HR/Workforce Trends
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Survey: 29% of Employers Find Fake Job References
Twenty-nine percent of employers have caught fake references on candidate applications, according to a survey from CareerBuilder.
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Costly Degrees in HR Could Be Wise Choice vs. Certification
A certificate isn't enough in today's business climate, in which expectations of human resources professionals have never been higher, experts say.
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Robert Half Survey: Shopping at Work OK
Thirty-three percent of chief information officers said their companies block access to online shopping sites, down from 60 percent last year.
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Survey: Two-Thirds Seek to Hire Veterans
Looking to leverage the technical and leadership skills of military personnel, three in 10 hope to fill information technology positions with veterans.
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401(k) Plan Balances Hit Record High for 2012: Fidelity
For the three-month period ending Sept. 30, employees' average account balances jumped 4.2 percent from the prior quarter, and 18 percent compared with the end of the third quarter of 2011 when account balances averaged $64,300, according to Fidelity Investments.
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Survey: Time Wasted on Poor Performers
Supervisors spend 17 percent of their time, or nearly one day per week, overseeing poorly performing employees.
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Business Spells COO a New Way: MIA
Across Chicago and the rest of the U.S., chief operating officers are being erased from the org chart. The disappearing act is part of the evolution toward flatter business structures as well as get-lean pressures that have companies looking twice at any personnel expense.
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More Workers Feeling Bullied on the Job: Survey
A total of 35 percent of workers said they have felt bullied at work, compared with the 27 percent who made such a report a year ago.
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Data Bank Focus: HR Analytics: Broad Use, Broad Frustration
The burgeoning amount of data available to human resources professionals provides a new opportunity to more effectively manage the workforce. A recent survey of employers, reported by Visier Inc.
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Goodyear Commits to Hiring 1,000 U.S. Military Veterans
Goodyear said it will hire the veterans over the next three years through its partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Hiring Our Heroes program.
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Auto Industry Execs: We're Hiring
In the past year, IAC Group North America, the big interior supplier, has hired about 350 employees at its Belvidere, Illinois, plant to supply interiors for the Dodge Dart and Jeep Patriot and Compass made at Chrysler Group's plant there.
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Mine Safety Agency Cites Tire, Mining Companies in Worker's Death
Purcell Tire & Rubber Co. said it will contest citations from the Mine Safety & Health Administration over the Oct. 28, 2011, death of a mining tire technician at the Newmont USAgold mine in Carlin, Nevada.
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Meeting in the Middle
It's well known that more and more women have entered the workforce over the years. Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that about 31 percent of adult women were employed in 1948, but that figure, which has dipped in recent years, jumped to 55 percent by 2011.
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Salaries for Training and Development Managers
Changes in data collection techniques make it difficult to compare past, present and future employment numbers and salaries for managers in human resources, compensation and benefits, and training and development.
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Jacksonville Jaguars Owner Targeted by UAW Effort to Organize Auto Parts Plants
Shahid Khan, the Pakistan-born self-made billionaire who bought the Jaguars for more than $700 million in January, traditionally has been a private figure in the auto industry, but his profile this year became more public as the owner of an NFL franchise.
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Alliant Wins Battle With Aon Over Poaching Charges
In a lawsuit filed last year, London-based Aon has alleged that several of its former executives conspired with Newport Beach, California-based Alliant to solicit at least 40 other employees of Aon's construction services group to quit Aon and join Alliant.
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Flex Schedules Tops Workers' Summer Wish List
A new Robert Half study also showed that employers may be warming up to such perks, with 75 percent of human resources managers saying their company offers flexible schedules during the summer
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It's About Time—and Money
Workforce management technology has come a long way from time clocks. Today's tools can save—or cost—companies millions. And thanks to a new group, the once-frumpy field is coming into fashion.
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Workforce Management Wins Headline Writing Award From American Copy Editors Society
James Tehrani, copy desk chief at Workforce Management, was honored for his headline writing by the American Copy Editors Society at its 16th annual conference in New Orleans in April.
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Home Depot Renovates 401(k) Plans to Add Value, Cut Costs
The plans offer a core lineup of 12 options, in addition to the target-date series and a self-directed brokerage window to accommodate participants who want greater access to mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and stocks.
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Pension Plan Funding Levels Hit Record Low in 2011: Milliman
The market value of pension plan assets increased by about $37 billion to about $1.246 trillion in 2011. But the value of plan liabilities leaped by about $133 billion to about $1.573 trillion.
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Dropping Health Care Coverage No Easy Decision for Employers
Because employer and employee health care benefit contributions are made on a pretax basis, it wil cost employers considerably more than the $2,000-per-employee fee for dropping coverage, if the law survives legal challenges being heard by the Supreme Court.
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Survey: Health Care Reform Splits Employers
Forty percent of employers want the high court, which is hearing oral arguments this week on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, to strike down the 2010 law. Still, employers are far from being united in favor of repealing it.
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Oklahoma Bills Would Allow Employers to Opt Out of State Workers' Comp System
If approved, Oklahoma would become the second state to adopt an alternative workers comp system. Texas has operated a similar opt-out system since 1913.
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Lagging Economy Aside, Interviewees Say the Darndest Things
Job board giant CareerBuilder listed some of the most unusual interview experiences based on an online survey of more than 3,000 employers.
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Siri Says: It's Time to Get to Work
As companies warm up to Apple's voice-controlled assistant, apps are appearing on iTunes, and rival software from Google and Microsoft are in the works.
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Five Ways to Use Siri at Work
The iPhone 4S voice-activated assistant can make calls, schedule appointments and a lot more.
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Employer Guidance Urged for Pregnancy Discrimination Act
Testimony during the hearing showcased an employer's confusion over some of the act's rules.
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Court: Warehouse Can't Fire Contract Workers
A California judge ruled the workers, who are suing the warehouse and staffing provider, would likely be able to prove the firing was retaliatory.
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A Third of New Yorkers Say They Can't Retire
About 40 percent of New York workers had access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan in 2009, compared with the national average of 53 percent, according to the report by the New School's Bernard Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis.
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Employers Adding Automatic Enrollment to DC Plans: Aon Hewitt
Under automatic enrollment, employees who don't respond to participation notices are enrolled automatically in a plan unless they notify their employers that they want to opt out.
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Retaliation Charges Top EEOC Fiscal 2011 Filings
Sex discrimination charges, which were the second-most frequently filed charge, decreased 1.7 percent in fiscal 2011.
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Kraft to Cut 1,600 Jobs in U.S., Canada
The Northfield, Illinois-based company will reorganize its domestic sales team, consolidate its U.S. management centers and trim the corporate and business units.
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Move to Flexible Workforce Is Permanent, Consultants Say
The online M Squared poll of independent consultants was conducted in December 2011 and included responses from 530 professional independent consultants.
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Aon Moving Its Headquarters to London
Aon President and CEO Greg Case said the move, which must be approved by shareholders, is another step in the firm's strategic plan to grow Aon as a global platform. In particular, London will help Aon grow its business in emerging markets, he said.
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IRS Issues Guidance on Reporting Health Cover Costs on Employees' W-2s
The latest information makes clear that employers can—but are not required to—report contributions to health reimbursement arrangements in calculating health care costs.
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Survey Reveals Slight Climb in Full-Time Hiring
An annual CareerBuilder forecast also shows 59 percent anticipate no change in their staff levels and 11 percent are unsure whether there will be change.
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Majority of Workers to Be Independent By 2020
Independent workers include those on fixed-term contracts, independent consultants, those working through temporary agencies, workers on an on-call arrangement and those who own a business with less than five employees.
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EEOC Creates Small Business Task Force to Provide Legal, HR Counsel
The task force will focus on newly established small businesses and those that cannot afford in-house legal counsel or human resources personnel.
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HHS: Health Care Reform Law Adds Coverage for 2.5M Young Adults
An earlier National Center for Health Statistics study found that about 1 million young adults gained coverage in the first quarter this year.
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Feds Consider Taking Ex-Offenders Out of the Box
The EEOC may ban the question of criminal records on job applications while some states and municipalities already have ‘ban-the-box' legislation in place. One company executive insists the initiative isn't a bleeding-heart issue but a sound business decision.
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When Johnny or Janey Comes Marching Home
Veterans find it's a tough terrain in getting from the battlefield to their chosen field.
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New Law Sinks Teeth into Misclassification of Workers
Recently signed California legislation comes just weeks after the Labor Department announced a memorandum of understanding with the IRS that, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said, would bring the agencies together ‘to end the practice of misclassifying employees.'
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Truly a Card for Every Occasion: Sorry for Your (Job) Loss
Not sure what to say to a recently laid-off colleague? Let Hallmark say it for you with greeting cards for the unemployed.
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Employers, Experts Wary of Feds’ 401(k) Tax Proposals
Two plans to cut the federal deficit could drastically change the tax treatment of 401(k) plans. The first, called the ‘20/20 cap,’ would limit annual 401(k) contributions to $20,000 or 20 percent of salary.
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Analysis Notes More Large Employers Freeze Defined Benefit Plans
In 2004, as the corporate drive to freeze defined benefit plans was picking up momentum, only 45, or 7.1 percent of 633 Fortune 1000 companies with defined benefit plans, had frozen at least one plan, reports consultancy Towers Watson.
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Supreme Court to Review Health Care Reform Law
Observers have said that decisions for cases argued in the court's spring term would likely by published by June, which could thrust the case into the national run-up to the November 2012 presidential election.
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Ford: Labor Agreement Will Keep Costs in Check
Ford Motor Co.’s new four-year contract with the United Auto Workers will allow it to keep its annual labor cost increases under 1 percent, company officials told the financial community this morning.
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Hudson Reorganizes, Names New Officers
The consulting firm also named Tracy Noon as chief people officer and Steve Zales as chief knowledge officer.
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Workers OK With Their Job but Seek Security, Communication
SHRM’s 2011 Employee Job Satisfaction Survey shows that 83 percent of 600 randomly selected employees are satisfied with their current job.
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State Reduces Opioid Prescriptions in Workers' Comp Cases
The state guidelines are called for because workers with relatively minor workplace injuries are ending up addicted or dying from overdoses.
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Ford to Add, Retain 12,000 Jobs With New UAW Agreement
The automaker plans to insource manufacturing work from Mexico, Japan and China. The 12,000 new or retained jobs include 5,000 previously announced positions, Ford said.
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More CFOs Are Landing in HR Territory
A new survey by Robert Half Management Resources finds that about one-fifth of 1,400 chief financial officers surveyed have taken on more HR duties in the past three years.
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NLRB Issues Employee Notification Rule
Private-sector employers with workplaces under NLRB jurisdiction (all but the smallest companies) will be required to post the employee rights notice on bulletin boards in the same area that other notices are typically posted. The rollout has been postponed until Jan. 31, 2012.
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Texas Gun Law Adds New Level of Vigilance for Employers
More than a dozen states already have such laws and adding Texas to that group was a major coup for the gun rights lobby. Two previous bills had failed in the Legislature before SB 321—known as the Employee Parking Lot Bill—passed in May and was signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry.
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Multiple Choice Unrest: HRCI-SHRM Link Leaves Many Stumped
A low pass rate on exams and high cost for study materials have HR practitioners seeking to earn their credentials questioning the blurry relationship between SHRM and HRCI.
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HR Certification: Preferred or Unnecessary?
Some jobs require certification, though other companies say they want nothing to do with an HR practitioner with an acronym after their name.
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The Goods on the 'Good Employer'
In an essay based on their new book, Workforce Management senior editor Ed Frauenheim and his co-authors, Laurie Bassi and Dan McMurrer, say workplaces must be at once caring, exacting, and stirring in the emerging "Worthiness Era."
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E-Verify: A Panacea or Burden for Employers
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services reported in fiscal 2010 that 98.3 percent of all queries submitted to E-Verify resulted in confirmations within 24 hours. Despite the quick turnaround on queries, the accuracy and reliability of the program remains divisive.
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5 Questions for Ravin Jesuthasan: Out of Job Site, Out of Mind
To Ravin Jesuthasan, continued high unemployment in America isn't just about tough times for jobless workers. Jesuthasan, global practice leader for talent management at consulting firm Towers Watson & Co., says it's also about bias and missed business opportunities.
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New Tools Cast a Wider Social Network for Recruiters
With the launch of BranchOut in July 2010 and BeKnown and Google Plus, which made their debuts in June, recruiters are trying to decide how to best use a dizzying array of tools to find top talent.
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Black Women Lost More Jobs During Recovery
Black women have lost more jobs than black men since the recession began in December 2007, says a recent report by the National Women’s Law Center.
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Most Employers Say Workers Need Guidance on Benefit Decisions
The survey included responses from more than 750 human resources managers and benefit managers attending the annual SHRM conference in Las Vegas in June
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Census Bureau to Release Uninsured Report Next Month
The decline in employment-based coverage came amid the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. The unemployment rate topped 10 percent in 2009, with millions of employees losing their health insurance coverage.
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Senate Leaders Agree on New Approach to Health Coverage Tax Credit
The Health Coverage Tax Credit was created in 2002 and included as part of the Trade Adjustment Assistance law.
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Mayor Tackles Tenure, Rarefying 'Teacher for Life'
The tenure-denial rate is higher than ever in New York City, as Mayor Michael Bloomberg lauds a rigorous new teacher evaluation system.
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SEC Formalizes Dodd-Frank Rules on Whistle-Blowers
Awards under the new program will depend on the quality and timeliness of the information, which must lead to successful enforcement actions with sanctions of at least $1 million.
