The minimum wage in Washington state will increase 18 cents an hour to $6.90 per hour on Jan. 1, the Department of Labor and Industries announced. The minimum wage is recalculated each fall under a law voters imposed by initiative in 1998, tying the minimum wage to changes in the federal consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers. That index increased 2.658 percent between August 2000 and August 2001, prompting the increase. The minimum wage applies to workers 18 and older in both agricultural and nonagricultural jobs. An administrative rule extends the wage to cover those 15 to 17 years old.
Microsoft Corp., aiming to broaden the use of its Office suite of business software among students, said it will begin selling a discounted version of Office XP to students through mainstream retail outlets. Office XP Standard for Students and Teachers will retail at $149, nearly 70 percent less than the company’s full list price.
Nortel, a top producer of fiber-optic and other communications equipment, said it will cut about 10,000 jobs, with the remainder eliminated through the sales of assets. The latest round of cuts will reduce its workforce to 45,000. The company began the year with almost 95,000 employees. The company said it was still adjusting to the sudden slowdown in the demand for technology, but that business appears to be stabilizing.
In a nod to the importance of corporate travel to their bottom lines, three of the nation’s biggest airlines introduced discounts on business fares at a time when planes are flying half empty nationwide. While fewer than 10 percent of passengers purchase business fares, those sales typically make up between 50 and 70 percent of industrywide revenues. The reduced fares being offered by AMR Corp.’s American, UAL Corp.’s United and Continental Airlines Inc. will mostly benefit small- and medium-sized businesses
Undeterred by an economic downturn, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said Tuesday it plans to open 50 discount stores and 180 to 185 new Supercenters, and reiterated its earnings projections for the third and fourth quarters. Like other retailers nationwide, Wal-Mart saw a slowdown in sales immediately following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but management told analysts that customers have returned to their normal spending habits. “September 11 had a short-term impact,” chief financial officer Thomas Schoewe said.
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