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Your daily briefing of the must-read news from around the Corridor, the state and beyond for Wednesday, May 18, 2016.
Compiled by Angela Holmes, news@corridorbusiness.com
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More than 4.2 million workers to be eligible for overtime
Millions of workers will be eligible for overtime pay with a federal rule to be formally released today. The Obama administration announced Tuesday that the threshold at which executive, administrative and professional employees are exempt from overtime pay will be raised to $47,476 from the current $23,660, making approximately 4.2 million more workers eligible to receive time-and-a-half wages for each hour they work beyond 40 a week, reports USA Today via the Press-Citizen. The share of full-time workers who qualify for overtime has fallen to 7 percent today from 62 percent in 1975, according to the administration. The new rule, which would take effect Dec. 1, would allow 35 percent of workers to qualify. The threshold will be updated every three years, rising to $51,000 on Jan. 1, 2020. The new rule will also expand eligibility to those already under the threshold.
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Express bus service between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City closer
A bus service between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City could be launched by 2018, according to an Iowa Department of Transportation official. At an open house about the service last night at the Coralville Library, Brent Paulsen of the Iowa DOT office of public transit said the agency hopes to launch the service a year before the Interstate 80/380 interchange replacement begins in 2019, reports The Gazette. While several scenarios of where the stops will be are still being discussed, the proposed fee for the bus service is $3.50 for one way. Another open house to discuss the service will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. tonight at Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, 501 First St. SE in Cedar Rapids. Brian Comer, a senior planner with HNTB, said a scenario will be recommended to the Iowa DOT in the coming weeks based on feedback about routes, stops, hours and other logistics of the program.
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Fareway to expand grocery store model with Omaha meat market
Fareway is opening its first Fareway Meat Market on May 26 in Omaha just in time for Memorial Day weekend and the official start of grilling season. The Boone-based grocery store chain that operates 114 stores in five states, including eight in the Corridor, is expanding outside its traditional grocery store model for the first time in its 78-year history, reports the Des Moines Register. "We feel this will give our customers who live too far from our traditional stores a chance to enjoy what Fareway has to offer from our second-to-none meat departments," said Fareway Chief Executive Reynolds Cramer. The 6,000-square-foot meat market at the Loveland Centre retail development in Omaha will feature a 56-foot meat case, which is about 16 feet longer than a typical Fareway grocery store, as well as a large selection of artisan cheeses, wines and craft beers. The meat market model may expand to other communities, Mr. Cramer said.
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Wendy's to employ self-service ordering kiosks to control labor costs
In an effort to control costs, especially those resulting from higher wages, Wendy's will make self-service ordering kiosks available across its 6,000-plus restaurants nationwide, including its seven locations in the Corridor. Although it will be up to franchisees whether to deploy the technology, Wendy's President Todd Penegor noted that some franchise locations have been raising prices to offset wage hikes, reports Investor's Business Daily. Mr. Penegor said company-operated stores, about 10 percent of the total, are seeing wage inflation of 5-6 percent, driven both by the minimum wage and some by the need to offer a competitive wage "to access good labor." Wendy's is also preparing to implement mobile ordering and mobile payment available systemwide by the end of the year to save on labor costs. Yum Brands and McDonald's already have mobile ordering apps.
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Prepare to take some reading material to Chicago airports
Planning to fly out of Chicago this summer? Be prepared to arrive at the airport early -- really early. O'Hare and Midway airports tweeted yesterday that security wait times are longer than average, and customers should arrive at least three hours before their domestic and international flights rather than the Transportation Security Administration's suggested two hours, reports CNN Money. While the bump in air travel due to low airfare prices and a recovering economy is good for the overall economy, it is putting a strain on the TSA's resources. Since 2013, the number of travelers has outpaced the number of TSA workers. O'Hare will receive 58 additional TSA officers and four bomb-sniffing dogs in an effort to reduce checkpoint wait times.
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IA 13 in both directions: Alternating lane closures, between US 151 and County Road E28 (near Marion). IA 100 in both directions: Roadway reduced to one lane between I-380 and IA 922 (near Cedar Rapids). I-380 northbound: Expect changing traffic patterns between Exit 4: Penn Street and County Road F28 (near North Liberty) and Exit 10: County Road F12 (near Shueyville). US 218 in both directions: alternating lane closures between US 34 (near Mount Pleasant) and Exit 85: County Road F62 (near Riverside).
Links as of 7 a.m.
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