Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC Pull Onions After E. Coli Outbreak

Yum! Brands and Burger King removed onions from some of their locations as the restaurant industry investigates an E. Coli outbreak first traced to McDonald’s. Yum withdrew fresh onions from some Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC stores “out of an abundance of caution,” the company said Thursday in a statement to Bloomberg News, without disclosing which stores and regions were affected or naming suppliers.

“We will continue following supplier and regulatory guidance to ensure the ongoing safety and quality of our food,” the company said.

Burger King said Thursday that it gets some of its onions from a Colorado facility run by Taylor Farms, which supplied the McDonald’s restaurants that have been impacted by the outbreak.

Taylor Farms issued a recall of some its yellow onion batches despite finding no traces of E. coli as of Wednesday.

CVS workers reach tentative agreement

The union representing CVS pharmacy clerks and technicians has reached a tentative agreement Thursday with CVS securing higher wages, more secure staffing and affordable health care plans for members, bringing an end to a strike that started a week ago.

The bargaining committee will send the agreement to its members for a vote for approval.

“We are proud to announce a tentative agreement with CVS that we unanimously recommend to our co-workers. For the last five months, we have been fighting hard for a fair contract — from a strike to actions, delegations, rallies, petitions, and conversations with our co-workers and customers; we have shown the strength that comes when workers stand together for a better life,” the UFCW CVS Bargaining Committee said in a statement Thursday.

CVS picketing outside stores Saturday and Sunday and said the first wave of its strike came to an end. Bargaining sessions resumed Wednesday with a tentative agreement reached Thursday.

Union leaders said they were protesting what they called illegal activities that have interfered with bargaining and prevented employees from reaching a fair deal. UFCW officials allege CVS has engaged in illegal surveillance of workers, retaliation for union activities and prohibiting workers from engaging in union activities. The allegations came amid continuing labor talks for a new contract to replace one that expired in June.

Initial jobless claims back to pre-hurricanes levels

New applications for U.S. unemployment benefits declined for a second week to levels seen before Hurricanes Helene and Milton hit Southeastern states.

Initial claims decreased by 15,000 to 227,000 in the week ended Oct. 19. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 242,000 applications.

Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, increased to nearly 1.9 million in the previous week, the most in almost three years, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

While a rise in recurring claims traditionally indicates that people are having a harder time finding a job, the recent data likely reflects the impact from the two storms. A weekslong strike at Boeing Co. may have led to furloughs at idle suppliers, according to economists.

Compiled from Associated Press, City News Service and Bloomberg reports.