The daily business briefing: April 18, 2018

Starbucks to close 8,000 stores for a day of "racial-bias training," IRS online payment page crashes ahead of tax deadline, and more

Starbucks will close 8,000 stores nationwide next month for racial bias training.
(Image credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

1. Starbucks to close 8,000 stores for a day of 'racial-bias training'

Starbucks said Tuesday it would close more than 8,000 company-owned U.S. stores for a day next month to give employees "racial-bias education." The move could cost an estimated $20 million in sales. The coffee chain's CEO, Kevin Johnson, called for the sensitivity training for nearly 175,000 workers after two black men were arrested at a Philadelphia Starbucks last week when a manager called the police. The men were waiting for another friend, and had been denied access to the restroom because they had not made a purchase. "Closing our stores for racial bias training is just one step in a journey that requires dedication from every level of our company and partnerships in our local communities," Johnson said in the statement.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.