August 30, 2007

Everything you always wanted to know about Labor Day (but were afraid to ask)
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 2:18 PM

OK, time for a little history lesson, since to us here at Boston.com/Monster Labor Day isn't just any old holiday: What is the origin of the Labor Day holiday, and when did it first start here in the US?

For our answer, we turn to the oracle, the source, the beginning and end of all employment-related discussions, the US Department of Labor:

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

To read on and get the complete answer, visit the DOL website page on Labor Day.

And regardless of whether you knew the correct answer or not, take a break. You deserve it. Yes, even you unemployed types, too. This is a national day of rest and recovery, to recognize the work you have done - and the work you have left to do.

HLD, everybody. Talk to you next week.

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August 28, 2007

Top five industries for entry-level jobs
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 3:16 PM

Our cousin website MonsterTRAK, Monster.com's student-focused job site, has just come out with a list of the top five industries hiring new college grads for entry-level positions:

As summer comes to a close and recent 2007 graduates embark on the working world in lieu of returning to campus, employers nationwide are opening their doors and inviting workers to apply for their first jobs. Where will they find the most opportunities this fall? And how should current students prepare to take advantage of the most plentiful positions down the road? After monitoring online job demand across several industries, over the last year, MonsterTRAK today announced the top five industries for entry-level workers.

Their figures are based on the number of entry-level job opportunities posted on MonsterTRAK. Here's the top of the list:

#1 - Business Operations, HR and Financial Services: Offering nearly one-fourth of all job opportunities for entry-level workers, this category includes jobs in accounting, financial analysis and research, management and administration, and human resource and labor relations.

Click here here to see #2-5 and read the full article as seen on AOL.com.

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August 27, 2007

How to toot your own horn
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 4:44 PM

Do you feel underappreciated in your job? Do you feel you do not get enough praise and recognition for what you do day after day? Are you afraid to step forward and seek the recognition you feel you deserve when it is not readily forthcoming?

Well, Tory Johnson, ABC's "Good Morning America" workplace contributor, says you are not alone:

Employees want to be recognized for performance, but many don't know how to get it. They'll either wait for the boss to offer some form of praise, or they'll suffer in silence when it's not forthcoming. Many employers are content with this cycle, since they fear offering kudos goes hand in hand with opening the coffers.

Yet for many workers, frequent recognition is even more motivating than an annual raise. So instead of allowing recognition to be passive, employers should encourage staffers to tout their skills and accomplishments. A proud workplace is often a more successful one.

Read the full piece on Yahoo/Hot Jobs.

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August 21, 2007

Why is this woman smiling?
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 4:51 PM

Here's a hint: you probably would be smiling too if you were Abigail Johnson.

Click here to find out why and learn more about others of her kind here in the Commonwealth (with the emphasis on the last syllable).

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Good news on the local job front
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 4:35 PM

A pair of recent press releases from the Commonwealth's Department of Workforce Development provide some welcome local job news.

First, there is clearly improving hiring demand in several key sectors, including IT, engineering, and healthcare:

Business hiring continued to climb upward in the 4th quarter of 2006, buoyed by an increase in the volume of job postings in several key industries, including biotech, IT, healthcare and finance, according to findings from the state’s latest job vacancy survey of the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development’s Department of Workforce Development.

Second, the DWD just announced today that over the year jobs were up in all areas of the state:

The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development announced today that over the year job gains occurred in all 12 labor market areas in Massachusetts in July. The Boston-Cambridge-Quincy area recorded the largest over the month job gain, up by 31,600 or 1.9 percent. Additional over the year job gains occurred in the New Bedford and Brockton-Bridgewater-Easton labor market areas.

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August 20, 2007

Tap your school's alums
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 4:48 PM

Some sage advice regarding one of your best built-in networks - your college's alumni - from Monster.com:

No one will ever care about your career as much as you do. But if there were ever a group of people to come close, it would be alumni from your college or university. These former students have likely been in your shoes themselves, and are generally among the most willing to help your career development if you ask.

I fully subscribe to this. No group is more pre-disposed to help you. Nine out of ten times the door will be held open for you if you approach an alum and say, "Hi, I'm Susie [Stewie] Student from Blah-Blah U."

Don't think of it just for landing a job or an internship, either. It may be even more beneficial for career exploration, such as informational interviewing (for more on that, see this piece from the Student Center).

So no excuses when you say you do not have a network. That's bull. Everyone has a network. And you can start right within your own school, most of whose grads are employed in a broad range of fields throughout the workforce.

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August 12, 2007

Underworking and wanting a "wife"
Posted by Diane Danielson at 10:07 AM

Today's Sunday Globe had some interesting stories:

"The Underworked American" looks at a national survey that goes against the grain and says we're working less than before.  It points out that we do less housework, and therefore have more free time.  The article does point out some of the study's inherent flaws.  Most importantly, that it's difficult to interpret data that covers all socioeconomic groups.  For example, if you break it down, men and women who have college degrees have NOT seen an increase in leisure time; the increase is more apparant the lower you go on the economic scale.   (and it's likely that this is due to unemployment not an active choice to watch more TV --- yes, that is the number one way we fill our leisure time).

In fact, the study does not account for the fact that there was in increase in the number of men and women working more than 50 hours per week (individually) and couples who work more than 100 hours weekly.  Also, maybe I missed it, but I didn't see any mention of the increase of "commuting" time and whether they classified that as work or leisure.  (I'd lobby for the former.)  With affordable housing being further and further from urban areas, my guess is that we spend a lot more time just trying to get to and from work. (Although this might be offset by those of us who work from home - hence the problem with far-reaching surveys.)

Click here to read the whole story.

Then there's the short piece in the business section about how working women really want a "wife."   This article brings up the old conundrum that being married helps a man's career but can hinder a woman's.  While this is nothing new, I thought the quote by Kim Ganedy, president of NOW, was quite telling:  "The real challenge is, companies expect you to perform as if someone is at home taking care of everything for you." 

Setting aside the unique issues married working mothers face (like the 2003 study that found the 6:00 dinner crises was a major source of stress that even their single working mom colleagues didn't face), this is an issue for single people too.  We can't wait for the plumber and be at a client site at the same time. And when many of us don't live near our family, just how often can we impose on friends to help us drop our car off at the shop.  (Not to mention, we don't have a second car to use in the meantime.)

Click here to read the whole story.

My takeaway from these articles:  In our diverse population, it's too hard to lump everyone together under a one size fits all study or survey.  So if the survey doesn't fit ... then don't wear it!

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August 8, 2007

The sushi economy unkind to women
Posted by Diane Danielson at 10:40 PM

Think American corporations are unfair to women?  Check out this NY Times article about Japanese careerwomen making up only 10% of managerial positions (compared to US where women make up 42%).  If I didn't like sushi so much, that just might be depressing enough to make me want to boycott all things Japanese.  Thanks to Entrepreneur Business Blog for spotlighting this!

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August 7, 2007

Globe Magazine:The Careers Issue
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 6:00 PM

You're looking at happy grease monkey Tim Allen who used to be an Executive Vice President at Fidelity Investments and is now doing what he really loves: running his own auto mechanics shop for high end cars.

Allen is just one of the folks featured in the Boston Globe Magazine's Careers Issue, which hit the newsstands this past Sunday and is now available online. Among a dozen or so articles, find out what the hottest jobs in Massachusetts are. We've even turned that one into a fun photo gallery for you.

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August 6, 2007

Turning savings into a start-up
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 3:09 PM

Don't want to stop working at 55, 60, or 65? You're not alone.

And, according to this column from the latest TIME magazine, more and more restless "retirees" are putting their nest eggs at risk in new and creative ways -- in start-ups:

Money experts warn that it's a bad idea. But a steady flow of people past the age of 50 are funding new businesses and nonprofits with their retirement savings anyway--and having enough success (or fun) to brag about it. About a third of self-employed people over 50 didn't strike out on their own until after the big five-oh. These people say they'd rather be in business than in Boca, and they view their pensions and home equity as a lifeline to remaining productive and engaged after retiring.

Read the full piece.

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August 5, 2007

No middle ground for working moms and dads
Posted by Diane Danielson at 9:04 PM

The Seattle Times writes about the latest PEW Research Center survey out last month where women's desires to work part-time is not being met by the marketplace.  It's a short article but it does emphasize that for many women (and men) it's an all or nothing choice -- either an extreme job or an off-ramp.

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August 4, 2007

Big city, bigger paychecks ... for gen Y women
Posted by Diane Danielson at 7:40 PM

The New York Times writes about how young women in urban areas are outearning their male peers.  It seems that the fact that more women are graduating college than men is starting to affect their paychecks ... in a good way! 

The analysis was prepared by Andrew A. Beveridge, a demographer at Queens College, who first reported his findings in Gotham Gazette, published online by the Citizens Union Foundation. It shows that women of all educational levels from 21 to 30 living in New York City and working full time made 117 percent of men’s wages, and even more in Dallas, 120 percent. Nationwide, that group of women made much less: 89 percent of the average full-time pay for men.

Just why young women at all educational levels in New York and other big cities have fared better than their peers elsewhere is a matter of some debate. But a major reason, experts say, is that women have been graduating from college in larger numbers than men, and that many of those women seem to be gravitating toward major urban areas.

Click here to read the whole story.

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