May was something of a stagnant month for the country's slow jobs recovery, according to numbers released last week by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.The national unemployment rate in May was 8.2 percent, essentially unchanged from the prior month. The long-term unemployed made up more than half of this number, with 4.6 percent of the workforce reporting that they have been jobless for more than 15 weeks. With an unemployment rate of 8.4 percent, men were more likely to be out of work than women, who had a jobless rate of 7.9 percent last month.However, the unemployment numbers go up s... view article details

What do employees REALLY want most?It's a question Dr. Jack Wiley, executive director of the Kenexa High Performance Institute, has spent more than 25 years researching. And on today's episode of Salary Talk, Aaron and Wendy talk to Jack about his new book 'RESPECT: Delivering Results By Giving Employees What They Really Want,' which is being released October 11. Jack has spent more than two decades studying employee engagement surveys from more than 200,000 workers, with input from companies in more than two dozen countries. Whether it's an issue of fair pay, giving employees the recognition ... view article details

Two of the country's premier academic institutions -- the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University -- have joined forces to launch an online education initiative that might just 'reinvent education,' according to Anant Agarwal, president of the new program.Dubbed edX, the program is based on MITx, a similar initiative launched by the science and technology school earlier this year. EdX will act as a sort of umbrella organization, allowing participating institutions to offer free, online courses from their curricula. Harvard and MIT are the initial partners in the program, b... view article details

Most of us have heard of the strategic petroleum reserve. This national stockpile generally contains about 700 million barrels of oil, some of which can be sold off if the commercial supply is disrupted. The strategic reserve helps ward off extreme price spikes and acute shortages. But the United States isn't the only country hoarding valuable resources and petroleum isn't the only substance being squirreled away for a rainy day. Let's just say that if China and Canada got together, they could serve one seriously epic breakfast.So let's take a brief tour of some of the world's most intriguing ... view article details

The only way to truly get the life you want is by taking positive risks and planning a strategy for doing so. "Unlike negative risks, which are typically impulsive and emotionally driven, positive risks are calculated," says Gail McMeekin, a nationally recognized creativity and HR career coach. "You must think them through, and anticipate what could happen, before you jump." Choosing to find a mentor to help accelerate your career is one way of taking a positive risk. Develop “a road map” by first deciding if you want the mentor to be someone inside the company or an outside coach. Know what s... view article details

Bonus programs reflect a company's definition of success, how that definition is measured, and the extent to which that measure is met. Bonuses are similar from company to company. The reason is that most companies subscribe to a pay-for-performance philosophy whereby bonuses are tied to two important measures: how well you are doing with respect to your manager's expectations; and how well your company is doing with respect to its expectations. Individual and group performance goals are hard to set, because they should be neither too ambitious nor too easy to achieve. It is best for employe... view article details

How to Ensure Efficiency While Employees Work from Home Have a strong organization. In the midst of this global coronavirus pandemic, companies which are fortunate enough to remain open have shifted to a work from home model. While embracing this new, temporary normal, strong management is needed to organize staff and remain productive while in isolation. One method to achieve this is to set up standard daily meetings at a fixed time to check in on your team, define goals, and get a reading on how everyone is coping during this trying time. This allows for communica... view article details

What is FMLA, and how does it work? Employee Rights Under FMLA: Family and Medical Leave What is FMLA? In 1993, President Clinton signed the Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for childbirth, adoption, foster care, to care for a child, parent, or spouse with a serious medical condition, or if the employee themselves has serious medical condition. Who is covered by FMLA? The U.S. Department of Labor's Employment Standards Administration's Wage and Hour Division enforces FMLA. FMLA applies to all public agencies, includin... view article details

Job description Psychologists and counselors study the human mind and behavior. Generally, they also make a living trying to help people understand and overcome their troublesome emotions and behaviors. Psychologists apply their knowledge in many different areas, including health, management, education, law, and sports. Psychologists and counselors must have strong communication skills and be able to quickly assess emotionally charged situations. They must be able to learn new methods and skills on an ongoing basis. They also need to be interested in people and the functioning of the human mi... view article details

Flexible Workplaces Becoming the Norm When looking for a job, you're likely focused on what type of position you'd like to land and probably not paying attention to hiring trends or hiring manager surveys. In fact, you may not even know that a relatively recent Flexpaths-LinkedIn Virtual Think Tanks study suggested 'flexible' workplaces would become inevitable by 2015 because employers recognize their targeted employees expect some flexibility when it comes to their jobs. Many Workers Will Sacrifice Money for Flexibility Are you one of the 42 percent of working adults who wou... view article details