Economy

Brenda Tomasetta closed her father's Sena's Barbershop on Grafton Hill and has now moved and joined forces with Kelly Collins at her barbershop, Studio C Hair Artistry, on Massasoit Road in Worcester.

Registered nurses at Milford Regional Medical Center, represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, voted on Wednesday to ratify their first contract since unionizing in 2021.

Massachusetts’ unemployment rate rose a tenth of a point to 3.5% in October from 3.4% in September, according to data released Friday by the state Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.

Staffing shortages in health care might be here to stay, and the industry needs to reimagine how it delivers care, Gov. Charlie Baker said Thursday morning.

Workers at seven Starbucks locations in Massachusetts went on strike Thursday, including the store on West Broadway in Gardner, as part of a nationwide strike by unionized workers at more than 100 Starbucks locations. 

Hanover Insurance Group employed an average of 1,837 people in Central Massachusetts each year between 2010 and 2020 and contributed $354 million to personal income in the same area, according to a report the Worcester-headquartered public company commissioned from The University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute.

The troubles, though, date back to 2019, even before the COVID pandemic, when the Association of American Medical Colleges reported hospitals in the country were understaffed by as many as 20,000 doctors.

The Retailers Association of Massachusetts on Thursday morning forecast a 10 percent increase in local holiday shopping sales this year. The prediction, based on a survey of association members, contrasts with a forecast calling for a 6 to 8 percent increase in holiday sales nationally.

The nursing home sector in Massachusetts says its worker shortage remains at "historic highs," as senior care facilities struggle to find and retain people qualified to care for the state's most vulnerable residents.

The management company that owns 21 Dunkin locations across Central Massachsuetts has agreed to pay more than $145,000 for child labor violations at the locations, resolving more than 1,200 allegations.