The Independent Articles

Employees working from home this winter face paying more than £100 extra on their energy bills, as unions warned it could push lower-paid staff into debt.Data released by Energy Helpline last month revealed bills could rise by up to 18 per cent with workers’ gas and electricity consumption soaring amid a push for office staff to stay at home.Their research suggested workers nationally faced a £1.9bn surcharge due to the new working arrangements triggered by the coronavirus pandemic. Read moreBoris Johnson had led calls for staff to return to the workplace in a drive to support the economy amid concerns cafes and other businesses that rely on office worker footfall were facing ruin.But as coronavirus cases rose, Mr Johnson said: “We are once again asking office workers who can work from home to do so.”Energy Helpline research showed that the total winter fuel bill for a person working from home five days a week would come to £707.93 – 18 per cent more than the average winter dual fuel bill for the previous year. Experts said bills would rise by £107 as a result.  That would drop to a 3.6-per-cent rise in energy bills for an employee working from home just once a week.Energy Angels, an advice and comparison service, urged those who were worried about increasing energy prices whilst working from home to check they were on the cheapest tariff. Watch morePeter Smith, of fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA), said the change in working habits could push people into debt and called on the government to provide more support for the poorest households.He told The Observer: “This could lead to increased affordability issues, more energy debt or even energy rationing, which can be dangerous all year round but particular during colder weather.”Mike Clancy, the general secretary of trade union Prospect, told the paper: “Full transparency about the risks and costs of working from home is essential, and dialogue with trade unions is the most effective way to get this right. “The challenge is to ensure that the post-pandemic recovery builds on the benefits of flexible working rather than hardwires in inequality.”

Almost 20,000 Amazon workers in the US have tested positive for coronavirus or been presumed positive, the company has revealed.Amazon said it is conductung thousands of tests a day and that its data indicate that the rate of Covid-19 cases in its workforce is lower than the national average.The company estimates that if nationwide rates were reflected across its 1.37 million US workers, 33,952 cases would have been reported.
In reporting the figures, Amazon bowed to sustained pressure from critics over workplace safety following a number of reports of cases at its warehouses.
Amazon has enjoyed a huge increase in revenues since the pandemic began as it has kept up with rising demand for online shopping.
That has turned the spotlight once again onto the safety and wellbeing of workers at the company.
Watch moreThe company said in a blog post that it was investing hundreds of millions of dollars in its testing programme across 650 US sites.
Each site is cleaned approximately every 90 minutes to sanitise door handles, handrails, lockers, lift buttons, and touch screens, Amazon said.
Athena, a coalition of caampaigners calling for stricter oversight of Amazon, called for immediate investigations by public health officials.
Dania Rajendra, Athena’s director, said in a statement: “Amazon allowed Covid-19 to spread like wildfire in its facilities, risking the health of tens of thousands of people who work at Amazon – as well as their family members, neighbours and friends.
“Amazon is, in no uncertain terms, a threat to public health.”
Employers are not legally obliged to publish figures on how many of their workers have contracted the virus.
However, companies must provide a safe working environment and alert staff if they might have been exposed, according to guidelines from US health authorities.  All firms have to keep track of Covid-19 infections among employees and notify the Occupational Safety and Health Administration if there is a hospitalisation or death related to the disease.
The data on infections comes as Amazon prepares for a further boost to sales during its annual Prime Day promotion on 13 and 14 October.
A perceived lack of transparency has left workers at various retailers, including Amazon and Walmart, to become amateur sleuths in their spare time. Unions and advocate groups have taken up the cause, too, creating lists or building online maps of stores where workers can self-report cases they know about.Walmart had said in July that its Covid-19 cases track with the rest of the country, but didn’t explain why it doesn’t provide numbers.Marc Perrone, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, which represents grocery and meatpacking workers, called Amazon’s disclosure as “the most damning evidence we have seen that corporate America has completely failed to protect our country’s frontline workers in this pandemic.” UFCW is calling for immediate action by federal regulators and a full congressional investigation. “This titanic safety failure demands the highest level of scrutiny,” Perrone said. Additional reporting by AP

Walmart has agreed to sell supermarket giant Asda to a group led by billionaire petrol station tycoons Mohsin and Zuber Issa in a £6.8bn deal.The  Lancashire-based brothers behind petrol forecourt firm EG Group teamed up with private equity company TDR Capital to make the bid. The deal brings Asda back into British ownership after more than 20 years as part of US giant Walmart. Asda’s new owners have committed to keeping the retailer’s headquarters in Leeds and said they will invest to grow its convenience and online operations. Walmart will keep a minority stake in Asda and a seat on the board.Watch moreWalmart has been looking to offload Asda for some time. The budget supermarket has been in a tough battle with Lidl and Aldi, which have rapidly grown their market share.Friday’s announcement comes more than a year after a proposed merger between Asda and  Sainsbury’s was blocked by competition regulators who said the combined firm would reduce choice for consumers.Roger Burnley, chief executive officer of Asda, said: “This new ownership opens an exciting new chapter in Asda’s long heritage of delivering great value for UK shoppers.“With our combined investment, expertise and ambition, Asda, Walmart, the Issa brothers and TDR have an incredible opportunity to accelerate our existing strategy and develop an even more exciting offer for our customers, as well as strengthen our business for our colleagues.“In a constantly changing retail environment, our new ownership will further enhance our resilience, whilst creating significant, additional opportunities to drive growth.“For Asda colleagues, a strong and growing business is important for our long-term future.”Roger Jenkins, national officer for the GMB union, called on Asda’s new owners to commit to not making redundancies.“We welcome their commitment to British suppliers and producers, and supporting British industry and jobs,” he said.“The new owners must offer sound reassurances to more than 100,000 Asda workers.  “They have had enough uncertainty and need to know that their futures are safe and secure.  “The new owners must recognise that Asda is a profitable well-run company, thanks to our members’ commitment and hard work – particularly through the Covid pandemic.”

Walmart has agreed to sell supermarket giant Asda to a group led by billionaire petrol station tycoons Mohsin and Zuber Issa in a £6.8bn deal.The  Lancashire-based brothers behind petrol forecourt firm EG Group teamed up with private equity company TDR Capital to make the bid. The deal brings Asda back into British ownership after more than 20 years as part of US giant Walmart. Asda’s new owners have committed to keeping the retailer’s headquarters in Leeds and said they will invest to grow its convenience and online operations. Walmart will keep a minority stake in Asda and a seat on the board.Watch moreWalmart has been looking to offload Asda for some time. The budget supermarket has been in a tough battle with Lidl and Aldi, which have rapidly grown their market share.Friday’s announcement comes more than a year after a proposed merger between Asda and  Sainsbury’s was blocked by competition regulators who said the combined firm would reduce choice for consumers.Roger Burnley, chief executive officer of Asda, said: “This new ownership opens an exciting new chapter in Asda’s long heritage of delivering great value for UK shoppers.“With our combined investment, expertise and ambition, Asda, Walmart, the Issa brothers and TDR have an incredible opportunity to accelerate our existing strategy and develop an even more exciting offer for our customers, as well as strengthen our business for our colleagues.“In a constantly changing retail environment, our new ownership will further enhance our resilience, whilst creating significant, additional opportunities to drive growth.“For Asda colleagues, a strong and growing business is important for our long-term future.”Roger Jenkins, national officer for the GMB union, called on Asda’s new owners to commit to not making redundancies.“We welcome their commitment to British suppliers and producers, and supporting British industry and jobs,” he said.“The new owners must offer sound reassurances to more than 100,000 Asda workers.  “They have had enough uncertainty and need to know that their futures are safe and secure.  “The new owners must recognise that Asda is a profitable well-run company, thanks to our members’ commitment and hard work – particularly through the Covid pandemic.”

H&M has announced plans to shut 250 stores globally after customers shifted to online shopping due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Sales at the Swedish fast fashion chain slumped 16 per cent to £4.4bn in the three months to August as hundreds of its stores remained closed.H&M said trading had picked up throughout the quarter and continued to rise in September but sales remain 5 per cent lower than it was a year ago.Leases on around a quarter of H&M’s 5,000 branches are up for renewal next year, giving an opportunity to negotiate lower rents or exit contracts.
H&M had begun reducing its number of stores before the pandemic to adapt to a longer-term change in shopping habits. Those plans have been accelerated since Covid-19 spread across the world.The company did not say on Thursday how many jobs would be impacted by the plans.Read moreShares in H&M rose 6 per cent in Stockholm on Thursday after pre-tax profits fell less than expected.H&M said it has taken “rapid and decisive action” to manage the impact of the virus, addressing this with changes to purchasing, investments, rents, staffing and financing.
The company said it is ramping up its transformation programme in response to increased demand for its websites.Helena Helmersson, chief executive of H&M, said: “Although the challenges are far from over, we believe that the worst is behind us and we are well placed to come out of the crisis stronger.
“Demand for good-value, sustainable products is expected to grow in the wake of the pandemic and our customer offering is well positioned for that.”We are now accelerating our transformation work so that we continue to add value for our customers.”Scores of retailers including Debenhams, John Lewis and WH Smith have announced plans to close branches and cut jobs since lockdowns began. Many shoppers have stayed away from high streets after they reopened, with clothing retailers seeing a particularly marked decline in sales, according to official figures for the UK.

Ocado is being sued by Norwegian rival AutoStore over claims that the online supermarket breached a patent for its warehouse technology.The FTSE 100 firm, which this week became the most valuable retailer on the UK stock market, must stop selling its technology and pay damages, according to court documents filed in the US and UK.Ocado’s share price fell 5 per cent after the news.Karl Johan Lier, chief executive and president of AutoStore, said: “Since 1996, AutoStore has developed and pioneered technology that has revolutionised retail storage and order fulfilment, and is driving the growth of online retail.”Our ownership of the technology at the heart of Ocado’s warehousing system is clear. We will not tolerate Ocado’s continued infringement of our intellectual property rights in its effort to boost its growth and attempt to transform itself into a global technology company.”Ocado has only a 1.7 per cent share of the UK grocery market, but is valued at over £20bn thanks to its state-of-the-art technology for robotically operated warehouses.Read moreThe tech has helped to win partnership deals with supermarket chains around the world including Morrisons in the UK. AutoStore said Ocado has been its customer since 2012. It claims that its storage system and robots are the foundation on which the “Ocado Smart Platform” (OSP) technology.A spokesperson for Ocado said: “Ocado confirms it has not received any papers in relation to these claims and this is the first we have heard of this new claim. “We are not aware of any infringement of any valid Autostore rights and of course we will investigate any claims once we receive further details. “We have multiple patents protecting the use of our systems in grocery and we are investigating whether Autostore has, or intends to infringe those patents. We will always vigorously protect our intellectual property.”A pioneer in online food shopping, Ocado struggled for years to turn a profit after being founded by three former Goldman Sachs bankers in 2000.In recent years, lucrative partnership deals with companies including US supermarket giant Kroger have helped the company become one of the UK’s most valuable technology companies.The British company has seen its share price surge since the coronavirus pandemic began as online grocery sales have risen rapidly.

Investors in Japan and elsewhere were left scratching their heads Thursday after trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the world’s third largest by market value, was halted for the day due to a technical failure. The Tokyo Stock Exchange said it was working to restore trading by Friday and would hold a news conference later in the day. There was no indication that the outage resulted from hacking or other cybersecurity breaches. The Japan Exchange Group issued a statement saying that a hardware failure caused a malfunction in the backup device meant to kick in if there was a technical problem. As a result, “market information could not be distributed,” it said.“TSE is currently planning to replace the hardware and taking steps, including other maintenance, to ensure normal trading from tomorrow onwards,” it said. The statement said rebooting the system during a trading session would have caused confusion for investors and other market participants, “which would make it difficult to execute smooth trading.”“TSE sincerely apologizes for any inconvenience caused to investors and the people related to stock market,” it said. The Japan Exchange Group is the world’s third largest bourse after the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, with market capitalization of nearly $6 trillion. Previous outages occurred when the “arrowhead” system created by Fujitsu to handle its electronic trading became overwhelmed with too many orders at one time. That’s what happened on Oct. 9, 2018, according to a release on the TSE’s website. But during that disruption, some backup systems for trading continued to function as was the case in earlier outages. The exchange promised to investigate, conduct malfunction tests and change the system to ensure that a flood of orders would not cause the entire system to stop working. Several top executives of the exchange were penalized.The outage Thursday also affected other, smaller stock exchanges in Japan. Foreigners account for about 70% of all brokerage trading in the Tokyo exchange, both in terms of value and volume, so news of the outage left investors both in Japan and overseas wondering what happened. “I think it is very regrettable that investors are limited in their trading opportunities because they cannot trade on the exchanges,” said Katsunobu Kato, the chief cabinet secretary. He said the Financial Services Agency had instructed the Japan Exchange Group and Tokyo Stock Exchange to investigate the cause of the outage and fix it.Kurtenbach reported from Mito, Japan.

Shell plans to cut between 7,000 and 9,000 jobs globally in response to a collapse in demand for oil during the coronavirus pandemic.
Britain’s largest company said it was going through a $2.5bn-a-year cost-cutting plan to deal with the falling price of fossil fuels.
The job cuts include around 1,500 voluntary redundancies and will be completed by the end of 2022, Shell said on Wednesday.With millions of flights grounded, people making fewer journeys and large swathes of industry operating below full capacity, the outlook for oil companies remains tough.
Most major oil firms have slashed their long-term price forecasts and some analysts have said 2019 may turn out to be the peak year for oil production as governments seek to reduce carbon emissions.Royal Dutch Shell chief executive Ben van Beurden, said: “We have to be a simpler, more streamlined, more competitive organisation that is more nimble and able to respond to customers.
Watch more”To be more nimble, we have to remove a certain amount of organisational complexity.”
Mr Van Beurden said the pandemic has shown the company it can adapt to working in new ways but stressed that “a large part of the cost saving for Shell will come from having fewer people”.
He added: “Make no mistake: this is an extremely tough process,
“It is very painful to know that you will end up saying goodbye to quite a few good people. But we are doing this because we have to, because it is the right thing to do for the future of the company.”
Shell’s rival BP announced 10,000 job cuts earlier this year and laid put plans to cut fossil fuel production by 40 per cent in a decade.
Shell has said it aims to reach net zero emissions by 2050 but has yet to lay out in detail how it plans to get there.
Mr Van Beurden said cutting emissions would mean “dramatic change” for Shell.
“We will have some oil and gas in the mix of energy we sell by 2050, but it will be predominantly low-carbon electricity, low-carbon biofuels, it will be hydrogen and it will be all sorts of other solutions too.”

US casino giant Casars has agreed a £2.9bn takeover of British bookmaker William Hill.
Under the deal, Caesars will pay 272p per share, which is a 25 per cent premium  on William Hill’s share price last Thursday. The deal, which must be agreed by three-quarters of William Hill shareholders, was unanimously recommended by the UK company’s board.
Caesars already owns a 20 per cent stake in William Hill’s US operations, which also have exclusive rights to operate sports betting under the Caesars brandLast week, William Hill said it had also received a takeover approach from private equity firm Apollo but it has rejected that offer in favour of Caesars.Read moreCaesars is particularly interested in William Hill’s US bookmaking business which has 170 sites in 13 states.
Gambling profits are on the rise in the US after a long-standing ban on sports betting was ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court. Campaigners have warned of an increase in the risk of addiction and gambling-related harm.
Last month, William Hill said it would reopen 119 of its UK High Street betting shops after the coronavirus shutdown, because it thought customers numbers were unlikely to recover.UK bookmakers have been making an increasing share of their profits from online gambling.  William Hill chairman Roger Devlin, chairman, said: “The William Hill board believes this is the best option for William Hill at an attractive price for shareholders.”It recognises the significant progress the William Hill Group has made over the last 18 months, as well as the risk and significant investment required to maximise the US opportunity, given intense competition in the US and the potential for regulatory disruption in the UK and Europe.
“Under the revitalised senior leadership team, William Hill has been delivering on its strategy and potential.”
Tom Reeg, chief executive of Caesars, said: “The opportunity to combine our land-based casinos, sports betting and online gaming in the US is a truly exciting prospect.
“William Hill’s sports betting expertise will complement Caesars’ current offering, enabling the combined group to better serve our customers in the fast-growing US sports betting and online market.
“We look forward to working with William Hill to support future growth in the US by providing our customers with a superior and comprehensive experience across all areas of gaming, sports betting and entertainment.”

TSB has said it will cut around 900 jobs as part of plans to close 164 of its high street bank branches.The move will reduce TSB’s presence to 290 branches after closing more than half of its sites in seven years.TSB said it had responded to  a “significant shift in customer behaviour” as customers move to online banking and make fewer visits to branches.The bank already had plans to close branches but said these had been accelerated due to the coronavirus pandemic.TSB chief executive Debbie Crosbie said: “Closing any of our branches is never an easy decision but our customers are banking differently – with a marked shift to digital banking.“We are reshaping our business to transform the customer experience and set us up for the future. This means having the right balance between branches on the high street and our digital platforms, enabling us to offer the very best experience for our personal and business customers across the UK.Read more“We remain committed to our branch network and will retain one of the largest in the UK.”Dominic Hook, Unite national officer, said: “Unite has urged the bank to rethink these plans and protect these much-needed jobs during the current health pandemic.“Not only do these staff deserve more from their employer after showing the utmost loyalty to TSB, but customers will be deeply hit by these branch closures.“Unite has argued for some time that the financial services industry has a social responsibility not to walk away from its local customers, who continue to need access to banking in bank branches.”High street banks have closed thousands of branches and made tens of thousands of workers redundant in the past five years.Last month HSBC announced that it would speed up plans to cut 35,000 jobs globally after profits fell 65 per cent in the first half of the year. The bank blamed a host of problems for the profits squeeze including Brexit, low interest rates and the Covid-19 pandemic.