asked Ethiopian authorities to investigate and help the seven IL&amp;FS employees who say they are being held by local staff due to non-payment of salaries by the debt-laden firm, an Indian government official said on Saturday.</p>

<p>A group of four employees has not been allowed to leave an IL&amp;FS campus in Bure town, 400 km (250 miles) north from Addis Ababa, since November 24, said store manager Nagaraju Bishnu, one of the employees held hostage.</p>

<p>Two other IL&amp;FS employees were held hostage by local staff in the town of Woliso and one in Nekemte town, both of which are west of the Ethiopian capital, Bishnu said on telephone.</p>

<p>"The main gate is locked, they are observing our movement," said 26-year-old Bishnu, speaking of the situation at Bure.</p>

<p>"They've told us until they get their salaries, we can't move from here ... We are facing sleepless nights."</p>

<p>The Indian government took control of IL&amp;FS in October after it defaulted on some of its debt, triggering wider concerns about the risk to the country's financial system.</p>

<p>The infrastructure financing and development company had over the years developed roads, townships and water-treatment projects in India and abroad.</p>

<p>An official at India's foreign ministry said the government was discussing the matter "on priority" with Ethiopian authorities and the management of IL&amp;FS.</p>

<p>"We are doing our best to ensure a settlement of this matter," said the official, who declined to be identified.</p>

<p>An IL&amp;FS spokesman in India, Sharad Goel, declined to comment. Ethiopian government officials in Addis Ababa could not be reached for comment.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SOS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SOS</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/rashtrapatibhvn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@rashtrapatibhvn</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/GRamnathkovind?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GRamnathkovind</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/narendramodi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@narendramodi</a> Sir we seven people are hostage by locals in Ethiopia, due to non payments of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ILFS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ILFS</a> What is employee's fault sir.even we didn't get salary from last 5 months all worked in Ethiopia for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ILFS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ILFS</a> help please b4 it's 2late <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sos?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#sos</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Help?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Help</a></p>
— neeraj raghuwanshi (@chota86) <a href="https://twitter.com/chota86/status/1068198818842324998?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p><strong>LOW ON WATER SUPPLIES</strong></p>

<p>With the ordeal widely reported by media, Bishnu said he feared the local staff would take away their mobile phones or cut online access to restrict them from talking to colleagues or communicating via e-mails and social media.</p>

<p>For now, Bishnu said, he has been speaking with the IL&amp;FS employees held hostage in different areas, and the movement of employees within the camp has not been restricted.</p>

<p>The employees are cooking their own food, eating potatoes and rice, although drinking water supplies are running low.</p>

<p>"After tomorrow, there will be no drinking water," he said.</p>

<p>Some of the seven employees being held have been posting messages on social media website Twitter, asking Indian politicians including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the foreign minister to intervene.</p>

<p>Neeraj Raghuwanshi, who said he was one of the seven, late on Friday wrote an "SOS" message on Twitter saying: "Situations are beyond our control, please #help before mishappening."</p>


Employees of Indian company Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) taken hostage by local staff in Ethiopia fear for their safety, with some being confined to a company campus north of the African nation's capital Addis Ababa.

Employees of Indian company Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) taken hostage by local staff in Ethiopia fear for their safety, with some being confined to a company campus north of the African nation's capital Addis Ababa. India has asked Ethiopian authorities to investigate and help the seven IL&FS employees who say they are being held by local staff due to non-payment of salaries by the debt-laden firm, an Indian government official said on Saturday. A group of four employees has not been allowed to leave an IL&FS campus in Bure town, 400 km (250 miles) north from Addis Ababa, since November 24, said store manager Nagaraju Bishnu, one of the employees held hostage. Two other IL&FS employees were held hostage by local staff in the town of Woliso and one in Nekemte town, both of which are west of the Ethiopian capital, Bishnu said on telephone. "The main gate is locked, they are observing our movement," said 26-year-old Bishnu, speaking of the situation at Bure. "They've told us until they get their salaries, we can't move from here ... We are facing sleepless nights." The Indian government took control of IL&FS in October after it defaulted on some of its debt, triggering wider concerns about the risk to the country's financial system. The infrastructure financing and development company had over the years developed roads, townships and water-treatment projects in India and abroad. An official at India's foreign ministry said the government was discussing the matter "on priority" with Ethiopian authorities and the management of IL&FS. "We are doing our best to ensure a settlement of this matter," said the official, who declined to be identified. An IL&FS spokesman in India, Sharad Goel, declined to comment. Ethiopian government officials in Addis Ababa could not be reached for comment. #SOS @rashtrapatibhvn @GRamnathkovind @narendramodi Sir we seven people are hostage by locals in Ethiopia, due to non payments of #ILFS What is employee's fault sir.even we didn't get salary from last 5 months all worked in Ethiopia for #ILFS help please b4 it's 2late #sos #Help — neeraj raghuwanshi (@chota86) November 29, 2018 × LOW ON WATER SUPPLIES With the ordeal widely reported by media, Bishnu said he feared the local staff would take away their mobile phones or cut online access to restrict them from talking to colleagues or communicating via e-mails and social media. For now, Bishnu said, he has been speaking with the IL&FS employees held hostage in different areas, and the movement of employees within the camp has not been restricted. The employees are cooking their own food, eating potatoes and rice, although drinking water supplies are running low. "After tomorrow, there will be no drinking water," he said. Some of the seven employees being held have been posting messages on social media website Twitter, asking Indian politicians including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the foreign minister to intervene. Neeraj Raghuwanshi, who said he was one of the seven, late on Friday wrote an "SOS" message on Twitter saying: "Situations are beyond our control, please #help before mishappening."

Seven Indian IL&FS employees held hostage by local staff in Ethiopia

<p>Alphabet Inc's Google will not renew a contract to help the US military analyse aerial drone imagery when it expires in March, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday, as the company moves to defuse the internal uproar over the deal.</p>

<p>The defence program, called Project Maven, set off a revolt inside Google, as factions of employees opposed Google technology being used in warfare. The dissidents said it clashed with the company`s stated principle of doing no harm and cited risks around using a nascent artificial intelligence technology in lethal situations.</p>

<p>Google plans to honour what is left of its contract on Project Maven, the person said. More than 4,600 employees signed a petition calling for Google to cancel the deal, with at least 13 employees resigning in recent weeks in protest at Google`s involvement, according to a second person familiar with the deal.</p>

<p>Through Project Maven, Google provides artificial intelligence technology to the Pentagon to help humans detect and identify targets captured by drone images. Company executives have defended the contract, saying its cloud computing and data analysis tools were being used for non-offensive tasks and would help save lives.</p>

<p>Tech publication Gizmodo first reported that Google Cloud Chief Executive Diane Greene told employees on Friday Google`s role in the program would end.</p>

<p>A source confirmed that, but Google declined to comment.</p>

<p>"I am incredibly happy about this decision and have a deep respect for the many people who worked and risked to make it happen. Google should not be in the business of war," Meredith Whittaker, a research scientist affiliated with Google and New York University, wrote on Twitter.</p>

<p>More than 700 Google employees had joined an online group inside the company called Maven Conscientious Objectors, using it to vent their concerns about the project and discuss ways of protesting against it.</p>

<p>Some employees planned to hold a public rally in San Francisco in July, coinciding with a Google conference, according to one source. Company officials have told employees in recent months that the deal was seen as a gateway to further, more lucrative government work, the source said.</p>

<p>As Google ventures into new territory, a group of nine people are working on a set of ethical guidelines for any future military contracts. The guidelines will be released, "very, very soon," Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said in a recording of a staff meeting last week reviewed by Reuters.</p>

<p>Maven had an initial budget of $70 million. Google has told employees it was getting less than $10 million for its work on the program, according to one source who requested anonymity because the information has not been made public.</p>

<p>Selling cloud computing services, including the object detection tool being used with drone footage, is one of the top areas Google is counting on to diversify revenue. But Amazon.com Inc and Microsoft Corp have won far more cloud business.</p>

<p>Google in August 2017 hosted defence executives to demonstrate its artificial intelligence capabilities, according to a document shared with Google employees and seen by Reuters.</p>

<p>An internal email sent in October 2017 entitled "MAVEN Kickoff Meeting Notes" quoted Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan as saying during a meeting with Google in Mountain View, California, that he wanted "a built-in AI capability" in all future Department of Defense systems deployed in the field.</p>

<p>The email was shared with the Maven Conscientious Objectors and Reuters viewed it on the group`s online forum.</p>

<p>Google declined to comment on internal documents and messages seen by Reuters.</p>

<p>Project Maven includes several subcontractors. Pentagon spokeswoman Major Audricia Harris said in an email to Reuters on Friday that the Pentagon values "all of our relationships with academic institutions and commercial companies involved with Project Maven."</p>

<p>The primary contractor on the project, ECS Federal, did not respond to a request to comment.</p>


As Google ventures into new territory, a group of nine people are working on a set of ethical guidelines for any future military contracts.

Alphabet Inc's Google will not renew a contract to help the US military analyse aerial drone imagery when it expires in March, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday, as the company moves to defuse the internal uproar over the deal. The defence program, called Project Maven, set off a revolt inside Google, as factions of employees opposed Google technology being used in warfare. The dissidents said it clashed with the company`s stated principle of doing no harm and cited risks around using a nascent artificial intelligence technology in lethal situations. Google plans to honour what is left of its contract on Project Maven, the person said. More than 4,600 employees signed a petition calling for Google to cancel the deal, with at least 13 employees resigning in recent weeks in protest at Google`s involvement, according to a second person familiar with the deal. Through Project Maven, Google provides artificial intelligence technology to the Pentagon to help humans detect and identify targets captured by drone images. Company executives have defended the contract, saying its cloud computing and data analysis tools were being used for non-offensive tasks and would help save lives. Tech publication Gizmodo first reported that Google Cloud Chief Executive Diane Greene told employees on Friday Google`s role in the program would end. A source confirmed that, but Google declined to comment. "I am incredibly happy about this decision and have a deep respect for the many people who worked and risked to make it happen. Google should not be in the business of war," Meredith Whittaker, a research scientist affiliated with Google and New York University, wrote on Twitter. More than 700 Google employees had joined an online group inside the company called Maven Conscientious Objectors, using it to vent their concerns about the project and discuss ways of protesting against it. Some employees planned to hold a public rally in San Francisco in July, coinciding with a Google conference, according to one source. Company officials have told employees in recent months that the deal was seen as a gateway to further, more lucrative government work, the source said. As Google ventures into new territory, a group of nine people are working on a set of ethical guidelines for any future military contracts. The guidelines will be released, "very, very soon," Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said in a recording of a staff meeting last week reviewed by Reuters. Maven had an initial budget of $70 million. Google has told employees it was getting less than $10 million for its work on the program, according to one source who requested anonymity because the information has not been made public. Selling cloud computing services, including the object detection tool being used with drone footage, is one of the top areas Google is counting on to diversify revenue. But Amazon.com Inc and Microsoft Corp have won far more cloud business. Google in August 2017 hosted defence executives to demonstrate its artificial intelligence capabilities, according to a document shared with Google employees and seen by Reuters. An internal email sent in October 2017 entitled "MAVEN Kickoff Meeting Notes" quoted Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan as saying during a meeting with Google in Mountain View, California, that he wanted "a built-in AI capability" in all future Department of Defense systems deployed in the field. The email was shared with the Maven Conscientious Objectors and Reuters viewed it on the group`s online forum. Google declined to comment on internal documents and messages seen by Reuters. Project Maven includes several subcontractors. Pentagon spokeswoman Major Audricia Harris said in an email to Reuters on Friday that the Pentagon values "all of our relationships with academic institutions and commercial companies involved with Project Maven." The primary contractor on the project, ECS Federal, did not respond to a request to comment.

After employee backlash, Google says no to Pentagon work

<p>Companies need to make sure that employees are aware in advance of management monitoring of their work email accounts, the European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday in a landmark privacy case.</p>

<p>In a judgment in the case of a man fired 10 years ago for using a work messaging account to communicate with his family, the judges found that Romanian courts failed to protect Bogdan Barbulescu&#39;s private correspondence because his company had not given prior notice that it was monitoring his communications.</p>

<p>The company had presented him with printouts of his private messages to his brother and fianc&eacute;e on Yahoo Messenger as evidence of his breach of a company ban on such personal use.</p>

<p>The European court in Strasbourg ruled by an 11-6 majority that Romanian judges, in backing the employer, had failed to protect Barbulescu&#39;s right to private life and correspondence.</p>


Romanian courts failed to protect Bogdan Barbulescu's private correspondence because his company had not given prior notice that it was monitoring his communications.

Companies need to make sure that employees are aware in advance of management monitoring of their work email accounts, the European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday in a landmark privacy case. In a judgment in the case of a man fired 10 years ago for using a work messaging account to communicate with his family, the judges found that Romanian courts failed to protect Bogdan Barbulescu's private correspondence because his company had not given prior notice that it was monitoring his communications. The company had presented him with printouts of his private messages to his brother and fiancée on Yahoo Messenger as evidence of his breach of a company ban on such personal use. The European court in Strasbourg ruled by an 11-6 majority that Romanian judges, in backing the employer, had failed to protect Barbulescu's right to private life and correspondence.

European court rules firms must tell employees of email checks

Microsoft Corp said it would cut about 2,850 more jobs over the next 12 months, taking its total planned job cuts to up to 4,700, or about 4 per cent of its workforce.<br />
<br />
The company said in May it would cut 1,850 jobs in its smartphone business, most of them in Finland.<br />
<br />
Microsoft bought Finland-based handset maker Nokia in 2014 in an ill-fated attempt to take on market leaders Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.<br />
<br />
Chief executive Satya Nadella, who took the helm just two months before the deal closed, has since focussed on restructuring the struggling phone business.<br />
<br />
Microsoft had about 114,000 full-time employees as of June 30.<br />
<br />
(Reuters)

The total planned job cuts amount to 4% of Microsoft's workforce. The company said in May it would cut 1,850 jobs in its smartphone business

Microsoft Corp said it would cut about 2,850 more jobs over the next 12 months, taking its total planned job cuts to up to 4,700, or about 4 per cent of its workforce. The company said in May it would cut 1,850 jobs in its smartphone business, most of them in Finland. Microsoft bought Finland-based handset maker Nokia in 2014 in an ill-fated attempt to take on market leaders Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. Chief executive Satya Nadella, who took the helm just two months before the deal closed, has since focussed on restructuring the struggling phone business. Microsoft had about 114,000 full-time employees as of June 30. (Reuters)

Microsoft to cut 2,850 more jobs over next year

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