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Do You Care if Jobs Data Signal a Recession?
Tweet Share on Facebook April 4, 2008 CommentThe March job numbers released this morning are certainly not great. The number of jobs on nonfarm payrolls dropped by 80,000 last month. Wall Street had expected a decrease of 50,000 jobs. The percentage of Americans unemployed but looking for work moved upward to 5.1 percent from 4.8 percent last month.
Economists at Goldman Sachs warn: "With payrolls one of the key indicators watched on the call for recession, the likelihood increases that the National Bureau of Economic Research will recognize that the business expansion ended late last year and that the economy has since been in recession."
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Finished Sentences: Interior's Dirk Kempthorne
Tweet Share on Facebook April 3, 2008 Comment (1)Lots of people like to tell the story of ditzy pop star Jessica Simpson congratulating the secretary of the interior (then Gale Norton) on her decorating job in the White House. But how many people really know what's involved in running the U.S. Department of the Interior and serving as a member of the president's cabinet?
The Interior Department oversees a full fifth of the country's land, about a half-billion acres, including the national park system, the national wildlife refuges, and the 66 million acres held in trust for American Indians, Indian tribes, and Alaska natives.
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Wal-Mart Changes Its Mind
Tweet Share on Facebook April 2, 2008 Comment (11)Yesterday I asked readers to judge the fairness of Wal-Mart's reimbursement claim against former employee Debbie Shank, who had been injured in a car accident. Wal-Mart, through which Shank was insured, had paid out $470,000 in medical expenses. Shank later collected damages in a lawsuit related to the accident—about $700,000, or $417,000 after attorney's fees and other expenses—and Wal-Mart sought to recover its costs.
That's not uncommon. Many companies now attempt to recoup medical expenses they have paid out before someone wins damages in a lawsuit. The efforts are part of a recovery practice called subrogation. Wal-Mart told CNN that the money would be returned to the employee-subsidized health plan, not to the company itself.
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When Wal-Mart Wants Its Money Back
Tweet Share on Facebook April 1, 2008 Comment (25)Update: Wal-Mart has dropped its effort to recover the money it spent on Debbie Shank's medical care.
You be the judge. A shelf stocker who's employed by the world's largest retailer is seriously injured in a car accident. The company—yes, it's Wal-Mart—dutifully pays out $470,000 in medical costs. The employee then wins about $700,000—or $417,000 after attorney fees and other expenses—in a lawsuit. The employer sues for the cash to recover its costs. The court sides with the employer. Is it fair?
Over at the Huffington Post, Joseph Palermo doesn't like it one bit (note: I have omitted the last sentence of this excerpt because of a four-letter flourish not suitable for usnews.com):
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TV Layoffs in Miami, Denver, and Sacramento
Tweet Share on Facebook March 28, 2008 Comment (3)Planning a career in TV news? Then pay attention. Three different metro newspapers are reporting layoffs at local CBS stations.
The Sacramento Bee reported today that the CBS affiliate in Sacramento would be letting go an uncertain number of employees. The newspaper quoted a station executive as saying the layoffs were "the consequence of new technology."
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Finished Sentences: Restaurateur Michael Schwartz
Tweet Share on Facebook March 27, 2008 CommentMichael Schwartz is chef and owner of Michael's Genuine Food & Drink in Miami, a restaurant that New York Times food critic Frank Bruni recently said "feeds you so well, in such an unforced way, that you slip into a state of contentment that's pure. Honest. Genuine."
Schwartz has been helming restaurants in Miami since the mid-1990s. He opened Michael's last year. Popular British chef Jamie Oliver told the Miami Herald last month that the restaurant ranks among America's 10 best.
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The New Job Application: No E-mail or Résumé
Tweet Share on Facebook March 26, 2008 Comment (11)What's a job application without a résumé? What's a job posting that doesn't ask for one? Ask Aaron Strout. He's vice president of new media at Burlington, Mass.-based Mzinga, a firm that creates social networks and online communities for businesses.
He's looking for a PR director and a social media marketing manager, and these are his rules:
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10 High-Risk Jobs for Your Bank
Tweet Share on Facebook March 25, 2008 CommentSome careers are just plain risky—for your bank.
What do heads of state, senior members of the armed forces, labor group officials, and city mayors throughout the world have in common? All rank among the top 10 jobs with the greatest risk of involvement in money laundering, illicit payments, corruption, and other illegal activity, according to Dow Jones Watchlist.
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Lawyer Puts in 90 Hours as a Diet Coach
Tweet Share on Facebook March 25, 2008 Comment (1)It turns out a lawyer can ditch his profession for another and still work 90-hour weeks. You can find out how here, courtesy of the Washington Post's Express.
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Wall Street Cuts Are the Highest Since 2001
Tweet Share on Facebook March 24, 2008 Comment (35)The mortgage mess has had Wall Street banks cutting jobs in the greatest numbers since the tech bust of 2001, according to Bloomberg. Over the past nine months, Wall Street firms have slashed more than 34,000 jobs. "So far, Citigroup has eliminated 1.7 percent of its workforce, while Lehman has chopped 18 percent. Morgan Stanley has cut 6.2 percent, and Merrill has eliminated 4.5 percent," Bloomberg reports.
From Bloomberg:
"This crisis is much worse than 2001 and we don't know how long it's going to last," said Jo Bennett, a partner at executive search firm Battalia Winston International in New York. Job cuts "could be more than 100,000 in a few years."
