CHICAGO — Jen Tee has been going back to her office in the Chicago Loop for a while, but one piece of her pre-pandemic workday ritual was missing until just a couple of weeks ago: a morning stop at Intelligentsia Coffee.

“I’d been asking them, when are you going to reopen?” said Tee, 41, who lives in the Wicker Park neighbohood, ...Read more

Ford Motor Co. on Monday night announced a historic investment in its future that will pump more than $11 billion into manufacturing a strong, dependable supply of essential parts for electric vehicles, creating nearly 11,000 jobs along the way.

This commitment — the single biggest investment in the history of the 118-year-old automaker — ...Read more

Activision Blizzard Inc., the videogame giant, agreed to create an $18 million fund for alleged victims of discrimination or harassment after it was sued by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over its workplace practices.

The company also announced in a statement Monday the creation of an initiative to develop software tools and ...Read more

Garment workers in California will be paid an hourly rate and receive other new protections under a law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Monday afternoon.

SB 62, which faced heavy opposition from fashion brands and trade groups, aims to overhaul a pay model for garment workers that has led to subminimum wages in the industry. The law will expand ...Read more

MIAMI — Owners of a payday loan company targeted members of South Florida’s Venezuelan community in a fraudulent investment scheme that raised more than $66 million, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The SEC complaint, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Miami, said Sky Group USA and owner Efrain Betancourt, 32, ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Century City-based Creative Artists Agency said Monday that it is acquiring ICM Partners for an undisclosed price, in a deal that could transform Hollywood’s talent agency industry.

The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, would reduce the number of top agencies to three dominant players: CAA, WME and United ...Read more

DETROIT — Alexandra Ford English, the great-great granddaughter of the founder of Ford Motor Co., has been tapped to lead an effort to expand the family brand once harnessed by Versace to sell $1,135 hoodies, the automaker announced Monday.

The newly created role of global brand merchandising director puts English, 33, in a position to use ...Read more

United Airlines Holdings Inc. Chief Executive Officer Scott Kirby said Monday that 98.5% of its U.S.-based employees have been vaccinated against COVID-19.

The carrier expects to see vaccine totals “north of 99%” when it tallies final figures for how many employees have complied with its mandate to be vaccinated or face termination.

United...Read more

Century City-based Creative Artists Agency said Monday that it is acquiring ICM Partners for an undisclosed price, in a deal could transform Hollywood's talent agency industry.

The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, would reduce the number of top agencies to three dominant players: CAA, WME and United Talent Agency. ICM is ...Read more

Making electrical vehicles affordable should be among the top priorities for automakers so that the average vehicle-buyer can purchase one, said Jim Farley, Ford Motor Co.'s president & CEO.

"I'm deeply worried about the affordability," said Farley Saturday during a discussion as part of the Detroit Homecoming VIII events, during a live-...Read more

The cruise ship that stranded thousands of passengers for days off the California coast in one of the nation's first cruise ship coronavirus outbreaks returns to sea Saturday for the first time in 18 months.

The Grand Princess will depart from the Port of Los Angeles for a five-day cruise to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, part of a phased effort by ...Read more

When the Medicare health insurance program launched in 1966, benefits kicked in at the then-common retirement age of 65.

Flash forward, and we now live in an economy where working past age 65 is more common. For some, it’s to buy more time to shore up retirement savings, for others it’s a desire to keep at something they enjoy doing.

If ...Read more

Costco is once again setting limits on the purchase of popular brands of toilet paper and cleaning products, as the pandemic continues to put strains on shipping products from suppliers.

Costco's Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti said the company was putting temporary purchase limits on toilet paper, paper towels, the company's Kirkland ...Read more

The 2021 all-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E SUV is being recalled because it has improperly attached windshields and panoramic roof glass that may detach, creating risk of crash or injury, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA.

All vehicles built between Feb. 24, 2020, and July 18, 2021, may have been ...Read more

Federal biologist Erin Fedewa boarded a research vessel in June in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and journeyed to a swath of the Bering Sea that typically yields an abundance of young snow crab in annual surveys.

Not this summer. At this spot, and elsewhere, the sampling nets came up with stunningly few — a more than 99% drop in immature females ...Read more

For once, major American automakers and the president are aligned on how much they should be required to limit greenhouse gas emissions from their vehicles.

But as climate change worsens to the point of international scientists calling it a "code red for humanity," some of the country's leading environmental organizations are pushing the ...Read more

Detroit bass player Grover "GT" Tigue knows too well about the wildly varying rhythms of the gig economy.

Tigue has been a musician 24/7 for the past 21 years — working on solo projects and playing over the years with groups including the No Boundaries Quartet, a hip hop group called Mama SOL & Tha N.U.T.S and an R&B funk band called ...Read more

A California moratorium guaranteeing insurance in wildfire-threatened areas will lapse Saturday, putting 347,000 homes in Pasadena and other Los Angeles foothills communities at the mercy of the market.

As many as 2.4 million homes are at risk of losing protection in 2021 as year-long grace periods expire – though new disasters may extend ...Read more