ACWI Advance - December 1, 2020

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In this issue of ACWI Advance we take a closer look at these stories:

• Executives have a positive view of warehouse automation processes.
• States look for ways provide Covid 19 liability shields for their businesses.
• Nine in 10 senior managers say pursued improvements during the pandemic.
• The military will play a logistics leadership role in making Covid 19 vaccines available.
• November and December holiday sales are forecast to rise 3.6% to 5.2% over 2019.

Send your company news to Editor David Sparkman at dspark@comcast.net, and please understand that there is no cost to you when we use your news in this newsletter.

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Automation Strategy Is Needed

Although consumer holiday spending is expected to be down slightly from last year, it still should still be quite healthy, especially given this year’s pandemic and economic downturn. Consumers plan to spend an average of $997.79 on gifts, holiday items such as decorations and food, and additional "non-gift" purchases for themselves and their families, according to the annual survey conducted by the National Retail Federation and research firm Prosper Insights & Analytics. READ MORE >

States Create Covid Shields

State lawmakers searching for ways to help their economies to reopen during the Covid-19 pandemic are equipping businesses with shields against legal liability for claims related to contracting the illness. At present, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, and Wyoming have enacted Covid liability shields via legislative action or through executive orders signed by their governors. Read More >

Business Rises To Covid Test

A survey of more than 2,800 senior managers found 9 in 10 say their organizations improved operations or pursued new opportunities due to Covid 19. "The pandemic accelerated the need for companies to embrace innovation and emerging technologies in order to enhance service offerings and keep afloat," said Jeff Weber, executive director of Robert Half Technology, which conducted the poll. Read More >

DOD Vaccine Role Is Limited

The U.S. military won't be administering any Covid 19 vaccines, but it will play a logistics leadership role to make sure the vaccine is available to everyone in the United States. "The overwhelming majority of Americans will get a vaccine that no federal employee, including the Department of Defense, has touched," explained Paul Mango, deputy chief of staff for policy at the Department of Health and Human Services. Read More >

Shoppers Drive Retail Sales Up

The National Retail Federation says holiday sales in November and December will rise 3.6% to 5.2% over 2019, to a total of $755.3 to $766.7 billion. The numbers (excluding car dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants, compare with a 4% hike to $729.1 billion last year and an average holiday sales increase of 3.5% over the past five years. Read More >

How to Prevent Workplace Violence

This year has seen its share of violence, including rioting, looting and violence over perceived racial injustice. Add passions stirred up by the election and Covid-19 restrictions, and it is not surprising that some fear violence will grow in the workplace. Attorneys Russell Jones and Michelle M. Holmes of the the Littler Mendelson law firm note that federal law requires employers to provide a safe workplace, free from recognized hazards that could cause serious physical harm. Read More >