Another 300 people woke up without a job this morning. Lawson Software in St. Paul said it’s laying off about 200 employees. The cuts will include 45 people at its downtown headquarters, the Pioneer Press reports. Meanwhile, Life Time Fitness is eliminating 100 jobs at its Chanhassen headquarters, the Star Tribune reports. The eliminated positions will mostly be in architecture, construction, real estate and development, a spokesman told the newspaper.
The U.S. Justice Department is investigating one of Medtronic’s blockbuster products, the Star Tribune reports. Medtronic’s Infuse solution promotes bone growth. It’s only approved for use in the lower back, but there are reports of complications from doctors using the product in neck surgeries. Such “off-label” uses aren’t illegal, but it would be against the law if a medical device company were to promote non-approved uses of their products.
Bill Ackman is back! The hedge-fund manager, who has been lobbying Target to spin off its real estate holdings into a separate company, is presenting a revised proposal this morning via teleconference. Also: Dow Jones reports that Target’s declining credit-card profits are raising questions about whether it should turn over parts of the operation to J.P. Morgan Chase, which owns 47 percent of the retailer’s credit card unit.
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