Human Times

North American Edition

10th June 2026

THE HOT STORY

SoFi Stadium workers reach tentative deal

The union representing food and beverage workers at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California has announced a tentative agreement that includes wage hikes and labor protections. The stadium is set to host eight World Cup matches including the U.S. versus Paraguay on Friday. USA Today observes that although the approximately 2,000 workers represented by Unite Here Local 11 and stadium operator Legends Global have reached an agreement, an issue hangs over the deal. "Notably, it includes an explicit right to strike if ICE or Border Patrol activity at the worksite threatens worker safety - a provision legal experts say is unprecedented in modern American labor history,'' Unite Here Local 11 stated in a press release, which also said: "Workers have the contractual right to walk off the job if the Union determines in good faith that federal immigration agency actions threaten worker safety during a World Cup match."

USA Today

Los Angeles Times

Reuters

TECHNOLOGY

JPMorgan Chase plans to deploy more powerful AI agents

JPMorgan Chase is set to deploy advanced AI agents later this year that can operate autonomously for extended periods, marking a significant step in corporate AI adoption. Derek Waldron, JPMorgan chief analytics officer, told CNBC: “We've entered now the era of long-running autonomous agents . . . [that] means that agents don't just run for two or three minutes to carry out a goal or some instructions of a human, they can run for an hour or two.” The bank has already seen a 20% increase in private banking gross sales due to AI tools, which have enhanced client interactions by analyzing market activity and client positions overnight. While some jobs may be displaced, Waldron emphasized that the focus is on creating a sustainable competitive advantage rather than merely cutting costs. He noted that the bank is shifting its approach to software development, considering in-house capabilities over traditional vendors, as the competitive landscape evolves.

CNBC

WORKFORCE

FedEx pilots ratify new wage deal, union says

FedEx pilots have ratified a new deal that ‌would raise their wages by about 40% this year, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) has said. The agreement follows almost five years of negotiations. Eighty-three percent of the parcel delivery ⁠company's pilots voted in favor of the new collective bargaining agreement that will also provide annual increases of 3% from 2028 through 2030. The contract takes effect from June 29.

Reuters

ECONOMY

Small-biz confidence slips as fuel costs pressure margins

U.S. small-business confidence declined in May, with the National Federation of Independent Business optimism index falling 0.6 points to 95.3, below both economists’ expectations and its long-term average of 98.0. Higher fuel prices weighed on margins, while uncertainty remained elevated. More businesses reported raising prices, with 36% increasing average selling prices, the highest level since March 2023, and 34% planning further price increases, the highest reading since July 2022. Hiring plans also weakened, with a net 9% of owners planning to add jobs over the next three months, the lowest level since May 2020. NFIB said small firms are struggling to absorb unpredictable cost increases, particularly as they have less ability than larger competitors to pass higher fuel costs on to customers.

New York Times

Reuters

CORPORATE

White House urged to speed up tariff refunds

Judge Richard Eaton of the Manhattan-based Court of International Trade has called on the Trump administration to expedite refunds of more than $10bn in revenue from tariffs that were ‌collected and later deemed illegal by the Supreme Court. Eaton, who stopped short of issuing a new order compelling White House officials to speed up the refunds, observed that delays were leading to a "growing inequity" between large importers who hired customs brokers to help them navigate a government system for seeking refunds, and smaller businesses which had not.

Reuters

LEGAL

Meta accuses NSO Group of violating WhatsApp spyware injunction

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, is to file a complaint against Israeli spyware company, NSO Group, for failing to comply with a court order prohibiting the targeting of WhatsApp users. The company said the messaging service had disrupted new spear phishing attempts linked to NSO, an entity blacklisted in 2021 by the U.S. government, which said it “developed and supplied spyware to foreign governments that used this tool to maliciously target government officials, journalists, businesspeople, activists, academics, and embassy workers.” WhatsApp won a permanent injunction against NSO last year in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California; a jury awarded the service over $167m in damages.

Ars Technica

Jerusalem Post

Reuters

RISK

IRS revamps anti-fraud partnership to combat rising identity theft threats

The IRS is restructuring its long-running Security Summit public-private partnership to strengthen defenses against tax-related identity theft and fraud, introducing five new work groups and expanding collaboration with payroll providers, whose wage and withholding data has become an increasingly attractive target for cybercriminals. The updated framework is designed to improve information sharing, enhance data protection practices, and identify suspicious activity earlier in the tax filing process. The Security Summit, which brings together the IRS, state tax agencies, tax software companies, and tax professional organizations, is adapting to a shift in fraud tactics as criminals increasingly steal legitimate taxpayer and business information to file convincing fraudulent returns.

Accounting Today

INTERNATIONAL

Finnish push to protect AI’s unseen workforce

Finland's Social Democrats have passed new legislation to safeguard the rights of often “invisible” AI workers, including data annotators, AI trainers and content moderators. The resolution, adopted in May, highlights the reliance on a largely outsourced workforce in the Global South. Many of these workers face low wages, exposure to harmful content, and lack formal recognition. According to the resolution: “Without their labor, AI would not exist. The Copilot, ChatGPT and equivalent systems used in Finnish workplaces would not function. Yet the work of these coal miners of the 21st century remains invisible.”

IceNews

ICC suspends top prosecutor Karim Khan

International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Karim Khan has been suspended with immediate effect while an investigation into misconduct allegations continues. The decision was made by a group within the ICC's management oversight body, which has also referred the matter to the court's 125 member states. Those states will vote on Khan's future during a special session that will be convened "as soon as possible." The oversight Bureau stressed that the suspension does not prejudge the outcome of the case. Khan has repeatedly denied all allegations of sexual misconduct; his lawyers described the decision as "unlawful, procedurally unfair and unsupported by evidence."

Financial Times

BBC News

The Guardian

World Bank urges Thailand to reform labor laws

The World Bank has urged Thailand to reform its labor and business laws ahead of the 2026 Business Ready (B-READY) assessment. Key areas for improvement include establishing a minimum of 15 working days of annual leave and implementing protections against workplace discrimination and harassment. The World Bank also highlighted the need for laws requiring additional compensation for night work and transparency in business ownership during registration. More than 150 representatives from relevant agencies joined the session to hear explanations and raise questions about the methodology to be used in Thailand's B-READY assessment this year.

The Nation

OTHER

Slimmer consumers leave retailers with growing returns

American retailers including Levi Strauss, Walmart and Costco are grappling with a surge in costly returns as shoppers taking popular weight-loss drugs rapidly shrink through clothing sizes. Industry data shows exchanges for smaller sizes reached a record high in 2025, while online sellers such as FlexSuits, The Dress Outlet and June Adel report customers increasingly ordering multiple sizes before returning those that no longer fit. The trend is eroding profits through higher shipping, warehousing and markdown costs. Retailers are responding with stricter return policies, higher restocking fees and greater stocks of smaller sizes as GLP-1 drugs reshape consumer buying habits.

Wall Street Journal

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