Aug. 11, 2010 at 1:09 p.m.
Filed under:
Airlines,
Work culture
By Associated Press
Taking it out on the fax machine. (Office Space)
JetBlue is finally talking about its famously flippant flight attendant … sort of.
In a company blog posting, the airline poked fun at the attention directed at the case of Steven Slater, who cursed out a passenger over a plane’s loud speaker on Monday and then jumped down the emergency slide.
“Perhaps you heard a little story about one of our flight attendants?” the blog joked. JetBlue didn’t disclose any information on the case, saying it will let “people speak on their own behalf.” Get the full story »
Aug. 3, 2010 at 8:11 a.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
Work culture
By Tribune newspapers
At least three people are dead and at least three injured in a workplace shooting in Manchester, Conn. at Hartford Distributors. State Police said Omar Thomas, the suspect, shot himself as police approached, and is dead. The suspect was an employee, the marketing director of the company said, before police identified Thomas.
July 30, 2010 at 12:34 p.m.
Filed under:
Investing,
Jobs/employment,
Work culture
By Reuters
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is the bank many Americans love to hate, but one group just plain loves it: its employees.
The firm’s employees are among the most fiercely loyal in the financial services industry, according to a survet by glassdoor.com, a career Web site. And Goldman Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein had the highest approval rating of any CEO in the financial sector. Get the full story »
July 29, 2010 at 3:35 p.m.
Filed under:
Internet,
Telecommunications,
Updated,
Work culture
By Becky Yerak
Goldman Sachs might be cleaning up its potty mouth — telling workers that it’ll bar filthy language in e-mails and use software to screen for it — but some Chicago-area companies have different philosophies.
“We do not have a policy on the use of curse words in e-mails,” said Lee Mitchell, managing partner for Chicago-based Thoma Bravo LLC.
But “now that Congress’ ‘financial reform’ legislation has made us subject to SEC regulation, I guess the SEC will be telling us which words are a systemic threat to the global economy and, therefore, have to be banned,” the private equity executive cheekily added. Get the full story »
July 14, 2010 at 6:31 a.m.
Filed under:
Computers,
Work culture
From CNN | Windows XP, which debuted nine years ago in 2001, will continue to be with us for yet another decade. Microsoft announced it would allow some Windows 7 customers to buy Windows XP “downgrade” licenses until January 2020. Those licenses allow customers to swap out the newer operating system and instead install a legal copy of the older one. Get the full story »
By Problem Solver
The results are in. Consumer Reports’ engineers have completed their testing of the iPhone 4 and have deemed it unfit because of poor reception.
“When your finger or hand touches a spot on the phone’s lower left side — an easy thing, especially for lefties — the signal can significantly degrade enough to cause you to lose your connection altogether if you’re in an area with a weak signal,” a July 12 Consumer Reports blog post said.
“Due to this problem, we can’t recommend the iPhone 4.”
July 6, 2010 at 6:49 a.m.
Filed under:
Jobs/employment,
Work culture
CNN | Long a popular tool for compensating employees at burgeoning start-ups and top executives at multi-national corporations, the practice of granting options to workers has increasingly fallen out of favor.
Last year, a little more than three-quarters of the companies in the S&P 1500, which tracks small- and mid-cap stocks as well as the conventional S&P 500 index, relied upon stock options to pay their CEOs. Compare that to five years prior, when that figure stood at nearly 93 percent. Get the full story »
July 2, 2010 at 8:29 a.m.
Filed under:
Retirement,
Work culture
By Reuters
Fidelity Investments has lost hundreds of corporate customers in its defined-contribution retirement plan business over the past year, a challenge for the giant mutual fund firm in a critical segment of the industry. Get the full story »
June 28, 2010 at 6:10 a.m.
Filed under:
Jobs/employment,
Work culture
By Reuters
Companies are starting to hire again, but many are turning their backs on older job seekers.
The unemployment rate for those in the 25 to 54-year-old age group has fallen from a record high of 9.2% in October to 8.7 percent in May. But the nationwide unemployment rate for older workers — while lower than that of younger workers — has barely moved since hitting a record high of 7.2 percent in December. It’s currently 7.1 percent. Get the full story »
June 16, 2010 at 6:59 a.m.
Filed under:
Computers,
Work culture
Cupidtino founder Mel Sampat with his Apple laptop and iPad in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
Associated Press | Apple Inc.’s ads used to challenge consumers to “think different.” Now a website wants to help fans of the iPhone and Mac computer maker date different, too.
Called Cupidtino — an homage to Apple Inc.’s home base in Cupertino, Calif. — the site aims to connect Apple aficionados with like-minded “Machearts.” The idea is that if you love the iPhone and Mac maker’s products you might be best suited to date a fellow Apple fan.
Get the full story »
June 14, 2010 at 5:47 a.m.
Filed under:
Health care,
Work culture
Associated Press | Companies that offer employee health
insurance expect another steep jump in medical costs next year, and
more will ask workers to share a bigger chunk of the expense, according
to a new PricewaterhouseCoopers report.
For the first time, most of the American workforce is expected to have
health insurance deductibles of $400 or more, the consulting firm said
in a report released to The Associated Press. Two years ago, only 25
percent of companies participating in the annual
survey said they asked employees to pay deductibles of $400 or more.
That grew to 43 percent in 2010 and is expected to pass 50 percent next
year.
Get the full story »
May 26, 2010 at 10:13 a.m.
Filed under:
Labor,
Work culture
From The New York Times | Men are more likely to have jobs that require arriving early or leaving late from work, according to a study of surveys conducted by the U.S. Census in 1997, 2001 and 2004. The New York Times reviewed these surveys and found that only 32 percent of people at work at 7 a.m. were women, compared with 42 percent for the entire day. “The vast majority of workers perceive work from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to be
more desirable than work during the off-hours, and many of the off-hours
workers are compensated with higher pay for the less desirable
schedule,” writes Casey B. Mulligan, an economics professor at the University of Chicago.
Get the full story: nytimes.com.
Reuters | BlackBerry smartphones are firmly attached to the belt
loops of most business travelers, but there are signs Apple’s trendy
iPhone is making inroads into board rooms and offices.
Drugmaker AstraZeneca Plc has begun iPhone trials with some senior
executives and British bank Standard Chartered has given its corporate
BlackBerry users the option of switching to the iPhone, a move that
could result in thousands of bankers switching to the Apple device for
business on the go.
Get the full story »
May 19, 2010 at 8:33 a.m.
Filed under:
Work culture
By Wailin Wong | This
may not feel like a time of plenty. But many American workers’ waist
lines are expanding through the weak economy, according to a new survey
by Chicago-based CareerBuilder.
The poll revealed that 44 percent of workers have gained weight in
their current jobs, with 32 percent saying stress was a contributing
factor. In 2009, 43 percent of workers reported putting on pounds. The
weight gain was more than 10 pounds for 28 percent of employees and
more than 20 pounds for 12 percent of workers.
Get the full story »
May 17, 2010 at 1:52 p.m.
Filed under:
Government,
Taxes,
Work culture
Associated Press | A new report from Congress says Social
Security’s big shortfall can be wiped out with just modest changes to
payroll taxes and benefits.
The report by the Senate Special Committee on Aging says Social
Security faces a $5.3 trillion shortfall over the next 75 years. But
the massive government retirement program can be made healthy and whole
through what the committee’s chairman describes as small “tweaks.”
Get the full story »
