Human Times

North American Edition

10th September 2025

THE HOT STORY

Microsoft employees will have to start coming into the office three days a week

Microsoft is to require its employees to work from the office at least three days a week beginning next year. The company said the new mandate will go into effect in Puget Sound, which includes its headquarters outside of Seattle, starting in February. It will then expand to other U.S. locations before moving to international offices. “As we build the AI products that will define this era, we need the kind of energy and momentum that comes from smart people working side by side, solving challenging problems together,” Amy Coleman, Microsoft’s human resources chief, wrote in a memo. CNBC notes that Microsoft has held several rounds of layoffs this year, but Coleman wrote that “this update is not about reducing headcount,” and instead is “about working together in a way that enables us to meet our customers’ needs.”

CNBC

The Columbian

Reuters

LEGAL

Judge rules Federal Reserve’s Lisa Cook can remain in role, for now

A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump from sacking Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. The decision is a win for Cook, whom Trump sought to dismiss over allegations of mortgage fraud. Last month, Trump said he had sacked Cook but the Fed said she remains a governor. Judge Jia Cobb said "President Trump has not identified anything related to Cook's conduct or job performance as a board member that would indicate that she is harming the board or the public interest by executing her duties unfaithfully or ineffectively."

Financial Times

New York Times

HIRING

Employers added fewer jobs than previously thought last year

U.S. employers added 911,000 fewer jobs over the 12 months to the end of March than previously thought, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Tuesday. The revision, a routine step in the compilation of government labor statistics, assesses monthly survey estimates alongside state unemployment data. The final annual benchmark revision will be reported in February 2026. For its monthly jobs figures the BLS relies on a survey of about 121,000 employers. One of the survey’s shortcomings is that brand new businesses, or those that may no longer be trading, aren’t included in it. The annual revision process is how the BLS corrects for this drift, by relying on data from state unemployment-tax records that nearly all employers are required to fill out.

ECONOMY

Small biz optimism on the rise

Sentiment among U.S. small businesses edged higher in August, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) reported on Tuesday, with owners expecting higher sales while harboring concerns about the quality of available labor. The NFIB's Small Business Optimism Index rose 0.5 points to 100.8, the highest level since January, and just below the 101 expected among economists. A net 12% of owners expect higher retail sales volumes in the next three months, up six points and contributing the most to the increase in the overall optimism index. Thirty-two percent of owners, particularly in the construction sector, reported job openings they could not fill in August. The overall share of businesses reporting labor quality as the single most important problem for their business remained at 21%.

Bloomberg

Nasdaq

Reuters

WORKFORCE

Boeing Defense strike enters sixth week

Boeing Defense and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) remain at loggerheads after meeting on Tuesday in a bid to resume contract negotiations as industrial action by about 3,200 St. Louis-area workers that assemble military aircraft enters its sixth week. Both the company and the machinists' union said the other side was unwilling to move forward. Talks that included a federal mediator ended after a few hours.

Reuters

STRATEGY

Novo Nordisk to cut 9,000 jobs

Novo Nordisk, the maker of weight-loss drug Wegovy, is to cut 9,000 jobs, or about 11.5% of its workforce, in a restructuring that aims to save 8bn Danish crowns ($1.26bn) annually. "Novo Nordisk today announced a company-wide transformation to simplify its organization, improve the speed of decision-making, and reallocate resources towards the company's growth opportunities in diabetes and obesity," the company said. Novo, which has 78,400 roles globally, said about 5,000 of the job cuts will be in its native Denmark.

Reuters

Rivian cuts 200 jobs amid tax credit changes

Rivian has laid off approximately 200 employees, representing about 1.5% of its workforce, as it braces for the end of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit under President Donald Trump's policy changes. The company is preparing for a challenging year, planning to launch a more affordable model, the R2 SUV, starting at $45,000. A Rivian spokesperson said: “We have made some recent changes to the Commercial team as part of an ongoing effort to improve operational efficiency for R2.” Other automakers, including GM and Volkswagen, are also cutting jobs due to declining EV demand. The phaseout of state credits is expected to further dampen sales, which have already slowed due to high tariffs and waning consumer interest. Rivian's current R1S SUV starts at $76,900, making it less competitive against rivals like Tesla. The company reported a loss of $1.1bn in its second quarter.

Los Angeles Times

REMUNERATION

McDonald’s enters tip debate

McDonald’s chief executive Chris Kempczinski has criticized rules on tipped wages that allow sit-down restaurants and bars to pay servers below the standard minimum wage. McDonald’s withdrew from the National Restaurant Association over the issue, arguing that tipped wages give casual-dining chains a labor-cost advantage that fast-food restaurants do not share. Chicago and several other states have begun eliminating tipped wages, while others still allow the federal tipped wage of $2.13 an hour, supplemented by tips to reach $7.25.

Wall Street Journal

HEALTH & WELLBEING

More firms aim to increase EHS budgets

Nearly four out of five companies and government agencies worldwide (78%) plan to step up budgeting for environment, health and safety (EHS) initiatives in the next three years, according to a new EY survey of 526 C-suite leaders and EHS executives. Promoting health and wellbeing is the top reason organizations have increased EHS spending during the past three years, according to EY. “This is almost certainly in response to the high workplace mortality and injury rates in many markets,” EY said in a report. Nearly three out of four (73%) companies that proactively invest in EHS programs said they have reduced costs during unexpected disruptions, compared with 64% of respondents that take a reactive approach to EHS challenges, EY said. “Investing in EHS not only helps you comply with regulations but also enhances your ability to operate effectively and responsibly,” Jessica Wollmuth, EY global EHS co-leader, said in a statement, adding that companies should prioritize EHS spending despite current market volatility and budget constraints.

CFO Dive

INTERNATIONAL

U.K. urged to 'go Dutch' on the working week

The 4 Day Week Foundation, a campaign group calling for a shorter working week, says the U.K. should follow the example of the Netherlands, where more staff work fewer hours but productivity remains high. While more than half of Dutch women and nearly one in five men work fewer than 30 hours, data from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development shows that staff in the Netherlands are more efficient in absolute productivity terms than workers in Germany, France and Britain. Joe Ryle, campaign director of the 4 Day Week Foundation, argues that the U.K. is "long overdue an update" when it comes to the shape of the working week.

Daily Star

Chinese company pays employees to lose weight

Arashi Vision, a Shenzhen-based company, is incentivising employee weight loss with a unique bonus program. Employees earn $70 for every 0.5kg lost, with one participant, Xie Yaqi, winning 20,000 yuan ($2,800) after shedding 20kg. The program, initiated in 2022, has awarded 2m yuan ($280,000) across seven seasons. Each season, about 30 employees are monitored weekly. However, there is a penalty: participants must pay 800 yuan for every 0.5kg gained. A company representative said: "Through this challenge, we aim to promote a healthy lifestyle and encourage our employees to prioritize their well-being beyond work."

Gdn Online

OTHER

FTC to quiz AI companies over impact on children

The Federal Trade Commission is planning to study the impact of artificial intelligence chatbots on children's mental health, and will be seeking documents from OpenAI, Meta, and other tech firms. The regulator is expected to evaluate whether ChatGPT and other chatbots are harming children and affecting their mental health, administration officials said. The scrutiny of AI chatbots adds to a yearslong push to protect children online as Washington struggles to keep up with rapidly evolving technology.

Bloomberg

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

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