April 25, 2006
Articles
More Working Women Find They Can't Afford to Retire
"The number of women over 65 in the workforce has increased by 38 percent since 1980, while male participation has remained stable, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Although the traditional retirement backstops--Social Security, company pensions and personal savings--have eroded for many Americans, women are particularly vulnerable because they tend to start working later, earn less and live longer, experts say.”
Employers, Kids Stretch Single Parents
"Single parents are becoming more common in the workplace. For example, the percentage of single mothers who are employed rose from 61.6 percent in 1994 to 72 percent in 2004, mainly because of welfare reform and the tighter labor market, according to [Eileen] Appelbaum and Families and Work Institute, a New York nonprofit group that researches issues stemming from changing families and the changing work force. Some employers have recognized the pressing demands on both single-parent families and families that need two incomes to get by. To deal with that, they offer more flexible schedules.”
Family Paid Leave on Mass. Agenda
"Senate leaders this week will propose legislation to offer all workers in Massachusetts up to 12 weeks' paid time off to care for newborn and adopted children or sick family members, financed by an employee payroll premium of at least $1.50 a week. The bill, which would pay employees their full salary, up to $750 a week, would create the most generous paid leave policy in the nation.” Mentions Ann Bookman of the MIT Workplace Center.
Quoth the Raven: I Bake Cookies, Too
"Surely Germany, cradle of the kindergarten and home to some of the world's most generous maternity-leave policies, would do everything it could to make life easier for mothers who work, right? Well, no. Few developed countries are more resistant to the idea of working mothers, and the hostility can be summed up in one word: Rabenmutter. It means raven mother, and refers to women who leave their children in an empty nest while they fly away to pursue a career. The phrase, which sounds like something out of the Brothers Grimm, has been used by Germans for centuries as a synonym for bad parent.”
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Shaking Spain Out of Its Siesta
“The national government has launched a campaign to break Spaniards of their traditional midday meal and nap, arguing that the old-fashioned custom is bad for business, bad for families and out of step with Spain's image as an emerging European dynamo. In January, the government enacted regulations requiring that all federal agencies enforce a 45-minute lunch break, beginning about 12:30 p.m., and then send their workers home by 6 p.m. The hope is that the private sector will follow suit, according to Fernando Moraleda, a government spokesman.”
Never Let Them Go
"Two decades ago, employee turnover was seen more as a nuisance than a strategic disaster. There were plenty of other eager young candidates hitting the job market to fill an empty spot. That all changed with the IT boom of the mid-1990s, when suddenly there were more available jobs than candidates. Now, with the job market recovering from the economic downturn of earlier in this decade, it's becoming clear to many that a company's survival depends on its ability to keep its workers.”
Op-eds
Generation X Will Challenge Business
"Some research concludes that perhaps the most important difference between the two generations is that, compared with baby boomers, Generation X places a higher priority on families than on climbing the corporate ladder and materialism. At first, the Generation X backlash against being career- and consumer-centered may make businesses a little nervous. But by making the right adjustments, businesses can succeed at both retaining young, productive employees and at selling goods and services to young people.” Mentions Ellen Galinsky.
Audio Report
Talent Revolt
"A growing number of young professionals say they won't work for companies that don't provide employees flexibility to balance their work and private lives. Hillary Wicai reports.”
To listen to the report, click on the link below.