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🗞️ Dirty secret
An Amazon warehouse worker was covered in bleach and had to ask permission to use the bathroom to wash it off.
Pick & Scroll News
April 22, 2026
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Good morning. An Amazon warehouse worker was covered in bleach and had to ask permission to use the bathroom to wash it off. Because using the emergency chemical shower would have triggered an investigation.
A clean shirt was apparently less important than a clean incident report.
All the headlines and more below...
Governments collected a record $839B in tax revenue in 2024-25, equivalent to $30,633 per person. That's up despite stage 3 tax cuts kicking in halfway through. Personal income tax collection still rose 1.5%. Government spending grew faster, up 7.4% against a 4.5% rise in revenue.
Federal spending is now 28% of GDP, the highest outside the pandemic in 40 years.
The biggest cost increases were employee expenses, up $22.1B, and social benefits to households, up $20.6B. Disability benefits grew 9.4% to $87.3B, slower than last year's 14.2% jump but still double the government's 5% target growth rate. Public sector debt climbed $112B, more than the $86.7B added the year before.
Personal income tax now makes up 62% of total tax collection in Australia. The OECD average is 35%. Only Denmark takes more. Bracket creep is forecast to push income tax revenue from 11.1% of GDP now to 14.5% by 2036. AMP's chief economist says bringing spending back to 25% of GDP would require cutting $102B over 4 years.
AUSTRALIAN NEWS
The Australian Bureau of Statistics has reported that combined federal and state governments collected a record $839B in tax revenue in 2024-25, averaging $30,633 per person, while total disability benefits spending rose 9.4% to $87.3B. LINK
Australia's 2025 extreme weather insurance bill has been revised up from $3.5B to $4.8B - with a single Queensland hailstorm costing more than Cyclone Alfred - as the Insurance Council warns Middle East supply chain pressures will push home repair costs even higher. LINK
The eSafety Commissioner has issued legally enforceable transparency notices to gaming platforms as extremist groups and pedophiles use games and encrypted services to spread propaganda and groom children. LINK
Qantas and Virgin Australia launched simultaneous domestic ticket sales after flagging a combined $840M hit from jet fuel prices that have nearly doubled since Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz. Qantas is selling 2M seats with one-way economy fares from $99, business from $299, on flights through March 2027. Virgin dropped 500,000 NSW fares starting at $55.
Oil went from $60 a barrel last year to $112 in early April.
Jet fuel, refined in smaller volumes than crude, has climbed faster. The conflict has shut key supply routes and crippled Gulf carriers like Emirates and Qatar Airways through drone and missile strikes on their hubs. Qantas now expects international revenue per seat to grow 4-6%, double its earlier forecast. Virgin expects domestic revenue per seat up 5% for the half, revised from 3-4%.
An empty seat on departure is revenue that can't be recovered. The airlines are already extracting higher fares per passenger and the discounts are about keeping planes full while international operations face sustained disruption.
COMPANY NEWS
Woolworths has denied ACCC allegations in the Federal Court that its Prices Dropped campaign faked discounts on 266 products between late 2021 and mid-2023 as inflation surged. LINK
Apple has announced that Tim Cook will step down as CEO after 15 years to become executive chairman as longtime hardware chief John Ternus becomes CEO on 1 September. LINK
TechnologyOne launched an agentic AI app called Guide for university students as it introduces an ad-funded model returning 15% of total ad revenue to participating institutions. LINK
Google DeepMind has created a strike team to enhance internal AI coding models using Google code. LINK
Pacific National has doubled its fuel levy and warned of a further rise in May as surging Middle East war-driven diesel costs flow through to Woolworths and other retailers. LINK
ACCC has been granted leave by the Federal Court to intervene in the Epic Games v Apple relief hearing, which resumes on 28 April, to make public interest submissions. LINK
Amazon has expanded its strategic collaboration with Anthropic as it invests up to US$25B in the AI lab, while Anthropic commits more than US$100B to AWS technologies over 10 years. LINK
Corporate Travel Management is preparing to disclose that it has overcharged the British government more than £120M as a KPMG forensic audit continues and ASX relisting is sought. LINK
Intrepid has acquired French adventure tour rival Altai for an undisclosed sum, adding more than $100M in revenue and 35,000 customers as it targets $1B in annual tour bookings. LINK
Atlas Arteria reported a 0.1% rise in Q3 proportionate toll revenue as mixed traffic trends saw APRR volumes fall 0.9% while Dulles Greenway and A79 outperformed. LINK
HubSpot's ex-Head of Paid shares his 2026 playbook
Rex Gelb spent a decade building HubSpot's paid engine. Now he's showing founders exactly how to do it.
On April 27th, get the framework to structure, launch, and scale paid media that drives pipeline, not just traffic. 20 minutes. Live Q&A. Free.
ONE MORE SCROLL
Editor’s Pick: France to open high-security prison in Amazon jungle.
Draft Pick: Formula 1 to make rule changes for Miami Grand Prix after concerns over new engine regulations.
Odd Pick: Healthy aging expert reveals the no. 1 nutrient he prioritizes for long-term health.
TRIVIA
This question was the final 1% and the one remaining contestant got it correct. You have 30 seconds only to answer the below. Your time starts now:
What is the lowest number that replaces the question mark in this sequence?
1+2 = one
2+2 = four
3+2 = three
3+3 = eleven
4+3 = ?
Answer below
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