Office Life

July 2008

Brown-Bag Boom Makes for Stinky Office Fridges

newser | Chicago Tribune | Jul 16, 08 6:35 PM CDT

A rise in brown-bag lunches is turning office fridges nationwide from a munchies Mecca into an oversized Petri dish—and workers are crying foul, the Chicago Tribune reports. Booming food prices and health concerns are increasing bring-your-own numbers, but the good stuff doesn't always get eaten. "I've found things like liquefied carrots," says one refrigerator cleaner. More »
Utah State Workers Get 4-Day Week

newser | USA Today | Jul 1, 08 4:24 PM CDT

Utah will roll out a mandatory four-day work week for most state employees in August, USA Today reports, the first state to do so. Republican Gove. Jon Huntsman says he's making the change to reduce his state's negative impact on the environment and to provide workers with more flexibility; offices will be open longer on other days to compensate. More »

June 2008

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

newser | Reuters | Jun 24, 08 8:02 PM CDT

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 feel obligated. Only 4% dared admit to breaking out in karaoke with co-workers. 5% said they shared company secrets while under the influence. More »
Tech Firms to Fix Monster They Created

newser | New York Times | Jun 14, 08 11:25 AM CDT

Google, Microsoft, Intel, and IBM are partnering are on a new initiative to help workers distracted by emails and instant messages improve their productivity, the New York Times reports. The Information Overload Research Group, a nonprofit launching next month, will devise cultural and technological solutions to reduce the digital deluge that’s costing firms $650 billion a year in productivity. More »
It's Not My Fault! I Was Only Late Because...

newser | CNN | Jun 11, 08 2:32 PM CDT

Not a morning person? You’re not alone. More than 15 percent of people are late to work at least once a week, reports CNN, and almost a quarter of those give an excuse rather than tell the truth. The best (and, at the same time, worst) excuses offered up as real excuses: I’m late because… More »
Startup Site Wants to See Your Paycheck

newser | TechCrunch | Jun 11, 08 2:06 PM CDT

Ever wonder how much people at Google or Microsoft really make? Just-launched Glassdoor.com wants to tell you, TechCrunch reports. Essentially, the site collects self-submitted compensation reports and reviews for as many jobs at as many firms as possible. Open to everyone are full details for Googe, Yahoo, Microsoft, and Cisco; users can get dirt on other outfits by submitting their own details. More »
Lazy Bosses Go Wayyyy Back

newser | CNNMoney | Jun 10, 08 6:54 PM CDT

Think your boss is the first to delegate the duties and enjoy sunny days on the links? Such indulgences go way back, writes Stanley Bing in Fortune . Two thousand years ago, Cleopatra ruled Egypt by dazzling the male rulers of her time. More recently, America’s beloved Ben Franklin lived like a star while fans revered his brilliant oratory. The list goes on: More »
10 Summer Intern Success Tips

newser | Vogue | Jun 10, 08 12:58 PM CDT

Heads up, summer interns. Vogue passes along advice from fashion publishing, design, and PR insiders for making a shining impression (hint: It's not about you): Think creatively, dress conservatively: Leave the flip-flops at home. Don't play it too safe; a little flair shows the boss you have a sense of style. More »
Even Tie-Makers Have Stopped Wearing Them

newser | Wall Street Journal | Jun 4, 08 7:53 AM CDT

American men have been ditching their business-attire neckwear for a decade; now even tie-makers are getting in on the open-collars revolution, reports the Wall Street Journal . The industry association for US tiemakers, hit by the double-whammy of foreign competition and casual Mondays through Fridays, is calling it quits this week. And tie-makers aren't wearing their own wares, even in public. More »

May 2008

Bored at Work? Site Disguises Classic Lit

newser | Wall Street Journal | May 30, 08 2:08 PM CDT

Business world got you down? Want to escape into a classic poem or short story? The New Zealand Book Council has made a website to help you: ReadatWork.com. The site brings up a fake Windows desktop with folders and PowerPoint files, the Wall Street Journal reports. Click on them, and you get classic literature disguised as a business presentation. More »
Why Gen Xers Hate Corporate Jobs

newser | BusinessWeek | May 21, 08 9:04 AM CDT

Generation Xers don't seem to be clambering to the top of the corporate ladder in the numbers they should be—and many are turned off by corporate life altogether. BusinessWeek has 10 reasons why this might be so: Xers started their careers just as the economy went into its early '90s tailspin Remembered big corporate layoffs has given Xers a strong distrust of large institutions Xers like keeping their options open and don't want to be funneled into narrow career paths The economy is slowing again, just as Xers are reaching upper management Xers are struggling to manage the "pesky" Generation Y strivers coming up More »
Employers Ask Office Lovers to Sign Off

newser | ABC News | May 10, 08 7:52 PM CDT

Bosses who see love in the air are asking workers to sign so-called love contracts to guard against sexual harassment claims, ABC News reports. "It is documenting the relationship," one employment lawyer said. "You need to define the relationship. Is (it) welcome?" The issue has gained attention as more women take office jobs and Americans in general work longer hours. More »

April 2008

Lies We Tell at Work ... But Shouldn't

newser | CNN | Apr 22, 08 2:24 PM CDT

Lying at work, even to be polite, can hurt you in the long run. CNN suggests we all try cutting out these too-tempting lies: I'd be happy to . If you've got too much on your plate, speak up before you drown yourself. No questions . Preface your questions as clarification, but do ask them. More »
Email Mining Software No Slam-Dunk

newser | Wall Street Journal | Apr 21, 08 7:31 PM CDT

Software that allows co-workers to share customer and client information without the initial contact's explicit permission is catching on, overcoming worries about privacy that initially kept the applications from gaining traction, the Wall Street Journal reports. One exec who saw "a very harsh reaction from people who viewed it as a Big Brother-type system" at his previous job is having less trouble this time around. More »
Good Job, Bad Job

newser | New York Times | Apr 21, 08 1:33 PM CDT

There's a stark divide between good and bad employers in America today, and you don't want to be on the wrong side of it. In a New York Times excerpt from his new book, Steven Greenhouse compares FedEx and Patagonia. FedEx forces workers who deliver packages to be "independent contractors"—to avoid paying benefits—and to buy and insure their own trucks, but fires them if they request time off to be treated for cancer. More »
Insert Text Here: 'Dilbert' Goes 2.0

newser | New York Times | Apr 18, 08 4:08 PM CDT

Is it another triumph of Web 2.0, or a concession to the rampantly collaborative tone of the Internet these days? Either way, "Dilbert" has gone interactive, the New York Times reports. On the popular comic’s website, fans can now substitute their own pithy retorts for text bubbles in the final panel, and they'll soon be able to run wild with the whole strip. More »

March 2008

New Tech for March Madness

newser | ABC News | Mar 22, 08 7:45 AM CDT

Even if your boss holds a doctorate in bracketology, there's a good chance your office frowns upon a workday spent watching the tourney while the company hemorrhages productivity. Has your supervisor imposed draconian measures to keep you from watching the action on the office computer? Thanks to the glories of modern technology, there are ways around it that don't have to include the 6-hour lunch, reports ABC News. More »

January 2008

Office Lunch, With a Side of YouTube

newser | New York Times | Jan 5, 08 5:25 PM CST

Byte is meeting bite in offices around the country as workers opt to stay in during their lunch breaks to watch web videos, the New York Times says. Websites are eating up the “video snacking” trend, developing net-exclusive content that’s targeted at the lunch crowd, and workers are nibbling on short clips from sources such as Yahoo! and local TV stations. More »
A Wired Vacation Is None at All

newser | LiveScience | Jan 3, 08 4:27 PM CST

The relaxing, recharging vacation is becoming a casualty of the internet age as BlackBerrys and instant messages interrupt more and more employees' breaks, LiveScience reports. An Associated Press poll found that one-fifth of Americans brought a laptop with them for work during vacation—and many more tote cell phones, which are increasingly internet-enabled. More »

December 2007

Cheating Is No Longer Child's Play

newser | Boston Globe | Dec 26, 07 8:24 PM CST

Crib sheets have gone high-tech, the Boston Globe reports, as legions of job seekers from would-be medical technicians to school bus drivers resort to the Web for a leg-up in passing professional qualifying exams. The result is a booming black market for “braindumps,” or exam answers. Some are individuals who auction test answers on sites like eBay; others are overseas websites that do millions in business. More »

News Sections

Newser Specials

Stories

Brown-Bag Boom Makes for Stinky Office Fridges

Utah State Workers Get 4-Day Week

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

Tech Firms to Fix Monster They Created

It's Not My Fault! I Was Only Late Because...

Startup Site Wants to See Your Paycheck

Lazy Bosses Go Wayyyy Back

10 Summer Intern Success Tips

Even Tie-Makers Have Stopped Wearing Them

Bored at Work? Site Disguises Classic Lit

Why Gen Xers Hate Corporate Jobs

Employers Ask Office Lovers to Sign Off

Lies We Tell at Work ... But Shouldn't

Email Mining Software No Slam-Dunk

Good Job, Bad Job

Insert Text Here: 'Dilbert' Goes 2.0

New Tech for March Madness

Office Lunch, With a Side of YouTube

A Wired Vacation Is None at All

Cheating Is No Longer Child's Play

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