Working Knowledge

During the national election several state ballot initiatives represent substantial changes to key workplace policies regarding the classification and treatment of independent contractors in the “Gig” economy, individual privacy rights, higher minimum wage thresholds, paid leave expansion, and cannabis legalization. Here are summaries of some of these important ballot initiatives affecting employers. California Proposition 22,…

The use of temporary staff increased slightly according to the American Staffing Association (ASA) Staffing Index. November marks a ten-month high for staffing jobs, although still 9% lower than the same period last year. New starts were up for the ninth consecutive week, increasing 8.0% on average, with nearly half (48%) of staffing companies reporting…

Traditional employees will become rare by 2035, with the majority of high-value specialist positions filled by on-demand freelancers, according to a survey conducted by Citrix Systems. In their report, “Work 2035”, Citrix, Oxford Analytica and research firm Coleman Parkes surveyed more than 500 C-suite executives and 1,000 employees at large and midmarket firms in the…

A recent study by Gartner Group reports that nearly two-thirds of HR leaders proactively address their organization’s skills needs at a time when the number of skills in the workplace has been increasing by a rate of 10% annually. At the same time, dynamic business conditions make reskilling a continuously moving target.  A third of…

While on-premise human capital management (HCM) solutions remain in use, eventually all solutions will be cloud-based. While 70% of organizations have already deployed at least one cloud-based HR application, 40% continue to use at least one on-premise solution, according to research conducted by Sierra-Cedar. Many software vendors have “retired” their on-premise solutions, with all development,…

Six months into the Covid-19 pandemic, evidence of longer-term damage to the labor market is emerging, according to separate analyses of detailed monthly jobs data by labor economists and Reuters. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor, women and workers age 65 and older comprise a disproportionate share of the 3.7 million people…

Today, 38 women lead Fortune 500 firms – the highest number ever.  However, the pandemic poses risks to many of the strides women are making. As most school systems are forced to turn to hybrid or remote learning, younger women executives are being pulled into childcare roles more often than men, which is slowing or…

The impact of the pandemic on the economy has encouraged many companies – large and small – to reduce cost and increase agility through the increased use of temporary workers.  These workers are being sourced through a wider choice of channels, including use of a staffing agency temp, engaging an independent contractor, calling in an…

More U.S. employers are implementing programs to meet the childcare needs of working parents of young and school-age children, according to a survey of 553 employers conducted in September by Willis Towers Watson.  These initiatives are being taken to combat rising stress or burnout among these employees.  Seventy-nine percent (79%) of respondents report rising stress…

Despite the impact of the pandemic on employment levels, a recent study by Express Employment Professionals indicates that more than half (52%) of hiring decision-makers in the U.S. expect wages to increase in the fourth quarter compared to the same period in 2019.  The percentage of hiring manager planning to raise wages is significantly lower…