Businesses shut down for icy weather By Jennifer Hiller January 16, 2018 Updated: January 16, 2018 8:07am Cold temperatures and icy road conditions were settling across Central and South Texas, with many businesses across the region closing operations and telling workers to stay home. Schools and universities in San Antonio are closed Tuesday as the National Weather Service expects an “Arctic cold front” to drop temperatures to the mid-20s. Most Popular 1 Light snow may hit San Antonio and surrounding counties... 2 Warning as icy storm nears: Stay off the road 3 Texas, UConn women brace for showdown 4 Brockhouse tempers criticism of McManus 5 Two survivors of the deadly massacre in Sutherland Springs tie... USAA closed its offices in San Antonio and San Antonio — “in an effort to help our employees stay safe from possible winter storm impacts in these areas. Employees who have the ability to work from home are expected to do … [Read more...] about Businesses shut down for icy weather
Business
UK business secretary seeks fast-tracked Carillion probe
LONDON (AP) — Britain's business secretary called Tuesday for a fast-tracked investigation into the collapse of construction giant and state contractor Carillion, expanding the remit of the probe to include the behavior of executives both past and present. Greg Clark asked the insolvency service and the official receiver to expedite their inquiry as the ramifications of the collapse pulsated through the government. Company executives are under investigation for protecting their bonuses even as the failure of the company put some 43,000 jobs at risk worldwide. "I have asked that the investigation looks not only at the conduct of the directors at the point of its insolvency, but also of any individuals who were previously directors," Clark said. "Any evidence of misconduct will be taken very seriously." Clark also asked the Financial Reporting Council to investigate the company's accounts and auditors. Carillion had 450 government contracts that ranged from rail projects to … [Read more...] about UK business secretary seeks fast-tracked Carillion probe
UK business secretary calls for fast-tracked Carillion probe
LONDON -- Britain's business secretary has called for a fast-tracked investigation into the collapse of construction giant and state contractor Carillion. Greg Clark says in a statement Tuesday he asked the insolvency service and the official receiver to expedite their inquiry. Clark says that in particular, he asked that the investigation look not only at present directors but previous directors. Carillion had contracts for public services and public/private services, such as providing school dinners and carrying out rail improvement. Company executives are under investigation for protecting their bonuses even as the failure of the company put some 43,000 jobs at risk worldwide. Opposition parties have criticized the government for continuing to award contracts to Carillion as it issued three profit warnings and struggled to finance 900 million pounds ($1.24 billion) of debt. … [Read more...] about UK business secretary calls for fast-tracked Carillion probe
Your small business is a target of fraud every day [column]
![Your small business is a target of fraud every day [column]](https://res.cloudinary.com/demo/image/fetch/w_340,h_200,c_crop,g_face/https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/lancasteronline.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/bb/3bbb28e8-fa28-11e7-8697-1f5ad4d5c9f0/5a5cfd748f1fe.image.jpg?resize=292%2C254)
As a forensic accountant, I know small businesses are more vulnerable to fraud attacks than most larger organizations. Those attacks and scams typically come in three specific ways: — Activities undertaken by employees and other internal-access threats. — Outside invasions through the use of a variety of scams and cons. — A combination of collusion internally and externally. To help guard against such threats, small businesses can often take some simple steps. Verify inventory on a frequent basis Many years ago I had a nonprofit client that printed educational materials as part of its mission. Most of this was done as black and white photocopies on standard paper, folded in half, with a color paper cover and stapled in the middle. We traced a $3,000 annual budget deficit to a 600,000-page discrepancy (photocopiers have counters). It turns out the print shop manager was in collusion with the paper supplier, and the inventory fraud had cost the nonprofit … [Read more...] about Your small business is a target of fraud every day [column]
Spectrum Brands selling Rayovac battery business to competitor Energizer Holdings for $2B
The Rayovac brand of batteries and flashlights will become part of Energizer -- one of its main competitors -- if plans by their parent companies are approved by regulators. Middleton-based Spectrum Brands Holdings announced Tuesday it has a definitive agreement to sell its Rayovac and Varta battery and lighting business to Energizer Holdings, of St. Louis, for $2 billion in cash. "Today's announcement is a culmination of our efforts to sell the battery business in order to refocus Spectrum Brands and enhance shareholder value," David Maura, Spectrum Brands executive chairman, said in a statement. "While we have a long and proud heritage in the battery business, this is a key part of our reallocation of capital strategy towards a faster-growing and higher-margin Spectrum Brands." Wall Street seemed happy to hear the news. Shares of both publicly traded companies rose in early trading. Spectrum Brands was trading at around $123 a share at noon, up about 2 percent from last Friday's … [Read more...] about Spectrum Brands selling Rayovac battery business to competitor Energizer Holdings for $2B