Process for model declaratory judgment against Mercedes started
The Higher Regional Court should clarify whether Mercedes drivers are entitled to compensation.
(dpa) The trial of a model declaratory action against Mercedes-Benz began on Tuesday at the Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart. In connection with the diesel scandal, consumer advocates essentially accuse the car manufacturer of deliberate manipulation of exhaust gas values and want to claim damages for affected customers.
The Federation of German Consumer Organizations (vzbv) filed the model declaratory action last year. The association is thus going to court on behalf of the car owners – with less effort and risk for the individual. If customers were granted a right to compensation, they would then have to enforce this themselves. Affected customers could register up to the end of the day before the start of the first appointment. By the end of June, 2,804 Mercedes customers had joined the lawsuit, a spokesman for the Federal Office of Justice said.
Economic worries are causing tech stocks in the US to plummet
(dpa) Renewed concerns about the economy brought the recent recovery on the American stock market to a standstill again on Monday. Market participants once again referred to the fears of interest rates, inflation and recession, which are now part of everyday stock market life and which particularly affected the strongly growth-oriented technology stocks. Ahead of this week’s key inflation data release and the start of US corporate accounting season, these concerns are once again gripping investors.
In New York, the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 fell 2.19 percent to 11,860.28 points. The market-wide S&P 500 fell by 1.15 percent to 3854.43 points. The leading index Dow Jones Industrial lost 0.52 percent to 31,173.84 points after a brief excursion into the profit zone.
In terms of individual values, Twitter stocks were once again in the spotlight after billionaire and Tesla boss Elon Musk did not want to buy the short message service after all. Musk’s lawyers justified the withdrawal with allegedly insufficient information on the number of fake accounts. The company wants to push the deal through in court, and the shares collapsed by 11.3 percent, bringing up the rear in the S&P 500.
Tesla’s stocks were unable to benefit from the news, although they had recently suffered from the prospect that Musk would have to sell his own shares in the electric car maker to finance the Twitter deal. Instead, Tesla shares lost 6.6 percent. They were weighed down by the threat of recession and renewed production disruption in China.
Uber’s shares fell more than 5 percent. Internal documents from the transport service broker from 2013 to 2017 that have now come to light have given deeper insights into the aggressive business practices of the company at the time.
The euro came under pressure, closing at $1.0043 on Wall Street. The price was only just above parity. The European Central Bank had set the reference rate at 1.0098 (Friday: 1.0163) dollars. The dollar thus cost 0.9903 (0.9840) euros. A major reason for the weakness of the euro is the fear of an energy crisis in Europe.
Train drivers from eight British companies vote for strikes
In Great Britain, the signs are that the railways are on strike – and not only there.
(dpa) Large parts of Great Britain are again facing serious traffic disruptions due to rail strikes. The train drivers of eight railway companies voted to strike in a dispute over higher wages, as the Aslef trade union announced on Monday (July 11). The result was overwhelmingly clear. Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan justified the planned walkout, for which there is no date yet. Many members have not received a wage increase since 2019, despite ensuring that people and goods were transported across the country even during the pandemic.
A few weeks ago, three days of rail strikes paralyzed large parts of the country. At that time, tens of thousands of employees from several railway companies and employees of the route operator Network Rail walked down their jobs and demonstrated for more money, a reversal of planned job cuts and better working conditions. There is no agreement here yet.
Workers at Britain’s Crown Post Office walked out on Monday to back their calls for higher pay rises. The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has rejected the Post Office’s offer of a 3 per cent increase in wages and a one-off payment of £500 (590 euros). It is well below the current inflation rate of more than 9 percent.
On Thursday, employees in the supply chains and in administration also want to go on strike. According to the CWU, this will also affect the branches.
Amazon workers in Germany are on strike
The Verdi union has called on Amazon employees to go on strike.
(dpa) After a strike called by the Verdi union, Amazon employees at several locations in Germany have stopped working. According to Verdi spokesmen, the walkout began at the beginning of the night shift and is expected to last until Wednesday.
Verdi did not name a planned end to the campaign. The union is demanding that Amazon recognize the collective bargaining agreement for the retail and mail order business and conclude a collective bargaining agreement. Amazon does not expect the walkouts to affect customers, the company said.
According to the union, the reason for the strike is Amazon’s “Prime Day” discount campaign, which begins on Tuesday (July 12). In its statement, the company pointed out that all employees at Amazon earn at least 12 euros per hour, and that the minimum wage is to rise to 12.50 euros per hour in autumn. After 24 months, the average salary of Amazon employees is around 2750 euros gross per month.
“Uber-Files” report on the company’s business practices
Uber is said to have worked with European politicians to expand into key cities.
(dpa) Internal documents now published by the ride-hailing service provider Ubers from the years 2013 to 2017 provide deeper insights into the company’s aggressive business practices at the time. According to media reports based on internal communications on Monday, Uber tried to use clashes between taxi drivers and their chauffeurs for lobbying purposes and blocked computers remotely during official raids in European cities.
More than 124,000 documents such as e-mails and chat messages were leaked to the British newspaper “Guardian”. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and more than 180 journalists from international media, including Le Monde, El País and the Washington Post, were involved in evaluating these so-called Uber files. In Germany, reporters from NDR, WDR and the Süddeutsche Zeitung collaborated.
The documents come from a time when Uber was pursuing aggressive international expansion under co-founder and then-boss Travis Kalanick. In the early days, the company, which was founded in 2008, also tried to partially establish its US model in Europe, in which private individuals transport passengers in their own cars. After regulators intervened, Uber gave up the practice, but tensions with the taxi industry and authorities remained high for years. Since Dara Khosrowshahi took over the top job at Uber in 2017, the company has repeatedly distanced itself from its predecessor’s business practices.
The company said in a statement: “We have not and will not make excuses for our past behavior that is clearly inconsistent with our values today. Instead, we’re asking the public to judge us by what we’ve done in the past five years and what we will do in the years to come.”
Among other things, the documents document how Uber organized a large counter-demonstration after protests against the company in France in 2016, with “15,000 drivers” and “50,000 customers”, as Kalanick wrote in chat messages published by the “Washington Post”. . He therefore downplayed the risk of possible aggressive behavior on the part of the other side: “I think it’s worth it. Violence guarantees success.”
According to the reports, the documents also prove the controversial use of two software tools, which has been known for years. With a name called Greyball, regulators adjusted the display in the Uber app at the location so that no vehicles were displayed. With a “kill switch”, computers were switched off remotely during a raid on the Uber office in Amsterdam.
Rogers power outage hits millions of Canadians, sparking outrage
People use the Internet at a Toronto coffee shop amid a nationwide network outage by telecommunications company Rogers on Friday (7/8).
(Reuters) A network outage at one of Canada’s largest telecommunications operators paralyzed millions of people’s access to banking, transportation and government all day on Friday (July 8). This has caused widespread customer outrage and has reinforced existing criticism of Rogers Telecommunications’ supremacy.
Almost all areas of life were disrupted, because the failure affected both internet access and mobile and landline connections. Police across Canada said some callers were unable to reach emergency services through 911.
Canadians working from home crowded cafes and public libraries that still had Internet access, or gathered outside hotels to pick up a signal. Canada’s Border Protection Agency said the outage had affected its mobile app for inbound travelers. Retailers’ cashless payment systems went down and banks reported problems with ATMs.
Rogers said it will provide credit to affected customers. The company’s shares closed down 73 cents on the Toronto Stock Exchange at $61.54.
Ford is recalling more than 100,000 cars in the US due to fire hazards
(dpa) The second largest American carmaker Ford has to repair numerous vehicles due to the risk of fire. According to its own statements, the group is recalling a good 100,000 Lincoln Corsair, Ford Escape and Maverick hybrid cars with model years from 2020 to 2022 in the USA on Friday (July 8th). Ford warned in a statement of fire hazards under the hood that could result from oil leaks and fuel vapors in the event of engine damage. However, the group is not aware of any accidents related to the problem.
In addition, Ford announced on Friday that it would expand an American recall of the SUV Expedition and Lincoln Navigator from May by around 27,000 cars to more than 66,000 units. This is also about fire hazards under the hood – according to Ford, these risks also exist when vehicles are parked with the engine switched off. Car owners should therefore not park near buildings. Ford has now been reported 21 fires in connection with the defect. The automaker also knew of an injured person.