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APAC Edition
18th April 2024
 
THE HOT STORY
Google lays off employees, shifts roles abroad to hubs in India and elsewhere
Google is laying off an unspecified number of employees as part of a “large scale” restructuring. Staff across several of Google's teams in its real estate and finance departments have been affected, according to a Business Insider report. A Google spokesperson said the layoffs are not company-wide and that affected employees will be able to apply for internal roles, but did not specify the number of employees affected nor the teams involved. "Throughout the second half of 2023 and into 2024, a number of our teams made changes to become more efficient and work better, remove layers and align their resources to their biggest product priorities," the spokesperson added. A small percentage of the impacted roles will move to hubs the company is investing in, including Bangalore in India, Chicago and Atlanta in the US, and in Dublin.
LEGAL
Australian lawyer shines light on workplace bullying
LawFuel reports on how Australian lawyer Stefani Costi has gained attention for her efforts to combat workplace bullying in the legal profession. Costi's experiences with workplace bullying were highlighted in an article and a LinkedIn post, which led to an outpouring of support from others who had experienced mistreatment. The issue of workplace bullying is widespread throughout the world, with reports from various countries. Many workers remain silent due to fear of repercussions or legal barriers. Costi has launched a petition calling for mandatory education on workplace bullying and harassment, as well as the need for safe workplaces and mental health support. She hopes her petition will raise awareness and lead to safeguards against workplace bullying in other professions.
WORKFORCE
Japan's students are losing interest in civil service
Japan's robust bureaucratic system, once considered a pillar of stability, is facing challenges as the number of applicants for public service positions declines and public servants leave for the private sector.  The bureaucratic culture in Kasumigaseki, the central Tokyo area that hosts government offices, is viewed as lacking dynamism, with government personnel struggling to allocate time and resources for long-term visions. The disparity in job search schedules between the public and private sectors, as well as the office environment, is seen as influencing students' decisions to opt for private-sector jobs. Efforts must intensify to enhance students' perception of the appeal of public service to prevent further decline in the public sector, it is said.
STRATEGY
Morgan Stanley to cut 50 investment banking jobs in APAC
Morgan Stanley plans to cut about 50 investment banking jobs in the Asia-Pacific region, with at least 80% of the reductions in Hong Kong and China. The job cuts would be the deepest in years for Morgan Stanley in China, its biggest market in the region. The bank's net revenue from Asia fell 12% to $1.74bn in Q1. Global financial firms are seeking to reduce expenses amid a deal drought and have been cutting investment banking staff in Asia. Stock sales by Chinese firms in the U.S. and Hong Kong plummeted to a two-decade low of $1.7bn in Q1. Pay for most senior investment bankers at Wall Street firms in Asia dropped to the lowest level in almost two decades last year. Morgan Stanley is gradually building its onshore China business, obtaining licenses and making senior hires.
Apple CEO concludes SE Asia tour with Singapore meetings
Apple chief executive Tim Cook is in Singapore this week, ending his tour of Southeast Asia with meetings with Lawrence Wong, who is set to take over as Prime Minister next month, as well as his predecessor Lee Hsien Loong. Mr. Cook is looking for growth markets for Apple's products beyond China, and is also looking to diversify its production outside the country amid elevated trade tensions with the US. Apple said Wednesday it plans to invest $250m to expand its campus in Singapore. The company employs more than 3,600 people there and said the expansion will provide space for new roles in artificial intelligence and other functions.
CORPORATE
XpertHR becomes Brightmine in strategic rebrand
XpertHR has rebranded to Brightmine, as the company seeks to further support HR leaders through increasingly complex workforce conditions and global economic uncertainty. By leveraging its extensive experience of over 20 years as a legal and compliance service, Brightmine will fill a gap in the market through its unique combination of the industry’s most up-to-date data sets, AI-enabled technology and trusted HR expertise, empowering HR leaders at more than 10,000 global organisations with the insight and guidance needed to improve business outcomes.
LEADERSHIP
PwC appoints new global audit, advisory heads
PwC has selected the new leaders of its global audit and advisory businesses, ahead of Mohamed Kande's assumption of the role of global chair in July. Wes Bricker, vice chair and co-leader of US trust solutions, will serve as global assurance leader and Damir Maras, co-leader of Germany’s advisory operation, will be global advisory leader, both effective July 1st. 
Sephora turns to former Nike exec to overhaul China business
Sephora has named Ding Xia, Nike's vice president and general manager of e-commerce for Asia Pacific and Latin America, as its new managing director for Greater China. The LVMH-owned brand has struggled to replicate its US and European business success in China, amid intense competition in the country’s cosmetics sector and the dominance of major e-commerce platforms including Alibaba's Tmall.
INTERNATIONAL
Google suspends employees involved in protests against Project Nimbus
Google has suspended more than two dozen employees who participated in protests against the company’s work with the Israeli government on Tuesday, objecting to a $1.2bn contract it signed with the US ally three years ago.  Dozens of employees began occupying company offices in New York City and Sunnyvale, California. The contract, known as Project Nimbus, that Google shares with Amazon provides cloud computing services to the Israeli government. It has faced backlash from employees and activists since it was signed in 2021, but the objections have grown amid Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza. The suspended workers received a message from the company's Employee Relations group informing them that they had been put on administrative leave. “Administrative leave means that we will be shutting off your access to Google's campuses and systems and you are required to refrain from work until further notice and not come into the office,” according to the email, which was seen by Bloomberg. “We are keeping this matter as confidential as possible, only disclosing information on a need to know basis.”
Colorado governor signs landmark brainwave data protection law
Colorado Governor Jared Polis has signed into law the first measure in the U.S. aimed at protecting the data found in a person's brainwaves. The law is a response to the increasing advancements in neurotechnology, which make scanning, analyzing, and selling mental data more possible and profitable. The legislation provides a framework to protect Coloradans' personal data while allowing the development of new technologies. The Neurorights Foundation, a non-profit promoting ethical neurotechnology development, supports the bill. The law focuses on consumer products outside of a hospital setting, as medical privacy laws already cover neuratechnologies used in clinical settings. Big tech firms like Facebook, Meta Platforms, and Neuralink are developing brain activity detection technology for commercial use. The U.S. FDA has approved human studies for Neuralink's brain implants. Other governments worldwide are also working on increasing consumer protections for neurotechnological products.
Portuguese police and tax agents raid Uber premises in Lisbon
Portuguese police and tax agents conducted searches at Uber Technologies' premises in Lisbon as part of an investigation into suspected tax fraud worth €28m. The raids targeted some of Uber's delivery partners, but not the company's local unit. Uber confirmed the searches and stated that it is collaborating with authorities. The Public Prosecutor's Office revealed that the alleged fraud involved partners providing delivery services to a commercial company, benefiting from the issuance of invoices that did not correspond to services actually provided. The investigation is ongoing.
UK firms pull up a chair in shift to gender-neutral language
Over the past five years, more than half of FTSE 100 companies in the UK have replaced 'chairman' with 'chair' in a shift towards gender-neutral language. The move represents changing attitudes in the City and comes amid increased scrutiny of representation on corporate boards. In 2019, 98 FTSE 100 companies used the title 'chairman,' even when the head of their board was a woman. However, analysis of company results, announcements and filings over the past five years has shown 62 FTSE 100 businesses now use 'chair.' Only 32 still exclusively refer to the head of the board as 'chairman,' while six companies use both 'chair' and 'chairman.' The male-dominated finance and insurance industry is more likely to retain the use of "chairman," analysis shows.
OTHER
Thailand: Liquor companies warned against using music marketing strategies
The Stop-Drink Network Thailand has warned against liquor companies using music marketing strategies to promote their products. A survey conducted during the Songkran festival found that liquor companies used music marketing as a lever to bring singers and artists together and hold concerts to promote their products. These companies employed a brand sharing strategy by using the same brand names and logos for alcoholic products to promote non-alcoholic ones, potentially violating alcohol advertising regulations. Concert attendees could use tickets to get free beer and organisers failed to screen for underage people. The information will be presented to the government's Road Safety Centre and a House committee amending the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act.
 


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