📆 Four-day workweek

Plus: Kim Kardashian settles | Monday, October 03, 2022

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Equitybee   Axios Closer By Hope King and Nathan Bomey · Oct 03, 2022 That's a wrap on Monday! Let's get down to it... Today's newsletter is 682 words, a 2½-minute read. 🔔 The dashboard: The S&P 500 closed up 2.6% on the first day of trading in the fourth quarter after ending Friday at its lowest level of the year. Biggest gainer? Marathon Oil (+10.6%), leading the sector up on a report that OPEC+ is considering cutting oil output to bolster prices. Biggest decliner? Tesla (-8.6%), after the EV maker reported third-quarter deliveries below analyst expectations.     1 big thing: Four-day weeks Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios   More companies are testing shorter workweeks, as employers grapple with widespread worker burnout amid the tight labor market, Hope writes. Why it matters: While four-day workweeks are nowhere close to becoming the norm, the pandemic has put new momentum behind the idea. Driving the news: Starting today, 28 companies collectively employing over 4,000 people in the U.S. and Canada will begin a six-month pilot of shortened workweeks. There are currently about 150 other firms in the U.K., Australasia region and Ireland also testing the shortened workweek, each being run in partnership with nonprofit group 4 Day Week Global. What they're saying: The idea has emerged as a new way to attract talent during the pandemic, Hazel Gavigan, global campaigns and activation officer at 4 Day Week Global, tells Axios. Atom bank in the U.K. saw a 500% uptick in job applications for open roles two months after moving to the four-day model, she notes. Its staff reported feeling less stress and were more inclined to look forward to work each day. The big picture: Not all industries can implement four-day workweeks. Health care, first-responder and service providers still need to cover shifts, which would increase costs for additional workers if salaries remain unchanged. But for those industries that can, employers have had to contend with the realization that workers can produce the same amount of work (if not more) in a remote world. What to watch: Workers are increasingly banding together to protest pre-pandemic expectations, such as daily office commutes. Go deeper.     2. Charted: Credit Suisse tumult Data: Yahoo Finance; Chart: Erin Davis/Axios Visuals Shares of Credit Suisse, one of the top wealth management firms in the world, barely recovered its losses today after falling to a record low, Hope writes. Catch up quick: Senior executives, including CEO Ulrich Körner, have spent the past few days trying to reassure clients, investors and employees of the bank's financial health. The efforts haven't done much to change investor confidence, and a report outlining those efforts today served as just the latest negative trigger for shares over the past 12 months. Go deeper.     3. What's happening 🚴 Peloton signs Hilton deal to put bikes in 5,400 U.S. hotels. (Bloomberg) 🧒 Parents have until Nov. 15 to claim child tax credit. (CNBC) 📦 Amazon is launching a new hub for users to access affordable shopping. (TechCrunch)     A message from Equitybee Get access to high-demand, pre-IPO startups     With Equitybee, accredited investors get access to hundreds of high-growth, VC-backed startups and invest at past company valuations by funding employee stock options. In exchange, they get a percentage of the future share value. Choose a startup and start investing.     4. Kim K's crypto misadventure Photo: Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images   Kim Kardashian's enthusiasm for the crypto token EMAX may not have been completely from the heart, and SEC chair Gary Gensler believes her quarter-billion Instagram followers deserved to know exactly how many other reasons she had. The regulator on Monday announced charges against Kardashian for promoting the cryptocurrency in a social media post in June last year, without disclosing what she had been paid for the promotion, Axios' Dan Primack writes. Details: Kardashian was paid $250,000 for the post, which included a link to a related website and instructions for potential investors. Kardashian has agreed to pay $1.26 million as part of a settlement, and she will not promote any cryptocurrencies for the next three years. The big picture: Federal securities regulators have been cracking down on celebrity crypto endorsements going back to 2017. At the time, the SEC warned that anyone promoting a virtual token or coin deemed to be a security must disclose "the nature, scope, and amount of compensation" they received.   Share Axios and earn rewards If you like this newsletter, your friends may, too! Refer your friends and get free Axios swag when they sign up. Be a good friend and share   5. Tim Cook poo poos the metaverse Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios   Skeptics of the metaverse have Tim Cook in their corner, Hope writes. "I'm really not sure the average person can tell you what the metaverse is," CNBC reports the Apple CEO as saying per a Dutch publication. Why it matters: The comment comes as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to spend heavily on a pivot to virtual worlds, while Apple itself stays expectedly quiet on its own virtual reality and augmented reality plans. The big picture: Established companies, startups and celebrities have all rushed to "create" for virtual worlds ahead of consumer awareness and understanding in an attempt to show their savviness.     6. What they're saying "There are companies that are literally saying, 'we're paying Walmart more in fines [than] we made on this invoice.'" — Stacy Tan, SupplyPike's vice president of retail insights, on retailers like Walmart and Target getting tough with late orders.     A message from Equitybee Unlock access to high-growth startups     Equitybee gives accredited investors unprecedented access to high-growth, VC-backed startups. What's in it for you: Invest in startups at past valuations by funding employee stock options. Then, you receive a portion of the future share. Get started in minutes.   Today's newsletter was edited by Pete Gannon and copy edited by Sheryl Miller. Why stop here? Let's go Pro. Join the thousands of professionals using Axios Pro to keep up with the companies, deals and trends changing their industries.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. Change your preferences or unsubscribe here.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: