Links You Can Use: November 26-30

In this week's Links You Can Use, see how smoke-free environments have impacted the workplace, and how to deal with stress at work, especially at the onset of the busy holiday season. And in other news: do conflicts involving English-speaking ability and foreign accents constitute a diversity issue?

About 23 states (roughly half of the U.S. population) have smoke-free workplace laws, which some attribute to the recent decline in heart attacks. But some experts are saying it's not enough. (FOX News)

The economy is still undergoing some hardship, and the holiday season has just begun. So chances are many businesses are working harder with fewer resources. Check out these organizational tips to keep stress levels down among your workers. (Forbes)

Links You Can Use: November 12-16

Find out how to establish a cohesive work culture, how to "manage up" when a supervisor seems difficult, and why it's best to have zero expectations about privacy when using work email. All this, and more, in this week's Links You Can Use.

What's the most important thing in establishing a culture at work? One expert says it is the people you choose to hire and offers tips on selecting candidates. (Chicago Tribune)

A clinical psychologist offers advice on how to "manage up," especially when dealing with difficult bosses. (American Psychological Association)

Emergency Preparedness in the Workplace

Last week the East Coast was rammed by Hurricane Sandy, which is now the largest Atlantic hurricane on record, as well as the second costliest (following only 2005’s Hurricane Katrina). In its wake, over a hundred people have been killed, thousands of homes have been destroyed, and millions have been left without power.

A firm that performs catastrophe risk modeling “estimates… $20 billion in insured losses and $50 billion in economic losses in the United States.” These losses cannot be calculated just by property damage, but also by reduced productivity. Many workers lost hours or days of work due to power outages, mass transit suspensions, bridge and tunnel closings, evacuations, and other city- and state-wide measures implemented to protect citizens.

Cases like Sandy prove that it’s imperative for businesses to plan ahead—both for emergencies and for operational continuity in case of building closings, power cutoffs, and transportation shutdowns.

Links You Can Use: September 24-28

Sometimes, even with a fancy smartphone or tablet lying around, nothing beats a pen and pad of paper. But advances in technology are definitely causing some office items to get phased out. LinkedIn has a fun infographic showing survey participants' opinions of which common workplace objects they think are becoming extinct.

Speaking of LinkedIn, check out a great slideshow below about 12 underrated features that are available on the business networking site and app. In other news, discover whether there is a certain time of day where people are most productive, how reading hand signals can help you understand a speaker's state of mind, and some essential email marketing tips. All this and more in this week's Links You Can Use.

Are tape recorders and rolodexes becoming extinct in the office? Will they be replaced by more technologically advanced tools like cloud storage? (LinkedIn)

LinkedIn has over 33 million members, so chances are you're on it. But did you know about these 12 cool features available from the website and app? (CIO)

Links You Can Use: September 3-7

In recent years, news stories of fraud, insider trading, and other dishonest business activities have prompted the question: are we doing enough to teach business students about ethics? In other news, human resource staff are struggling with filling in the gaps left behind by retiring Baby Boomers, and a worker survey reveals that job retention is largely the result of very personal preferences. All this and more, in this week's Links You Can Use.

Are business schools effectively teaching ethics to their students? Experts are saying no, but there are some ways to improve business ethics training. (Slate)

According to the Workforce Retention Survey, "Work-Life Fit" and "Enjoying What I Do" were two of the top reasons why people chose to stay with a job. These findings echo some of the points from our post about the requirements for job satisfaction. (American Psychological Association)

Links You Can Use: August 6-10

It's all about the numbers (lists of easy tips, interesting stats, and money management) in this week's "links you can use."

You don't have to earn a degree in organizational psychology to improve employee morale and engagement. Here are five quick ways to bring positive psychology to the workplace. (Forbes)

A growing trend? A survey of 2,000 employers (with a total of over 20 million workers) revealed that over half offer wellness incentives to improve employees' health and to control healthcare costs. (HR.BLR.com)

A professor from the Harvard Extension School lays down six principles of business ethics. (Huffington Post)

Links You Can Use: July 23-27

This week's Links You Can Use features resources and news about employee health and wellness, preparing for retirement, saving money on taxes, emotional well-being, and how offices are changing their space to improve collaboration and efficiency.

The City of Phoenix rolled out an incentive-based weight loss program for its employees as part of a comprehensive workplace wellness strategy. (Phoenix Business Journal)

A must-read for anyone wondering about retirement savings: retirement policy insider Teresa Ghilarducci doesn't mince words when it comes to the challenges of saving up for the golden years. (New York Times)

Why Employers Should Care About Employees Who Are Caregivers (Part 2)

In our previous blog post, we talked about why some workers caring for children with special needs may require more health care and lose time and focus at work. But demanding caregiving needs are not just limited to parents of children with special needs.

An increasing number of employees are now also caring for older adults. In fact, nearly 55 million Americans care for an older adult, and 42% of workers reported caring for an older loved one within the last five years. (1)

Research from the MetLife Mature Market Institute and National Alliance for Caregiving (2) revealed the following:

• Each year, employers lose up to $33.6 billion in lost productivity as a result of full-time workers having to provide care to older adults.
• Employers lose an average of $2,110 annually per each full-time employed caregiver.
• The costs are due to employee replacement, absenteeism, partial absenteeism (coming in late, leaving work early), workday interruptions, eldercare crises, supervisor time (supervisors spending more time at work), unpaid leave*, and workers going from full-time to part-time.

*The Family and Medical Leave Act entitles eligible employees to job-protected, unpaid leave for a certain number of days per year. However, employers still have to pay for temporary employees and reassignments.

General population trends show that the aging Baby Boomer generation will continue to require care from loved ones, including those who work full-time or part-time. And many workers experience a knowledge gap when it comes to managing and paying for care.

Links You Can Use: July 16-20

Happy Friday! Here is your week's Links You Can Use.

Unsure about a grammar rule or the correct use of a phrase? Grammar Girl gives you great writing advice via blog posts and podcasts. (Quick and Dirty Tips)

A study on job benefits reveals that employees may need to be educated more about 401(k)s and other types of employer-sponsored savings benefits. (Employee Benefit News)

USA.gov: A Rich Resource of Free Information

Do you find government news and policies to be long-winded and confusing? Need to get a passport or check the status of your tax refund? Wondering about how to start your own small business, where to find a local farmer’s market, or what to do in the wake of a natural disaster? Believe it or not, you can find the answers on one website: www.usa.gov.

Hiring Veterans

Since the recent tragedy in Afghanistan, stats are flying in the media about the percentage of returning vets who have traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) and/or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). All of this media noise can make the idea of hiring a vet intimidating. However, on the one hand, it is illegal to discriminate against vets in hiring. On the other, there are many excellent reasons to hire veterans:

• The vast majority of jobs in the military provide direct experience, training, and skills transferrable to civilian jobs
• Many veterans, particularly officers, have strong leadership skills
• Many veterans have four-year degrees and/or technical certifications
• In general, veterans make up a large population of smart, mature, and experienced potential employees

Luckily, there are excellent resources available to help your organization and veterans work together smoothly and productively...