Working Knowledge

As year end approaches, industry analysts and practitioners are issuing predictions for 2020. Research conducted by online staffing platform provider Bluecrew focuses on five emerging trends: Automation and upskilling: e-commerce growth will drive demand for more warehouse and delivery workers while automation technology will drive opportunities for upskilling. Workplace Flexibility: flexibility around scheduling and hours will be…

A recent poll of 1,000 US offices workers by Accountemps indicates a significant gap between perception and reality when it comes to worker onboarding. Nearly all respondents (95%) said their companies had an onboarding program in place and 79% cited the programs as very effective or somewhat effective. However, worker responses differed. In total, 59%…

The Illinois state legislature unanimously passed the Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act, the first state law to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) use in video interviews. The new law will take effect Jan. 1, 2020. Candidates must be notified in advance that “artificial intelligence analysis” may be used to evaluate their application. The notice must and explain…

In a recent report by online staffing firm Upwork, technology-related skills continue to lead the list of most in-demand jobs in the U.S. Demand for the top 100 skills grew more than 45% year over year in the third quarter with the top 10 growing by more than 260%. Rankings were based on year-over-year growth rates in…

The definition of “joint employer” has been a source of confusion for some time. Joint employment, also known as co-employment, is the sharing of control and supervision of an employee’s activity among two or more business entities. While a single definition is not on the horizon, there are efforts underway by three key agencies to refine…

Pending legislation in Philadelphia would create a portable bank of paid time off (PTO) for domestic workers. Domestic workers will be able to take these benefits with them from one job to the next. Provisions will address accruals, a maximum cap, carryover and other details. While the bill would be limited to home health aides, nannies…

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) may accelerate its schedule for comments on ways to improve the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to reduce administrative burdens on employers. DOL said it may seek comments on improving the FMLA as early as December. It was originally scheduled for April 2020. This is a follow-on to…

Glassdoor reports that baby boomers (born 1944 – 1964) are the fastest growing segment of the U.S. workforce. A Pew Research Center analysis of official labor force data indicates that in 2018, 29% of Boomers ages 65 to 72 were working or looking for work, significantly outpacing prior generations who averaged 20% at the same age…

While forecasts of 2020 economic performance indicate caution, Korn Ferry predicts a slight increase in salaries for the coming year. In the US, an average 3% pay increase is predicted, which is the same as the prior two years. Adjusted for the expected 1.6% inflation rate in 2020, the real wage increase is forecast to…