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United Airlines has reached tentative agreements with a union representing nearly 30,000 ground workers, the labor group said Wednesday.
The two-year agreements cover “industry-best” wage rates, as well as job protection and certain guards against outsourcing roles.
The airline remains in negotiations with its pilots over a new contract.

An airline passenger checks in at the United airlines desk at the Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Florida, January 19, 2022.
Octavio Jones | Reuters

United Airlines has reached tentative agreements with a union representing nearly 30,000 ground workers, the labor group said Wednesday.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers said the two-year tentative agreements cover “industry-best” wage rates, as well as job protection and certain guards against outsourcing roles. The specific terms of the contracts were not disclosed.

The deal comes while United is in talks with labor unions representing its pilots and flight attendants. Pilots last year rejected a preliminary agreement, and negotiations have since resumed.
Members of IAM District 141 will receive more details about the tentative agreements, the union said in a statement. The union will soon announce a schedule for a ratification vote.
“Job security and industry-leading wages are rightfully two top priorities for our membership at United Airlines,” said Tom Regan, airline coordinator for IAM’s Air Transport Territory.
In a statement, IAM District 141 said that if the agreements are ratified by members, the union “will be back in negotiations one year from the date these agreements are ratified to bargain for more.”
The two-year tentative agreements cover seven work classifications: fleet service workers, passenger service workers, storekeepers, central load planners, maintenance instructors, fleet technical instructors and security officers. More

After a sharp gain in January, pending home sales rose just 0.8% in February, according to the National Association of Realtors.
The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage started February right around 6% and ended the month just over 7%

A For Sale sign displayed in front of a home on February 22, 2023 in Miami, Florida.
Joe Raedle | Getty Images

Higher mortgage rates took some of the juice out of the housing recovery in February.
After a sharp gain in January, pending home sales rose just 0.8% month to month, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were 21.1% lower than February last year. Pending sales are based on signed contracts during the month.

Mortgage rates shot higher in February after dropping sharply in January. The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage started February right around 6% and ended the month just over 7%, according to Mortgage News Daily. That gave homebuyers considerably less purchasing power.
Regionally sales moved higher month to month in every region except the West, where they fell 2.4%. That is likely because the West is the priciest region for housing, and buyers there are thus stretching the most to afford a home. Any jump in mortgage rates would have an outsized effect there.
“The affordable U.S. regions – the Midwest and South – are leading the recovery,” Yun added. “Mortgage rates have improved in recent weeks after the federal government guaranteed the status of most mortgages amidst uncertainty in the financial market,” Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors, said in a release. “While access to commercial mortgage loans could become increasingly difficult, residential mortgage loans are expected to be more readily available.”
Home prices have eased considerably since last summer, but housing is still expensive by historical standards. Price drops may also have stalled in January, due to the big jump in buyer demand. Real estate agents anecdotally reported more bidding wars in January, given still very short supply. More

Space infrastructure company Redwire said it trimmed its quarterly losses as it continued building its order backlog.
Redwire brought in $53.7 million in fourth-quarter revenue, up 31% from the same period a year ago.

Pete Cannito, Redwire Corporation at the New York Stock Exchange, September 8, 2021.
Source: NYSE

Space infrastructure company Redwire reported fourth-quarter results on Wednesday, saying it further trimmed its losses and built its order backlog.
After rising as much as 10% in premarket trading, Redwire stock fell slightly soon after the opening bell.

The company brought in $53.7 million in fourth-quarter revenue, up 31% from the same period a year ago. Its total backlog of orders nearly doubled to $465.1 million as of the end of 2022, compared to the end of 2021.
Redwire also trimmed its adjusted EBITDA loss on a quarter-over-quarter basis, to $773,000 from $1.5 million in the third quarter.
“Our financial performance showed improvement on both a sequential and year-over-year basis,” Redwire  CFO Jonathan Baliff said in a statement.

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The company had $53.3 million in available liquidity at the end of the year, which was a split mix of cash and borrowing capacity.
For 2023, Redwire forecast full year revenue between $220 million to $250 million, up from $160.6 million in 2022 revenue. More

Overall mortgage demand rose 2.9% last week compared with the previous week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) decreased to 6.45% from 6.48%.
Mortgage applications to purchase a home increased 2% for the week but were 35% lower than the same week one year ago.

An ‘open house’ flag is displayed outside a single family home on September 22, 2022 in Los Angeles, California.
Allison Dinner | Getty Images

Stress in the banking system turned out to be a boon for the U.S. mortgage market. As investors hid in the relative safety of the bond market, yields moved even lower last week. Mortgage rates followed.
Mortgage demand, consequently, rose 2.9% compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index. The string of gains, however, could be short-lived, as rates are now moving higher again.

Last week, the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) decreased to 6.45% from 6.48%, with points decreasing to 0.62 from 0.66 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment. The rate was 4.8% the same week one year ago.
Applications to refinance a home loan increased 5% for the week but were still 61% lower year over year. The vast majority of homeowners today have mortgages with interest rates far below today’s rate, leaving them little incentive to refinance. Those who want to take out equity are largely opting for second loans, rather than give up the rates they have in a cash-out refinance.
Mortgage applications to purchase a home increased 2% for the week but were 35% lower than the same week one year ago. Buyers are coming back into the market for the traditionally busy spring season but are finding very little available for sale.
“Home-price growth has slowed markedly in many parts of the country, which has helped to improve buyers’ purchasing power,” said Joel Kan, an MBA economist in the release. “While the 30-year fixed rate remained 1.65 percentage points higher than a year ago, homebuyers responded, leading to a fourth straight increase in purchase applications.”
Mortgage rates, however, moved more than 20 basis points higher to start this week, according to a separate survey from Mortgage News Daily. With no more bank failures in the news this week, and no major economic data to influence investors, rates could return to the higher trajectory they were on before the bank issues hit. More

Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette will retire in February, the company announced.
He spearheaded the company’s turnaround effort and led Macy’s during the pandemic.
Tony Spring, CEO of Macy’s-owned Bloomingdale’s, will succeed Gennette.

Jeff Gennette, CEO of Macy’s.
Getty Images

Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette will retire early next year after a four-decade career at the company, the department store chain announced Wednesday morning.
Gennette, 61, plans to step down in February. He will be succeeded by Tony Spring, CEO of the company’s higher-end department store banner, Bloomingdale’s.

In addition to the CEO change, Macy’s Chief Financial Officer Adrian Mitchell will take on an expanded role and also serve as the company’s chief operating officer. He will lead store operations, technology and supply chain teams, along with his existing role over finance and real estate.
When Gennette stepped into Macy’s top role in 2017, he faced declining sales and hard questions of whether the storied retailer — and department stores in general — could survive as customers moved online and increasingly shopped at discounters, e-commerce players and fashion-forward brands.
He spearheaded efforts to reinvigorate the nearly 165-year-old company. He kicked off Macy’s three-year turnaround plan, called Polaris, announced in February 2020. It called for accelerating digital growth, closing underperforming shops and investing in the company’s best stores to boost profits.
Over the past three years, Gennette navigated the company through another major challenge: A pandemic that forced Macy’s to temporarily shutter its nearly 800 stores and furlough the majority of its employees.
The retailer emerged from the pandemic with a smaller workforce and store footprint, but with less debt and more modern, data-driven organization.

Shares of the company have fallen about 50% since March 2017, when Gennette took over the top job, but the stock has rebounded dramatically from lows in March and April 2020, just after Covid was designated a pandemic.
Last year, the retailer managed to avoid the inventory woes of many of its retail peers — setting it up better for the holiday season and start of the fiscal year. It has recently broken from its typical role of shopping mall anchor by opening and testing several smaller and off-mall locations.
Gennette has also stood out as an openly gay leader of a publicly traded company. He has been a vocal champion of equal rights, such as publicly backing and expressing company support for the Respect for Marriage Act.
In a news release, Macy’s said Spring, 58, was tapped as its next leader after an internal and external search.
Bloomingdale’s, which Spring currently leads, has been one of the strongest parts of Macy’s business. The banner, which has fewer stores, but more luxury brands and bigger-spending customers, outperformed Macy’s namesake banner during each quarter of the past fiscal year.
The company also includes beauty banner Bluemercury, which Spring also helped reposition into another bright spot for the company.
Gennette praised Spring’s performance.
“Tony consistently innovates for the customer, is an exceptional brand builder and an excellent talent developer who has strengthened our culture through his leadership,” he said in a new release.
Gennette called Spring and Mitchell “an ideal team to build on our momentum and propel Macy’s, Inc. into the future.” More

IHOP is bringing back old favorites and unveiling new items as part of a menu overhaul.
The Dine Brands chain cut its menu by roughly a third during the pandemic and has been slowly adding more items.
The Cinn-A-Stack pancakes are returning April 3, after IHOP fielded almost a dozen requests every week for their comeback.

IHOP’s new crepe lineup features sweet and savory flavors.
Source: IHOP

IHOP on Wednesday unveiled a revamped menu that includes more than a dozen new items and the return of its popular Cinn-A-Stack pancakes.
The pancake chain, which is owned by Applebee’s parent Dine Brands, cut about a third of its menu during pandemic lockdowns. Since then, the chain has slowly brought items back or introduced new ones, like burritos and bowls. Still, its menu remains about 15% smaller than it was previously.

The new menu, which will be available nationwide on April 3, spans breakfast, lunch and dinner and revives several items that disappeared during the pandemic, like the Cinn-A-Stack pancakes and Eggs Benedict. Those classics’ homecoming could help draw back diners who’ve cut back on their restaurant spending or have been buying their breakfast elsewhere.
IHOP reported same-store sales growth of 2% in the fourth quarter as price hikes helped offset traffic declines.
“[The menu] is much more focused, based on what our guests have told us that they’re looking for,” the company’s chief marketing officer, Kieran Donahue, told CNBC.
IHOP was fielding almost a dozen requests every week from customers asking for Cinna-A-Stack pancakes back on the menu, according to Donahue. The Eggs Benedict line is made with a new hollandaise sauce and includes classic ham, veggie, spicy poblano and bourbon bacon jam versions of the classic breakfast dish.
The restaurant will also expand into savory crepes, an idea that came straight from its franchisees, who operate all of IHOP’s locations. Crepe flavors will include cinnamon bun, fresh berry and chicken pesto.

Its Steakburger line also got an update and will include a four-cheese crisp and bourbon bacon jam options. Customers looking for surf over turf can order the crispy battered fish and shrimp platters, and diners wanting a lighter option can choose the fresh berry or chopped chicken salad.
The move to broaden the menu also required more training for employees. Donahue said bringing back old favorites, like the Eggs Benedict, meant reminding workers how to poach eggs, for example.
“But the beauty of how our menu comes together is that 90% of what we do is on the griddle,” she said.
The pancake chain’s menu overhaul comes as the broader industry seeks to lure back diners. Last year’s higher prices scared away customers who tightened their budgets, and eateries are looking to boost traffic in order to drive sales growth.
IHOP rival Denny’s recently revealed its own updated menu, made possible by recent kitchen renovations. Other chains have ramped up promotions. Subway is bringing back its Footlong Pass, while Red Lobster offered all-you-can-eat lobster at its Times Square location on Tuesday. More

Sen. Bernie Sanders is expected to grill former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz during a U.S. Senate panel about the company’s compliance with federal labor law.
The coffee chain has denied allegations of union busting, but Starbucks Workers United has filed more than 500 complaints of unfair labor practices.
Despite stepping down as chief executive, Schultz remains on Starbucks’ board and is its fifth-largest shareholder.

CEO of Starbucks Howard Schultz sits off stage to listen to soon to be Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan at Investor Day in Seattle, Washington Tuesday September 13, 2022.
Melina Mara | The Washington Post | Getty Images

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz on Wednesday is likely to face tough questions from Sen. Bernie Sanders about the coffee chain’s alleged union busting.
Schultz stepped down from his post on March 20, handing the reins over to Laxman Narasimhan, who spent the prior six months learning about the company. However, Schultz remains on Starbucks’ board and is its fifth-largest shareholder, with a 1.9% stake in the company he turned into a global juggernaut.

Sanders, a pro-union independent representing Vermont, has been putting pressure on Starbucks for more than a year to recognize the union and negotiate contracts with unionized cafes.
During a Senate hearing on Wednesday, Schultz will defend Starbucks’ approach to its negotiations, maintaining that a direct relationship with workers is what is best for the company, according to a copy of his written testimony viewed by CNBC.
In early March, Schultz declined an invitation from the chamber’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which Sanders chairs, to testify about the company’s handling of the union push. After Sanders called for a vote on whether to subpoena Schultz, the former chief executive agreed to appear in front of the panel.
Starbucks confirmed with the committee that Schultz, who stepped down from the top job earlier than expected, still plans to testify at the hearing, set for 10 a.m. ET.

Chairman Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., makes an opening statement before Stephane Bancel, CEO of Moderna, testified during the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing titled Taxpayers Paid Billions For It: So Why Would Moderna Consider Quadrupling the Price of the COVID Vaccine in Hart Building on Wednesday, March 22, 2023.
Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images

Schultz’s third stint as CEO of Starbucks lasted just two weeks shy of a year, but in that time he moved aggressively to stem the organizing wave that began under his predecessor, Kevin Johnson. Schultz announced higher wages, better benefits and card tipping for non-union locations as well as a reinvention plan that included automating tasks that baristas found tedious.

As of Monday, 391 company-owned cafes have filed petitions to unionize, and 294 have voted to unionize under Starbucks Workers United, according to data from the National Labor Relations Board. In total, the union has made more than 500 complaints of unfair labor practices related to Starbucks with the federal labor board. Judges have found that the company has illegally threatened baristas, fired workers and prohibited union literature.
Starbucks has denied allegations of union busting and filed roughly 100 of its own complaints against the union.
None of the unionized stores have agreed on a contract yet with Starbucks. An NLRB lawyer reportedly said Tuesday that the company’s refusal to bargain over Zoom was illegal.
Last week, House Republicans issued a subpoena to the NLRB seeking documents and alleging misconduct by the agency’s officials in connection with a Starbucks union election in Kansas.
Beyond lawmakers and regulators, Starbucks also has faced pressure for its handling of the union push from investors. At the company’s annual meeting on Thursday, shareholders cast their votes for a nonbinding proposal that asked for a third-party probe into whether the company broke its commitment to workers’ rights. Starbucks hasn’t shared the official vote counts yet.
— CNBC’s Kate Rogers contributed to this report. More

Lucid said in a regulatory filing that it is cutting about 18% of its workforce, or roughly 1,300 workers.
In a letter to employees, CEO Peter Rawlinson said the job cuts will hit “nearly every organization and level, including executives.”
The company expects to take charges of $24 million to $30 million related to the cuts, most of that in the first quarter.

Lucid Motors CEO Peter Rawlinson poses at the Nasdaq MarketSite as Lucid Motors (Nasdaq: LCID) begins trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange after completing its business combination with Churchill Capital Corp IV in New York City, New York, July 26, 2021.
Andrew Kelly | Reuters

Struggling EV maker Lucid said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that it plans to cut about 18% of its workforce, or roughly 1,300 employees, as part of a larger restructuring to reduce costs as it works to ramp up production of its Air luxury sedan.
Lucid said it will incur one-time charges totaling between $24 million and $30 million related to the job cuts, with most of that amount being recognized in the first quarter of 2023.

News of the job cuts was first reported by Insider earlier on Tuesday. Lucid’s shares closed down over 7% on Tuesday following the Insider report.
In a letter to employees, CEO Peter Rawlinson said the job cuts will hit “nearly every organization and level, including executives,” and that affected employees will be notified over the next three days. Severance packages will include continued healthcare coverage paid by Lucid, as well as an acceleration of equity vesting, Rawlinson wrote.
Lucid ended 2022 with about $4.4 billion in cash on hand, enough to last until the first quarter of 2024, CFO Sherry House told CNBC last month ahead of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report. But there have been signs that demand for the high-priced Air has fallen short of Lucid’s internal expectations, and the company may be struggling to convert early reservations to sold orders.
Lucid said that it had more than 28,000 reservations for the Air as of Feb. 21, its most recent update. But it also said that it plans to build just 10,000 to 14,000 vehicles in 2023, far fewer than the roughly 27,000 that Wall Street analysts had expected.

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With Lucid’s factory currently set up to build about 34,000 vehicles per year, the company has warned of continuing losses.

“As we produce vehicles at low volumes on production lines designed for higher volumes, we have and we will continue to experience negative gross profit related to labor and overhead costs,” House said during Lucid’s earnings call on Feb. 22.
Lucid hasn’t yet announced a date for its first-quarter earnings report. More