Workplace Issues Today: AOL cuts costs, jobs
AOL says that it will cut around 2,300 of its 6,900 jobs as part of a restructuring effort brought on by its spin off by Time Warner. The company says that they hope to achieve a large number of the layoffs through a voluntary redundancy program, but will make involuntary cuts. AOL hopes to cut costs by about $300 million. The spin off will take place on December 9, ending an unsuccessful merger.
See “AOL to cut one-third of workforce,” BBC News Online, Nov 19 2009 (SD)
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BNA Workplace Immigration Report
BNA’s Workplace Immigration Report is now available from any ILR building. Access is provided by the Catherwood Library from the Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. and is limited to subscribers.
Workplace Immigration Report provides original reporting on workplace immigration news developments, federal and state legislation and regulations, and immigration enforcement actions in various industries. It also offers guidance for employers on workplace immigration policies and practices. Searchable content from 2007 forward.
Workplace Issues Today: Tough times for college seniors
A report released by Michigan State University Monday showed that the rate of hiring for recent college graduates has declined significantly. The report surveyed over 2,500 businesses across the country and determined that the job market for college graduates has dropped 40% in the last year. The report showed that businesses expected to hire many more graduates than they actually did, and advises new graduates to be “patient and persistent.” It is predicted that companies with fewer than 500 employees will be more likely to hire graduates and that the sectors with the greatest job openings will be e-commerce, food processing, environmental conservation/green industry, info systems, non-profit, nursing, social work, and web design/multimedia.
See “MSU Report: College labor market has hit bottom,” Chicago Tribune, The Associated Press, Nov 16 2009 (JKW)
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Workplace Issues Today: AFL-CIO, DOT and airlines to talk
With airlines continuing to face financial difficulty, the AFL-CIO’s Transportation Trades Department asked for a forum in which government officials, unions and major airlines can talk privately. The talks will focus on the effects of deregulation on the industry and whether or not safety is being forfeited. Union officials stated that the airline industry needs to change in some way to meet changing situations. These talks represent a change in past attitudes towards the airline industry, which has been on its own in terms of cutting costs and dealing with safety standards.
See “Unions prod Obama to fix ailing airline industry,” by Joan Lowy, The Seattle Times, Nov 12 2009 (SD)
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Workplace Issues Today: New York Senator pushes for more veteran hires
The junior senator from New York State, Kirsten Gillibrand, is using Veteran’s Day as a platform in pushing for improved treatment of veteran employees (or veteran potential employees). Gillibrand points out that the federal stimulus package included a set of significant tax breaks for companies who hire veterans, but that almost no one knows about it. The Senator plans to ‘push the tax breaks’ herself but has also written the Labor Department requesting that the info be further disseminated. She complains that the tax breaks are not mentioned on relevant web pages and she thinks businesses would jump at the chance to save over $2,000 per hire if they knew about it. Veterans have had difficulty finding employment in the current economy, especially young veterans, among whom the unemployment rate reaches 14%.
See “Gilli tells Labor Dept. to help vets more,” by Michael Mcauliff, New York Daily News, Nov 10 2009 (JKW)
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DigitalCommons@ILR to exceed 10,000 uploaded documents
Originally posted in the ILR News Center, November 6, 2009:
10,000 Uploads, 2 Million Downloads
DigitalCommons@ILR a repository for workplace information
Labor trends in Cambodia. On-the-job health hazards for beauticians. The collective bargaining agreement of Watervliet firefighters. Testimony from the Glass Ceiling Commission.
The electronic documents housed within DigitalCommons@ILR cover an immense range of workplace topics. The repository, part of the Catherwood Library, will soon upload its 10,000th document.
“It’s an important milestone,” said Catherwood Library Web and Digital Projects Manager Jim DelRosso, “not only because of the quantity of documents in the repository, but also because it brings attention to the variety and quality of the resources made available through DigitalCommons@ILR.”
Featuring the scholarship of ILR faculty and researchers, DigitalCommons@ILR also contains workplace-related collections selected by Catherwood staff. Collection items include collective bargaining agreements, records of Congressional commissions and archives of labor and globalization-related web sites.
Catherwood Collection Development Librarian Suzanne Cohen said, “The dual purpose of our repository has allowed us to help promote the great work of ILR School authors while extending our library’s collection development mission into the digital arena by collecting materials relevant to ILR disciplines, regardless of origin.”
Accessible via http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/, the repository is hosted on a server in Berkeley, Cal., and maintained by Berkeley Electronic Press. The ILR site opened in late 2004. Its documents have been downloaded nearly two million times.
The most downloaded items in the repository include works by ILR faculty, archived issues of the ILR Review and reports from the Congressional Research Service.
Most visits to DigitalCommons@ILR come through search engines such as Google. Others are referred through the ILR web site, Wikipedia and other sites.
Workplace Issues Today: Clorox joins the fight for equal workplace rights
The Clorox Company announced Tuesday that it has joined the Business Coalition for Workplace Fairness. The Coalition comprises a group of US employers who support improving workplace fairness for LGBTQ employees. The coalition supports the Employment Discrimination Act (ENDA) which would establish workplace protections similar to those that exist for other groups, for LGBTQ employees. Essentially, the Coalition would like to establish federal standards that treat all employees the same, and protect them from ‘irrational discrimination.’ Clorox CEO Don Knauss calls the decision to join the Coalition “one of our key social responsibilities” and also a vital business imperative.
See “The Clorox Company joins the Business Coalition for Workplace Fairness,” by Aileen Zerudo, CNN Money, Nov 04 2009 (JKW)
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Workplace Issues Today: Southwest pilots ratify new agreement
After rejecting the new contract put forth this summer, 5,900 pilots at Southwest Airlines, represented by the Southwest Airline’s Pilots Association (SWAPA) have approved a new five-year agreement. The contract includes a pay increase, an 401K increase, and changes in scheduling. The contract also allows for only 4% codeshare by pilots, which they feel increases their job security. The original contract allowed 10%. Union spokespeople expressed satisfaction with the agreement, though they also claimed to be ‘looking forward to’ a chance to renegotiate compensation in 2011. The contract ratification comes at a crucial time, as Southwest agreed on terms with almost all other employee divisions earlier this year.
See “Southwest pilots approve five-year contract,” by Jonathan Heckman, Seattle Post Intelligencer, Nov 03 2009 (JKW)
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Learning, training, and development in organizations (Book of the Month)
Learning, training, and development in organizations, edited by Steve W.J. Kozlowski and Eduardo Salas, is Catherwood’s Book of the Month.
This scholarly book in the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology’s (SIOP) Organizational Frontiers series looks at research on enhancing knowledge acquisition and its application in organizations. It concentrates on training, design and delivery given the changing nature of work and organizations. Now that work is increasingly complex, there is greater emphasis on expertise and cognitive skills. Advances in technology such as computer simulations and web-based training are necessitating a more active role for the learner in the training process. In the broad context of the organization systems, this book promotes learning and development as a continuous lifelong endeavor. [from publisher web site]
New York: Routledge. 517 pages
ISBN 978-0-8058-5559-3
Call Number: HD58.82 .L43 2010
Workplace Issues Today: New Boeing line to be located in South Carolina
Boeing announced that the new production line for the 787 will be located in South Carolina, rather than with the first line in Washington. Boeing cited factors like natural disasters and terrorism as well as the International Association of Machinists (IAM) among its reasons for locating the plant in South Carolina. The IAM had offered Boeing a ten year no strike commitment in return for the line and job security, but were turned down. Critics say that locating the new line away from experienced workers could cause further complications in the already late aircraft, while others say that the past history of strikes in the Washington plant make the choice a smart one. The new line could result in around 4,000 new jobs.
See “Boeing’s Shift to S.C. Raises Union Ire,” by Wendy Kaufman, NPR Morning Edition, Oct 29 2009 (SD)
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