Lockdown: Six people were injured in a shooting inside the Mall of Louisiana Thursday, prompting a lockdown as law enforcement secured the scene and escorted shoppers to safety. Authorities closed all entrances as deputies and state police responded. It remains unclear whether one or multiple shooters were involved. Read more from WBRZ-TV.
Going up: The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits inched up last week but remains within the historically healthy range of recent years. U.S. jobless aid applications for the week ending April 18 rose by 6,000 to 214,000, up from the previous week’s 208,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s slightly more than the 210,000 new applications analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting. Read more from the Associated Press.
Contract scrutiny: Louisiana Senate President Cameron Henry is pressing education officials to pursue competitive bids for management of the LA GATOR scholarship program, questioning whether the state is overpaying contractor Odyssey. Lawmakers reviewed a proposed one-year contract amendment worth up to $1.7 million, while officials defended the arrangement as administrative only. Read more from The Center Square.
Tech workforce: Microsoft is offering voluntary retirement buyouts to about 7% of its U.S. workforce, potentially affecting roughly 8,750 employees, according to a person familiar with the plan. The program marks the first buyout effort of this scale in the company’s history. Microsoft employed 125,000 people in the U.S. as of June 2025. The move signals a notable workforce shift. Read more from Bloomberg. A subscription may be required.
