82% of Applicants Expect Answers From Employers Yet Only 25% Get It

Sanja Licina of Careerbuilder

Job hunting can be a frustrating process especially if you have no idea whether the employer made a decision or even saw your application. More than one in four workers reported that they have had a bad experience when applying for a job. The vast majority (75 percent) of workers who applied to jobs using various resources in the last year said they never heard back from the employer, according to a nationwide CareerBuilder survey.

While this speaks to the challenges of finding employment in a highly competitive market, it also brings to light negative implications for today’s employers. The survey shows candidates who have had a bad experience when applying for a position are less likely to seek employment at that company again and are more likely to discourage friends and family from applying or purchasing products from that company. The study of more than 3,900 U.S. workers was conducted online by Harris Interactive^© from November 1 to November 30, 2012.

How important is it to acknowledge every job applicant? Continue Reading

30% of Those Date Who Co-Workers Get Married to One

Office romance photo courtesy of Shutterstock

Looking for love this Valentine’s Day? It may just be in the cube next to you. Thirty-nine percent of workers said they have dated a co-worker at least once over the course of their career; 17 percent reported dating co-workers at least twice. Thirty percent of those who have dated a co-worker said their office romance led them to the altar. This is according to CareerBuilder’s annual office romance survey of more than 4,000 workers nationwide, conducted online by Harris Interactive^© between November 1 and November 30, 2012.

How Many Dated the Boss?

While the majority of relationships developed between peers, 29 percent of workers who have dated someone at work said they have dated someone above them in the company hierarchy, and16 percent admitted to dating their boss. Women were more likely to date someone higher up in their organization – 38 percent compared to 21 percent of men.

Which Industries Have the Most Romance? Continue Reading

60% of Workers Find Romance in the Workplace

John Challenger of Challenger, Gray & Christmas

The approach of Valentine’s Day may have many human resource managers on the lookout for any evidence of budding or ongoing romances between co-workers or, even worse, between a worker and supervisor.

With some surveys indicating that as many as 60 percent of co-workers, casually dating, hooking up and/or finding love in the workplace, it is an issue that keeps many human resource executives up at night.  “Office romances are fraught with pitfalls that can impact workplace harmony, productivity, more and, in some cases, the bottom line if they end badly and a lawsuit is filed,” noted workplace authority John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of global outplacement and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.  Continue Reading

How Climate Change Effects the Job Market

John Challenger of Challenger, Gray & Christmas

This week, Cargill Beef announced that it will be shuttering one of its Texas plants as a prolonged drought in the state thins cattle herds to their lowest levels in 60 years. The closure will force the plant’s 2,000 workers to relocate to one of the company’s other plants or find employment elsewhere.

This is not the first time climate change has impacted jobs and it will not be the last, according to workplace authority John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. Challenger forecasts that the impact of climate change on the economy and employment will only increase in the years to come. “Agriculture could be the biggest victim of changing weather patterns brought on by climate change. We are no longer an agriculture-based economy, but the sector still employs between 150,000 and 250,000 workers, depending on the time of year. The other area that could feel pain related to climate change is tourism. Ski resorts in Colorado are already seeing the effects of less snowfall. Not only are skiers seeking deeper powder further north, but the resorts are spending a lot more making artificial snow.” Continue Reading

8 Tips For Employers Who Want to Prevent Workers From Spreading the Flu

Woman with flu sneezes into tissue. Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

With three months remaining in what is already being called the worst flu season in a decade, employers around the country are undoubtedly feeling the financial impact of increased health care costs and widespread absenteeism.  Making matters worse, according to one workplace authority, is the tendency of employees concerned about job security to keep coming to the office despite their apparent illness.

“The economy is still on shaky ground and many workers continue to be worried about losing their jobs, despite the fact that annual layoffs are at the lowest level since the late 1990s.  In this environment, workers are reluctant to call in sick or even use vacation days.  Of course, this has significant negative consequences for the workplace, where the sick worker is not only performing at a reduced capacity but also likely to infect others,” said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. Continue Reading

Looting of Hostess by Management, Shareholders Cause National Layoffs in November to Increase Rather Than Decrease

Rick Cobb, executive vice president Challenger, Gray & Christmas

Job cuts increased for the third consecutive month in November, as employers announced plans to shed 57,081 workers from their payrolls.  That was up 20 percent from the previous month when announced layoffs totaled 47,724, according to the latest report from global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

November cuts were 34 percent higher than the 42,474 job cuts announced by employers in the eleventh month of 2011.  Last month was only the fourth time this year that job cuts exceeded 50,000.  Continue Reading

80% of Employers Call References and 16% of Those Call Before Job Interviews

Rosemary Haefner of Careerbuilder

A new study cautions job seekers about the references they cite when applying to companies. Three-in-five employers (62 percent) said that when they contacted a reference listed on an application, the reference didn’t have good things to say about the candidate. Twenty-nine percent of employers reported that they have caught a fake reference on a candidate’s application.

The study was conducted by for Careerbuilder by Harris Interactive© from August 13 to September 6, 2012 and included 2,494 hiring managers and human resource professionals and 3,976 workers across industries and company sizes.

“You want to make sure you are including your biggest cheerleaders among your job references,” said Rosemary Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources at CareerBuilder. “Before choosing someone, ask yourself ‘Did this person understand my full scope of responsibilities? Can he or she vouch for my skills, accomplishments and work ethic?’ You also want to make sure that you ask your former colleagues if you can list them as a reference. If someone is unwilling, it helps you to avoid a potentially awkward or damaging interaction with an employer of interest.” Continue Reading

Lessons Learned by Employers Impacted by Hurricane Sandy

Mark Mehler and Gerry Crispin of CareerXroads

By Mark Mehler and Gerry Crispin of CareerXroads

Four weeks after Sandy, life is getting back to normal – or is it? Walking the dog around a relatively unscathed block of homes in central NJ (miles from the shore), reminders are everywhere. Tons of debris in front of every home (more than 40 homes); the noise of still more 75-foot oak trees being cut while leaning precariously over homes rends the air; blue tarps draped over roofs (5 homes) that were speared with limbs weighing tons; and a flatbed truck finally easing up behind a flattened neighbor’s car (where my 75 foot oak fell). I check to make sure he doesn’t accidentally take the new car next to it.

Sandy was a storm that has little comparison even to Katrina although we can take some comfort that lessons learned from that catastrophic event seven years ago were likely responsible for preparations last month that saved lives – response speed and pre-positioning among them. Continue Reading

5 Biggest Turnoffs for Employers Interviewing for Seasonal Jobs

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock

What are the biggest turnoffs for employers when interviewing for seasonal jobs?

A recent survey of employers indicated that a lack of flexibility or expressed interest top the list followed by: Continue Reading

On the Day the iPhone 5 is Announced, Remember Those Who Make Them

In the ongoing debate about globalization, what’s been missing is the voices of workers — the millions of people who migrate to factories in China and other emerging countries to make goods sold all over the world. Reporter Leslie T. Chang sought out women who work in one of China’s booming megacities, and tells their stories.

In her reporting and writing, Leslie T. Chang explores the lives of workers in China, focusing on the experience of women. Some of those experiences are horrible and some are positive. In the words of Esther Hartwig, “I read her book ‘Factory Girls‘ a couple of years ago and thought it was great, definitely an eye-opener. You can’t compare our view on factory work to their view; they come from a different place, they have a different background and a different mentality. From what I understood, they are brave, hard-working and independent people, and they have a plan. I hadn’t thought of Chinese factory workers as much more than people who work under horrible conditions, but after reading the book and being introduced to different aspects of their lives and what they have to say about it, I think I have a better understanding now and surely a lot of respect.” Continue Reading