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Wednesday

U.S. Retail Spending Declined The Most Since Historic Plunge In April

Shoppers walk through Macy's in New York on Black Friday last month. Retail sales declined 1.1% in November, according to the Commerce Department. Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images

Coronavirus Updates

U.S. Retail Spending Declined The Most Since Historic Plunge In April

Retail sales dipped 1.1% in November compared with a month earlier as new coronavirus surges restricted outings to stores and especially restaurants.

U.S. Retail Spending Declined The Most Since Historic Plunge In April

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Wednesday

Amazon Warehouse Workers In Alabama Petition To Unionize

Some workers at Amazon warehouses such as this one in the Staten Island borough of New York City have been trying to organize, facing stiff opposition from the company. Amazon workers in Alabama have now petitioned to form a union. Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images

Business

Amazon Warehouse Workers In Alabama Petition To Unionize

Warehouse workers in Bessemer, Ala., notify federal labor authorities of plans to hold a unionization vote, teeing up a major labor battle at the retail giant known for its opposition to unionizing.

Tuesday

Thursday

These Women Built Careers In Retail. The COVID-19 Crisis Tore Through Their Stores

Heather Wilcox-Nicholls lost her job with Mattress Firm during the pandemic. She had been with the company for about five years and was about to take on a new store as a manager. Krista Rossow for NPR hide caption

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Krista Rossow for NPR

Enough Already: How The Pandemic Is Breaking Women

These Women Built Careers In Retail. The COVID-19 Crisis Tore Through Their Stores

Women hold the majority of jobs in clothing and department stores, gift and souvenir shops. They run cash registers everywhere. Now thousands of stores have shuttered, leaving them jobless.

These Women Built Careers In Retail. The COVID-19 Crisis Tore Through Their Stores

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Friday

When Shoplifting Is A Felony: Retailers Back Harsher Penalties For Store Theft

What role should retailers play in pushing for harsher penalties for people caught shoplifting? erhui1979/Getty Images hide caption

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erhui1979/Getty Images

Business

When Shoplifting Is A Felony: Retailers Back Harsher Penalties For Store Theft

A new report by the consumer-interest nonprofit Public Citizen calls out major retailers for donating to trade groups and campaigns supporting harsher shoplifting penalties in at least 18 states.

When Shoplifting Is A Felony: Retailers Back Harsher Penalties For Store Theft

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Wednesday

People Are Spending More On Furniture, Clothes, Restaurants And Bars

People walk through the newly reopened mall at Hudson Yards in New York. U.S. shoppers spent more prudently in August and retail sales grew a tepid 0.6% from July. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption

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Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Coronavirus Updates

People Are Spending More On Furniture, Clothes, Restaurants And Bars

But U.S. shoppers spent more prudently in August and retail sales grew a tepid 0.6% from July, after extra federal jobless benefits expired and families faced a confusing back-to-school season.

Thursday

A Confusing Back-To-School Season May Lead To Blockbuster Spending

A shopper walks past shelves of school supplies at a Target store in San Rafael, Calif. Preparing for both in-person and virtual learning has families budgeting for new school supplies and bigger purchases. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Coronavirus Updates

A Confusing Back-To-School Season May Lead To Blockbuster Spending

Preparing for both in-person and virtual learning has families budgeting for new school supplies like masks and bleach wipes as well as bigger purchases like laptops, speakers, desks and chairs.

A Confusing Back-To-School Season May Lead To Blockbuster Spending

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Friday

Monday

Unsuitable For A Pandemic? Add Men's Wearhouse, Jos. A. Bank To Bankruptcy List

An employee works inside a Jos. A. Bank retail store in San Francisco. The parent company Tailored Brands earlier said it would close up to 500 stores and cut 20% of corporate jobs. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Coronavirus Updates

Unsuitable For A Pandemic? Add Men's Wearhouse, Jos. A. Bank To Bankruptcy List

The parent company Tailored Brands earlier said it would close up to 500 stores and cut 20% of corporate jobs. It's joined in pandemic bankruptcy by rival Brooks Brothers and a growing list of others.

Sunday

Lord & Taylor, Oldest U.S. Department Store, Files For Bankruptcy

A woman walks out of Lord & Taylor's flagship store in Manhattan in June 2018, before the location was closed and the building was sold in 2019. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption

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Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Coronavirus Updates

Lord & Taylor, Oldest U.S. Department Store, Files For Bankruptcy

The retailer was acquired in 2019 by online clothing-rental startup called Le Tote. It joins a cascade of bankruptcies by major apparel stores, triggered by the doldrums of the coronavirus pandemic.

Thursday

Another Bankruptcy At The Mall: Parent Company Of Ann Taylor, Loft Is Latest To Fail

An Ann Taylor store in New York City in 2015. Ascena Retail Group, which owns Ann Taylor, Loft and Lane Bryant, has filed for bankruptcy. Andrew Burton/Getty Images hide caption

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Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Coronavirus Updates

Another Bankruptcy At The Mall: Parent Company Of Ann Taylor, Loft Is Latest To Fail

Ascena Retail Group is the latest clothing seller to try a restructuring during the pandemic when demand has cratered. The firm, which also owns Lane Bryant and Justice, will close some stores.

Thursday

Wednesday