Hello to all of our Wonderful Friends and Clients!

I first want to say thanks to all of you who have been attracted to Alstin's InSites. Alstin InSites was developed through the partnerships of highly rated vertical network sites, such as Beyond and others. Our unique partnership with these network sites enables you to target a single job posting to hundreds of pre-selected web sites within one vertical market at one low cost: $250 for a 60 day posting. Your posting will reach a wide audience of professionals in the industries you want to target and you will receive FREE metrics reporting on the performance of your posting (s).

We're now expanding Alstin InSites to include email blasts to individuals with specific skill sets. Talk about a proactive sourcing plan! So why not do as so many of our satisfied clients do and see how tapping into "vertical markets" can work for you. It’s fast. It’s simple. And, it’s targeted!

Second, I want to wish all our great clients and friends a wonderful and safe start to the summer season — 100 degree days notwithstanding....

LEADING EDGE HUMAN RESOURCES ISSUES

Employers Feel Workers' Gas Pains

With prices at the pump surging past $4 a gallon, employers need to wake up and smell the gas fumes, experts warn. New surveys are showing that for many workers, commuting has become so expensive that they're considering switching jobs, while others are turning down jobs that are too far away.

But the surveys have also found that a growing number of employers are responding to the challenge with measures such as four-day workweeks, increased telecommuting, employee carpools and subsidized public transportation.

"Many employees are beginning to wonder whether the commute downtown or across town is really worth it to them," says John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray and Christmas, a Chicago-based global outplacement consultancy.

A survey of HR executives at 100 companies, conducted by the firm in May, found 34 percent reporting that job candidates were turning down offers because of the cost of long commutes.

And high gas prices could be the trigger for many people who have already been thinking about changing jobs, says Challenger.

"Every time they get gas, it hits them," he says. "It's a recurring reminder." A real threat to employers is losing their top performers, who are already being wooed by other companies, he says. "You don't want to get behind the curve, not knowing this is an issue, and find that a number of people have left." (HRE Online, 6/10/08)

Paid Family Leave Is Coming To New Jersey

By: Louis R. Lessig, Esquire

After years of debate, New Jersey has become the third state in the nation to enact paid family leave as part of the benefits package required for employees. The new law, called Family Temporary Disability Leave, is funded through a payroll tax that will go into effect on January 1, 2009. However, employees will not be able to utilize the new leave until July 1, 2009.

The funding formula is based upon New Jersey’s Temporary Disability Insurance and as a result, based on this year’s numbers, an eligible employee could receive two-thirds of their regular wage, up to $524 per week. In total, the Family Temporary Disability Leave provides up to six (6) weeks or forty-two (42) days of paid leave. During the leave period, if the employee works for an employer with fifty (50) or more employees, their position will be held for them. However, if the employer has less than fifty (50) employees, while the leave is available to the individual, there is no guarantee of reemployment by the same employer. Further, if the employee is not reinstated, the law does not allow a suit to be initiated.

An employee can take this leave for the birth or adoption of a child or to care for a family member, which is defined as a child, spouse, domestic partner, civil union partner or parent of a covered individual. Additionally, the law recognizes that there may be cross over with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA). As a result, the law requires that any time used for Family Temporary Disability Leave shall run concurrent with the FMLA and/or the NJFLA.

Before any employer considers running to a perceived greener pasture, consider this fact: In addition to New Jersey, twenty-three (23) other states and Congress have all over the past year considered varying forms of paid family leave. This reality may signal things to come throughout the country. Already California, Washington, Washington D.C. and the City of San Francisco have paid leave on the books.

The largest challenge facing employers and their human resource departments is educating their workforce. In the past, leave laws were already confusing and complicated. The addition of a new layer for leave increases the monitoring required to ensure compliance as well as comprehensive tracking to capture any concurrent time used by employees. Moreover, the alteration in the law is also going to create some initial confusion on the part of employees as they try to understand how the various leave laws interact with one another and what they need to do to obtain compensation under the law.

Based on all of these challenges, it is incumbent on New Jersey employers to fully evaluate the impact this law will have on their operations and plan for the change now before we reach 2009.

Mr. Lessig is a Senior Associate in the Labor & Employment Group at Brown & Connery, LLP located in Westmont, NJ.

Firms Putting Best Foot Forward in Cyberspace

You may not have to wait for a job interview to find out what the people are like at companies you apply to. How about meeting some employees virtually right now? Just surf over to the Web site of your prospective employer and you may find a professionally produced but relatively unscripted video of an employee describing their work day or how they maintain work-life balance.

For job seekers wondering what it's like to work for accounting and consulting giant Ernst & Young, the firm hosts an online video from Anton, an assurance manager for the company, discussing the firm's gay and lesbian network. Or you can view a video of Sara Lo, a senior consultant in the transaction real estate group, talk about her passion for surfing.

Employee testimonials are the latest online recruiting craze businesses are using to offer you a peek into their world.

It's a great development for job seekers. Now you don't have to don a blue suit for a job interview and waste time sitting down for an awkward meeting with potential managers and co-workers before you realize a company just isn't right for you.

"It's becoming a powerful recruitment tool," says Jeff Wittenburg, chief leadership officer with recruiting firm Kaye Bassman International. "Human nature makes us all attracted to anything visual. It gives you a sense of what the people look like (who) work there, how they dress and how they sound." (MSNBC, 6/9/08)

HR Information Management Professionals to Get a Certification All Their Own

HR information management professionals will soon have an educational certification they can call their own.

The International Association for Human Resource Information Management will create the HR information management professional certification test and a study guide with the help of the Donath Group, a company that develops professional certification exams, IHRIM president and CEO Lynne Mealy says. Mealy announced the development of the new professional certification June 3 at the IHRIM Conference and Technology Exposition at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL.

While several professional certifications have been available for HR professionals, this will be the first certification designed specifically for human resources information management professionals, Mealy says.

Work on the certification is already under way, and the exam is set to be introduced next year.

The HR information management professional certification has been in the works for about two years. IHRIM conducted a survey of members of its regional chapters and found there was strong demand for a professional certification, Mealy says. (Workforce Week, 6/3/08)

More Corporations Partnering with Relief Organizations

Recently, SHRM Online reported a small number of relief organizations like The American Red Cross and World Vision received millions of dollars in support from corporations to aid the devastation in Myanmar and China.
Now the Conference Board reports that as corporate social responsibility (CSR) becomes an integral part of the business culture, corporations are playing a more active role in humanitarian efforts by forming partnerships with relief organizations. And these corporate-humanitarian partnerships have the potential to deliver fast, effective support during a crisis.

On May 12, 2008, an earthquake rattled southwestern China, killing nearly 56,000 and leaving an estimated 5 million homeless. On May 3, Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar, formerly Burma, in Southeast Asia killing more than 130,000 people and leaving 2 million homeless. For 20 days, the ruling junta refused to allow aid groups into the country, but as conditions worsened it lifted the ban May 23.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon reported that Myanmar’s ruling military junta agreed to "allow all aid workers regardless of nationalities" into the country to help cyclone survivors.

As of May 23, Chinese officials said donations from domestic and international fronts had totaled $3.6 billion, CNN reported. And although cash remains the preferred form of contribution, humanitarian groups realize that businesses have far more to offer, including state-of-the-art technology and management expertise, the Conference Board report states. (www.shrm.org, 5/30)

Using a Contingent Workforce Strategy to Avoid Layoffs

When economic times are volatile and businesses are facing a downturn in revenue, many CFOs turn their attention to cost-containment. A logical place to start cutting costs is labor, given that in many industries labor costs account for an average of 60% of all variable costs.

The volatility in the business climate not only dictates that labor costs be contained, but also that organizations become more agile in their use and deployment of labor, a characteristic not generally managed well in the traditional employer/employee relationship.

Successful organizations must develop workforce plans that allow their organizations to shift people resources rapidly from areas of low return to areas of high return, as the business environment shifts.

HR instead needs to prepare in advance and have a viable plan and strategy to ensure that any workforce reduction/adjustment is executed in such a way that it doesn't damage their image or reduce morale of employees retained.

One approach to consider is developing a contingent workforce strategy that allows organizations to rapidly cut labor costs by releasing contingent contract or temporary workers. (ERE Daily, 6/9/08)

Seven Big Reasons People Leave Their Jobs

A changing economy and changing attitudes about work have resulted in some new reasons rising to the top of the list of why employees leave - giving you clues about how you'll want to frame your appeal to job-hunters.

HR consultant Right Management asked 1,308 people why they left their jobs in the last year. Here's how they answered (numbers add up to more than 100% because some people said they left for more than one reason):

- Downsizing or restructuring (54%)
- Sought new challenges or opportunities (30%)
- Ineffective leadership (25%)
- Poor relationship with manager (22%)
- To improve work/life balance (21%)
- Contributions to the company were not valued (21%)
- Better compensation and benefits (18%)

At one time, having a bad boss seemed to always show up as the No. 1 reason, but these days, people are more likely to leave because of a layoff. Still, though, the bad-boss reasons - "ineffective leadership" and "poor relationship with manager" - are near the top.

The numbers seem to indicate that if you're recruiting, plan to see more and more people who've been caught in a downsizing shuffle. And plan to appeal to them by emphasizing the stability and growth opportunities your organization features. Job-hunters' antennae will be picking up on that, especially in this economy.

Apart from that, you'll want to go with many of the same strategies you've probably been using:

- having candidates meet with potential supervisors to test the chemistry
- talking about - but not promising - avenues for advancement, and
- describing the highlights of your benefits package, over and above just salary concerns.

(HR Morning, 6/11/08)

How Innocent ‘Jokes’ Turn Into Costly Lawsuits

Benefits and HR managers are used to handling accommodation requests for an array of medical issues. But handling mental health issues are especially tricky — and filled with legal pitfalls.

As employees have become more aware that mental health issues like depression and anxiety are considered medical conditions, accommodation requests haveup dramatically. How far does your organization need to go to honor such requests?

As long as the employee’s anxiety can be documented medically and unless honoring the request would create extreme economic hardship for your organization, you must honor the request. It’s also crucial to look at the employee’s job description. The key issue to look at is whether the employee can still perform essential job functions.

Also, the employee may not need a permanent accommodation. Example: He or she has started taking a new type of anti-anxiety medication.

Courts have ruled that ADA permits employers to obtain enough information from employees’ mental health provider (psychiatrist, psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, etc.) to determine whether an accommodation is needed and, if so, forlong.

Keep in mind: The purpose of ADA is to provide equal – not preferential – treatment to employees with physical or mental disabilities. (HR Benefits Alert, 6/4/08)

Playing Hooky at the Ballpark: Legal Right?

Think FMLA is tough to handle? Here’s how one state almost passed a law giving workers paid leave to watch baseball games.

A bill proposed in the Connecticut state legislature would give qualified workers a certain amount of guaranteed paid sick days every year. And an amendment proposed would give an interesting definition of what employees can call a “sick day.”

Under the amendment, employers would not be allowed to ask for medical certification on the following days:

June 21
The first day of a hunting or fishing season
Major League Baseball’s opening day.

The amendment didn’t get very far, but why was it introduced in the first place? You can chalk it up to pure satire.

It was drafted by two lawmakers who opposed the bill. Apparently, they wanted to make a point about the burden it would place on employers and the likelihood of worker abuse. (HR Legal News, 6/6/08)

Top Five E-mail Etiquette Goofs

Everybody makes them every now and then. But keeping these etiquette mistakes in check can boost your standing with employees and execs. When it comes to communication, it’s often the little things that matter.

Here are five small mistakes that can have a big negative impact:

Trying to be sarcastic. Written messages almost always come off as more insulting than they would orally — and can misinterpreted in a myriad of other ways.

Trusting the spam filter. You should check your garbage can regularly — no filters are perfect, and odds are yours has thrown away something important that needs a reply.

Blank subject lines. It’s easy to forget when you’re trying to send a quick e-mail, but leaving the subject line empty can be bothersome for receivers — and your message might not get read at all.

Misusing the “reply all” button. This one’s tricky. Some people use “reply all” when they all need to respond to one person. Others just hit “reply” when they’ve got something to tell everyone.

Overusing high-tech shorthand. Things like BTW, IMO and LOL have become standard in e-mail conversations, but not everyone is quite so savvy and tech literate. These acronyms should be used only if you’re sure the audience knows them. (HR Tech News, 6/9/08)

Take Advantage of Employee Financial Education

In the old days, if you worked for a company, your retirement income would likely have been in the form of a pension, with the amount based on your income level and years of service. Apart from those factors, you had little control over the size of your pension benefits. That pension model is still around, but it's not as prevalent as it once was.

Today, many employers offer 401(k) plans, which give employees the responsibility of choosing the right investment mix depending on their risk tolerance and retirement goals. Yet, along with their 401(k)s, many employers also provide some level of financial education - and people should take full advantage of it.

As you peruse your company's financial education program and materials, however, keep one thing in mind: employers do not advise about investment decisions. In some cases, an employer may provide access to a financial advisor, but it's the employees decision as to whether to use this financial advisor, find one on their own or make 401(k)-related investment decisions independently.

Nonetheless, whichever route is chosen, you may find that your employees' financial education materials can be helpful. Pay close attention to the following:

Descriptions of investments - Your 401(k) plan might offer a dozen or more investment options, including accounts made up of stocks, bonds and money market instruments. You may also be able to invest in your company stock. Study these investment choices carefully as you put together your 401(k) portfolio, and make sure you understand exactly the potential advantages and disadvantages of each individual investment.

Ideally, employees will want to diversify their holdings. While diversification, by itself, can't guarantee investment success, it may be able to help reduce the effects of market volatility, which can hit investors especially hard if all their investments are tied up in just one type of asset. And, as employees build and maintain their 401(k) portfolio, be aware that most 401(k) participants are probably not aggressive enough in their investment options, putting too many dollars into fixed-income vehicles and too few dollars into stock-based accounts. Employees will likely be investing in your 401(k) for several decades, long enough to not get caught up with the daily fluctuations of the market and give themselves a chance for a "buy-and-hold" strategy to work.

"Nuts and bolts" of your plan - 401(k) plans can vary quite a bit in how they are administered and what services they offer, so it pays to take some time to really understand how your company’s plan works. What fees, if any are involved in your 401(k)? How often can you change your investment allocation? Can you reach live customer representatives during working hours only, or are they also available at night and on weekends? How often will you get statements? Will you have access to a Web site that provides customized information on your investments' performance? These are the types of questions you'll want answered as you explore your plan.

Your 401(k) can be an excellent retirement-savings vehicle. Your earnings have the potential to grow on a tax-deferred basis and your pre-tax contributions can lower your annual taxable income. To get the maximum benefits from your plan, however, you'll need to fully understand how it works - so take a close look at those employee education materials. (Greg McGovern, Financial Advisor, Edward Jones, Souderton, PA)

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Alstin Communications is a proud member of EMPACTworld — the largest worldwide alliance of independent advertising agencies specializing in Employer Marketing. There are more than 350 advertising/employer marketing professionals in seventeen firms with 22 offices in seven countries on three continents. Each agency location shown below is staffed with people who are passionate about what they do. Our office locations include: Atlanta - Baltimore - Boston - Brisbane - Brussels - Chicago Dallas - London - Los Angeles - Manchester - Melbourne Miami - Montreal - New York - Omaha - Paris - Philadelphia San Jose - Sydney - Toronto - Winnipeg - Vancouver So whether you'e looking for a local contact in a distant market or a branding initiative with international appeal, you need to look to one place — Alstin Communications. Our EMPACTworld mission is simple: Help our clients find, motivate, and retain the employees they need to accomplish bottom-line business objectives.

H.R. CONFERENCES & MEETINGS

SHRM National Conferences:
60th Annual SHRM Conference & Exposition: June 22-25, 2008, McCormick Place, Chicago, IL

SAVE THE DATE:
NAACP 99th Annual Convention and Job Fair will take place July 12-17 in Cincinnati, OH.

The Human Resource Planning Society (HRPS) will host a teleconference on “Talent Turnover Trends 2008: New Data, New Insights” with speaker Craig Taylor on 6/17. For more information and to register, please visit www.hrps.org.

Philadelphia Area Association of Healthcare Recruiters (PAAHCR) will host the PAAHCR Election Lunch on 6/13. Location: Park Hyatt, Philadelphia. For more information, please visit: www.paahcr.com.

Philadelphia Human Resources Planning Society (PHRPS) will host a program on 6/17 from 7:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. at The HUB Cira Centre, Philadelphia, PA. The topic of this event will be Globalization. For more information, please visit www.phrpg.org.

Tri-State HRMA will host a Volunteer Recognition and 25th Anniversary Celebration dinner meeting on 6/5 starting at 5:15 p.m. at the Mount Laurel Marriott. This event is sponsored by Amenity Rentals. On 7/9 there will be a dinner meeting beginning at 5:00 p.m. The topic will be “HR 101 for Non-Profits.” The location of this event is TBA. Please visit www.tristatehr.org for more information.

PhillySHRM will host a networking event on 6/11, starting at 5:30 p.m. The topic will be “Expanding Your Sphere: Connect. Identify. Learn.” Location: Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Visit www.phillyshrm.org for more details.

Chester County Human Resources Association (CCHRA) is currently planning for September. For more information, please visit www.cchrassn.org

The Greater Valley Forge Human Resource Association (GVFHRA) will host The Diversity Forum on 6/17 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. This event will be sponsored by HR Backbone. It will take place at Penn State Great Valley. To register for this event, please visit www.gvfhra.com.

HRA of Southern NJ will host a dinner meeting, “Cumberland Country College School Counts & BA/MBA Review” on 6/19 at 5:30 p.m. The speaker will be Dr. Ken Ender. The meeting will take place at Cumberland County College Resource Center. Cost for non-members is $40 and $30 for members. For additional meeting info, contact Phyllis East at 856.459.3146 or email eastp@seabrookfarms.com.

The Human Resource Professionals of Central Pennsylvania (HRP of Central PA) Monthly meetings are usually held the fourth Tuesday of each month. The next chapter meeting will be on June 24th, 2008. Visit online at www.hrpcpa.org for more information.

HRMA of Princeton will host a monthly dinner meeting on 6/9, from 5:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. at the Princeton Hyatt. Topic, “Surviving the Workplace Jungle: Know How to Leverage Your Team’s Talents” will be presented by Susan Cullen, President of Quantum Learning Solutions. Visit www.hrma-nj.org to register for this event.

Southern Shore HR Management Association of New Jersey usually hosts monthly meetings the third Wednesday of the month. On 6/18, they will host a breakfast meeting at The Flanders in Ocean City. Please visit online at www.sshrmanj.org for more information.

SHRM DE (Delaware Chapter) will be hosting a breakfast meeting on 6/10 starting at 7:30 a.m. Julie Kampf, President JBK Associates will be presenting the topics: Hiring and Keeping the WOW and Women opting out and back into the Workplace. The meeting will take place at the Cavalier Country Club. For more information, please visit www.deshrm.org

Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management (SEPA SHRM) will host the Annual Professional Development Program and Networking Event on 6/3 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. This event will take place at the new Lenfest Pavilion at Abington Hospital. For more information, visit: www.sepashrm.org.

Times and locations are subject to change without notice.

If you would like to be included in our H.R. Conferences & Meetings listing, please contact Heather Gwin at: 215.568.3200 or email: hgwin@alstin.com. THANKS!

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Print Media Update

NORTHEAST

The Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News (PA) will run a banner for Protective Services on 6/22 and for Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical on 7/13.

Al Dia (PA) will offer a Summer Recruitment Special available on 7/11 & 7/25 and 8/8 & 8/22.

Buffalo News (NY) will highlight Driver/Transportation Employment, 7/6 and Jobs on a Roll, 7/7. A Virtual Job Connection will take place on 7/6.

New York Times (NY) will have a Diversity Online Career Fair that will begin 7/1.

The Philadelphia/Tri-State Nursing Spectrum will have a Critical Care focus, 7/14 and an Emergency Department focus, 7/28.

The Reading Eagle (PA) will have a Transportation/Driver banner on 7/20.

SOUTHEAST

Fayetteville Observer (NC) will begin including all Sunday ads in the new expanded version of the “Weekender Street Edition” tabloid that runs each Friday. The Street Edition will be placed in racks throughout Fayetteville and surrounding counties.

Richmond Times-Dispatch (VA) will publish Home Health & Assisted Living banner page on 6/22. A special section for Nursing in Virginia will appear on 6/23. A banner page for Drivers and a Diversity Job Fair Magazine will publish on 7/13.

MIDWEST

Chicago Tribune (IL) will focus on Human Resources, 6/22 and focus on Health Care, 6/29.

Detroit News (MI) will host have a Sales/Retail banner on 7/17.

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Clients in the News, Clients on the Move & Client Events

Air Products & Chemicals Inc. recently agreed to supply 60 million standard cubic feet of hydrogen per day to Total Petrochemicals Inc.’s refinery in Port Arthur, TX, which is being expanded. Air Products will begin supplying the gas in 2010. The company has total hydrogen capacity in the Gulf Coast of 900 million tons daily. (Philadelphia Inquirer, 6/3/08)

The new Comcast Center, located at 170 JFK Blvd., is home to immensely appealing public art. Developed by Liberty Property Trust for Philadelphia’s newest and tallest office tower, a massive high-definition video wall, which commands the entrance lobby, has already captured the public’s fancy. As well as it should, because technologically it’s as dazzling as it is intermittently clever and witty in its programming. Comcast hopes that the art will make the building a destination for tourists and culture mavens. (Philadelphia Inquirer, 6/15/08)

The Community College of Philadelphia recently announced that they have selected a new Director of Human Resources. Linda Konicky has now joined CCP. Linda’s most recent position had been as the Director of HR at the Kimmel Center. Now if you know Linda and want to offer your congratulations, you may email her at lkonicky@ccp.edu

Kennedy Health System in Voorhees, N.J., recently announced that Kathryn Emrich will serve as assistant vice president for operations with responsibility primarily over the Stratford campus. Frank X. Hendrik will serve as assistant vice president for operations with responsibility primarily over the Cherry Hill campus. (Philadelphia Business Journal, 5/16/08)

Pepper Hamilton in Philadelphia has announced that partner Thomas M. Gallagher will serve as chairman of the firm’s white collar and corporate investigations practice group. Prior, Gallagher was a prosecutor in the criminal division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. (Philadelphia Business Journal, 5/23/08)

Broadcast retailer QVC Inc. in West Chester has announced that Jeff Taraschi recently returned to the company as senior vice president of jewelry, fashion and beauty. He previously served as senior vice president of jewelry merchandising from 1992 to 1995. In addition, QVC has named Gabrielle Abiera and Davinia Palmer as its newest program hosts. (Philadelphia Business Journal, 5/16/08)

Rohm and Haas Co. will build a plant in Vietnam to serve the paints and coatings market. The company recently said the $10 million acrylic emulsion plant will be in the Dong Nai province and should be complete by the middle of next year. (Philadelphia Business Journal, 5/30/08)

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The Six Habits of Ineffective Recruiters

It is quite possible that you have heard about Stephen Covey's blockbuster bestseller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The book has helped millions of people center their lives on seemingly simple but powerful principles for leading a meaningful and satisfying life. It is, if you will, a guide to right actions in the ups and downs of our day.

As Dr. Covey also acknowledges, however, there is a dark side to habits. These often repeated actions can be harmful as well as helpful.

What does that mean for people who are in recruiting? Bad habits can actually cause an organization to lose the War for Talent. Let's look at the six habits in a bit more detail.

Bad Habits That Are Artifacts of the Early Days of Online Recruiting

Habit #1: Using the same employment Web-sites over and over again.

Habit #2: Relying exclusively on job postings for candidate sourcing.

Habit #3: Following the herd to the latest recruiting fad.

Habit #4: Writing job postings that read like job
descriptions.

Habit #5: Treating the resume database as a static stack of documents.

Habit #6: Viewing recruiting as an activity that anyone can do. A growing number of organizations are assigning recruiting responsibilities to HR generalists.
(WEDDLE’s, 2008)

The Future of Online Recruitment

Total job recruitment spending will rise to $73 billion in 2012 from $58 billion in 2008, according to Borrell Associates' "2008 Online Recruitment Advertising Study."

Borrell said that US online recruitment spending will increase by 23.5% to more than $11 billion in 2008. The company also said that nearly half the job seekers with Internet access are not yet using online media to look for a job.

Recruitment spending will shift away from large-circulation newspapers, which will see their job-related revenues decline by 12% over the next four years.

Smaller, more targeted online job boards are expected to grow more quickly than larger job Web sites.
(WEDDLE’s, 2008)

The Social Networking Tug-of-War

All around the world, organizations are scrambling to formulate policies to deal with social networking. Should our employees be allowed to use Facebook at work? Can we check out someone’s MySpace page before we hire them? Can we stop our sales manager from posting pictures of himself at a drinking festival wearing just a barrel and a cheeky grin?

There’s an equal air of excitement within marketing: It’s so hot right now, how can it help us sell more, find new customers, or stay closer in touch with the customers we have?

It’s having an impact. Companies who block Facebook or MySpace are finding themselves having to justify it. Many younger people have never been out of touch in their lives, and even eight-year-olds have mobile phones these days. It’s a logical extension to be connected to all of your friends. (www.ere.net, 5/30/08)

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Employers Feel Workers' Gas Pains

Paid Family Leave Is Coming To New Jersey

Firms Putting Best Foot Forward in Cyberspace

HR Information Management Professionals to Get a Certification All Their Own

More Corporations Partnering with Relief Organizations

Using a Contingent Workforce Strategy to Avoid Layoffs

Seven Big Reasons People Leave Their Jobs

How Innocent ‘Jokes’ Turn Into Costly Lawsuits

Playing Hooky at the Ballpark: Legal Right?

Top Five E-mail Etiquette Goofs

Take Advantage of Employee Financial Education

Energy fuels Enthusiasm, Efficiency & Excellence!