Facebook to Hire 10,000 Workers This Year, Sets Plans for Doling Out $100M in Aid to Small Businesses

By Variety Staff

By Vanessa Papas

Senate on Tuesday (April 21) voted to pass a bill adding $310 billion to the Small Business Administration’s COVID-19 loan program, including $50 billion for economic disaster aid loans, after the program's initial $349 billion funding pool ran out. The supplemental relief package is $484 billion in total and the House is expected to approve the bill later this week.

By Ted Johnson

By Matt Donnelly

By Ted Johnson

By Erik Pedersen

Canadian cable giant Shaw Communications on Tuesday said it will temporarily lay off around 1,000 employees, or 10 percent of its workforce. The Calgary-based media company cited "the extraordinary and unpredictable conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic" for the furloughs set to begin Thursday.

Offshore workers have been left stunned by an oil company ’s plans to cut more than 130 jobs.

Walt Disney World plans to stop paying wages to 43,000 workers in about a week while allowing them to keep their benefits for up to a year in what is the largest wave of furloughs since the theme park resort closed in mid-March because of the new coronavirus spread. Workers will be able to keep their medical, dental and life insurance benefits for the length of the furlough period, or up to a year.

By Anita Bennett

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy” 

Renfrewshire businesses have benefited from more than £3.3million of support from the Scottish Government.

Stacey Solomon has got a home that many of us envy, from her super organised cupboards to her perfectly designed garden. While we're in lockdown, as we battle to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the UK, the mum-of-three has been sharing a handful of small businesses where she has snapped up some of her most popular household items.

Nick Jonas had a difficult decision to make on Monday night's (April 6) episode of The Voice, when his team members Arie Moon and Samuel Wilco faced off in the Battle Rounds.

The Script have announced a free concert exclusively for HSE and NHS frontline staff as well as primary care workers next year.

Launched last week with a performance from Dave Matthews, Verizon's weekly streaming series Pay It Forward continues Tuesday night (March 31) with Marshmello and Nate Hill of the gaming collective FaZe Clan. The duo will play Fortnite during the 45-minute event, which will stream live at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m.

Macy's says it will stop paying tens of thousands of employees who were thrown out of work when the chain closed its stores in response to collapsing sales during the pandemic. The majority of its 130,000 employees, including stock people and sales clerks, will still collect health benefits, but the company said that it is transitioning to an "absolute minimum workforce" needed to maintain basic operations.

By Tom Grater

Just months ago, the #buyfromthebush campaign was a lifeline for struggling businesses trying to stay afloat in drought-stricken communities.