Office workers are going back to school β "charm school," that is, Nathan writes.
What's happening: Employers frustrated with their workers' lack of soft skills are sending them to office etiquette courses, the Los Angeles Times reports.
"Employees and managers alike are finding that the pandemic made us all a little rusty with in-person conduct," the LA Times writes.
Companies like Maryland-based Business Training Works and California-based Swann School of Protocol are fielding requests to teach workers about "professionalism in the office and on Zoom, giving feedback, proper dress code, remembering names and how to conduct oneself during a business lunch."
π Nathan's thought bubble: Charm school might be more important than real school for some of us.
Elon Musk is threatening to pursue AI initiatives on his own if Tesla's board doesn't give him more stock in the company β and hence more control over its future.
Why it matters: AI is central to Tesla's market valuation β and without it, investors would likely see the stock as less valuable.
Enjoy humorous signs on freeways and highways while they still last.
Driving the news: The Federal Highway Administration is phasing out funny messaging over the next couple of years, saying this type of wording on the road could "adversely affect respect for the sign."
Congressional committee chairs reached a deal Tuesday that would expand the federal child tax credit, after three years of pushing by Democrats and progressives.
Why it matters: It's a meaningful expansion that could lift as many as a half-million kids out of poverty and make about 5 million more less poor, according to an estimate from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
A federal judge on Tuesday blocked JetBlue from completing its $3.8 billion takeover of Spirit Airlines, agreeing with the U.S. Justice Department that the deal would be anticompetitive.
Why it matters: This is a devastating blow for JetBlue, the country's sixth largest airline, and its incoming CEO Joanna Geraghty.
Driving the news: That, in a nutshell, is the question beneath much of the (abundant) AI discussions taking place among global leaders and top thinkers at the World Economic Forum this year.
Fed governor Christopher Waller is more confident now than at any point since 2021 that "inflation is on a path" to the Fed's 2% target.
What he's saying: "[B]ased on economic activity and the cooling of the labor market, I am becoming more confident that we are within striking distance of achieving a sustainable level of 2 percent" inflation, the influential policymaker said at a Tuesday event hosted by the Brookings Institution.
State of play: Big banking and financial firms started the festivities last Friday, with more (including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley) Tuesday morning, and hundreds of companies to follow in the coming weeks.
A program to jumpstart the conversion of old New York City office buildings into residential space is up and running.
What's happening: A total of 46 buildings are enrolled in NYC's Office Conversion Accelerator, which kicked off in August. Four have already begun the conversion process, and are expected to create more than 2,100 housing units, a spokesperson for Mayor Eric Adams' administration tells Axios exclusively.
