AVIATION
Muslim flight attendant sues over suspension
A Muslim flight attendant has sued ExpressJet, accusing the airline of wrongly suspending her because she refused to serve alcohol to passengers. The Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Michigan chapter announced Tuesday that it filed the lawsuit last week on behalf of Charee Stanley, a Detroit-based flight attendant for the airline headquartered in Atlanta. The federal court case follows a discrimination complaint filed last year with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which dismissed it without determining whether the airline violated the law. Stanley alleges ExpressJet didn’t provide a reasonable religious accommodation and seeks back pay and other damages. She was placed on unpaid leave last summer. ExpressJet said in a statement that it values diversity but cannot comment on specific personnel matters or ongoing litigation. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUTOMOTIVE
GM tests self-driving cars
General Motors and its autonomous technology company, Cruise Automation, are testing self-driving cars on the streets of Scottsdale, Ariz. Testing of self-driving electric Chevrolet Bolts began in Arizona about two weeks ago. It’s the second city for GM’s real-world tests. Autonomous Bolts with Cruise Automation software have been driving around San Francisco since May 20. GM spokesman Kevin Kelly says the company is considering other cities for tests but wasn’t ready to announce locations. Although the cars drive autonomously, Kelly says they all have human backup drivers. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
ENERGY
Nuclear plant in New York saved from closing
A week after New York regulators adopted a subsidy policy for nuclear plants, Exelon Generation says it will assume ownership of the FitzPatrick plant in upstate New York, saving it from closing. The Entergy Corp. plant by Lake Ontario employs more than 600 people and produces enough electricity to power more than 800,000 homes. Chicago-based Exelon, which runs the nearby Nine Mile Point reactors, will benefit from ratepayer subsidies that compensate nuclear reactors for clean emissions. Subsidies are estimated at $965 million the first two years and could reach $7.6 billion over 12 years. Entergy in November announced plans to close the 41-year-old plant, citing high operational costs, low natural gas prices, and a ‘‘flawed’’ energy market. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
RETAIL
Coach to stop selling merchandise in department stores
Coach is putting its money where its mouth is. The 75-year-old handbag maker has pulled its purses and wallets out of 25 percent of the department-store locations that once sold its goods, or about 250 stores, it said Tuesday. The move comes just months after it fired a warning shot to department stores, whose runaway promotions were stinging the company’s profits and deteriorating its reputation as a luxury brand. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
ECONOMY
Americans gloomy about economy
Americans, Japanese, and many Europeans are glum about their national economies. By contrast, Chinese, Indians, and Australians feel positive about theirs. Those are among the findings from a survey released Tuesday of 20,132 people in 16 countries by the Pew Research Center. Just 44 percent of Americans rated the US economy as ‘‘good,’’ although that proportion has risen steadily from 18 percent in 2011. Since that year, the US unemployment rate has tumbled from 9 percent to 4.9 percent. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
RETAIL
Gap continues to struggle
Stock of Gap Inc., the biggest US apparel-focused retailer, lost 6.2 percent after comparable sales last month missed analysts’ estimates and the company provided some cautious commentary on the second half of the year. Same-store sales — a key benchmark — dropped 4 percent in July, the San Francisco-based retailer said Monday. Analysts had predicted a decline of 1 percent, according to Retail Metrics. The results stoked investor concerns that sales won’t get a needed boost from the back-to-school and holiday shopping seasons. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
TECHNOLOGY
Twitter to sublease space at its San Francisco headquarters
Twitter is offering about a quarter of the space at its San Francisco headquarters complex for sublease, adding to a growing amount of excess offices available in the city as the technology industry cools. About 78,800 square feet is listed for sublease on the seventh floor of 1355 Market St., a renovated 1930s furniture mart, and 104,850 square feet is available on three floors in an adjacent building at One Tenth St., according to marketing materials from Cresa, a commercial real estate firm. Subleasing is becoming more prevalent in San Francisco as venture-capital investments decline and tech firms slow their hiring from a breakneck pace. Twitter, which has lost a third of its market value in the past year, has been grappling with several quarters of slower-than-expected growth, as well as executive turnover. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
AT&T to pay $7.8m for sham directory assistance service
AT&T has agreed to pay nearly $7.8 million to settle government allegations of unauthorized third-party charges for directory assistance services not provided. The Federal Communications Commission on Monday announced the settlement with the Dallas-based telecommunications giant. Billing for unauthorized charges is known as ‘‘cramming.’’ An FCC statement says AT&T allowed scammers to charge some customers about $9 per month for a sham directory assistance service. The scheme was uncovered by federal agents investigating drug-related crimes and money laundering. The FCC says AT&T received a fee from some companies that added the charges to customer bills but never provided the services. AT&T will issue refunds, totaling $6.8 million, to current and former consumers who were charged the fee since 2012. AT&T also agreed to pay a $950,000 government fine. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
ENTERTAINMENT
Disney profits jump on strength of movies
Walt Disney Co. reported third-quarter profit that beat analysts’ profit projections, buoyed by strong performances from films including “Captain America: Civil War’’ and “Finding Dory.’’ Sales at the world’s largest entertainment company increased 9 percent to $14.3 billion in the period ended July 2, compared with estimates of $14.2 billion. The results underscore the benefit of Disney’s diverse portfolio. Profit at the film division is helping to counter slower growth in TV, the company’s biggest business, and a drop in earnings from consumer products. Investors have been intently focused on the cable-TV business, home to ESPN and the Disney Channel, after Disney acknowledged losses of subscribers last year. Disney said subscriber losses continued in the quarter. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
WORKING
American productivity falls for a third quarter
The productivity of American workers unexpectedly declined for a third straight quarter, deepening efficiency woes that have characterized the economic expansion. The measure of employee output per hour decreased at a 0.5 percent annualized rate in the three months through June after dropping 0.6 percent in the prior quarter, a Labor Department report showed Tuesday in Washington. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey called for a 0.4 percent gain. Expenses per worker climbed at a 2 percent pace after being revised to a decline in the previous period. Productivity compared with a year earlier fell for the first time since 2013 as lackluster global markets prompted companies to scale back capital investment plans. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
