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EMPLOYMENT BRIEFS; A collection of workplace trends and career tips

Source: Tribune Media Services

Breaking the law?

One out of every five corporate executives of publicly traded companies are concerned that their own companies “do not comply with federal, state, or local laws” according to a poll by Voices for Corporate Responsibility. “It is disturbing that 22 percent of the respondents believe that their own companies may be breaking the law,” saus Cyrus Mehri, co-founder of Voices “Skirting the law may just be business as usual, but, sadly the impact can be devastating to consumers, employees and shareholders.”

Retention lost to economy

Many companies have focused their compensation strategies to cope with the recession and not necessarily to prepare for the coming recovery, according to a new research study conducted by Deloitte. This latest research indicates that, across the board at the surveyed companies, pay and incentives are down with deeper cuts this year than in 2008. At the same time, respondents did not report a major effort toward retention planning or retention strategies — with one in five reporting they could not afford to implement retention programs.

IT departments understaffed

A survey suggests many technology executives may share a common New Year’s goal: hire more support. Forty-three percent of chief information officers said their IT departments are understaffed in relation to current workloads. “Many companies have cut technology staff levels too deeply, making it challenging for IT departments to keep pace with demands,” says Dave Willmer, executive director of Robert Half Technology. To keep projects on track and prevent burnout, Willmer recommends that IT managers bring in extra support, if only for a short duration.

Beyond employee wellness

As the healthcare reform debate continues, legislators and businesspeople alike might be surprised to learn that Americans are looking not only to government but also to business to improve our nation’s health, even beyond employee wellness efforts. People are more likely to purchase from, recommend, and invest in companies that act on health issues — creating a compelling case for businesses to step up their efforts. Eight in 10 respondents to the Edelman Health Engagement Pulse believe it is important for business to share knowledge and innovations that improve health, and seven in 10 believe business should invest in creating healthy communities, yet only about one in 10 say business is doing an excellent or very good job of meeting these expectations.

© 2010, Tribune Media Services