Category: Business

Companies are stepping up the pressure on workers to get vaccinated—not necessarily with mandates but with strong nudges.For months, many employers have attempted to coax workers into receiving a Covid-19 vaccine. Companies dangled cash, time off and other prizes to encourage vaccinations. Executives made personal appeals in town-hall meetings and internal memos. Now, some of those efforts are taking a more assertive and urgent tone. While most employers haven’t flat-out ordered staff to get vaccinated, many are asking workers to report their vaccination status or are implementing policies that restrict the activities of unvaccinated...

TOKYO—Americans Michael Taylor and Peter Taylor pleaded guilty in Tokyo on Monday to the charge of helping former Nissan Motor Co. NSANY -1.46% chief Carlos Ghosn escape Japan in a box aboard a private jet in late 2019. Michael Taylor, a 60-year-old former Green Beret, and his son Peter Taylor, 28, were extradited to Japan from the U.S. in March. They were arrested in Massachusetts in May 2020. The Taylors were accused of aiding the escape of a criminal, an offense that carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison. Mr. Ghosn, who...

The Federal Reserve building in Washington on June 2. Photo: Liu Jie/Xinhua/Zuma Press By WSJ Staff June 13, 2021 3:00 pm ET The Federal Reserve’s policy meeting highlights this week’s slate of economic news. Tuesday U.S. retail sales are expected to fall in May as auto sales decline, fiscal support for consumers fades and Americans shift their spending toward services and away from goods while vaccine campaigns advance and more businesses reopen. U.S. industrial production is forecast to rise in May, led by a pickup in manufacturing. Factory activity around the world has faced...

Imagine this workplace scenario: As the pandemic recedes, employees in Company X are given the option of returning to the office or working remotely. Mary decides to return to the home office in New York. Her former office mate, John, decides to remain in Omaha, Neb., where he has been living since the pandemic began. They have the same titles and the same responsibilities. Should they also have the same pay? That is just one of many compensation issues companies are likely to wrestle with in coming months, as businesses reimagine how to pay...

A ticket to go into space next month with Jeff Bezos went for almost $30 million, including the commission, in a charity auction Saturday, said Blue Origin LLC, the space company founded by the billionaire. The winner of the live phone auction wasn’t revealed Saturday—Blue Origin said it had to complete final paperwork—but is expected to be named in two weeks. The successful bidder will be among the passengers on the New Shepard vehicle’s first crewed launch planned for July 20 and spend a few minutes in space with Mr. Bezos, his brother Mark...

Salaries for junior lawyers are rising above $200,000 at many top law firms for the first time, following a year of record-breaking profits in the legal industry and competition to retain a workforce that has billed long hours at home during the pandemic.Corporate law firms are unique among businesses in that they typically increase pay in tandem, with a few market leaders triggering moves throughout the industry. New York firm Milbank LLP on Thursday kicked off the latest round of salary wars, announcing pay raises of between 4.4% and 5.9% for lawyers without a...

Mining companies are throwing their weight behind vaccination efforts as Covid-19 continues to ravage much of the developing world.Miners are offering vaccines and bolstering healthcare services to employees and surrounding communities. The effort is focused on poorer nations, where healthcare systems are weak, vaccines are scarce and inoculation campaigns lag far behind those in the West. Anglo American NGLOY 2.33% PLC has said it is spending as much as $30 million to support the global rollout of Covid-19 vaccines across its footprint. Other miners, from Glencore GLNCY 2.60% PLC to Rio Tinto RIO 0.67%...

House lawmakers proposed a raft of bipartisan legislation aimed at reining in the country’s biggest tech companies, including a bill that seeks to make Amazon.com Inc. AMZN -0.08% and other large corporations effectively split in two or shed their private-label products. If the bills become law—a prospect that faces significant hurdles—they could substantially alter the most richly valued companies in America and reshape an industry that has extended its impact into nearly every facet of work and life. One of the proposed measures, titled the Ending Platform Monopolies Act, seeks to require structural separation...

Spotify Technology SA is nearing a deal to bring top podcaster Alexandra Cooper and her show “Call Her Daddy” to its service, according to people familiar with the matter, in the latest exclusive podcast tie-up. Ms. Cooper and Spotify are discussing a licensing deal for around or over $20 million, according to some of the people. It also would involve a so-called first-look agreement with the intention of Spotify helping Ms. Cooper, 26 years old, develop other projects, the people familiar with the matter said. Her back catalog would be available only on Spotify...

Elon Musk is aiming to breathe new life into Tesla Inc.’s high-end sedan that helped establish the company as the world’s leading electric-vehicle maker. The redesign of the Model S is the latest sign that Tesla has evolved from a sprightly startup challenging incumbents with new vehicles, to an established manufacturer that also has to upgrade legacy models to keep potential buyers interested. The Silicon Valley company late Thursday marked the delivery of a souped-up version of its luxury sedan. Mr. Musk, Tesla’s chief executive, has billed it as the quickest production car on...