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Some local governments have started mandating hazard pay

Feb 19, 2021
But almost a year into the pandemic, most front-line workers are going without it.
Working on site during the pandemic is still hazardous, but many who do that receive no  hazard pay from their employers.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Retailers move into casual clothes and lingerie

Oct 23, 2020
Because most of us just aren't getting dressed up anymore.
A woman pushes a stroller past a Zara store in Bergamo, Italy, in June. Retailers are seeing loungewear as a longer-lasting trend as the pandemic continues.
Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images

What’s next for struggling shopping malls?

Oct 19, 2020
Mall real estate is facing a crisis with department store sales down and bankruptcies up.
A nearly empty mall in Bloomington, Minnesota, in June.
Kerem Yucel/AFP via Getty Images

Retailers prepare for a surge in online sales this holiday season

Sep 22, 2020
The thing is, it’s cheaper for retailers when you shop in-store.
A FedEx driver makes deliveries in Manhattan on Sept. 17 in New York City. While consumers have come to expect free shipping, it's costing companies.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Businesses, insurers want federal backstop to interruption insurance

Sep 11, 2020
Retailers like Century 21 are blaming unpaid insurance claims for their bankruptcies.
A Century 21 department store in lower Manhattan on Sept. 10. The company blamed its insurers for its bankruptcy.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Retailers go "conservative"

Sep 8, 2020
Going into the fall and the holidays, retailers are being cautious about what they buy.
A reopened Urban Outfitters store in Santa Monica, California. Heading into fall, retailers are being cautious about having too much inventory.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

What can clothing retailers do with all that excess inventory?

Aug 24, 2020
With clothing sales way down, there are not a lot of good options.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

As clothing sales drop, zipper and button makers struggle

Aug 12, 2020
The pandemic has downstream effects all throughout the supply chain.
Employees at a textile and weaver factory in Eloyes, France, in June. The clothing industry has a global supply chain for fabrics, buttons and zippers.
Jean-Christophe Verhaegen/AFP via Getty Images

Thanksgiving won't launch Black Friday shopping at some of the biggest retailers

Jul 29, 2020
Walmart, Target and Best Buy won't open on the holiday this year to jump-start the traditional extreme-shopping weekend.
A Macy's Black Friday sale in 2018 in New York. Store traffic on Thanksgiving is just a small part of Black Friday weekend.
Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

As COVID-19 cases spike, retail enters a new normal

Jul 9, 2020
Retailers are coming to terms with the fact that this virus is going to be with us for a long time.
Shoppers at a reopened Texas mall in May. The current surge in coronavirus cases is bringing new woes to retailers.
Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images