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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: workers

workers stories: 16 news summaries

(Newser) - After countless bear hugs, fist bumps, elbow grips, and pats-on-the-back, Elizabeth Bernstein realized that she is her office’s “touchee”—someone co-workers know will be receptive to physical demonstrations of support, she writes for the Wall Street Journal. That got her thinking: When is such touching OK, and... More »

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business • workers • hugging • office • hug • handshake

 Many Toil Through 
 Forced Leave 

Workers on furloughs aren't granted—or won't allow themselves—time off

Jun 15, 09 7:34 AM CDT
(Newser) - Sure, required time off beats a layoff—but that can be tough to remember as many continue working through their furloughs, the New York Times reports. Some worry their jobs are at stake if they don’t keep working; others just can’t get their employers to schedule days off.... More »

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layoffs • employment • workers • recession depression • furlough

(Newser) - The United Nations is being hammered by a string of sexual harassment cases filed by employees, reports the Wall Street Journal. The development is particularly painful for an organization that is supposed to uphold human rights around the world. Victims complain about an old-boys' network of adjudication that allows colleagues... More »

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United Nations • sexual harassment • workers • workers' rights • employee

 Boss Hijackings 
 Spike in France 

Anger moves to menace as economic tensions mount

Apr 1, 09 4:18 AM CDT
(Newser) - Worrisome "hijackings" of bosses are spiking in France, underlining the threatening tensions within a staggering economy, reports the Wall Street Journal. Workers angered by layoffs surrounded the car of Salma Hayek's retail tycoon hubby François Pinault in Paris yesterday for over an hour until they were dispersed... More »

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France • kidnapping • Paris • strike • workers • Salma Hayek • hijacking • French • Francois-Henri Pinault • recession depression

Working at Home Could Boost Layoff Risk, Some Fear

'Trend toward flexibility' makes about-face in rough economy

Mar 23, 09 10:16 AM CDT
(Newser) - Workers who once had the flexibility to work from home are sticking to the office, worried that less “face time” could make them layoff targets, the Washington Post reports. To some women, the shift appears to be a step backward as pressure builds to “work as many hours... More »

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women • workers • unemployment • office • flexibility • job • telecommuting • financial crisis

Crisis Drains $2T From Retirement Savings

Tumbling values may mean more workers have to stay on jobs longer, retire later

Oct 8, 08 10:31 AM CDT
(Newser) - The financial crisis has drained $2 trillion from Americans' retirement savings over the  past 15 months, reports the Washington Post, a 20% drop in the value of pensions and 401(k) plans that may force many to retire later and could spread to the general economy as workers tighten belts further.... More »

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stock market • workers • 401k • pension funds • retirement benefits • financial crisis

 Minimum Wage Gets Bump 

Tomorrow's 70-cent raise to $6.55 could spell job loss for young

Jul 23, 08 2:31 PM CDT
(Newser) - The federal minimum wage will get a 70-cent boost tomorrow to $6.55 an hour, reports the Baltimore Sun, but it's not good news for everyone. The bump will help workers chip away at rising food, gas, and health care costs, raising the annual payoff of a 40-hour work week... More »

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minimum wage • workers • wage increase • federal wage • pay increase

 Raise a Glass to the Joys
(and Pains) of Happy Hour

One in five of us go out for drinks after work with co-workers; it's not all good

Jun 24, 08 8:02 PM CDT
(Newser) - Is it happy hour yet? About 20% of Americans regularly go out for drinks with colleagues after work, says a survey from careerbuilder.com. Reuters runs down the highlights:
  • Most go out just to be social, but about 30% say they do so to gossip or only because they
... More »

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social networking • work • alcohol abuse • workers • alcohol consumption

 Office Workers Demand Macs 

Apple expects 33% growth thanks to business market

May 4, 08 6:15 PM CDT
(Newser) - The exclusive club of Mac devotees is quietly expanding from students and artists to the corporate world, BusinessWeek reports. And the change is fueled by workers, not sales calls: In fact, nearly nine in 10 recently surveyed companies admitted that Mac-loving workers are influencing computer buys. And it's contributing to... More »

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work • corporate • workers • Business trends • Mac

Part-Time Work Jumps 16% as Many Jobs Contract

Some 4.79 million worked part time in February; 1.8 million held two or more jobs

Mar 8, 08 12:10 PM CST
(Newser) - Tough economic times—and a drop in full-time jobs in some sectors—are pushing more people into part-time work, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Labor Department says 16% more workers—some 4.79 million people—are working part-time jobs this year than last, the highest total since 1993. More »

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employment • workers • US economy • Department of Labor • job market • below the line workers • Wal-Mart • part-time jobs • US workers

Soaring Costs Force Workers Out of Key West

Few remain to service the island's tourists
and millionaires

Feb 10, 08 5:58 PM CST
(Newser) - High Key West housing costs are sparking an exodus of residents and leaving the island's tourists with too few people to serve them, the Los Angeles Times reports. Some 2,000 workers have fled in the past 7 years, a crushing blow to a county that houses 75,000 residents... More »

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workers • US economy • housing industry • Key West • service industry • Florida Keys

5 Killed in Energy Plant Blaze

Oct 3, 07 1:41 AM CDT
(Newser) - Five workers trapped in an empty water tunnel at a Colorado hydroelectric plant were killed late yesterday when a chemical fire ignited in equipment. The workers had communicated after the blaze erupted that they were safe, but firefighters later found their bodies as they battled the blaze. The men worked... More »

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fires • firefighters • workers • Georgetown • Colorado • hydroelectric

Google Wants You To Map Businesses

Search giant will hire everyone to collect data at $10 a pop

Aug 17, 07 3:56 PM CDT
(Newser) - Google is hiring—and you don't even need to know html. The search giant wants locals to visit pizza joints, ice cream parlors, drugstores, and other businesses as part of a Herculean effort to build a commerce database. An army of freelancers will collect the data, snap a digital photo,... More »

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Google • employment • workers • data • database • freelance

UAW Gears Up for Contract Talks on Health Care

Current system must change as retirees outnumber active workers

Jul 19, 07 9:11 PM CDT
(Newser) - The United Automobile Workers Union starts high-stakes contract talks with Detroit automakers tomorrow, at a time when the union counts more retirees than active workers in its ranks—meaning higher health-care costs—and the American automotive industry is in dire financial straits. The talks are being called "the most... More »

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health care costs • health insurance • United Auto Workers • Detroit • unions • retirees • automaker • workers • auto industry

Duped Workers Build Baghdad Embassy

Kuwaiti firm lures poor laborers to Iraq; enslaves them on massive US project

Jun 7, 07 10:56 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Kuwaiti company building the $592 million US embassy in Baghdad is under scrutiny for allegedly tricking workers into coming to Iraq. The Justice Department says Kuwaiti First promised poor workers from Bangladesh and Pakistan it would send them to Dubai, but instead brought them to the Green Zone, seized... More »

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Baghdad • Green Zone • workers • embassy • Kuwaiti First • trick

Outsourcing Firms Grab Visas

Foreign companies use 30% of H1B visas to
train workers in US

May 15, 07 11:51 AM CDT
(Newser) - H1B visas—intended to bring high-skilled foreign workers to the U.S.—may in fact helping foreign companies to train their workers, two senators argue. Data released by Republicans Dick Durbin and Chuck Grassley indicate that nine Indian outsourcing firms use up 30% of the H1B visas granted each... More »

MORE ABOUT:
immigration • immigration reform • outsourcing • visa • H1B • workers

16 Stories


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