outbreak News

World’s Insurers Face $203 Billion Losses From Coronavirus

Lloyd’s of London, the world’s largest insurance exchange, estimates the industry will suffer around $203 billion in losses from the coronavirus pandemic this year. The projected losses include about $107 billion from underwriting claims, with the rest from insurers’ investment …

Phishing Attacks Against Banks Jump With Pandemic Used as Lure

Cyber-attacks trying to trick bank employees to click on malicious links jumped in the first quarter, with criminals attempting to take advantage of fear and confusion caused by the coronavirus pandemic. While the so-called phishing campaigns, which surged by a …

Blue Bell Pleads In Ice Cream Listeria Case; Ex-CEO Charged

AUSTIN — A Texas ice cream company has pleaded guilty to distributing contaminated goods and its former CEO has been charged with conspiracy and attempted wire fraud in connection to a 2015 listeria outbreak that left three people dead, federal …

Back To Work, Owners Make Changes So Workers Feel Safe

NEW YORK — Before the coronavirus outbreak, furniture deliveries at Sunnyland Outdoor Living meant two employees sitting side-by-side in a truck. Now, one will be driving the truck while the second follows in a car. And when Sunnyland’s workers reach …

Willis: COVID-19 Losses Offset by Reduced Claims for Auto Lines

If the novel COVID-19 pandemic is brought under control soon, the disease’s impact on the insurance industry as a whole may be pretty much a wash. If not, the industry may be on the verge of an historic catastrophe. A …

Pandemic Job Actions May Push Renewed Labor Movement

Jordan Flowers never thought he would become a labor leader. Then the coronavirus forced him to risk his life every time he clocked in. The robotics operator at Amazon’s Staten Island warehouse helped lead one of the first walkouts at …

Swiss Re Swings to Q1 Loss as Coronavirus Outbreak Bites

FRANKFURT — Reinsurer Swiss Re swung into a net loss in the first quarter of 2020 as the impact of the coronavirus outbreak began to bite, it said on Thursday. The Zurich-based company booked a hit of $476 million for …

For Meat Plant Workers, Virus Makes a Hard Job Perilous

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Kulule Amosa’s husband earns $17.70 an hour at a South Dakota pork plant doing a job so physically demanding it can only be performed in 30-minute increments. After each shift last week, he left exhausted as …

Individual Ashtrays, Hourly Disinfection: French Carmakers Eye Production Restart

PARIS — Peugeot-owner PSA and Renault are planning new safety measures in a push by France’s major industrial groups for a breakthrough with workers to reopen some factories before the government lifts its lockdown from mid-May, unions said. Japanese carmaker …

Facebook Sues Over Deceptive Ads Linked to Coronavirus Scams

Facebook Inc. sued the founder of a software company for running deceptive advertisements on its social-media platforms, including links to investment scams and bogus information about the coronavirus pandemic. Basant Gajjar’s “LeadCloak” software, designed to circumvent automated review systems in …