THE HOT STORY

City of Launceston abandons plans for four-day week

The City of Launceston has abandoned plans for a four-day work week at full pay due to significant opposition from ratepayers and the business community. Approximately 600 eligible employees were set to vote on the proposal, which would have made Launceston the first Australian government body to implement such a scheme. Instead, the council will introduce a revised agreement featuring flexible 38-hour arrangements and wage increases. The Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry had expressed concerns over potential cost increases for ratepayers.

Yahoo News Australia

West Australian

ABC Online

HIRING

Elon Musk makes direct appeal to Korean chip engineers

Elon Musk is actively recruiting Korean semiconductor engineers to support Tesla's plans for a large-scale chip production hub, known as "Terra Fab." He announced job openings for AI chip design engineers on his X account, highlighting a need for talent in chip design and fabrication. Musk said: "If you're in Korea and want to work on chip design, fabrication or AI software, join Tesla!" Demand for semiconductor engineers is rising, with Korea projected to face a shortfall of 54,000 engineers by 2031, according to the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association.

Korea Joongang Daily

The Korea Times

WORKPLACE

Capturing the nine-to-five: why ‘WorkTok’ films are gripping Gen Z

Corporate “day in the life” clips, where employees film themselves going about their regular working days, are proving a fast-growing hit on TikTok and Instagram, particularly among Gen Z viewers.

Financial Times

LEGAL

Bill extending daily working hours in Gujarat is passed

The Gujarat government has passed the Gujarat Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) (Amendment) Bill, 2026, allowing women to work night shifts in shops and commercial establishments. Introduced by Labour Minister Kunvarji Bavaliya, the bill was unanimously supported by both ruling and opposition parties. Women can now work between 9pm and 6am with proper safeguards, including transport and facilities. The bill also extends daily working hours to 10, allowing for up to 144 hours of overtime per quarter. Shailesh Parmar from Congress emphasised the need for effective monitoring to prevent exploitation.

The Times of India

STRATEGY

Santos to lay off 10% of workforce amid profit decline

Santos plans to reduce its workforce by 10% and review its Australian Integrated Oil and Gas portfolio following a significant drop in annual profit, which fell 25% to A$898m, missing market expectations. The company’s share price slid, closing at A$6.63, after experiencing a drop of up to 3.8% during trading. Santos aims to manage operating costs better while advancing key projects such as the Barossa LNG and Pikka Phase 1 developments.

Reuters

TECHNOLOGY

India aims to attract over $200bn in AI infrastructure investment by 2028

India is pursuing over $200bn in artificial intelligence infrastructure investment within the next two years. IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the plan at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, which was attended by major tech firms including OpenAI and Google. The government said it plans to attract investment through tax incentives and state-backed venture capital. While most funds will enhance AI infrastructure, an additional $17bn is expected for deep-tech applications.

Techcrunch

ECONOMY

Thai exports hit four-year high on AI-driven electronics surge

Thailand’s exports jumped 24.4% year-on-year in January, the fastest pace since late 2021, driven by booming demand for electronics linked to artificial intelligence and data centres, while imports surged 29.4%, Commerce Ministry data showed. The sharp rise in outbound shipments of electronic products and increased imports of raw materials and machinery pushed trade flows to their highest levels in four years, far exceeding economists’ forecasts. Officials said the growth reflects a global electronics upcycle rather than transshipments of Chinese goods. Thailand, which recorded a $4.8bn trade surplus with the US and a $7.2bn deficit with China in January, said it will continue trade talks with Washington after the US Supreme Court struck down most of former President Donald Trump’s global tariffs, although a proposed new 15% levy remains under discussion.

Bloomberg

INTERNATIONAL

Corporate board diversity efforts fade as DEI policies retreat

Corporate America is scaling back diversity efforts on boards, with S&P 500 companies appointing women and minority directors at rates similar to a decade ago. Nearly 80% of new directors last year were white and about three-quarters were men, marking a sharp decline from diversity gains in 2021. Corporate policies supporting board diversity have also declined. Only about a quarter of S&P 500 companies maintained formal policies last year requiring consideration of gender and racial diversity when appointing directors, down from roughly half the year before. So far this year, that share has fallen to 14%. The retreat comes after legal setbacks, including court rulings striking down California’s board diversity mandates and Nasdaq’s disclosure rule on board diversity. Although overall board demographics remain somewhat more diverse than a decade ago, progress has slowed significantly. At the current pace, boards in the broader Russell 3000 index would not reach gender parity until 2044, according to projections.

Wall Street Journal

Sex workers' earnings hit by World Cup preparations

Preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Mexico City are affecting the livelihoods of local sex workers and street vendors. Montserrat Fuentes, a sex worker for 20 years, is among those who say they have seen their earnings slashed amid government projects that are meant to clean up the city before the tournament starts this summer. “What we're seeing in Mexico is something that so much of the world has faced when there's an event of this scale. They always want to fix up their city, make it look nice,” Fuentes said. “But the ones that are hurt are always us at the bottom of the ladder.”

U.S. News

German population set to shrink 5% by 2050

German economic think-tank Ifo has revised its forecast for a 1% population decline by 2050 to nearly 5% - a drop that would leave Germany with its smallest population since 1990.

Financial Times

OTHER

US plans online portal to bypass content bans

Reuters reports that the US State Department is planning an online portal be hosted at "freedom.gov" that will allow people in Europe and elsewhere to see content banned by their governments including alleged hate speech and terrorist propaganda. Officials are said to have discussed including a virtual private network function to make a user's traffic appear to originate in the US. “Digital freedom is a priority for the State Department . . . and that includes the proliferation of privacy and censorship-circumvention technologies like VPNs," the department told Reuters.

Reuters

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