Labor & Employment

Menomonee Falls, Wis. -- Kohl’s Department Stores has announced plans to open a new customer service operations center in Dallas.

Expected to open in late spring 2014, the two-building, three-story, 240,000-sq.-ft. facility will support the continued growth of the company’s Kohl’s Charge program, as well as its online business, which reached $1.4 billion in sales last year following three consecutive years of more than 40%  annual growth.

Evansville, Ind. -- Shoe Carnival said Thursday it has named Kent Zimmerman as VP e-commerce, effective June 3.

Zimmerman, who comes to the footwear retailer from global systems integration and solutions provider Optaros, is charged with overseeing Shoe Carvinal’s e-commerce and omni-channel strategies.

“We believe Shoe Carnival has a tremendous opportunity to grow our e-commerce and overall omni-channel presence in the family footwear industry,” said Cliff Sifford, president and CEO. “

Lululemon's chairman, Dennis "Chip" Wilson, sold stock worth $50 million just days before shares slumped following CEO Christine Day's resignation, according to a Reuters report.

Reuters goes on to cite a Wall Street Journal report — which in turn cites InsiderScore.com, a site which tracks insider trading and institutional ownership — that Wilson set up plans to sell stock back in December. Wilson founded the company in 1998 and remains its largest voting shareholder.

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Thursday by the Commerce Dept. said that retail sales in the U.S. gained 0.6% in May, more than forecast and likely boosted by increased hiring during the month.

The increase was the largest in three months and followed a 0.1% advance in April. Bloomberg economists called for a 0.4% increase. The figures used to calculate economic growth, which exclude categories such as automobiles, climbed 0.3%.

WASHINGTON — The Walmart Foundation has awarded the American Red Cross with a $3.5 million grant that will help 2,500 students receive training for entry-level healthcare careers through the Red Cross Nurse Assistant Training program.

The program is designed to help give students a career pathway into the industry, while also helping communities alleviate a shortage of adequately trained Certified Nurse Assistants.

The entire Walmart board was re-elected last Friday at the company’s shareholders meeting, but a substantial number of negative votes indicate some investors are not happy with long-time board members and key senior leaders.

Aston, Pa. – National lighting, sign and electrical maintenance and service company Action Services Group has named Joe Fairley as VP of account solutions. Fairley will be responsible for Action Services Group’s national sales development and sales management of the account solutions team. He has more than 20 years of experience in facility services.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Ray Cook Golf, a leading golf manufacturer, has appointed John Holst as director of sales. In this role, Holst will oversee sales strategy and partner programs while building the Ray Cook brand.

He will also be charged with building the company's other brands, including Solus Golf, under parent company TGIB Marketing Inc.