Airbnb says it will give free temporary housing to 20,000 Afghans


Daily Business Briefing

August 24, 2021 at 7:20 AM ET

August 24, 2021 at 7:20 AM ET

Families evacuated from Afghanistan waited to board buses at Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on Monday.
Credit…Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press

Airbnb and its charity Airbnb.org said on Tuesday that the company aims to provide free temporary shelter globally to 20,000 refugees fleeing the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

As the American and European governments compete evacuate tens of thousands of people, the property rental company described the displacement and resettlement of refugees as a “major humanitarian crisis”.

Accommodation costs will be covered by US contributions, along with money from Airbnb and its CEO, Brian Chesky. Airbnb.org Refugee FundIt was launched in June with the goal of raising $25 million. The organization works with resettlement agencies and offers to support the federal and state governments.

“The displacement and resettlement of Afghan refugees in the US and elsewhere is one of the greatest humanitarian crises of our time. We feel a responsibility to take a step.” Mr Chesky said on Twitter:.

“I hope this inspires other business leaders to do the same. There is no time to lose,” he added.

Airbnb did not specify how long refugees can stay in apartments or homes, but said hosts offer short- and long-term stays. The company said it started supporting Afghans fleeing the country last week when it provided funds to the International Rescue Committee and other organizations to provide temporary accommodation for up to 1,000 refugees using the Airbnb platform.

Airbnb said it had resettled 165 refugees in residences across the United States over the weekend, including California, New Jersey, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Washington State.

Carnival Vista docked in Galveston, Texas in May.  On a recent cruise, a passenger and crew tested positive for coronavirus;  The passenger later died.
Credit…Sipa via Associated Press

Over two weeks in late July and early August, 27 coronavirus infections were detected on the Carnival Vista cruise ship, which sailed from Galveston, Texas. One of those infected, a passenger, later died.

This was the highest number of cases on a ship reported since June when cruises were resumed in the Caribbean and the United States and the first death occurred.

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a new recommendation, It warns people at high risk of serious illness from Covid-19 to avoid traveling on cruise ships, regardless of their vaccination status.

Carnival isn’t the only cruise ship to see an increase in cases. Earlier this month, Royal Caribbean tested positive for six guests on its Adventure of the Seas cruise ship.

Companies have responded to the recent increase in cases by introducing pre-departure testing requirements for all passengers. Carnival also made masks mandatory for all vaccinated and unvaccinated guests indoors on August 7 and banned smoking in the casino.

Royal Caribbean’s CEO, Michael Bayley, said the cruise line typically sees one or two positive cases out of more than 1,000 guests per week per vessel. Mr. Bayley said in a candid Facebook post Addressing the current coronavirus situation, “If the test catches the situation at a certain time and the guest is infected, the test will miss it.” He said in the post that vaccinated guests who typically test positive are asymptomatic.

Some cruise passengers canceled due to concerns of the Delta variant, but most cruises were fully booked for the remainder of the year due to pent-up demand. READ THE ARTICLE →




Cargo Transit Times

from Indonesia

to Orlando, Florida.

Cargo

ready for

set off

Indonesia

Capacity limits

creating

longer lead times.

Extra mooring time (ships waiting to berth) due to port congestion, among other delays.

Arrival

vancouver,

British

Colombia

Arrival

ferndale,

Washing.

local terminal

blockage.

railways

delayed by

forest fires, but

truck transport

capacity

good.

Warehouses

fully loaded; it’s harder

find facilities

with space.

Cargo Transit Times

from Indonesia

to Orlando, Florida.

Cargo ready

leave indonesia

Capacity limits

creating

longer lead times.

Extra anchor time

(ships waiting to berth)

it happens because

port congestion,

among other delays.

Arrival

vancouver,

British Columbia

Arrival

Ferndale, Wash.

Some delays

caused

the Vancouver,

live lightly

terminal obstruction

for local deliveries.

Rail deliveries

delayed by

forest fires but trucking

capacity is good.

Warehouses are full;

harder to find

facilities in the area.


“We’re sitting on $2 million in inventory for a $30 piece,” said the general manager of Catrike, which makes tricycle recumbent bikes.

Container shipping rates from China and East Asia to the East Coast of the United States jumped over $20,000 earlier this month, compared to about $4,000 a year ago. The time it took for parts from one of Catrike’s suppliers to reach North America by sea from a factory in Indonesia was three months, and sometimes up to four months.

“We’re here for the rest of the year and it’s going to get worse because of the Christmas season,” said the CEO of an ocean logistics firm. READ THE ARTICLE →

New hire at Google, David Pantera, worries that the move to virtual orientation next month will affect his career.
Credit…Jason Henry for The New York Times

Workers who want to stay at home forever, especially vocal But a quiet majority of Americans want to go back to the office at least a few days a week. But this larger group is getting more and more bleak as the latest coronavirus wave has forced employers to delay their return-to-office plans. Kellen Browning reported to The New York Times.

In a national survey of more than 950 workersIn a survey conducted in mid-August by Morning Consult on behalf of The New York Times, 31 percent said they would prefer to work from home full time. By comparison, 45 percent said they would like to be in a full-time job or office. The remaining 24 percent said they want to take time between work and home. (Morning Consult surveyed workers from various industries, so white-collar office workers were represented alongside workers in other fields such as retail.)

Sure, some people have succeeded in their new teleworking life. They saved time and money and sometimes increased productivity. Tsedal Neeley, a Harvard Business School professor who has studied remote work for decades, said the degree to which employees are adopting permanent remote or hybrid working models is “surprising” for company executives.

But for others, Professor Neeley said, it removes necessary barriers between work and home life, increasing feelings of isolation and leading to burnout. “Some people just don’t like the screen – their physicality and proximity to others is a big part of what the job looks like,” he said.

Among those who miss the routines of office life: social butterflies, managers, new hires looking to meet coworkers, and people with noisy or crowded homes. READ THE ARTICLE →





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