As the unemployment rate catapulted upwards to nearly 10 percent over the past year, the importance of severance polices was prevalent at companies across the country. The 2009 BenchmarkPro results showed that 55.2 percent of companies surveyed currently have a severance policy in place.

Companies in the manufacturing industry report having severance policies at a rate of 66 percent, compared to the insurance industry, 61.9 percent. Healthcare offers severance at a rate of 53.6 percent, while utility companies offer it at 45.4 percent. Severance is offered least to employees at not-for-profits, 41.6 percent.

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Tags: new economy, unemployment, severance, layoffs

Categories: Research | The Economy

(From the New York Times) Alan Greenspan, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve board, said on Sunday that the latest job report showing the nation’s unemployment at 9.8 percent was “pretty awful” and said he expected the figure to climb even higher.

“My own suspicion is that we’re going to penetrate the 10 percent barrier and stay there for a while before we start down,” he said in an appearance on “This Week With George Stephanopoulos” on ABC.

He said he was particularly concerned about data in the employment report, released Friday, indicating that an increasing number of Americans have been unemployed for more than six months. That number increased in September by 450,000, reaching 5.4 million, according to the report from the Labor Department.

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Tags: economy, jobs, careers, unemployment, business news, skills

Categories: The Economy

The Conference Board Employment Trends Index (ETI)™ increased 0.3 percent from the revised August number, the first increase since January 2008. The index now stands at 88.5 and is down 15.6 percent from a year ago.

"While the employment numbers reported by the government last Friday were certainly disappointing, The Conference Board Employment Trends Index™ suggests that the trend of declining job losses will continue," said Gad Levanon, Senior Economist at The Conference Board. "But the road to recovery is definitely going to be bumpy and may last unusually long, given the depth of the recession we have experienced."

This month’s increase in the Employment Trends Index™ was driven by a positive contribution from four out of the eight components. The improving indicators were Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance, Percentage of Firms With Positions Not Able to Fill Right Now, Industrial Production and Real Manufacturing and Trade Sales.

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Tags: economy, jobs, careers, unemployment, business news

Categories: The Economy

Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) -- In a new study of more than 2,000 low-income unemployed workers age 55 and older, 46 percent need to find jobs so they don't lose their homes or apartments, and approximately half (49 percent) have been looking for work for more than a year.

In July 2009, there were two million unemployed workers age 55 plus; the unemployment rate for this age group was the highest since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began tabulating data by age in 1948.

The perfect storm - a recessed economy, increased competition for jobs, and age-related employment barriers - has created a crisis for America's older low-income workers, according to the new study conducted by Experience Works, the nation's largest nonprofit provider of community service, training and employment opportunities for older workers.

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Tags: economic downturn, unemployment, generations, barriers

Categories: The Economy

(From the Wall Street Journal) When PepsiCo Inc. laid off administrative assistant Sonia Service in February 2008, she thought she'd have a leg up on her next job. Pepsi referred Ms. Service to an "outplacement" firm that specializes in helping laid-off employees get new work.

Eighteen months later, Ms. Service says outplacement was a waste of time. She says the job-search training was rushed. During a practice lunch interview, a coach chided her for ordering cranberry juice, saying it could be interpreted as a sign of a urinary-tract infection, she recalls. Her résumé was sent to a prospective employer with a cover letter that included a typo and bore her signature -- which she says she never saw.

"I am embarrassed," says Ms. Service. She still hasn't landed a job.

As demand rises in the $4 billion-a-year outplacement business, providers increasingly offer standardized services, which some workers say offer little value. Businesses anxious to shed former employees quickly and cheaply impose time limits that hamper effectiveness. Few employers track whether outplacement works.

Skeptical employees are voting with their feet: Executives estimate about 40% of workers offered outplacement services don't show up; some ask for cash instead. 

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Tags: economy, jobs, careers, unemployment, outplacement, business news

Categories: The Economy

As U.S. unemployment rates near an all-time high, unemployed workers need quick and efficient ways to match their skills with open job opportunities. To facilitate the connection between job seekers and employers, AllianceQ today announced the launch of UnitedWeWork.org, a free recruitment service available to employers of all sizes and workers of all levels and skills. Major companies including, 7-Eleven, ADP, Allstate, AT&T, Hewitt Associates, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, Office Depot, Sears Holdings, and Starbucks have partnered with AllianceQ to kick off the massive recruitment effort.

The average American has more than 30,000 places to search for work, and American employers spend around $60 billion a year trying to find and hire new employees. According to a survey by the Employment Management Association, the average cost to post an open position, identify the appropriate candidate and fill the position is about $10,000. UnitedWeWork.org will connect employers with job seekers with no recruiting, job posting or advertising fees.

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Tags: unemployment, job skills, career, recruitment

Categories: The Economy

(V. Dion Haynes, Washington Post Staff Writer) Karen Collins Henry, who lost her real estate job when the housing market began to collapse in 2007, says her applications for work in a variety of fields have been rejected or ignored, so she's given up looking. Last fall, she began taking computer graphics courses and is pinning her hopes on a career developing video games that help special needs students learn in the classroom.

Henry is among a growing number of unemployed people in the Washington region opting for job training, some using government funding and others getting tax credits, to reinvent themselves after an often drawn-out and fruitless search for work.

"It seems like the requirements have changed, the stakes are higher, there is a bigger pool of people" looking for work, said Henry, who is enrolled at Montgomery College and plans to transfer to the University of Baltimore.

"I'll have my education in a cool field," Henry, 46, of Damascus, said. "Hopefully, I'll be employable."

Training officials caution that there's little guarantee that a job will be waiting given the economic climate, even in the Washington area, where proximity to the federal government has largely shielded the region from the large-scale job losses seen in other parts of the nation.

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Tags: economy, economic crisis, unemployment, training

Categories: The Economy

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The number of U.S. organizations decreasing overall staffing levels has nearly doubled in the past four months, according to management consulting firm Hay Group’s latest Reward in a Downturn Survey. When Hay Group conducted a similar study in November 2008, only 19% of U.S. respondents reported planning layoffs. However, only four months later, that number has jumped to 34% for U.S. respondents. Organizations are also turning to wage freezes and modest salary increase budgets to reduce labor costs. According to Hay Group’s survey, 37% of U.S. organizations have instituted a wage freeze for their employees – and more than half of U.S. respondents report their executives will receive no salary increase this year. A total of 2,000 organizations from 88 countries across six continents participated in Hay Group’s latest survey.

“Organizations have been swift and decisive in their actions to reduce labor costs during these trying economic times,” said Tom McMullen, U.S. Reward Practice Leader for Hay Group. “When we conducted a similar study a year ago, only 16% of U.S. respondents expected their business results to be significantly worse than targeted levels. Today, that number has jumped to 40% for U.S. respondents, and we’re seeing organizations substantially tightening their belts as a result.”

Hay Group’s survey also found that the impact of the downturn is indeed a global issue – significantly affecting high-growth economies in Asia, Eastern Europe and South America, as well as the more developed economies in North America and Europe within the past four months. Unlike Hay Group’s November survey, the percentage of organizations expecting business results to be worse than targeted or budgeted levels is now largely consistent around the globe.

Other key findings from Hay Group’s Global Employee Pay and Staffing Survey:

• Retirement program reductions: One fifth of organizations with either defined benefit or defined contribution retirement programs are reporting that they are considering changes to the value of these programs. Of organizations making changes to their defined contribution plans, the vast majority (78%) of U.S. respondents report they are considering decreasing the benefit levels of these plans.
• Long-term variable pay value significantly drops: Many organizations have stated that the value of their long-term incentive programs have dropped substantially – by a median of 40% in the U.S. and 30% globally. Approximately 32% of U.S. respondents indicate they are considering or making changes to their long-term incentive programs. Of those organizations, approximately half report they will be granting lower values of options, shares and units per employee in 2009.
• HR programs hitting the chopping block: Training and development programs are being decreased or eliminated by 22% of U.S. respondents. Companies are also cutting overtime wages (21%) and the use of contract laborers (32%).
• Employees worry about job security the most: Not surprisingly, respondents report their employees’ primary concern is around job security, with 92% of U.S. organizations saying this is a top concern for employees. Management, however, listed the ability to retain top talent and employees with critical skills (91% of U.S. employers), and the ability to maintain an engaged and motivated workforce (90% of U.S. employers) as top concerns.
• Renewed focus on severance programs: Nearly 40% of surveyed companies either made or considered changes to their severance programs in the last year, according to another Hay Group study conducted in February 2009. Of these companies, 39% considered making their programs more generous rather than less.

Tags: economy, economic crisis, jobs, unemployment

Categories: The Economy

Beachwood, OH (PRWEB) March 5, 2009 -- EmployOn, LLC is pleased to announce the release of Labor Insight, an online labor market intelligence and analysis system that shows up to the minute hiring trends of North American companies.

Sample Report: Most Active Employers in Houston, TX for January 2009

Using its patented web-based technology, LaborInsight searches the Internet and aggregates information on job openings from a variety of sources, including job boards, recruiter sites, educational institutions, governmental entities, and individual corporate websites. In fact, each day LaborInsight visits over 200,000 sites, compiling information on hundreds of thousands of jobs.

This detailed information is then categorized by geographic location, industry, occupation, company, and even by individual job title so that hiring trends and declining occupations can be easily identified enabling Economic and Workforce development agencies to more effectively plan training and education programs for displaced workers.

"The great thing about Labor Insight is that it shows that even in today's slow economy there are still many companies that are growing and hiring. Labor Insight shows you who they are, what they're hiring for, and how they're trending over time", says Chris Amato, CEO of EmployOn, LLC.

LaborInsight also provides direct access to other labor market resources including the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the US Census Bureau.

More information can be found can be found at www.laborinsight.com.

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Tags: economy, economic crisis, jobs, unemployment

Categories: The Economy

(Read the entire article at Workday Minnesota.)

Tags: economy, economic crisis, jobs, unemployment, u.s. government

Categories: The Economy