When the Ties That Bind Break.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sorohan, Erica Gordon

1994-01-01

Despite decades of management fads, U.S. businesses have practiced chain-of-command management. Only through changes in leadership can corporate America repair the damage to employee morale that stems as much from the way companies execute layoffs as from the layoffs themselves. (Author/JOW)

Helping Managers and Employees Cope with Work-Force Cutbacks.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morton, Gene L.

1983-01-01

Steps can be taken to reduce the need for work-force cutbacks and to prepare in advance by planning activities, defining severance awards, reducing anxiety, setting layoff criteria, providing outplacement services, and handling the timing, logistics, and aftermath of layoffs with sensitivity. (SK)

[The medical community's perceptions of management of the layoff process].

PubMed

Monreal-Bosch, Pilar; Perera, Santiago; González, Maite Martínez; Selva, Clara

2017-08-21

The definition and process of layoff are evolving rapidly. This study focuses on the perceptions of physicians in Catalonia, Spain, concerning layoff and the identification of strategies and proposals that allow more satisfactory adjustment to the process. A qualitative approach was used with 16 in-depth interviews with key persons in the healthcare setting (phase 1) and 6 focus groups with 72 persons, according to sampling criteria (phase 2). The analysis was interpretative, based on Grounded Theory. Comparison and triangulation of the results generated by the different techniques and researchers revealed the social representation of the current healthcare organization (immersed in a new public management model) on the medical community and the layoff process. In this sense, retirement is seen as a personal issue, separate from human resources policies, which are more interested in staff turnover at a lower "cost". Given this situation, the article proposes alternatives that value physicians' experience and expertise before they leave the healthcare organization.

The use of adaptable automation: Effects of extended skill lay-off and changes in system reliability.

PubMed

Sauer, Juergen; Chavaillaz, Alain

2017-01-01

This experiment aimed to examine how skill lay-off and system reliability would affect operator behaviour in a simulated work environment under wide-range and large-choice adaptable automation comprising six different levels. Twenty-four participants were tested twice during a 2-hr testing session, with the second session taking place 8 months after the first. In the middle of the second testing session, system reliability changed. The results showed that after the retention interval trust increased and self-confidence decreased. Complacency was unaffected by the lay-off period. Diagnostic speed slowed down after the retention interval but diagnostic accuracy was maintained. No difference between experimental conditions was found for automation management behaviour (i.e. level of automation chosen and frequency of switching between levels). There were few effects of system reliability. Overall, the findings showed that subjective measures were more sensitive to the impact of skill lay-off than objective behavioural measures. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Examining the Personal Resources of Layoff Survivors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cotter, Elizabeth W.

2011-01-01

This study investigated the process of burnout and engagement in layoff survivors. Job demands (job insecurity and work overload) and resources (social support, optimism, career adaptability, and career management self-efficacy) were examined as predictors of burnout and engagement. The sample consisted of 203 adults currently working at…

Alternatives to Employee Layoffs: Work Sharing and Prelayoff Consultation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McNeff, Nancy J.; And Others

1978-01-01

By acknowledging the value of the work-sharing concept, recognizing the importance of the psychological contract, and conducting prelayoff consultations with the assistance of third-party neutrals, companies can more effectively cope with the problem of employee layoffs and improve employee relations in general. (Author)

Staff Layoffs and Terminations--Managing the Risks.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Michaelson, Martin; White, Lawrence

This paper reviews legal risks associated with staff layoffs at institutions of higher education and methods for managing those risks and describes planning steps designed to minimize institutional legal exposure. Legal risks include claims of breach of contract, discrimination, tortious conduct, and violation of labor laws, collective bargaining…

Living with Layoffs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hartzell, Gary N.

1992-01-01

Afterschool systems reduce the number of employees, the surviving staff members often experience low morale, distrust, and guilt. Administrators can help the survivors by answering questions about the layoff: whether it was necessary; whether it was conducted fairly; whether those who were laid off were treated humanely; and what is the status of…

The Rhetoric of Chinese Layoff Memos

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sisco, Lisa A.; Yu, Na

2010-01-01

In this analysis the authors introduce three memos announcing layoffs in Chinese companies. The three memos, translated from Chinese, are from: (1) Hewlett Packard China, an American company doing business in China; (2) UT Starcom, founded in China; and (3) Rizhao Steel, one of China's largest steel manufacturers. Comparing the Chinese and…

Considering Layoffs? Tips for Avoiding Legal Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelderman, Eric

2009-01-01

The fiscal year that begins on July 1 for most colleges is expected to bring a wave of layoffs, as institutions grapple with declining state contributions, a falloff in donations, and other budget pressures. Eliminating jobs can create a number of legal pitfalls, including potential lawsuits for breach of contract or discrimination. If handled…

20 CFR 639.3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

..., including part-time employees, who in the aggregate work at least 4,000 hours per week, exclusive of hours... action that results in the effective cessation of production or the work performed by a unit, even if a... work as specified under the definition of “employment loss.” (c) Mass layoff. (1) The term “mass layoff...

Assisting Laid-Off Workers in a Changing Economy. Issue Brief.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Governors' Association, Washington, DC. Employment and Social Services Policy Studies Div.

Faced with worker displacement stemming from a changing economy, states are acting to soften the economic impact of displacement on affected individuals and businesses. Key strategies and practices are as follows: (1) anticipating layoffs by analyzing economic and labor market trends (using data to anticipate layoffs; developing an early warning…

Los Angeles Settles ACLU Suit on Layoffs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sawchuk, Stephen

2010-01-01

A settlement crafted last week seeking to curb the use of seniority as a factor in teacher layoffs in the Los Angeles school system could become one of the nation's most far-reaching overhauls of the "last hired, first fired" policies common in school districts. If approved by a judge, the settlement would shield up to 45 low-performing…

THE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE IN THE MEATPACKING INDUSTRY. AUTOMATION PROGRAM REPORT, NUMBER 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DICK, WILLIAM G.

TWENTY AUTOMATION MANPOWER SERVICES DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS WERE STARTED TO PROVIDE EXPERIENCE WITH JOB MARKET PROBLEMS CAUSED BY CHANGING TECHNOLOGY AND MASS LAYOFFS. THE FIRST OF THE SERIES, ESTABLISHED IN LOCAL PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT SERVICE OFFICES, THIS PROJECT DEALT WITH THE LAYOFF OF 675 WORKERS, PROBLEMS OF READJUSTMENT IN THE PLANT, THE…

Pre-Layoff Intervention: A Response to Unemployment. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stone, Judson; And Others

Based on a program provided by a consortium of mental health centers in the Detroit, Michigan, area, this manual is intended to assist in the development and delivery of programs that allay or prevent the devastating human impact of plant shutdowns and large-scale layoffs. The guide focuses on delivery of programs that promote more effective use…

Displaying fairness while delivering bad news: Testing the effectiveness of organizational bad news training in the layoff context.

PubMed

Richter, Manuela; König, Cornelius J; Koppermann, Christopher; Schilling, Michael

2016-06-01

Although giving bad news at work is a stressful experience, managers are often underprepared for this challenging task. As a solution, we introduce organizational bad news training that integrates (a) principles of delivering bad news from the context of health care (i.e., bad news delivery component), and (b) principles of organizational justice theory (i.e., fairness component). We argue that both the formal and fair delivery of bad news at work can be enhanced with the help of training to mitigate distress both for the messenger and the recipient. We tested the effectiveness of training for the delivery of a layoff as a typical bad news event at work. In 2 studies, we compared the performance of a training group (receiving both components of training) with that of a control group (Study 1, Study 2) and a basics group (receiving the bad news delivery component only; Study 2) during a simulated dismissal notification meeting. In general, the results supported our hypotheses: Training improved the formal delivery of bad news and predicted indicators of procedural fairness during the conversation in both studies. In Study 2, we also considered layoff victims' negativity after the layoff and found that training significantly reduced negative responses. This relationship was fully mediated by layoff victims' fairness perceptions. Despite preparation, however, giving bad news remained a challenging task in both studies. In summary, we recommend that organizations provide managers with organizational bad news training in order to promote professional and fair bad news conversations at work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

New Yardsticks To Measure Financial Distress. New Pathways: Faculty Career and Employment for the 21st Century Working Paper Series, Inquiry #4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chabotar, Kent John; Honan, James P.

This paper, one in a series about the priorities of the professoriate, discusses issues of financial exigency and how they have an impact upon decisions regarding layoffs of tenured college faculty. The intent of the discussion is to encourage higher education institutions to clearly define the operational guidelines used when layoffs of tenured…

Validity in the hiring and evaluation process.

PubMed

Gregg, Robert E

2006-01-01

Validity means "based on sound principles." Hiring decisions, discharges, and layoffs are often challenged in court. Unfortunately the employer's defenses are too often found "invalid." The Americans With Disabilities Act requires the employer to show a "validated" hiring process. Defense of discharges or layoffs often focuses on validity of the employer's decision. This article explains the elements of validity needed for sound and defendable employment decisions.

Victims of the Churn: The Damaging Impact of California's Teacher Layoff Policies on Schools, Students, and Communities in Three Large School Districts. K-12 Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hahnel, Carrie; Barondess, Heather; Ramanathan, Arun

2011-01-01

California's students, particularly its poorest students, need great teachers. Unfortunately, California's seniority-based teacher layoff system puts adult privileges over student needs. Newer teachers are laid off first, regardless of how well they do their jobs. This system is especially damaging to schools serving the highest numbers of…

A Worm in the Apple? The Implications of Seniority-Based Teacher Layoffs. NRI Working Paper 2011-01

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldhaber, Dan

2011-01-01

Stories abound about the staffing cuts that will have to be made currently, and in the next couple of years, as the ripple effects of the economic crisis impact local and state education budgets. Major budget cuts make teacher layoffs a near inevitability. This raises two very timely questions: what now determines which teachers are laid off, and…

Procedural justice and layoff survivors' commitment: a quantitative review.

PubMed

Grubb, W Lee

2006-10-01

Layoffs are common in today's organizations. Most studies that have examined the correlation between procedural justice and the organizational commitment of layoff survivors have yielded positive correlations, but the magnitude of the correlations varies widely. This study is the first to estimate the population correlation and to identify the primary sources that cause variation in the correlation across studies. The results indicated that justice and commitment correlations can always be expected to be positive. Based on a total sample size of 9080 individuals, the estimated mean population correlation was .34. Variation was primarily explained by attributes of the justice measure where multiple items scales and scales composed of both interactional and procedural justice items yielded higher correlations than single item measures. Therefore, it is important that employers recognize the substantial assuaging affect that procedural and interactional justice can have on survivors' organizational commitment.

Mitigating Physiological Responses to Layoff Threat: An Experimental Test of the Efficacy of Two Coping Interventions

PubMed Central

Probst, Tahira M.; Jiang, Lixin

2016-01-01

The purpose of the current study was to assess real-time physiological reactions to the threat of layoffs and to determine whether the use of an emotion-focused vs. problem-focused coping intervention would be more efficacious in attenuating these physiological reactions. A 2 (coping intervention) × 4 (within-subjects time points) mixed experimental design was used to test the hypotheses. Eighty-four undergraduates participated in this laboratory experiment during which their galvanic skin response (GSR) and heart rate (HR) were continuously monitored. Analyses indicate that individuals instructed to utilize an emotion-focused coping strategy experienced a significantly greater decline in their GSR compared to those utilizing the problem-focused coping method. Results suggest organizations conducting layoffs might focus first on dealing with the emotional aftermath of downsizing before focusing on problem-solving tasks, such as resume writing and other traditional outplacement activities. PMID:26999186

Revisiting the Link Between Economic Distress, Race, and Domestic Violence.

PubMed

Leguizamon, J Sebastian; Leguizamon, Susane; Howden, Wesley

2017-06-01

Male unemployment may decrease the incidence of domestic violence, due to loss of economic power in the relationship, or increase the incidence of domestic violence, due to emotional outbursts fueled by increased stress. We hypothesize that Black men may face a greater loss of expected future earnings after an unemployment shock due to a more unfavorable labor market relative to White men. Consequently, we would expect that Black men would, on net, exhibit a greater reduction (or a smaller increase) in incidences of domestic violence following an employment shock. This study uses mass layoff events reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) at the county level ( N = 3,377) for the years 2003-2008. Mass layoff events occur when a firm lays off at least 50 workers and are uncorrelated with individual-level characteristics ( N = 28,939 events, affecting N = 5,337,481 individuals). Domestic violence data are taken from the National Archive of Criminal Justice and defined as occurring when an accused perpetrator is charged, but not necessarily convicted. We use a multivariate regression model to estimate how differences in the change in reported incidences of domestic violence by race correlate with changes in mass layoffs by race. We control for the poverty rate, real per capita income, percent Black, percent women, and percent of females laid off. The standard errors are clustered at the county level and include county and time dummies to account for regional and time specific trends. We observe that an increase in the number of Blacks subject to a mass layoff event do exert a negative associated influence on domestic violence while layoffs of White men exert a positive influence. Our results shed light on how the influence of economic uncertainty on incidences of domestic violence has been found to be positive in some previous research but negative in other research.

Ethical downsizing. Managers must focus on justice and human dignity.

PubMed

Weber, L J

1994-01-01

It is vital that leaders and managers focus on justice and human dignity in the workplace when faced with the possible need to downsize. First, administrators should clearly identify the goals of work force reduction, evaluate their importance, and consider whether they could be achieved through other means. Once they have made the decision to downsize, top managers must clearly communicate the reasons and the goals to those responsible for identifying the employees affected. Employees selected for layoff should be identified on the basis of the articulated goals for work force reduction, whenever possible. When this is not clear, the tough decisions can be based on a variety of factors: "across-the-board" reductions; employee abilities, qualifications, and performance; diversity goals; seniority; or multiple criteria. It is also important to respect human dignity in the layoff process. Affected employees should be informed in advance and given an honest explanation for the layoff. Ordinarily, they should be encouraged to work until the effective date. All employees need a clear and honest explanation of the reasons for and the expected effects of the layoff. There should be a stress on the free flow of information, without an effort to control it. How downsizing is handled says a lot about the nature of an organization and its leadership. Ethical downsizing is, first of all, a refusal to deny the complexity of the issues and evidence of the organization's commitment to justice and human dignity.

Return to play after thigh muscle injury in elite football players: implementation and validation of the Munich muscle injury classification

PubMed Central

Ekstrand, Jan; Askling, Carl; Magnusson, Henrik; Mithoefer, Kai

2013-01-01

Background Owing to the complexity and heterogeneity of muscle injuries, a generally accepted classification system is still lacking. Aims To prospectively implement and validate a novel muscle injury classification and to evaluate its predictive value for return to professional football. Methods The recently described Munich muscle injury classification was prospectively evaluated in 31 European professional male football teams during the 2011/2012 season. Thigh muscle injury types were recorded by team medical staff and correlated to individual player exposure and resultant time-loss. Results In total, 393 thigh muscle injuries occurred. The muscle classification system was well received with a 100% response rate. Two-thirds of thigh muscle injuries were classified as structural and were associated with longer lay-off times compared to functional muscle disorders (p<0.001). Significant differences were observed between structural injury subgroups (minor partial, moderate partial and complete injuries) with increasing lay-off time associated with more severe structural injury. Median lay-off time of functional disorders was 5–8 days without significant differences between subgroups. There was no significant difference in the absence time between anterior and posterior thigh injuries. Conclusions The Munich muscle classification demonstrates a positive prognostic validity for return to play after thigh muscle injury in professional male football players. Structural injuries are associated with longer average lay-off times than functional muscle disorders. Subclassification of structural injuries correlates with return to play, while subgrouping of functional disorders shows less prognostic relevance. Functional disorders are often underestimated clinically and require further systematic study. PMID:23645834

Fear itself: The effects of distressing economic news on birth outcomes.

PubMed

Carlson, Kyle

2015-05-01

I use new administrative data on mass layoffs and plant closings to study the effects of distressing economic news. Exposure to stressful events during pregnancy can impair fetal development. I find that announcement of impending job losses leads to a transient decrease in the mean birth weight within the firm's county one to four months before the job losses. A loss of 500 jobs corresponds roughly to a decrease of 15-20g and 16 percent greater risk of low birth weight. Layoffs announced late in pregnancy are most strongly linked to decreased birth outcomes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

24 CFR 6.5 - Discrimination prohibited-employment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

.... Terms and conditions of employment include advertising, interviewing, selection, promotion, demotion, transfer, recruitment and advertising, layoff or termination, pay or other compensation, including benefits...

20 CFR 665.310 - What rapid response activities are required?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... include: (a) Immediate and on-site contact with the employer, representatives of the affected workers, and... particular closing, layoff or disaster. (e) The provision of assistance to the local board and chief elected...

Launch of STS-66 Space Shuttle Atlantis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

The Space Shuttle Atlantis returns to work after a refurbishing and a two-year layoff, as liftoff for NASA's STS-66 occurs at noon (EDT), November 3, 1994. A 'fish-eye' lens was used to record the image.

Implications of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meservey, Lynne

1993-01-01

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) makes it unlawful to discriminate in all employee practices such as recruitment, hiring, promotion, training, benefits, pay, firing, job assignment, leave, lay-off, and all other employment-related activities. (PAM)

29 CFR 34.7 - Employment practices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... recruitment advertising, selection, placement, layoff or termination, upgrading, demotion or transfer..., color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or political affiliation or belief is prohibited... activity. (c) Employee selection procedures. In implementing this section, a recipient shall comply with...

29 CFR 34.7 - Employment practices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... recruitment advertising, selection, placement, layoff or termination, upgrading, demotion or transfer..., color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or political affiliation or belief is prohibited... activity. (c) Employee selection procedures. In implementing this section, a recipient shall comply with...

29 CFR 34.7 - Employment practices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... recruitment advertising, selection, placement, layoff or termination, upgrading, demotion or transfer..., color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or political affiliation or belief is prohibited... activity. (c) Employee selection procedures. In implementing this section, a recipient shall comply with...

29 CFR 34.7 - Employment practices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... recruitment advertising, selection, placement, layoff or termination, upgrading, demotion or transfer..., color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or political affiliation or belief is prohibited... activity. (c) Employee selection procedures. In implementing this section, a recipient shall comply with...

29 CFR 34.7 - Employment practices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... recruitment advertising, selection, placement, layoff or termination, upgrading, demotion or transfer..., color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or political affiliation or belief is prohibited... activity. (c) Employee selection procedures. In implementing this section, a recipient shall comply with...

RIFs: Procedural Issues and Post-Termination Rights.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phay, Robert E.

1980-01-01

Reviews the major procedural issues that have been litigated when an employee has challenged a layoff. These areas include timely notice, notice of reason, burden of proof, standard of proof, prior hearing, and impartial hearer. (Author/IRT)

20 CFR 665.320 - May other activities be undertaken as part of rapid response?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... and overseeing strategies for: (1) Layoff aversion, such as prefeasibility studies of avoiding a plant... employee skill upgrading; and (3) Linkages with economic development activities at the Federal, State and...

High sustained +Gz acceleration: physiological adaptation to high-G tolerance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Convertino, V. A.

1998-01-01

Since the early 1940s, a significant volume of research has been conducted in an effort to describe the impact of acute exposures to high-G acceleration on cardiovascular mechanisms responsible to maintaining cerebral perfusion and conscious in high performance aircraft pilots during aerial combat maneuvers. The value of understanding hemodynamic characteristics that underlie G-induced loss of consciousness has been instrumental in the evolution of optimal technology development (e.g., G-suits, positive pressure breathing, COMBAT EDGE, etc.) and pilot training (e.g., anti-G straining maneuvers). Although the emphasis of research has been placed on the development of protection against acute high +Gz acceleration effects, recent observations suggest that adaptation of cardiovascular mechanism associated with blood pressure regulation may contribute to a protective 'G-training' effect. Regular training at high G enhances G tolerance in humans, rats, guinea pigs, and dogs while prolonged layoff from exposure in high G profiles (G-layoff) can result in reduced G endurance. It seems probable that adaptations in physiological functions following chronically-repeated high G exposure (G training) or G-layoff could have significant impacts on performance during sustained high-G acceleration since protective technology such as G-suits and anit-G straining maneuvers are applied consistently during these periods of training. The purpose of this paper is to present a review of new data from three experiments that support the notion that repeated exposure on a regular basis to high sustained +Gz acceleration induces significant physiological adaptations which are associated with improved blood pressure regulation and subsequent protection of cerebral perfusion during orthostatic challenges.

Successful Downsizing Strategies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khan, Marta

1987-01-01

Discusses techniques for reducing organizational staff while minimizing such harmful effects as layoffs, staff demoralization, and productivity losses. Case studies on the Petroleum Incentives Administration, the British Columbia Buildings Corporation, and the National Library of Canada present approaches to downsizing that utilized long range…

Job Sharing: One District's Experience.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lantz, Mahlon L.

1983-01-01

Describes responses of principals, teachers, and parents to a job sharing program instituted to reduce impact of staff layoffs. Principals were satisfied overall; teachers believed that students benefited from interaction with two instructors; and a majority of parents felt likewise. (TE)

78 FR 48199 - Comment Request for Information Collection for Employers Survey of the Short-Time Compensation...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-07

... provides pro- rated unemployment insurance benefits for workers whose hours of work have been temporarily... employers to reduce layoffs by temporarily reducing work hours of some employees. STC provides pro-rated...

20 CFR 671.110 - What are major economic dislocations or other events which may qualify for a national emergency...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR NATIONAL EMERGENCY GRANTS FOR DISLOCATED WORKERS... emergency grant? These include: (a) Plant closures; (b) Mass layoffs affecting 50 or more workers at a...

Planning Faculty Reduction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rose, Homer C., Jr.; Hample, Stephen R.

1982-01-01

Considerations that can help colleges and universities develop institutionally specific strategies for planning faculty reductions are addressed. It is suggested that an institution can provide a fair and workable reduction plan if it: thoroughly explores alternatives to faculty layoffs; develops explicit standards and procedures for reduction…

Building Effective Partnerships.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mulder, Anne E.; Wismer, Jack N.

In an era with corporate layoffs, budget freezes, and plant closings, Lake Michigan College (LMC) is providing job training services in the economic revitalization of Southwest Michigan. The college's Corporate and Community Development Division, in cooperation with the Berrien County Economic Development Commission and the Cornerstone Alliance,…

76 FR 60930 - Proposed Collection, Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-30

... DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Bureau of Labor Statistics Proposed Collection, Comment Request ACTION: Notice... requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments concerning the proposed extension of the ``Mass Layoff Statistics Program.'' A copy of the...

20 CFR 639.5 - When must notice be given?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

....5 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WORKER ADJUSTMENT... worker's last day of employment is considered the date of that worker's layoff. The first and each... and construction frequently hire workers for harvesting, processing, or for work on a particular...

Productive Skills for Process Operatives. Skills Review.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giles, L.; Kodz, J.; Evans, C.

A study of process operatives examined the developments in processing work in 20 organizations within the chemical and food and drink processing industries. Seven exploratory interviews were followed by 20 employer interviews. Technological innovations caused job losses and layoffs. Organizational responses adopted to meet increasing competitive…

ARRA Brings Home Mixed Report Card

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McNeil, Michele

2011-01-01

Two years after Congress made the federal government's largest one-time investment in the nation's public schools, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--the economic-stimulus package--has prevented massive teacher layoffs, spurred states to devise sweeping education overhaul plans, and invigorated the national conversation about turning…

Seeing Public Engagement Differently

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Willis, Jason

2010-01-01

The economic recession has had a profound effect on the ability of state and local governments to provide essential services to their communities--especially education. Stories about increased class sizes, personnel layoffs, and dwindling support for programs outside core classroom instruction have flooded newspapers around the country. Despite…

Tracking employment shocks using mobile phone data

PubMed Central

Toole, Jameson L.; Lin, Yu-Ru; Muehlegger, Erich; Shoag, Daniel; González, Marta C.; Lazer, David

2015-01-01

Can data from mobile phones be used to observe economic shocks and their consequences at multiple scales? Here we present novel methods to detect mass layoffs, identify individuals affected by them and predict changes in aggregate unemployment rates using call detail records (CDRs) from mobile phones. Using the closure of a large manufacturing plant as a case study, we first describe a structural break model to correctly detect the date of a mass layoff and estimate its size. We then use a Bayesian classification model to identify affected individuals by observing changes in calling behaviour following the plant's closure. For these affected individuals, we observe significant declines in social behaviour and mobility following job loss. Using the features identified at the micro level, we show that the same changes in these calling behaviours, aggregated at the regional level, can improve forecasts of macro unemployment rates. These methods and results highlight promise of new data resources to measure microeconomic behaviour and improve estimates of critical economic indicators. PMID:26018965

Effects of extended lay-off periods on performance and operator trust under adaptable automation.

PubMed

Chavaillaz, Alain; Wastell, David; Sauer, Jürgen

2016-03-01

Little is known about the long-term effects of system reliability when operators do not use a system during an extended lay-off period. To examine threats to skill maintenance, 28 participants operated twice a simulation of a complex process control system for 2.5 h, with an 8-month retention interval between sessions. Operators were provided with an adaptable support system, which operated at one of the following reliability levels: 60%, 80% or 100%. Results showed that performance, workload, and trust remained stable at the second testing session, but operators lost self-confidence in their system management abilities. Finally, the effects of system reliability observed at the first testing session were largely found again at the second session. The findings overall suggest that adaptable automation may be a promising means to support operators in maintaining their performance at the second testing session. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

48 CFR 31.205-1 - Public relations and advertising costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... employees engaged in the functions and activities identified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection... closings or openings, employee layoffs or rehires, financial information, etc. (3) Costs of participation... the event is other than dissemination of technical information or stimulation of production. (4) Costs...

The Cornell Staff Retirement Incentive Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whelan, Kenneth T.; Ehrenberg, Ronald G.; Hallock, Kevin F.; Seeber, Ronald L.

2011-01-01

We evaluate potential determinants of enrollment in an early retirement incentive program for non-tenure-track employees at a large university. Using administrative records on the eligible, population of employees not covered by collective bargaining agreements, historical employee count and layoff data by budget units, and public information on…

Using Communication Consultants to Rightsize Successfully.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tudor, Thomas R.; Sleeth, Randall G.

1997-01-01

Argues that successful "rightsizing" requires that managers preserve the morale and productivity of the remaining employees. Finds a communication consultant can offer guidance on how to maintain employee morale, help employees perceive the layoffs as fair, take care of employees who have lost their jobs, assist management with layoff…

29 CFR 501.20 - Debarment and revocation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... OF CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS FOR TEMPORARY ALIEN AGRICULTURAL WORKERS ADMITTED UNDER SECTION 218 OF THE... to comply with the employer's obligations to recruit U.S. workers; (iv) Improper layoff or... sanctions or remedies imposed by the WHD Administrator for violation(s) of contractual or other H-2A...

Reducing the Teacher Workforce: A Management Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Collins, Philip; Nelson, Dorothy Q.

1983-01-01

Discusses substantive and procedural restraints, including legal pitfalls, due process, and no-layoff clauses, within which public employers must decide questions of reduction in workforce (RIF). Describes elements of a sound RIF policy and considers ways of using the collective bargaining process to facilitate the RIF process. (JBM)

"Kiss Dagwood Bumstead Goodbye": A Communication Perspective on Downsizing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hillmer, Barbara Hoehn; Violanti, Michelle T.

Although business organizations consider the financial and strategic implications of "downsizing" (a euphemism for what used to be called "layoffs"), they often neglect to consider the communication and human resource implications. Not only does downsizing affect the operational aspects of the restructured company, but also the…

Counselling Remaining Employees in Redundancy Situations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vinten, Gerald; Lane, David A.

2002-01-01

Interviews with 50 managers in organizations that had experienced downsizing or restructuring elicited three themes: sense of loss, sense of realism, and sense of support. The experience changed their concept of organizational mission and required an organizational response. It was recommended that management of restructuring and layoff include…

Equal Employment + Equal Pay = Multiple Problems for Colleges and Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steinbach, Sheldon Elliot; Reback, Joyce E.

1974-01-01

Issues involved in government regulation of university employment practices are discussed: confidentiality of records, pregnancy as a disability, alleged discrimination in benefits, tests and other employment criteria, seniority and layoff, reverse discrimination, use of statistics for determination of discrimination, and the Equal Pay Act. (JT)

Media Matters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooper, Kenneth J.; Pyrillis, Rita; Rosario, Ruben; Stuart, Reginald; Zinngrabe, Elaine

2007-01-01

This article presents five vignettes, written by veteran journalists, that focus on the current and future state of journalism. Despite almost daily reports of media consolidation and newspaper layoffs, the journalists sound a cautionary but optimistic tone about the industry. They weigh in on everything from the threats to diversity to the future…

Precision and Patience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayer, Caroline E.

2010-01-01

In January 2009, every day brought another piece of discouraging economic news: Rising unemployment. New stock market lows. More layoffs. Retailer liquidations. Urgent company requests for government stimulus money. The recession has created a radical shift in traditional fundraising. The shift is due to a simple case of supply and demand. Faced…

Recessionary Layoffs in Museum Education: Survey Results and Implications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kley, Ron

2009-01-01

A recent survey of recession-driven museum staff reductions suggests the possible loss of tens of thousands of museum personnel nationwide and identifies educators as among those most severely impacted. Survey findings are summarized, and the implications for both affected personnel and downsized institutions are considered.

The Female-Male Differential in Unemployment Rates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niemi, Beth

1974-01-01

The male-female differential in unemployment is attributed to three major factors. They are frictional unemployment, cyclical layoff often connected with lack of specific training, and occupational and geographic immobility. Women receive less specific training then men; however, the net effect of this lack on female unemployment is quite small.…

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube--and Democracy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Samuels, Bob

2011-01-01

In fall 2009, this author participated in mass protests in California against tuition increases, furloughs, state budget cuts, and mass layoffs of schoolteachers, faculty members, and other public-sector workers. He states that what was so inspiring about these demonstrations was their formation of a new model of coalition politics. Taking the…

A Maritime Picture: Nova Scotia Scene Looked At.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bone, Janet

1983-01-01

Discussion of current funding problems experienced by public, school, university, and special libraries in Nova Scotia indicates that cutbacks are causing staff layoffs and loss of purchasing power. Small public libraries are particularly affected, but new graduate librarians find employment, and free-lance librarians are extending service beyond…

Safe and Secure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Mike

2010-01-01

The education headlines have been filled with grim news about facility closings, teacher layoffs and program cutbacks. When the economic climate is gloomy, few areas of schools and universities are spared. In areas outside the classroom, such as safety and security, the cuts may be larger and come more quickly. When money is scarce, education…

28 CFR 41.52 - General prohibitions against employment discrimination.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., termination, right of return from layoff, and rehiring; (3) Rates of pay or any other form of compensation and... relationship that has the effect of subjecting qualified handicapped applicants or employees to discrimination prohibited by this subpart. The relationships referred to in this paragraph include relationships with...

28 CFR 41.52 - General prohibitions against employment discrimination.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., termination, right of return from layoff, and rehiring; (3) Rates of pay or any other form of compensation and... relationship that has the effect of subjecting qualified handicapped applicants or employees to discrimination prohibited by this subpart. The relationships referred to in this paragraph include relationships with...

28 CFR 41.52 - General prohibitions against employment discrimination.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., termination, right of return from layoff, and rehiring; (3) Rates of pay or any other form of compensation and... relationship that has the effect of subjecting qualified handicapped applicants or employees to discrimination prohibited by this subpart. The relationships referred to in this paragraph include relationships with...

Education's Shot in the Arm

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Butler, Kevin

2009-01-01

The federal stimulus package provides badly needed aid to school districts, allowing them to avoid massive staff and teacher layoffs and injecting them with a healthy dose of funds for many programs ranging from technology to renovation work. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which President Barack Obama signed on Feb.17, provides…

Job-Sharing: Another Way to Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rich, Les

1978-01-01

A permanent part-time work force estimated at sixteen to seventeen million is one of the fastest-growing segments of the work population. The article discusses and presents some examples of job sharing--two persons handling one job--as a means of increasing employment, avoiding layoffs, and meeting individual needs. (MF)

Compression in the Superintendent Ranks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saron, Bradford G.; Birchbauer, Louis J.

2011-01-01

Sadly, the fiscal condition of school systems now not only is troublesome, but in some cases has surpassed all expectations for the worst-case scenario. Among the states, one common response is to drop funding for public education to inadequate levels, leading to permanent program cuts, school closures, staff layoffs, district dissolutions and…

Drastic Measures for Difficult Times

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galuszka, Peter

2008-01-01

This article discusses how colleges and universities are taking drastic measure for difficult times. Hit hard by the global financial crisis, colleges are cutting their budgets in ways that prompt fears about access and retention for minority students. Schools are considering layoffs, unpaid furloughs for faculty and staff, hiring freezes and…

Nondisparagement Clauses in Severance Agreements: A Capstone Contracts Exercise

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murphy, Tonia Hap

2017-01-01

Nondisparagement clauses are common in severance agreements. They are "boilerplate," "routine." They are "used across all industries, in companies of all sizes and with employees at any position within the organization, although they are more common with higher-ranking employees or when mass layoffs occur. Companies may be…

Should a Layoff Notice Send You to Graduate School?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

LeBlanc, Albert

1983-01-01

Laid-off music teachers should make sure their educational self-improvement is cost-effective. Some skills can be acquired without formal instruction. If graduate school is indicated, teachers should choose prestigious schools and should try to get scholarships or assistantships. Broader qualifications can also help employment potential. (CS)

Thriving through Recession: Higher Education in a down Economy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodman, Roger

2009-01-01

The constant flow of alarming economic and business news, rapidly declining endowments and potential disruption to the student-loan industry have all beaten down optimism about higher education's financial and strategic outlook. Universities large and small have announced budget cuts, layoffs, salary freezes, capital spending slowdowns and other…

The Income Losses of Displaced Workers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hijzen, Alexander; Upward, Richard; Wright, Peter W.

2010-01-01

We use a new, matched worker-firm dataset for the United Kingdom to estimate the income loss resulting from firm closure and mass layoffs. We track workers for up to nine years after the displacement event, and the availability of predisplacement characteristics allows us to implement difference-in-differences estimators using propensity score…

It's Not Just about the Money

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shieh, David

2009-01-01

As the economy sinks, dwindling state appropriations and plunging endowment values are forcing colleges to make significant budget cuts. Professors--from the tenured to the adjunct--are beginning to see teaching-load increases and travel restrictions, along with salary cuts and layoffs. At institutions taking austerity measures, those measures are…

Breaking Bad Habits: Navigating the Financial Crisis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Dennis; Wellman, Jane

2010-01-01

The "Great Recession" of 2009 has brought an unprecedented level of financial chaos to public higher education in America. Programs are being reduced, furloughs and layoffs are widespread, class sizes are increasing, sections are being cut, and students can't get into classes needed for graduation. Reports of budget cuts in public…

A University Joins the Community

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lester, Jessica Nina; Kronick, Bob; Benson, Mark

2012-01-01

The lack of opportunities for youth to engage in meaningful academic practices such as reading, writing, and speaking feeds the school-prison nexus. But budget cuts, teacher layoffs, and program depletions make providing a rigorous, well-rounded, 21st century education increasingly difficult. Yet is still possible to do, especially in a…

Restructuring Teacher Pay to Reward Excellence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Council on Teacher Quality, 2010

2010-01-01

When negotiating new teacher contracts, most districts, no doubt, are focusing discussions on averting wage freezes and massive layoffs. But prudent districts--those looking for long-term solutions to budget problems as well as those seeking to more fairly compensate the most effective teachers--are reconsidering the traditional salary schedule,…

IS Staffing during a Recession: Comparing Student and IS Recruiter Perceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pratt, Jean A.; Hauser, Karina; Ross, Steven C.

2010-01-01

The current economic situation in the United States has associated ramifications for IS employment. This study identifies IS recruiters' perceptions vis-a-vis IT budget cuts and layoffs at their organizations. Additionally, it identifies IS student perceptions vis-a-vis employment opportunities and academic preparation. Similar surveys were…

20 CFR 639.4 - Who must give notice?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Who must give notice? 639.4 Section 639.4 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WORKER ADJUSTMENT AND... or mass layoff is required to give notice to affected employees or their representative(s), the State...

20 CFR 639.2 - What does WARN require?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false What does WARN require? 639.2 Section 639.2 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WORKER ADJUSTMENT AND... closing or a mass layoff to give affected employees at least 60 days' notice of such an employment action...

Employment and Unemployment in 1974

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flaim, Paul O.; And Others

1975-01-01

Widespread layoffs in the closing months of the year caused a sharp rise in the jobless rate. Blue collar workers, women, and minorities were most severely affected. Slumps in retail sales, particularly auto sales, fewer construction starts, declining industrial orders, and effects of the coal miners' strike were contributing factors. (Author/MW)

Roadblocks to Reform? A Review of Union Contracts in Michigan Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spalding, Audrey

2014-01-01

This study focuses on Public Act 103 of 2011, which made teacher evaluation, layoff policies and teacher placement prohibited subjects of bargaining, among other things. After surveying 200 Michigan school district collective bargaining agreements, this study finds that as many as 60 percent of districts could have collective bargaining agreements…

Launch of STS-66 Space Shuttle Atlantis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

The Space Shuttle Atlantis returns to work after a refurbishing and a two-year layoff, as liftoff for NASA's STS-66 occurs at noon (EDT), November 3, 1994. A 35mm camera was used to record the image, which includes much of the base of the launch site as well as the launch itself.

Launch of STS-66 Space Shuttle Atlantis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

The Space Shuttle Atlantis returns to work after a refurbishing and a two-year layoff, as liftoff for NASA's STS-66 occurs at noon (EDT), November 3, 1994. A 70mm camera was used to record the image. Note the vegetation and the reflection of the launch in the water across from the launch pad.

A Correlative Study between Spirituality and Retention among Information Technology Workers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Douglas, Jonathan

2010-01-01

With the downturn in growth of the U.S. economy and significant layoffs in the IT industry in 2009, retaining information technology (IT) workers is increasingly important to businesses as IT workers carry broad responsibilities for the analysis, design, implementation, and maintenance of critical business systems. Turnover of IT workers causes a…

Business Industry Technical Assistance Center, Hazard Community College.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marrow, Alvin J.

The Business Industry and Technical Assistance Center (BITAC) was established in 1986 at Hazard Community College, in Kentucky, to serve as an information and technical assistance center for small business. As the local area began to face layoffs in the coal mining industry, however, the center extended its services in four principal areas:…

Laid Off. The Texas Response to Plant Closings and Layoffs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Texas Association of Private Industry Councils, Austin.

For the benefit of Texas Association of Private Industry Council (TAPIC) volunteers who oversee dislocated worker projects, a report examined the initial efforts of putting together a cost-effective and responsive system that can reemploy people. In addition to a review of the state's role in the management and administration of the Economic…

The Changing Workforce. Highlights of the National Study, No. 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galinsky, Ellen; And Others

This report presents results of a nationally representative longitudinal study of nearly 3,400 workers. The study investigated the work and personal/family lives of workers, particularly with respect to recent rapid changes in the economy, layoffs, and downsizing. The study was conducted through a series of hour-long phone interviews. The study…

Increasing Work Opportunities for Low-Income Workers through TANF and Economic Development Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friedman, Pamela

2002-01-01

The numerous layoffs of low-income workers that occurred when the nation's economy slowed in 2001 have created numerous challenges for local Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs. By increasing collaboration between community economic development and workforce development efforts to serve low-income residents, states and…

Occupational Profiles in the European Steel Industry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franz, Hans-Werner; And Others

The steel industry in Europe has faced great changes, with resulting layoffs and restructuring. Now that the most basic changes seem to be over, it has become evident that the remaining steel industry requires more highly trained workers than was the case previously. Although steel maintenance employees were always highly skilled, steel production…

20 CFR 639.10 - When may notice be extended?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false When may notice be extended? 639.10 Section... ADJUSTMENT AND RETRAINING NOTIFICATION § 639.10 When may notice be extended? Additional notice is required when the date or schedule of dates of a planned plant closing or mass layoff is extended beyond the...

20 CFR 639.10 - When may notice be extended?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false When may notice be extended? 639.10 Section... ADJUSTMENT AND RETRAINING NOTIFICATION § 639.10 When may notice be extended? Additional notice is required when the date or schedule of dates of a planned plant closing or mass layoff is extended beyond the...

20 CFR 639.10 - When may notice be extended?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false When may notice be extended? 639.10 Section... ADJUSTMENT AND RETRAINING NOTIFICATION § 639.10 When may notice be extended? Additional notice is required when the date or schedule of dates of a planned plant closing or mass layoff is extended beyond the...

20 CFR 639.10 - When may notice be extended?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false When may notice be extended? 639.10 Section... ADJUSTMENT AND RETRAINING NOTIFICATION § 639.10 When may notice be extended? Additional notice is required when the date or schedule of dates of a planned plant closing or mass layoff is extended beyond the...

20 CFR 639.10 - When may notice be extended?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false When may notice be extended? 639.10 Section... ADJUSTMENT AND RETRAINING NOTIFICATION § 639.10 When may notice be extended? Additional notice is required when the date or schedule of dates of a planned plant closing or mass layoff is extended beyond the...

Rebuilding patient trust. Jump in.

PubMed

Larson, L

2000-06-01

Many people think of hospitals more as businesses than as care providers, and they are wary. As the best connection to their communities, trustees can go a long way to restoring the trust that's gotten lost among the mergers, employee layoffs, and insurance problems. But first, they have to seek community feedback and trust what they hear.

States Hurt as Stimulus Loses Steam

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavanagh, Sean; Hollingsworth, Heather

2011-01-01

States are finally arriving at the "funding cliff"--the point where about $100 billion in federal economic-stimulus aid for education runs out. The loss seems certain to compound severe budget woes and could mean thousands of school layoffs and the elimination of popular programs and services in districts across the country. The bulk of…

Comparisons of Performance and Job Insecurity in Union and Nonunion Sites of a Manufacturing Company

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Filipkowski, Monica; Johnson, C. Merle

2008-01-01

Layoffs and employment changes caused by current economic conditions have significant effects on employee work behavior and emotions as well as organizational outcomes. We examined the relationships between measures of job insecurity, organizational commitment, turnover, absenteeism, and worker performance within a manufacturer in Chapter 11…

Occupy and Escalate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bousquet, Marc

2010-01-01

The academic year began with a bang last fall at the University of California (UC). A series of bangs, actually, featuring a united front of students, staff, and faculty in a coordinated series of walkouts and strikes across the system's ten campuses. The target of their outrage was a series of draconian layoffs, wage cuts, and drastic tuition…

Retraining Displaced Workers--Barriers and Facilitators.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wolansky, William D.

Although plant closings and layoffs have been happening for a long time, today's recessions, major changes in the structure of the economy, and a tight job market have combined to make plant closings a more serious problem. Workers are faced with unemployment from both traditional labor-displacing changes, such as the increasing use of robotics;…

Will Seniority-Based Layoffs Undermine School Improvement Efforts in Washington State?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lake, Robin; DeArmond, Michael; Sepe, Cristina

2011-01-01

A new analysis finds that policies known as "last in, first out" may disproportionately affect schools receiving federal School Improvement Grants (SIGs). A centerpiece of U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's school reform agenda, SIG funds are intended to transform or turn around chronically failing schools. Analyzing Washington…

A New Tradition To Fit the Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Darnell, D. Roe; Rosenthal, Donna McCrohan

2001-01-01

Discusses Cerro Coso Community College in Ridgecrest (California), where 80-85 of all local jobs are with one employer, the China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS). States that massive layoffs at NAWS inspired creative ways of rethinking the community college model at Cerro Coso, such as creating the nation's first computer graphics imagery…

26 CFR 54.4980B-4 - Qualifying events.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... there is a decrease in the hours that a covered employee is required to work or actually works, but only... employment. For example, an absence from work due to disability, a temporary layoff, or any other reason..., such as the preceding month or quarter, and an employee covered under the plan fails to work the...

Colleges Protect Workers and Cut Elsewhere

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blumenstyk, Goldie

2009-01-01

Most colleges have steered through the first jolts of the recession without resorting to layoffs, cutting employee benefits, or imposing across-the-board freezes on hiring. But the economic pain is afflicting campuses in many other ways, according to the findings from a new survey of chief business officers conducted last month by "The Chronicle"…

Layoffs Introduce a College Town to Uncertainty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fischer, Karin

2009-01-01

For the first time in decades, the economic headlines are hitting Hanover residents where they live. In February, Dartmouth College, a member of the Ivy League and the region's second-largest employer, announced it was laying off 60 workers, all in nonfaculty positions, and eliminating another 90 jobs through early retirements and attrition, part…

Depressive symptoms as a cause and effect of job loss in men and women: evidence in the context of organisational downsizing from the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health.

PubMed

Andreeva, Elena; Magnusson Hanson, Linda L; Westerlund, Hugo; Theorell, Töres; Brenner, M Harvey

2015-10-12

Few studies have examined depression as both a cause and effect of unemployment, but no prior work investigated these relationships in the context of organisational downsizing. We explored whether the exposure to downsizing is associated with subsequent depression (social causation), and whether pre-existing depression increases the risk of being laid off when organisations downsize (health selection). Two successive waves of the nationally representative Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health represented the baseline (2008) and follow-up (2010) of this study. Analyses included 196 workers who lost their jobs through downsizing, 1462 layoff survivors remaining in downsized organisations and 1845 employees of non-downsized workplaces. The main outcomes were: (1) Depressive symptoms at follow-up, assessed with a brief subscale from the Symptom Checklist 90, categorised by severity levels ("major depression", "less severe symptoms" and "no depression") and analysed in relation to earlier downsizing exposure; (2) Job loss in persons with downsizing in relation to earlier depressive symptoms. The associations were assessed by means of multinomial logistic regression. Job loss consistently predicted subsequent major depression among men and women, with a somewhat greater effect size in men. Surviving a layoff was significantly associated with subsequent major depression in women but not in men. Women with major depression have increased risks of exclusion from employment when organisations downsize, whereas job loss in men was not significantly influenced by their health. The evidence from this study suggests that the relative importance of social causation and health selection varies by gender in the context of organisational downsizing. Strategies for handling depression among employees should be sensitive to gender-specific risks during layoffs. Policies preventing social exclusion can be important for female workers at higher risk of depression.

A Closer Look: Teacher Evaluations and Reduction-in-Force Policies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomsen, Jennifer

2014-01-01

An increasing number of states are requiring teacher performance, as measured by evaluations, be considered when districts are conducting layoffs or reductions in force, according to a 50-state policy review by the Education Commission of the States (ECS). ECS reviewed reduction-in-force policies in 2012 and recently created an online database,…

Teacher Performance Plays Growing Role in Employment Decisions. Teacher Tenure: Trends in State Laws

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomsen, Jennifer

2014-01-01

An increasing number of states are mandating teacher performance be considered in educator employment decisions, including awarding tenure and layoffs, according to a 50-state policy review of teacher tenure laws. Tenure laws have historically granted job protections based on years of employment. The Education Commission of the States (ECS)…

Your District's Got Talent: Technology Tools to Help Keep Good Employees

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Turk-Peterson, Cheryl

2009-01-01

Even in these extraordinary times of state budget shortfalls, furlough programs, and layoffs, school districts must still fill positions and compete for top talent among Generation X (those born between 1965 and 1980) and Generation Y (those born in 1981 or later). Every day, school district leaders are challenged to cultivate, assess, and retain…

When Technology Tools Trump Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Quillen, Ian

2012-01-01

Of all the recent budget cuts made by the Eagle County, Colorado, school district--the loss of 89 staff jobs through attrition and layoffs, a 1.5 percent across-the-board pay cut, and the introduction of three furlough days--none sparked as much anger or faced the same scrutiny as the decision to cut three foreign-language teaching positions and…

29 CFR 2530.200b-2 - Hour of service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

...), layoff, jury duty, military duty or leave of absence. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, (i) No more...). (C) Employee C spent 3 weeks on a paid vacation. C's salary is established at an annual rate but is... spent 2 weeks on vacation, for which he was paid $150. Although D has no regular work schedule, the $150...

29 CFR 2530.200b-2 - Hour of service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

...), layoff, jury duty, military duty or leave of absence. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, (i) No more...). (C) Employee C spent 3 weeks on a paid vacation. C's salary is established at an annual rate but is... spent 2 weeks on vacation, for which he was paid $150. Although D has no regular work schedule, the $150...

29 CFR 2530.200b-2 - Hour of service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

...), layoff, jury duty, military duty or leave of absence. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, (i) No more...). (C) Employee C spent 3 weeks on a paid vacation. C's salary is established at an annual rate but is... spent 2 weeks on vacation, for which he was paid $150. Although D has no regular work schedule, the $150...

Higher Education in Times of Financial Distress: The Minnesota Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Severns, Roger

2012-01-01

Like many states, Minnesota has incurred large budget deficits during the past two years. Those deficits have, in turn, led to changes in a number of areas of state government, particularly higher education. Faculty have incurred pay freezes and layoffs, programs have closed, and tuition increased. Campuses within the MnSCU system have been…

After the Factories: Changing Employment Patterns in the Rural South.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosenfeld, Stuart A.; And Others

Until recently, the South's economic growth was based on its ability to attract manufacturing jobs. Recent plant closings and layoffs were considered as cyclical effects of a recession, but recovery has not occurred and rural unemployment remains high. In the 1970s, the South was the only region to experience slower population growth in rural…

The Role of Negotiations in the Equation "Declining School Enrollment=Layoffs": A Management Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spenla, William A.; And Others

1978-01-01

Discusses economic and legal issues related to declining public school enrollments and pressures for "reduction in force" (RIF) of teachers. Reviews developments involving RIF cases in New Jersey and Yonkers, New York. Recommends school boards not agree to contracts that limit their ability to lay off personnel for economic reasons. (JG)

20 CFR 639.9 - When may notice be given less than 60 days in advance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... that also may affect demand for its products or services. (c) The “natural disaster” exception in... are natural disasters under this provision. (2) To qualify for this exception, an employer must be able to demonstrate that its plant closing or mass layoff is a direct result of a natural disaster. (3...

20 CFR 639.9 - When may notice be given less than 60 days in advance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... that also may affect demand for its products or services. (c) The “natural disaster” exception in... are natural disasters under this provision. (2) To qualify for this exception, an employer must be able to demonstrate that its plant closing or mass layoff is a direct result of a natural disaster. (3...

20 CFR 639.9 - When may notice be given less than 60 days in advance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... that also may affect demand for its products or services. (c) The “natural disaster” exception in... are natural disasters under this provision. (2) To qualify for this exception, an employer must be able to demonstrate that its plant closing or mass layoff is a direct result of a natural disaster. (3...

20 CFR 639.9 - When may notice be given less than 60 days in advance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... that also may affect demand for its products or services. (c) The “natural disaster” exception in... are natural disasters under this provision. (2) To qualify for this exception, an employer must be able to demonstrate that its plant closing or mass layoff is a direct result of a natural disaster. (3...

Downsizing and the Impact of Job Counseling and Retraining on Effective Employee Responses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tzafrir, Shay S.; Mano-Negrin, Rita; Harel, Gedalihau H.; Rom-Nagy, Daphna

2006-01-01

Purpose: Downsizing is a very pervasive organizational process. At these critical junctures many organizations do little to prepare their employees for a mass layoff. The main purpose of this study is to examine how the incorporation of job counseling and professional retraining programs during a period of downsizing affected the responses of both…

Managing the Teacher Workforce: The Consequences of "Last in, First out" Personnel Policies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldhaber, Dan; Theobald, Roddy

2011-01-01

Tough economic times mean tight school district budgets, possibly for years to come. Education is a labor-intensive industry, and because most districts devote well over half of all spending to teacher compensation, budget cuts have already led to the most substantial teacher layoffs in recent memory. Although the 2010 federal Education Jobs and…

29 CFR 825.216 - Limitations on an employee's right to reinstatement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... slated for lay-off when the employee's original position is not would not meet the requirements of an equivalent position. (2) If a shift has been eliminated, or overtime has been decreased, an employee would..., if a position on, for example, a night shift has been filled by another employee, the employee is...

General and Specific Human Capital: Policy Implications of Private Sector Training on China's Unemployment Problems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Xu, Zeyu

Lifelong learning and skill flexibility are especially important for workers in China, where structural economic adjustment has generated 22 million layoffs from state-owned enterprises since 1997. Skills that were in huge demand in previous years, such as accounting, international trade, and language translation, are now facing serious oversupply…

Changing Faces: Native Journalists Break through Barriers in New Media

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Avila Hernandez, Juan A.

2008-01-01

According to a 2008 "newsroom census" by the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE), the total number of full-time journalists at daily newspapers decreased by 4.4% last year--about 2,400 journalists left daily reporting jobs because of buyouts or layoffs. Despite this trend, the percentage of minority journalists increased slightly since…

Academics Leave Your Ivory Tower: Form Communities of Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buckley, Sheryl; Du Toit, Adeline

2010-01-01

Institutions of higher education (HE), public and private, are moving through a crisis period of tapped-out states, funding cuts, tuition increases and layoffs. It makes good sense to rise to meet these new realities with new ways of doing things, and the places that succeed will be the ones that do. A holistic approach is necessary whereby…

26 CFR 1.401-1 - Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... due to disability and may also provide for the payment of incidental death benefits through insurance... attainment of a stated age, or upon the prior occurrence of some event such as layoff, illness, disability... same requirements as a profit-sharing plan. (iv) As to inclusion of full-time life insurance salesmen...

Commercial Newspapers May Be Struggling, but Student Ones Are Humming along

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keller, Josh

2008-01-01

It's all doom and gloom in commercial newspapers these days: buyouts, layoffs, and fleeing advertisers. However, most student newspapers seem to be doing just fine. Student publications are not entirely immune to the changes in readership and advertising spending that have severely cut into the profits of much of the newspaper industry. However,…

Modesty Can Be a Virtue for Endowments in Hard Times

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Masterson, Kathryn

2008-01-01

While the wealthiest institutions are making headlines with announcements of hiring freezes or possible layoffs to cope with endowment losses in the billions of dollars, colleges of more modest means, like Widener University, are more dependent on tuition to pay the bills. They may actually find themselves in a less nerve-racking position as the…

School Staffs Grew in New York Despite Falling Enrollment. Research Bulletin, No. 4

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McMahon, E.J.

2010-01-01

New York State educators are warning that proposed cuts in state aid to public schools next year could force more than 14,000 teacher layoffs. Officials of the state's largest teachers' union claim aid cuts will "devastate" education, leading to a "drastic" reduction of programs and "much larger class sizes." But…

Tenured Faculty Members Are Spared in Latest Round of Belt Tightening.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mooney, Carolyn J.

1993-01-01

Although the 1980s period of belt-tightening in higher education meant layoff of many tenured professors, financially troubled colleges are trimming part-time and nontenured faculty jobs and offering encouraging early retirement in the current period of retrenchment. However, the proportion of tenured faculty has shrunk as the overall size of the…

Trade Remedies: A Primer

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-05-01

Turkmenistan Turkey Trinidad Tajikistan Pakistan Philippines Malaysia Lithuania Latvia Estonia Ecuador Czechoslovakia Bangladesh Poland Norway Moldova Iran...while continuing domestic production of more high-end items. Many furniture retailers reportedly became furious with furniture industry petitioners...because they feared that the higher prices caused by possible AD duties would depress sales and result in the layoffs of retail employees. Furniture

Teacher Layoffs: Rethinking "Last-Hired, First-Fired" Policies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Council on Teacher Quality, 2010

2010-01-01

In the past year, cash-strapped districts have been handing out pink slips by the hundreds, and some, by the thousands. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that nearly 60,000 teachers were laid off in 2009. State budget gaps and deficit projections, with federal stimulus funding already spent, suggest more of the same for 2010. Some observers…

26 CFR 44.4401-2 - Person liable for tax.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... event or a contest is liable for the tax on any such wager accepted by him. Every person who operates a wagering pool or lottery conducted for profit is liable for the tax with respect to any wager or... profit, he shall, notwithstanding such lay-off, be liable for the tax on the wagers or contributions...

The Effect of Content Knowledge on Students' Perceptions of Instructors' Teaching Effectiveness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hancock, Sean C.

2013-01-01

In response to the continued reduction in higher education funding at the state and federal levels, educational administrators at both public and private institutions have had to reduce the number of course offerings, resulting in layoffs of those faculty members who do not meet regulated degree requirements for enough courses to retain their…

13 Reasons Colleges Are in This Mess

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chronicle of Higher Education, 2009

2009-01-01

In some ways, higher education has been a victim of the recession--but not a defenseless victim. Smart moves clearly helped some colleges and universities avoid the worst of the downturn. Mistakes have left many others in the lurch. The downward spiral has brought layoffs, budget cuts, and anxiety to many campuses. With the cuts have come protests…

Effects of Worksite Closure on Children's Academic and Psychological Adjustment. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hawaii Univ., Manoa. Center on the Family.

This project examined children's academic performance and psychological well-being in rural communities affected by mass layoffs. In one study (Study A), school level data were compared from similar communities where worksite closing had or had not occurred. Study B explored risk and resiliency processes in a sample of 55 rural Asian Pacific…

Up, up, and Away: How a Group of Researchers Is Reinventing School Libraries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whelan, Debra Lau

2010-01-01

These days it seems like school librarians are under attack, if not already an endangered species. After eight years of the No Child Left Behind Act--which, paradoxically, chipped away at many library positions--recent state and local budget shortfalls have led to rounds and rounds of layoffs for school librarians. While things are tough in the…

The Japanese Labor Market in a Comparative Perspective with the United States. A Transaction-Cost Interpretation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hashimoto, Masanori

A comparison is made of some of the notable features of the Japanese and U.S. labor markets. In Japan, as compared to the United States, for example, levels of employment tenure are higher, employer-employee attachment stronger, earnings-tenure profiles more steeply sloped, layoffs and dismissals much less frequent, and joint consultation and…

20 CFR 671.140 - What are the allowable activities and what dislocated workers may be served under national...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... dislocated workers may be served under national emergency grants? 671.140 Section 671.140 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR NATIONAL EMERGENCY GRANTS FOR DISLOCATED WORKERS... grant if the worker is enrolled in training by the end of the 16th week following layoff; and (3) Under...

Madisonville Community College: Training Small Manufacturers To Be Competitive in the Global Economy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Regional Technology Strategies, Inc., Carrboro, NC.

Madisonville Community College (MCC) is in Madisonville, Kentucky, a small town with a strong coal industry presence. Mine closings and layoffs in the 1980s prompted the region to reorient itself toward light industry and manufacturing, but the recession of the early 1990s and globalization led to closings of several of the largest employers. In…

Does Shortening the School Week Impact Student Performance? Evidence from the Four-Day School Week

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, D. Mark; Walker, Mary Beth

2015-01-01

School districts use a variety of policies to close budget gaps and stave off teacher layoffs and furloughs. More schools are implementing four-day school weeks to reduce overhead and transportation costs. The four-day week requires substantial schedule changes as schools must increase the length of their school day to meet minimum instructional…

Using the McDaniels Career Transitions Considerations (1991) (Modified) Form with Potential Temporary Employees.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Preston, Debra S.

With the many layoffs and downsizing of companies during the 1990s, many displaced workers have turned to temporary employment to earn a living while looking for permanent employment. Others have adopted "temping" as a more long-term work style. Although it may not be possible to predict whether an individual will find satisfaction or…

Assessing the Determinants and Implications of Teacher Layoffs. Working Paper 55

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldhaber, Dan; Theobald, Roddy

2010-01-01

Over 2000 teachers in the state of Washington received reduction-in-force (RIF) notices in the past two years. The authors link data on these RIF notices to a unique dataset that includes student, teacher, school, and district variables to determine the factors that predict the likelihood of a teacher receiving a RIF notice. They find a teacher's…

20 CFR 639.9 - When may notice be given less than 60 days in advance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... or business source would not choose to do business with a troubled company or with a company whose... “faltering company”, applies to plant closings but not to mass layoffs and should be narrowly construed. To... sought would have enabled the employer to keep the facility, operating unit, or site open for a...

20 CFR 671.110 - What are major economic dislocations or other events which may qualify for a national emergency...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... single site of employment; (c) Closures and realignments of military installations; (d) Multiple layoffs... individuals in a community; (e) Emergencies or natural disasters, as defined in paragraphs (1) and (2) respectively, of section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C...

Plant Closings. Limited Advance Notice and Assistance Provided Dislocated Workers. Report to Congressional Committees.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

General Accounting Office, Washington, DC. Div. of Human Resources.

This is the final report in a series issued to assist Congress in assessing the problems of worker dislocation and employer practices related to advance notice and assistance provided to workers. A national survey of 2,600 business establishments was conducted to determine: (1) the extent of business closures and permanent layoffs between January…

Coping with the Stress of Potential Lay-Off and Worksite Re-Organization: A Test of the Buffering Hypothesis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weinberg, Richard B.

Two major classes of environmental stressors have been examined in life stress research: major life events and minor everyday hassles. To compare these two classes of stressors along with two stressful life events (threatened job loss and reorganization of the work setting), and to investigate the buffering effect of coping responses on…

Making Change Happen: What Programs Can Do to Turn Things Around

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neugebauer, Roger

2009-01-01

In this article, the author shares some of the ideas from 10 programs that make change happen in their community. Among others, the Sunshine House in Greenwood, South Carolina has implemented a program in selected markets that they called "Families First." This program is geared for families who have experienced a lay-off or reduction in work…

Help Wanted: An Analysis of the Teacher Pipeline in Metro Milwaukee. The Third Report in the Metro Milwaukee Educator Series

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeado, Joe

2016-01-01

Last August, a "New York Times" headline proclaimed "Teacher Shortages Spur a Nationwide Hiring Scramble." The article detailed how school districts across the country "have gone from handing out pink slips to scrambling to hire teachers…a result of the layoffs of the recession years combined with an improving economy in…

Teacher Layoffs, Teacher Quality and Student Achievement: The Implementation and Consequences of a Discretionary Reduction-in-Force Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kraft, Matthew A.

2013-01-01

Research has shown that "last hired, first fired" policies maximize the number of teachers subject to reductions in force by eliminating those teachers that are lowest on the pay scale first. Until now, advocates of effectiveness-based reduction-in-force (RIF) policies could only point to simulated policy exercises as evidence of the…

Arizona State's Origins Project Starts with a Big Bang

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mangan, Katherine

2009-01-01

For 12 hours at Arizona State University, a sold-out crowd of 3,000 people gave a group of famous scientists a pop-star welcome, cheering their remarks and lining up for autographs after a day full of discussion about black holes, string theory, and evolutionary biology. At a time when program cuts and faculty layoffs dominate the headlines of…

Case Study of East Mississippi Community College's Plan to Assist the Sara Lee Corporation Employees Due to Plant Closing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Bruce J.

2012-01-01

The aim or purpose of this study was to statistically determine whether there were significant differences in obtaining employment and wages after training provided by East Mississippi Community College (EMCC). The training was specifically provided to employees of Sara Lee Corporation, LLC, after the massive layoff when the company closed its…

The Role of 21st Century Skills in Two Rural Regional Areas of Public Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fox, Sean B.; McDermott, Carrie L.

2015-01-01

Budgetary shortfalls and excessive layoffs have left public schools with a deficiency of professional innovation as well as modern theory and practice. It is imperative that educators identify the exemplary school systems that are engaging students and adults in 21st century education, and broadcast those patterns of success to schools in need of…

Realigning Resources for District Transformation: Using American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funds to Advance a Strategic Education Reform Agenda

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Education Resource Strategies, 2009

2009-01-01

School districts and states have begun to receive education funds doled out from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or ARRA, and many have a simple plan for the money--prevent teacher layoffs and restore current programs that were heading for the chopping block. This plan aligns with the legislation's intent to address the acute financial…

A LARGE LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY AUTOMATES. WORKFORCE IMPLICATIONS OF COMPUTER CONVERSION. AUTOMATION PROGRAM REPORT, NUMBER 3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

CIBARICH, AUGUST L.; AND OTHERS

THIS WAS ONE OF 20 DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS INITIATED IN 11 STATES IN 1961-63 TO GAIN EXPERIENCE WITH LABOR MARKET PROBLEMS ARISING FROM CHANGING TECHNOLOGY AND MASS LAYOFFS. THE FUNDAMENTAL AIM WAS TO COMBINE ACTION AND RESEARCH TO DEMONSTRATE WHAT THE STATE EMPLOYMENT SERVICE COULD DO IN AREAS WHERE THE LABOR MARKET WAS RAPIDLY CHANGING.…

Managing the Teacher Workforce in Austere Times: The Determinants and Implications of Teacher Layoffs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldhaber, Dan; Theobald, Roddy

2013-01-01

Over 2,000 teachers in the state of Washington received reduction in force (RIF) notices across the 2008-09 and 2009-10 school years. We link data on these RIF notices to an administrative data set that includes student, teacher, school, and district variables to determine the factors that predict the likelihood of a teacher receiving a RIF…

Strained Schools Face Bleak Future: Districts Foresee Budget Cuts, Teacher Layoffs, and a Slowing of Education Reform Efforts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kober, Nancy; Rentner, Diane Stark

2011-01-01

Many school districts had to cope with shrinking budgets this past school year, but the effects of these cuts were cushioned to some extent by the availability of federal economic stimulus money. In 2009 and 2010, school districts received about $80 billion from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). These funds were intended…

Plant Closings and Layoffs: Problems Facing Urban and Rural Communities. Part I. Preventing a Plant Closing. Part II. Reducing Trauma for Displaced Workers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Langerman, Philip D.; And Others

This handbook reviews displaced worker and community experiences to identify traumatic areas of concern and, thereby, to propose strategies for other communities should they face similar crises. Part 1 focuses on preventing a plant closing. Indications of plant closure are discussed as well as a pre-closure intervention model to reduce…

Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (76th, Kansas City, Missouri, August 11-14, 1993). Part IV: Television.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.

The Television section of this collection of conference presentations contains the following eight papers: "Paying the Anchor in Local Television News: A Comparative Study of Priorities between General Managers and News Directors" (Craig Allen); "The 'Cutting Edge' in Local Television News: Revisiting Layoffs, Staff Reductions, and…

News of the Year. LJ News Report: Victories Muted by Money Worries; The Year in K-12 Libraries: School Librarians Redefine Themselves; Publishing in 2002: Few Trends Emerge from a Year of Ups and Downs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Minkel, Walter; Milliot, Jim

2003-01-01

Includes three articles: one reviews top stories from "Library Journal" regarding budget problems, salaries and recruitment, privacy, legal issues, virtual reference, electronic books, distance education, special libraries, and scholarly innovation; one discusses school library issues, including layoffs, Internet concerns, and…

Early Career Survival: Many Find It Harder to Enter the Profession than It Sounds in the Recruitment Literature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodgers, Lala

2004-01-01

Many find it harder to enter the profession than it sounds in the recruitment literature. This article outlines how one librarian's job searching strategies after she experienced a layoff from her dream job due to budget cuts, can help others gain, or regain, a foothold in the profession. The author of this article offers many suggestions for…

Jobs and the environment: An overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goodstein, Eban

1996-05-01

This paper provides an overview of economic research on the relationship between environmental protection and employment. The paper addresses, first, the impact of existing regulation on overall employment rates, shutdowns and layoffs, and regulation-induced capital flight from developed countries. Second, the paper provides a framework for evaluating claims that, over the longer run, environmental protection measures will boost overall employment and provide the foundation for a robust, sustainable economy.

Analyzing the Efficacy of Early Retirement Incentives in the Private Sector

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-12-01

for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302, and to the Office of Management and Budget...programs and firm performance, Academy of Management Journal , 39, 970–984 44 Deloitte Development. (2009). Proactive private companies. Taking... Journal of Management & Organization, 13(2), 145–159. Gandolfi, F. (2008). HR strategies that can take the sting out of downsizing-related Layoffs

Transition management as an intervention for survivor syndrome.

PubMed

Rogers, K A

2000-01-01

In today's health care environment of merged organizations, downsizing and restructuring, employees can be experiencing a debilitating syndrome called "layoff survivor syndrome." This syndrome can have a crippling effect on workers and organizations as employees struggle to adapt to the changed working environment. This article represents my self-reflection as a nursing unit manager who personally experienced survivor sickness and witnessed its impact on the unit staff that I was leading at the time. The work of Noer (1993) is explored to clarify the syndrome and describe how the nursing staff and I manifested the syndrome. The writings of Bridges (1991), Brockner (1992) and Noer (1993) provide timely and relevant insights into managing the impact of layoffs and downsizing on those left behind to carry on. Noer (1993) sees the adaptation to the change as the ability to make the psychological shift from the old business paradigm that perpetuated codependency to the new business paradigm of fostering empowered employees. Bridges (1991) takes us a step further in making this psychological shift to adapt to the new work environment by providing a three phase process he calls transitions. The works of these three authors hold an important message for organizations and employees working in environments that abound with constant change.

Managing the Teacher Workforce in Austere Times: The Determinants and Implications of Teacher Layoffs. CEDR Working Paper No. 2011-1.3

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldhaber, Dan; Theobald, Roddy

2011-01-01

Over 2,000 teachers in the state of Washington received reduction-in-force (RIF) notices across the 2008-09 and 2009-10 school years. We link data on these RIF notices to an administrative dataset that includes student, teacher, school, and district variables to determine the factors that predict the likelihood of a teacher receiving a RIF notice.…

Latin America Report, No. 2687

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-06-06

Jamaica Action Banana Company in Debt to Government for $118 Million (THE DAILY GLEANER, 9 May 83) 96 Reynolds Layoffs Cause Stir; Bauxite...8217/’-■ This he"^ said is in keeping with the ex-j peeled rise in production levels in accordance with the aims of the...CSO: 3298/590 95 COUNTRY SECTION JAMAICA BANANA COMPANY IN DEBT TO GOVERNMENT FOR $118 MILLION Kingston THE DAILY GLEANER in English 9 May 83 p

Doing the math. Groups say the debt-ceiling law's $11.1 billion hit to Medicare would lead to mass layoffs in healthcare.

PubMed

Zigmond, Jessica; Daly, Rich

2012-09-17

As Washington wrestles with looming mandatory cuts forced by a deficit agreement, the AMA, AHA and ANA are warning of massive job cuts. "If I've got a choice of maintaining these beneficial programs or contract them for my core mission, you're going to choose your core mission. And that will cost the community more in terms of health and of dollars," says Rich Morrison, of Adventist Health System.

Dislocated Workers. Trade Adjustment Assistance Program Flawed. Statement of Linda G. Morra, Director of Education and Employment Issues, Human Resources Division. Testimony before the Subcommittee on Employment, Housing and Aviation, Committee on Government Operations, House of Representatives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

General Accounting Office, Washington, DC. Div. of Human Resources.

The Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program is designed to help the more than 1 million workers per year who lose their jobs because of permanent layoffs or plant closures, due in part because of imports. Studies show, however, that the TAA program fails to meet the seven goals of a successful reemployment assistance program: (1) TAA benefits…

Designing Military Pay. Contributions and Implications of the Economics Literature

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-01-01

34Time, Salary, and Incentive Payoffs in Labor Contracts," Journal of Labor Economics , VoL 9, No. 1, 1991, pp. 25-44. Foulkes, Fred K., Personnel...Edward Lazear, "The Excess Sensitivity of Layoffs and Quits to Demand," Journal of Labor Economics , VoL 2, No. 2,1984, pp. 233-257. Hashimoto, Masanori...34 Research in Labor Economics , VoL 9, Ronald Ehrenberg, ed., Ithaca, New York: JAI Press, Cornell University, 1988, pp. 225-256. Mellow, Wesley, "Employer Size

Supplemental bill saves staff lay-offs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gwynne, Peter

2008-08-01

Six months of lobbying brought some success for the US physics community with the 186bn "supplemental" spending bill signed by President George Bush at the end of June. The bill, which was devoted mainly to financing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, includes 338m of extra funding for research and development. NASA, the National Science Foundation and the Office of Science of the Department of Energy (DOE) were among the beneficiaries, receiving 62.5m apiece for the current financial year, which ends on 30 September.

The impact of the 2008 financial crisis on psychological work stress among financial workers and lawyers.

PubMed

Tsai, Feng-Jen; Chan, Chang-Chuan

2011-04-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the financial crisis on psychological work stress among financial workers and lawyers. The Chinese versions of Karasek's job content questionnaire (C-JCQ) and Siegrist's ERI questionnaire (C-ERI) were used to measure work stress, and the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (C-CBI) questionnaire was used to measure personal and work-related burnout for 38 financial workers and 97 lawyers before and after the financial crisis in 2008. A paired t test was used to compare changes in work stress and burnout. A logistic regression was performed to determine the association between psychosocial work stress and burnout. After the financial crisis, financial workers reported significantly higher stress from fear of layoffs, increased experiences of undesirable changes and more fear of making mistakes during work. On the contrary, lawyers reported significantly higher scores of reward, fewer psychological demands and less exhaustion. In addition to high psychological demand and a high effort-reward ratio, high effort, over-commitment and stress of layoffs also contributed to personal and work-related burnout after the financial crisis. After the financial crisis, lawyers' personal burnout decreased with the increase of reward, and their work-related burnout decreased with the decrease in psychological demand. The financial crisis has an unequal psychological impact on financial workers and lawyers. Financial workers' psychosocial work stress and burnout were aggravated, while lawyers' psychosocial work stress and burnout were alleviated.

Employee age and reactions to downsizing.

PubMed

Lahner, Jessica M; Hayslip, Bert; McKelvy, Tara N; Caballero, Daniela M

2014-01-01

The present study explored the career development concerns among employees varying by age who had worked for organizations that either had or had not engaged in downsizing within a 1-year timeframe. The sample consisted of 72 layoff survivors and 92 non-survivors (employees whose organizations had not downsized). Each completed an online survey assessing career concerns framed in the context of Super's Life Span Life Space theory of career development, as well as measures assessing perceptions of loss, job insecurity, distress, social support, loss history, religiosity, and job satisfaction. Younger employees reported more job dissatisfaction, as did survivors, and younger survivors reported more such dissatisfaction relative to older survivors, and saw the downsizing as less equitable than did older survivors. Among non-survivors, age effects were minimal. Younger employees reported more concerns about Crystallization, Specification, Implementation, Innovation, Stabilizing, Consolidating, Advancing, and Updating, as did survivors. For Crystallization, and to a lesser extent for Innovation, younger survivors reported more such concerns than did older survivors, while among non-survivors, these differences were minimal. A similar age by survivorship pattern was found for psychophysical health, career-recycling tendencies, and for concerns at Super's career stages/maxicycles of Exploration, Establishment, and Maintenance. These findings suggest that young survivors appear to be less vocationally adaptable, more vocationally and personally vulnerable to downsizing, and more impacted in seeing downsizing as unfair, perhaps due to unrealistic career trajectory expectations. In contrast, older employees, perhaps due to increased job and/or layoff experience or the perception that downsizing was handled more equitably via greater loyalty to the organization, appear to be more resilient in these respects.

From DRGs to deregulation: New Jersey takes the road less traveled.

PubMed

Berliner, H S; Delgado, S

1993-01-01

Following a 1992 court ruling that declared New Jersey's system of financing uncompensated care unconstitutional, the state radically changed its 12-year-old hospital payment system that pioneered the use of diagnostic-related groups (DRGs). In its place, New Jersey lawmakers approved a package of reforms that lets hospitals set their own charges and collect bad debts, uses the state's unemployment insurance trust fund to pay for charity care, and reforms the individual and small group insurance markets. Immediate results of the law include new subsidies for inner-city hospitals, lower bond ratings, and hospital layoffs.

Organizational Downsizing and Depressive Symptoms in the European Recession: The Experience of Workers in France, Hungary, Sweden and the United Kingdom

PubMed Central

Brenner, M. Harvey; Andreeva, Elena; Theorell, Töres; Goldberg, Marcel; Westerlund, Hugo; Leineweber, Constanze; Hanson, Linda L. Magnusson.; Imbernon, Ellen; Bonnaud, Sophie

2014-01-01

Background Organizational downsizing has become highly common during the global recession of the late 2000s with severe repercussions on employment. We examine whether the severity of the downsizing process is associated with a greater likelihood of depressive symptoms among displaced workers, internally redeployed workers and lay-off survivors. Methods A cross-sectional survey involving telephone interviews was carried out in France, Hungary, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The study analyzes data from 758 workers affected by medium- and large-scale downsizing, using multiple logistic regression. Main Results Both unemployment and surviving layoffs were significantly associated with depressive symptoms, as compared to reemployment, but the perceived procedural justice of a socially responsible downsizing process considerably mitigated the odds of symptoms. Perception of high versus low justice was assessed along several downsizing dimensions. In the overall sample, chances to have depressive symptoms were significantly reduced if respondents perceived the process as transparent and understandable, fair and unbiased, well planned and democratic; if they trusted the employer’s veracity and agreed with the necessity for downsizing. The burden of symptoms was significantly greater if the process was perceived to be chaotic. We further tested whether perceived justice differently affects the likelihood of depressive symptoms among distinct groups of workers. Findings were that the odds of symptoms largely followed the same patterns of effects across all groups of workers. Redeploying and supporting surplus employees through the career change process–rather than forcing them to become unemployed–makes a substantial difference as to whether they will suffer from depressive symptoms. Conclusions While depressive symptoms affect both unemployed and survivors, a just and socially responsible downsizing process is important for the emotional health of workers. PMID:24841779

Developing a Strategic Plan for Transitioning to Healthcare Knowledge Services Centers (HKSCs)

PubMed Central

Goldstein, H. Mark; Coletti, Margaret H.

2012-01-01

Facing a negative trend in the form of downsizing, layoffs, and closures, a small committee of hospital librarians in New England was formed in 2004 to provide library advocacy. Between 2008 and 2010, 23 hospital libraries closed in New England. In 2010, the committee shifted its focus from advocacy to a platform for change. This resulted in the creation of the Healthcare Knowledge Services Center (HKSC) Template. The Template is the basis for a 3-phased, 5-year strategic plan to establish several regional pilots, transitioning traditional hospital libraries to healthcare knowledge services centers. This article focuses on Phase One of the strategic plan, Development. PMID:23125551

Exploring approaches to the administration of a long-term care facility: The application of a community planning and development process.

PubMed

Caldwell, W J

1996-01-01

This article outlines the approaches taken to the management of two long-term care facilities by the County of Huron in southwestern Ontario in 1994. Lay-offs, a move to new facilities, loss of local political confidence, changes in key administrative personnel and low staff morale prompted the county to ask an interim administrative team to develop and implement an appropriate response. The article explains how community development and planning principles and techniques were applied to the management of the homes to achieve an overall improvement in communication, staff morale and attitude. These approaches may prove helpful to other administrations facing major change.

Great expectations: Past wages and unemployment durations☆

PubMed Central

Böheim, Renè; Horvath, Gerard Thomas; Winter-Ebmer, Rudolf

2011-01-01

Decomposing wages into worker and firm wage components, we find that firm-fixed components are sizeable parts of workers' wages. If workers can only imperfectly observe the extent of firm-fixed components in their wages, they might be misled about the overall wage distribution. Such misperceptions may lead to unjustified high reservation wages, resulting in overly long unemployment durations. We examine the influence of previous wages on unemployment durations for workers after exogenous lay-offs and, using Austrian administrative data, we find that younger workers are, in fact, unemployed longer if they profited from high firm-fixed components in the past. We interpret our findings as evidence for overconfidence generated by imperfectly observed productivity. PMID:22211003

Deregulation allows new opportunities for utilities

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hansen, T.

1996-10-01

The changes electric utilities face today are both scary and exciting. In the past several years utilities have faced uncertainties that have caused major upheaval in their structures and business processes. There has been an increase in the number of mergers and acquisitions as utilities position themselves for competition. many utility employees have faced layoffs, resulting form reengineering and downsizing. Similar events and uncertainties were faced by the airline and telecommunications industries during their transformations form monopolistic to competitive environments. Even though these events have been difficult and unpleasant, there is a bright side. Today`s electric utilities have the opportunitiesmore » to cash in on some innovative new ideas and technologies.« less

Job insecurity during recessions: effects on survivors' work stress.

PubMed

Modrek, Sepideh; Cullen, Mark R

2013-10-06

Previous studies show a variety of negative health consequences for the remaining workforce after downsizing events. This study examined self-reported work stress from 2009-2012 in the context of a large multi-site aluminum manufacturing company that underwent severe downsizing in 2009. This study examined the association between work stress and working at a work site that underwent severe downsizing. We assessed the level of downsizing across thirty plants in 2009 and categorized seven as having undergone severe downsizing. We linked plant-level downsizing information to individual workers' responses to an annual work engagement survey, which included three work stress questions. From 2009 to 2012 over 14, 000 employees were asked about their experience of work stress. Though the surveys were anonymous, the surveys captured employees' demographic and employment characteristic as well as plant location. We used hierarchical logistic regressions to compare responses of workers at severely downsized plants to workers at all other plant while controlling for demographic and plant characteristics. Responses to the work stress questions and one control question were examined. In all yearly surveys salaried workers consistently reported having more work stress than hourly workers. There was no differential in work stress for workers at severely downsized plants in 2009. In 2010 to 2012, salaried workers who remained at severely downsized plants reported significantly higher work stress than salaried workers at all other plants across multiple work stress questions. Examination of the 2006 survey confirmed that there were no pre-existing differences in work stress among salaried employees working at plants that would eventually experience severe downsizing. In addition, there was no difference in responses to the control question at severely downsized plants. Salaried workers at plants with high layoffs experienced more work stress after 2009 than their counterparts at non-high layoff plants. Increased work stress is important to monitor and may be a mediating pathway through which the external economic environment leads to adverse health outcomes.

Jobless now, sick later? Investigating the long-term consequences of involuntary job loss on health.

PubMed

Schröder, Mathis

2013-03-01

In the light of the current economic crises which in many countries lead to business closures and mass lay-offs, the consequences of job loss are important on various dimensions. They have to be investigated not only in consideration of a few years, but with a long-term perspective as well, because early life course events may prove important for later life outcomes. This paper uses data from SHARELIFE to shed light on the long-term consequences of involuntary job loss on health. The paper distinguishes between two different reasons for involuntary job loss: plant closures, which in the literature are considered to be exogenous to the individual, and lay-offs, where the causal direction of health and unemployment is ambiguous. These groups are separately compared to those who never experienced a job loss. The paper uses eleven different measures of health to assess long-term health consequences of job loss, which has to have occurred at least 25 years before the current interview. As panel data cannot be employed, a large body of variables, including childhood health and socio-economic conditions, is used to control for the initial conditions. The findings suggest that individuals with an exogenous job loss suffer in the long run: men are significantly more likely to be depressed and they have more trouble knowing the current date. Women report poorer general health and more chronic conditions and are also affected in their physical health: they are more likely to be obese or overweight, and to have any limitations in their (instrumental) activities of daily living. In the comparison group of laid-off individuals, controlling for the initial conditions reduces the effects of job loss on health - proving that controlling for childhood conditions is important. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health in Elite Sports from a Salutogenetic Perspective: Athletes' Sense of Coherence

PubMed Central

Mayer, Jochen; Thiel, Ansgar

2014-01-01

Objective Considering the high number of stressors encountered in the context of elite sports, a high sense of coherence (SOC) is crucial to allow athletes to maintain their health from both short- and long-term perspectives. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate SOC in a population of elite athletes, focusing on identification of subsets of athletes with particularly high and low SOC scores, and any related predictors. The elite athletes' SOC scores were also evaluated for differences with those of the general population of Germany; whether a correlation between SOC and subjective health existed was additionally examined. Method In total, 698 male and female elite athletes, drawn from Germany's highest-level national track and field squads, and first and second division handball teams, completed a survey that included the SOC-L9 Scale and measures of subjective health, sociodemographic information, and the number of injury lay-offs experienced during the athletes' careers to date. Results Classification tree analysis reveals six contrast groups with varying SOC scores. Several interacting factors determine the group to which an athlete belongs. Together with overuse injuries, additional factors are age, gender, and completed/not completed apprenticeship/degree. Female athletes aged between 19 and 25, who had already been subject to lay-offs due to overuse injuries, comprise the group with the lowest SOC scores. Overall, the SOC of elite athletes is slightly lower than in the general population. In accordance with other studies, a stronger SOC is also correlated significantly with better global subjective health. Conclusion The identification of contrast groups with varying SOC scores contributes to the development of more targeted salutogenetic health promotion programs. Such programs would ideally include learning modules pertaining to coping with overuse injuries, as well as social support systems aiming to effectively combine education and elite sport. PMID:25014085

Organizational change, restructuring and downsizing: The experience of employees in the electric utility industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korns, Michael T.

This research examines the experience of employees working in the electric utility industry during a time when it was undergoing significant transformation. It was undertaken to examine this phenomenon in the context of how the history and nature of the industry's environment, and specifically regulatory effect of regulation, led to an organizational form characterized by stability, structure and inertial resistance to change. A case study approach was used to examine the effect of deregulation on an organization in the industry, and specifically how their actions impacted employees working there. A phenomenological approach was used to explore employee perceptions of the organizational culture and employment relationship there both prior to and after implementation of a reorganization and downsizing that resulted in the first significant employee layoffs in the history of the organization. Data gathering consisted of conducting semi-structured interviews with current and former employees of the company who experienced the phenomena. Analysis of the data show that employees in this organization perceived an unusually strong psychological contract for stable employment and the expectation that it would continue, despite the prevalence of corporate downsizing and restructuring at the time. This psychological contract and the importance of career employment was found to be particularly significant for women who were hired during a period of time when gender and pregnancy discrimination was prevalent. Findings demonstrate that, given the historical stability and strong inertial resistance in the organization, company leadership did not effectively communicate the need, or prepare employees sufficiently for the significance of the changes or the effect they had on the organization. Findings also revealed that employees perceived the methods used to select individuals for layoff and exit from the company violated principles of organizational justice for distributional, procedural, and interactional fairness. This research illustrates the need for leaders to consider the culture in their organizations and its readiness for change prior to implementation of significant transformation.

Risk of psychological ill health and methods of organisational downsizing: a cross-sectional survey in four European countries.

PubMed

Andreeva, Elena; Brenner, M Harvey; Theorell, Töres; Goldberg, Marcel

2017-09-29

The manner in which organizational downsizing is implemented can make a substantial difference as to whether the exposed workers will suffer from psychological ill health. Surprisingly, little research has directly investigated this issue. We examined the likelihood of psychological ill health associated with strategic and reactive downsizing. A cross-sectional survey included 1456 respondents from France, Sweden, Hungary and the United Kingdom: 681 employees in stable workplaces (reference group) and 775 workers from downsized companies. Reactive downsizing was exemplified by the exposures to compulsory redundancies of medium to large scale resulting in job loss or surviving a layoff while staying employed in downsized organizations. The workforce exposed to strategic downsizing was represented by surplus employees who were internally redeployed and supported through their career change process within a policy context of "no compulsory redundancy". Symptoms of anxiety, depression and emotional exhaustion were assessed in telephone interviews with brief subscales from Hospital Anxiety Scale (HADS-A), Hopkins Symptom Checklist (SCL-CD 6 ) and Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-GS). Data were analyzed using logistic regression. We observed no increased risk of psychological ill health in the case of strategic downsizing. The number of significant associations with psychological ill health was the largest for the large-scale reactive downsizing: surviving a layoff was consistently associated with all three outcome measures; returning to work after the job loss experience was related to anxiety and depression, while persons still unemployed at interview had elevated odds of anxiety. After reactive medium-scale downsizing, unemployment at interview was the only exposure associated with anxiety and depression. The manner in which organizational downsizing is implemented can be important for the psychological wellbeing of workers. If downsizing is unavoidable, it should be achieved strategically. Greater attention is needed to employment and health policies supporting the workers after reactive downsizing.

Capturing reimbursement for advanced practice nurse services in acute and critical care: legal and business considerations.

PubMed

Buppert, Carolyn

2005-01-01

Advanced practice nurses (APNs) have been affected positively and negatively by recent changes in the way hospitals are financed. Among these changes are the shift from cost-based reimbursement to a prospective payment system and increased opportunities for billing APN services under the physician payment system. Positive effects include the need for hospitals to decrease the length of stay of hospitalized patients, leading to jobs for APNs who make the hospital course and discharge more efficient. Negative effects include budget shortfalls that lead to layoffs. This article explains the current financial landscape, including phenomena that are impeding the billing of APN services, and recommends adjustments so that the APN role will be on firm financial footing.

Goodbye or Identify: Detrimental Effects of Downsizing on Identification and Survivor Performance.

PubMed

van Dick, Rolf; Drzensky, Frank; Heinz, Matthias

2016-01-01

Research shows that after layoffs, employees often report decreased commitment and performance which has been coined the survivor syndrome. However, the mechanisms underlying this effect remain underexplored. The purpose of the paper is to show that reduced organizational identification can serve as an explanation for the survivor syndrome. We conducted a laboratory experiment, in which participants work as a group of employees for another participant who acts as employer. In the course of the experiment, the employer decides whether one of his or her employees should be laid off or not. Mediation analysis supports a social identity-based explanation for the emergence of the survivor syndrome: downsizing causes lower identification with the employer which in turn relates to lower performance of employees.

Goodbye or Identify: Detrimental Effects of Downsizing on Identification and Survivor Performance

PubMed Central

van Dick, Rolf; Drzensky, Frank; Heinz, Matthias

2016-01-01

Research shows that after layoffs, employees often report decreased commitment and performance which has been coined the survivor syndrome. However, the mechanisms underlying this effect remain underexplored. The purpose of the paper is to show that reduced organizational identification can serve as an explanation for the survivor syndrome. We conducted a laboratory experiment, in which participants work as a group of employees for another participant who acts as employer. In the course of the experiment, the employer decides whether one of his or her employees should be laid off or not. Mediation analysis supports a social identity-based explanation for the emergence of the survivor syndrome: downsizing causes lower identification with the employer which in turn relates to lower performance of employees. PMID:27252674

Downsizing: Is There a "Right" Way?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tippett, Donald D.; Childress, Rhonda; Sweitzer, Melissa G

1998-01-01

In response to the pressures of surviving in in a competitive global market, many companies are turning to downsizing, right sizing, restructuring, reduction-in-force, and/or business process re-engineering, among others. Regardless of the terminology used, an inevitable result is a loss of jobs. Companies fail to grasp the profound ramifications of downsizing for both the people laid off and the organization and work force that remain after downsizing is complete. A search of the literature was conducted to ascertain what leading theorists and practitioners are saying about downsizing and the "right" way to go about it. This search culminated in the Nine Point Model for Downsizing (NPMD). The model is used to analyze a downsizing case study involving the December 1997 layoff of 19.000 employees by a leading manufacturer of imagine products.

MRI findings and return to play in football: a prospective analysis of 255 hamstring injuries in the UEFA Elite Club Injury Study.

PubMed

Ekstrand, Jan; Lee, Justin C; Healy, Jeremiah C

2016-06-01

The present study evaluated whether the MRI parameters of hamstring injuries in male professional football players correlate with time to return to play (RTP). 46 elite European football teams were followed prospectively for hamstring injuries between 2007 and 2014. Club medical staff recorded individual player exposure and time-loss after hamstring injury. MRI parameters were evaluated by two independent radiologists and correlated with the RTP data. A total of 255 grade 1 and 2 injuries were evaluated in this study. RTP was longer for grade 2 than grade 1 injuries (24±13, 95% CI 21 to 26 days vs 18±15, 95% CI 16 to 20 days; mean difference: 6, 95% CI 2 to 9 days, p=0.004, d=0.39). 84% of injuries affected the biceps femoris (BF) muscle, whereas 12% and 4% affected the semimembranosus (SM) and semitendinosus (ST), respectively. No difference in lay-off time was found for injuries to the three different muscles (BF 20±15 days, SM 18±11 days, ST 23±14 days; p=0.83). The recurrence rate was higher for BF injuries than for SM and ST injuries combined (18% vs 2%, p=0.009). The size of the oedema weakly correlated with time to RTP (r(2)=6-12%). No correlation was found between location of injury and time to RTP. The majority of the intramuscular injuries affected the MT junction (56% in grade 1 and 2 injuries), but no difference in lay-off time was found between the different types of injuries. The radiological grade and size of the oedema correlate with time to RTP for both, grade 1 and 2 injuries. No correlations were found between time to RTP and the location and type of injury. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Dual impact of organisational change on subsequent exit from work unit and sickness absence: a longitudinal study among public healthcare employees.

PubMed

Jensen, Johan Høy; Flachs, Esben Meulengracht; Skakon, Janne; Rod, Naja Hulvej; Bonde, Jens Peter

2018-05-14

We investigated work-unit exit, total and long-term sickness absence following organisational change among public healthcare employees. The study population comprised employees from the Capital Region of Denmark (n=14 388). Data on reorganisation at the work-unit level (merger, demerger, relocation, change of management, employee layoff or budget cut) between July and December 2013 were obtained via surveys distributed to the managers of each work unit. Individual-level data on work-unit exit, total and long-term sickness absence (≥29 days) in 2014 were obtained from company registries. For exposure to any, each type or number of reorganisations (1, 2 or ≥3), the HRs and 95% CIs for subsequent work-unit exit were estimated by Cox regression, and the risk for total and long-term sickness absence were estimated by zero-inflated Poisson regression. Reorganisation was associated with subsequent work-unit exit (HR 1.10, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.19) in the year after reorganisation. This association was specifically important for exposure to ≥3 types of changes (HR 1.52, 95% CI 1.30 to 1.79), merger (HR 1.29, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.49), demerger (HR 1.41, 95% CI 1.16 to 1.71) or change of management (HR 1.24, 95% CI 1.11 to 1.38). Among the employees remaining in the work unit, reorganisation was also associated with more events of long-term sickness absence (OR 1.15, 95% CI 1.00 to 1.33), which was particularly important for merger (OR 1.31, 95% CI 1.00 to 1.72) and employee layoff (OR 1.31, 95% CI 1.08 to 1.59). Specific types of reorganisation seem to have a dual impact on subsequent work-unit exit and sickness absence in the year after change. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Steam sterilization costs: a guide for the central service manager.

PubMed

O'Shaughnessy, K L

1993-07-01

The Nassau County Medical Center CS department, East Meadow, New York, was faced with a staff layoff and an increased workload. With some hard thinking and strong staff support, new processes/systems were designed to save time and money. These included outsourcing the sterilization of "easy" trays, instituting a case cart program and developing custom packs. In order to determine where savings could be had, it was first important to examine current costs. By breaking the costs of sterilization processing down into an average cost per load, a formula was developed that helped determine many additional cost comparisons for the department. For example, the cost analysis formula could be used by CS departments to determine the cost-effectiveness of off-site sterilization, to compare using disposable vs. reusable items and to determine costs for EtO sterilization and aeration.

The surprising costs of silence: Asymmetric preferences for prosocial lies of commission and omission.

PubMed

Levine, Emma; Hart, Joanna; Moore, Kendra; Rubin, Emily; Yadav, Kuldeep; Halpern, Scott

2018-01-01

Across 7 experiments (N = 3883), we demonstrate that communicators and targets make egocentric moral judgments of deception. Specifically, communicators focus more on the costs of deception to them-for example, the guilt they feel when they break a moral rule-whereas targets focus more on whether deception helps or harms them. As a result, communicators and targets make asymmetric judgments of prosocial lies of commission and omission: Communicators often believe that omitting information is more ethical than telling a prosocial lie, whereas targets often believe the opposite. We document these effects within the context of health care discussions, employee layoffs, and economic games, among both clinical populations (i.e., oncologists and cancer patients) and lay people. We identify moderators and downstream consequences of this asymmetry. We conclude by discussing psychological and practical implications for medicine, management, behavioral ethics, and human communication. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

[Lean production and psychosocial risks: the case of a multinational merger in a metallurgical company in Brazil].

PubMed

Stenger, Eunice; Monteiro, Maria Inês; Sabino, Marcos Oliveira; Miquilin, Isabella de Oliveira Campos; Corrêa Filho, Heleno Rodrigues

2014-08-01

This study focused on the method known as "lean production" as a work-related psychosocial risk factor in a Brazilian multinational auto parts company after its merger with other multinational companies. The authors conducted a qualitative analysis of two time points: the first using on-site observation and key interviews with managers and workers during implementation of lean production in 1996; the second, 16 years later, comparing data from a document search in labor inspection records from the Ministry of Labor and Employment and legal proceedings initiated by the Office of the Public Prosecutor for Labor Affairs. The merger led to layoffs, replacements, and an increase in the workday. A class action suit was filed on grounds of aggravated working conditions. The new production model led to psychosocial risks that increased the need for workers' health precautions when changes in the production process introduced new and increased risks of physical and mental illnesses.

[Economic restructuring and impacts on health and mental distress: the case of a state-owned bank in Minas Gerais State, Brazil].

PubMed

Silva, Luiz Sérgio; Pinheiro, Tarcísio Márcio Magalhães; Sakurai, Emília

2007-12-01

Restructuring of the Brazilian financial sector was consolidated through the combination of mass lay-offs, automation, and outsourcing, in addition to business re-engineering with leveling of hierarchical echelons, labor casualization, and multi-function jobs. In order to comply and deal with the new demands, bank employees had to increase their schooling, become multi-functional and expert sales attendants, and submit to substandard conditions in the workplace, increased workload, overtime, and low wages. The purpose of the current study was to examine the restructuring process in a state-owned bank in Minas Gerais State, Brazil, and its impacts on workers' health. The study also analyzes absenteeism rates from 1998 to 2003, when there was an increase in diseases such as repetitive stress injury (RSI)/work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMD) and mental/behavioral disorders, accounting for 56% and 19% of sick leaves. The process has continued to the present, with a restrictive recruitment policy. Further study is needed to confirm the results.

Organizational downsizing and age discrimination litigation: the influence of personnel practices and statistical evidence on litigation outcomes.

PubMed

Wingate, Peter H; Thornton, George C; McIntyre, Kelly S; Frame, Jennifer H

2003-02-01

The present study examined relationships between reduction-in-force (RIF) personnel practices, presentation of statistical evidence, and litigation outcomes. Policy capturing methods were utilized to analyze the components of 115 federal district court opinions involving age discrimination disparate treatment allegations and organizational downsizing. Univariate analyses revealed meaningful links between RIF personnel practices, use of statistical evidence, and judicial verdict. The defendant organization was awarded summary judgment in 73% of the claims included in the study. Judicial decisions in favor of the defendant organization were found to be significantly related to such variables as formal performance appraisal systems, termination decision review within the organization, methods of employee assessment and selection for termination, and the presence of a concrete layoff policy. The use of statistical evidence in ADEA disparate treatment litigation was investigated and found to be a potentially persuasive type of indirect evidence. Legal, personnel, and evidentiary ramifications are reviewed, and a framework of downsizing mechanics emphasizing legal defensibility is presented.

Occupational injury and illness meet the labor market: lessons from labor economics about lost earnings.

PubMed

Boden, Leslie I

2006-09-01

Recent labor economics studies in the United States and Canada have demonstrated that occupational injuries and illnesses often lead to substantial lost earnings for workers and their families. Other studies have shown substantial long-term lost earnings attributable to large-scale layoffs, where no health impairment has taken place. This article uses evidence from these and other studies of apparently different situations to draw inferences about how managers' actions and public policy choices can affect the costs of occupational injuries and illnesses. Although primary prevention remains the policy of choice, reduction in the impact of workplace injuries and illnesses can decrease the costs of these events and can provide substantial benefits. This article proposes two hypotheses and discusses the evidence for each: (a) Loss of the job held at the onset of illness or injury increases time off work and exacerbates workers' lost earnings. (b) Workers' losses may be substantially reduced by policies that encourage employers to rehire people recovering from or disabled by workplace injuries and illnesses.

Job insecurity and health.

PubMed

McDonough, P

2000-01-01

As employers respond to new competitive pressures of global capitalism through layoffs and the casualization of labor, job insecurity affects a growing number of workers. It appears to harm mental health, but less is known about its effects on physical health and health behaviors and the mechanisms through which it may act. The prevailing individual-centered conceptualization of job insecurity as the perception of a threat to job continuity precludes systematic investigation of the social patterning of its health effects. Analysis of data from a 1994 Canadian national probability sample of adults determined that high levels of job insecurity lowered self-rated health and increased distress and the use of medications, but had no impact on heavy drinking. The findings support one possible mechanism of action whereby job insecurity reduces feelings of control over one's environment and opportunities for positive self-evaluation; these psychological experiences, in turn, have deleterious health consequences. There is little evidence of social patterning of this relationship by gender, education, household income, age, marital status, and social support at work.

Workplace discrimination and cumulative trauma disorders: the national EEOC ADA research project.

PubMed

Armstrong, Amy J; McMahon, Brian T; West, Steven L; Lewis, Allen

2005-01-01

Employment discrimination of persons with cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs) was explored using the Integrated Mission System dataset of the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Demographic characteristics and merit resolutions of the Charging Parties (persons with CTD) were compared to individuals experiencing other physical, sensory and neurological impairments. Factors compared also included industry designation, geographic region, and size of Respondents against which allegations were filed. Persons with CTD had proportionately greater allegations among large Respondents (greater than 500 workers) engaged in manufacturing, utilities, transportation, finance insurance and real estate. The types of discrimination Issues that were proportionately greater in the CTD group included layoff, failure to reinstate, and failure to provide reasonable accommodation. The CTD group was significantly less likely than the comparison group to be involved in discrimination Issues such as assignment to less desirable duty, shift or work location; demotion; termination, or failure to hire or provide training. Persons with CTD had higher proportions of merit Resolutions where allegations were voluntarily withdrawn by the Charging Party with benefits.

Workplace discrimination and diabetes: the EEOC Americans with Disabilities Act research project.

PubMed

McMahon, Brian T; West, Steven L; Mansouri, Mehdi; Belongia, Lisa

2005-01-01

Using the Integrated Mission System of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the employment discrimination experience of Americans with diabetes is documented. Researchers compare and contrast the key dimensions of workplace discrimination involving Americans with diabetes and persons with other physical, sensory, and neurological impairments. Specifically, the researchers examine demographic characteristics of the charging parties; the industry designation, location, and size of employers against whom complaints are filed; the nature of discrimination (i.e., type of adverse action) alleged to occur; and the legal outcome or resolution of these complaints. Findings indicate that persons with diabetes were more likely to encounter discrimination involving discharge, constructive discharge, discipline and suspension - all job retention issues. Persons with diabetes were less likely to encounter discrimination involving hiring, reasonable accommodation, non-pension benefits, and layoff. They were also more likely to encounter discrimination when they were older or from specific ethnic backgrounds, or when they worked for small employers or in the Southern United States. Implications for policy and advocacy are addressed.

The impact of deficit reduction on the nursing labour market in Canada: unintended consequences of fiscal reform.

PubMed

Vujicic, Marko; Evans, Robert G

2005-01-01

Beginning in 1992, governments throughout Canada began reducing expenditures in an effort to eliminate fiscal deficits and reduce their alarmingly high debt burden. As part of this deficit-fighting era, governments reduced hospital expenditure levels quite dramatically. Some of the current problems in the Canadian healthcare system - the recent unrest in the nursing labour market in particular - are often attributed to this hospital downsizing era. This article examines trends in the labour market for registered nurses in Canada during the hospital downsizing period. Of particular interest is the effect of hospital spending reforms on nurse employment levels in hospitals and on the age structure of the nursing workforce. After identifying the trends, the main factors driving the trends are discussed. Results indicate that a decrease in the demand for nursing labour resulted in large staff layoffs during the restructuring period, particularly among the youngest age groups. The evidence does not support the claim that deteriorating wages and working conditions in hospitals led nurses to quit their jobs during the hospital downsizing period.

[Changes in workers' rehabilitation procedures under the Brazilian social security system: modernization or undermining of social protection?].

PubMed

Takahashi, Mara Alice Batista Conti; Iguti, Aparecida Mari

2008-11-01

This article describes the changes in workers' rehabilitation practices under the Brazilian National Social Security Institute (INSS) in the 1990s, in the context of neoliberal economic adjustment measures, based on an analysis of INSS documents from 1992 to 1997. The INSS plan for "modernization" of workers' rehabilitation led to: (1) dismantling of multidisciplinary teams; (2) induction of workers to accept proportional retirement pensions and voluntary layoffs; (3) under-utilization of the remaining INSS professional staff; (4) elimination of treatment programs for workers' rehabilitation; and (5) dismantling of INSS rehabilitation centers and clinics. The changes in the Brazilian social security system undermined the county's social security project and hegemony and reduced social security reform to a mere management and fiscal issue. Current "rehabilitation" falls far short of the institution's original purpose of social protection for workers, while aiming at economic regulation of the system to contain costs of workers' benefits. Workers that suffer work-related accidents are denied occupational rehabilitation, which aggravates their social disadvantage when they return to work.

Workplace discrimination and cancer.

PubMed

McKenna, Maureen A; Fabian, Ellen; Hurley, Jessica E; McMahon, Brian T; West, Steven L

2007-01-01

Data from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Integrated Mission System database were analyzed with specific reference to allegations of workplace discrimination filed by individuals with cancer under ADA Title One. These 6,832 allegations, filed between July 27, 1992 and September 30, 2003, were compared to 167,798 allegations from a general disability population on the following dimensions: type of workplace discrimination; demographic characteristics of the charging parties (CPs); the industry designation, location, and size of employers; and the outcome or resolution of EEOC investigations. Results showed allegations derived from CPs with cancer were more likely than those in the general disability population to include issues involving discharge, terms and conditions of employment, lay-off, wages, and demotion. Compared to the general disability group, CPs with cancer were more likely to be female, older, and White. Allegations derived from CPs with cancer were also more likely to be filed against smaller employers (15-100 workers) or those in service industries. Finally, the resolution of allegations by CPs with cancer were more likely to be meritorious than those filed from the general disability population; that is, actual discrimination is more likely to have occurred.

Is there an association between severe job strain, transient rise in blood pressure and increased mortality?

PubMed

Kjeldsen, Sverre E; Knudsen, Karl; Ekrem, Gunhild; Fure, Tormod O; Movinckel, Petter; Erikssen, Jan E

2006-01-01

Job strain may be associated with various diseases and increased mortality but there is little data available from prospective studies with long-term follow-up. To assess the effect of heat exposure followed by severe job strain on blood pressure, heart rate and mortality. Prospective 19-year observational study (1982-2000) of a cohort of employees in a ferry alloy plant undergoing two economical crises. The participants were 218 healthy males aged 30-59 years. Annual standardized measurements of blood pressure, heart rate, serum cholesterol and registration of morbidity and mortality. Heat-exposed men (n = 25) and non-heat-exposed men (n = 193) had unchanged blood pressure from 1982 to 1984. Thereafter the plant underwent two serious economic crises, in 1985-87 and 1990-91, respectively. The first one was handled by decisions exclusively taken by the head office and included a gradual lay-off of 25% of the workers, and the second one was handled jointly between the local management, union leaders and employees and included a modest, voluntary lay-off. Thus, the two crises differed markedly in low vs high job control. Blood pressures gradually increased from 1985 to 1988 in the whole cohort until systolic blood pressure reached 15 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure 12 mmHg above baseline levels (p < 0.001). Thereafter blood pressures decreased to slightly above baseline levels and then remained unchanged for the next 5 years. However, heart rate increased from 62 +/- 12 beats/min in 1982-83 to 69 +/- 10 beats/min in 1988 (p < 0.01) and did not return to baseline. Total mortality by 31 December 2000 in the study cohort was significantly higher over the 19 years of follow-up than among age-matched, Norwegian men (p < 0.01). If a cause-effect relationship exists between the first economical crisis in the ferry alloy plant and the concomitant rise in blood pressure, job strain had a powerful but time-limited effect on blood pressure. Since the same phenomenon was not reproduced 5 years later, the marked difference in job control (high vs low) may constitute the difference. Alternatively, age-related effects or adaptive coping mechanisms may have prevented a similar second blood pressure rise despite exposure to a job strain of similar severity. However, there was also a high 19-year total mortality in the study population, which could be related to long-term health consequences of the first or both economic crises. This study provides some support for the notion that increased job strain elevates blood pressure and deteriorates outcome.

Nurse Migration: A Canadian Case Study

PubMed Central

Little, Lisa

2007-01-01

Objective To synthesize information about nurse migration in and out of Canada and analyze its role as a policy lever to address the Canadian nursing shortage. Principal Findings Canada is both a source and a destination country for international nurse migration with an estimated net loss of nurses. The United States is the major beneficiary of Canadian nurse emigration resulting from the reduction of full-time jobs for nurses in Canada due to health system reforms. Canada faces a significant projected shortage of nurses that is too large to be ameliorated by ethical international nurse recruitment and immigration. Conclusions The current and projected shortage of nurses in Canada is a product of health care cost containment policies that failed to take into account long-term consequences for nurse workforce adequacy. An aging nurse workforce, exacerbated by layoffs of younger nurses with less seniority, and increasing demand for nurses contribute to a projection of nurse shortage that is too great to be solved ethically through international nurse recruitment. National policies to increase domestic nurse production and retention are recommended in addition to international collaboration among developed countries to move toward greater national nurse workforce self sufficiency. PMID:17489918

Texas hair salon settles suit while another faces EEOC action. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

PubMed

1995-03-24

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed suit against the nationally based [name removed] after hair stylist "John Doe" was fired shortly after his employer discovered he was HIV-positive. According to EEOC officials, [name removed] claimed that John Doe was fired for failing to attend a mandatory training class, but the EEOC said the real motivation was the fact that Doe was regarded as disabled. The suit asked the U.S. District Court to enjoin [name removed] from discharging employees based on their HIV status, reinstate Doe, and order the salon to pay Doe back wages, other compensatory damages, and punitive damages. The lawsuit comes just two months after P.M.K. Corporation, which does business as Cost Cutters of [name removed], agreed to pay $13,200 to stylist "Pat Doe," who was fired after her employer discovered she was HIV-positive. The company claimed Pat Doe was terminated because of a layoff, but the EEOC concluded the real reason was her HIV status. Both actions were filed by the EEOC under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). An EEOC representative said that the fact that both actions involved hair salons was coincidental.

Job Displacement and First Birth Over the Business Cycle.

PubMed

Hofmann, Barbara; Kreyenfeld, Michaela; Uhlendorff, Arne

2017-06-01

In this article, we investigate the impact of job displacement on women's first-birth rates as well as the variation in this effect over the business cycle. We use mass layoffs to estimate the causal effects of involuntary job loss on fertility in the short and medium term, up to five years after displacement. Our analysis is based on rich administrative data from Germany, with an observation period spanning more than 20 years. We apply inverse probability weighting (IPW) to flexibly control for the observed differences between women who were and were not displaced. To account for the differences in the composition of the women who were displaced in a downturn and the women who were displaced in an upswing, we use a double weighting estimator. Results show that the extent to which job displacement has adverse effects on fertility depends on the business cycle. The first-birth rates were much lower for women who were displaced in an economic downturn than for those who lost a job in an economic upturn. This result cannot be explained by changes in the observed characteristics of the displaced women over the business cycle.

Characteristics of individual particles in Beijing before, during and after the 2014 APEC meeting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Zhongjun; Shan, Wei; Qi, Tao; Gao, Jian

2018-05-01

To understand the characteristics of individual aerosol particles as well as the effects of emission control measures on the air quality in Beijing before, during and after the 2014 APEC meeting, aerosol samples collected in Beijing from Oct. 8 to Nov. 24 were investigated by a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with an energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX). Individual particles were classified into fly ash, ammonium sulfate, carbonaceous particle, tar ball, soot aggregates, Fe/Ti oxide, Ca/Mg carbonate, calcium sulfate and aluminosilicates/quartz. The results showed that PM0.5-1.0 was predominant in aerosol particles while PM2.5-10 was the fewest in aerosol particles. Soot aggregates and carbonaceous particles mainly located in the size range of 0.5-2.5 μm and mineral particles were dominant in the size range of 2.5-10 μm. The tough emission control measures taken by the local government greatly improved the air quality. Reducing vehicles on the roads substantially decreased the amount of soot aggregates, and restricting coal combustion decreased the amount of tar ball during the APEC meeting. The concentrations of carbonaceous and mineral particles abated probably owing to the control on VOCs emission, and water spray and demolition layoff, respectively, during the APEC meeting.

Community-wide job loss and teenage fertility: evidence from North Carolina.

PubMed

Ananat, Elizabeth Oltmans; Gassman-Pines, Anna; Gibson-Davis, Christina

2013-12-01

Using North Carolina data for the period 1990-2010, we estimate the effects of economic downturns on the birthrates of 15- to 19-year-olds, using county-level business closings and layoffs as a plausibly exogenous source of variation in the strength of the local economy. We find little effect of job losses on the white teen birthrate. For black teens, however, job losses to 1 % of the working-age population decrease the birthrate by around 2 %. Birth declines start five months after the job loss and then last for more than one year. Linking the timing of job losses and conceptions suggests that black teen births decline because of increased terminations and perhaps also because of changes in prepregnancy behaviors. National data on risk behaviors also provide evidence that black teens reduce sexual activity and increase contraception use in response to job losses. Job losses seven to nine months after conception do not affect teen birthrates, indicating that teens do not anticipate job losses and lending confidence that job losses are "shocks" that can be viewed as quasi-experimental variation. We also find evidence that relatively advantaged black teens disproportionately abort after job losses, implying that the average child born to a black teen in the wake of job loss is relatively more disadvantaged.

Hospital restructuring and nursing leadership: a journey from research question to research program.

PubMed

Cummings, Greta G

2006-01-01

The 1990s brought new fiscal realities to healthcare, leading to nursing job loss estimates in tens of thousands following widespread hospital restructuring to manage costs and improve efficiency. This research aimed at examining (a) how multiple episodes of hospital restructuring leading to layoff of nurses affected nurses who remained employed and (b) whether and how nursing leadership mitigated or intensified the negative effects of hospital restructuring on nurses. This dissertation comprised 3 empirical studies leading to 5 publications. The first study was a systematic literature review; the second and third used structural equation modeling to develop and test theoretical models addressing nursing practice environments and effects of hospital restructuring on nurses. The combined findings in this dissertation illustrate that hospital restructuring had significant negative physical/emotional health effects on nurses who remained employed. Nurses who worked for resonant (emotionally intelligent) leadership reported positive health and well-being, and opportunities to provide quality patient care. Nurses who worked for dissonant leadership reported greater negative effects of hospital restructuring. These findings led to a beginning theory of relational energy--a mechanism of mitigation whereby resonant nursing leaders invest energy into collaborative relationships with nurses, thereby positively influencing health and well-being, and, ultimately, outcomes for patients.

Downsizing and health at the United States Department of Energy.

PubMed

Pepper, Lewis; Messinger, Miriam; Weinberg, Janice; Campbell, Richard

2003-11-01

Downsizing and reorganization not only affect workers who lose their jobs, but even workers who retain their jobs are affected in negative ways. The present study measured how downsizing was accomplished at five Department of Energy facilities by evaluating communication with workers, perceived fairness of the process, and job characteristics, and how each of these were associated with worker health and well-being. The researchers collected quantitative data using structured surveys, and captured qualitative data using interviews, focus groups, and open-ended survey responses. Employees, who felt that the downsizing process was fair, and that communication was open and honest, reported fewer medical symptoms, lower survivor syndrome, and more job security than their counterparts. Employees who were less immediately impacted by downsizing reported fewer medical symptoms than those who were more directly involved (e.g., delivered layoff notices, changed jobs, etc.) Thus, downsizing appears to affect the health of survivors, through the effects of the downsizing process. This examination of the effect of downsizing on the physical and mental health of surviving employees supports the conclusion that the impact of downsizing is not limited to those who lose their jobs and highlights the potential repercussions of downsizing on the emotional health of employees. Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Recurrent job loss and mental health among women.

PubMed

Nuttman-Shwartz, Orit; Gadot, Limor; Kacen, Lea

2009-06-01

Growing instability in the labor market has led to an increase in recurrent job loss, which primarily affects women (Tamir, 2007). Numerous studies have shown that job loss is a stressful, traumatic experience that has consequences for the individuals who are laid off. However, few studies have examined how recurrent job loss affects individuals. The present study of 134 Israeli women aged 30-45 years aimed to examine how recurrent job loss affected individual women's perceptions of the event and the extent to which it generated emotional stress and psychiatric symptoms. Most of the women perceived job loss as a challenging event and their assessments of job loss had a stronger impact on the development of mental health consequences than did the number of times they had actually been laid off. The more the women perceived job loss as threatening, the more they reported emotional stress and psychiatric symptoms. Conversely, the more they perceived job loss as challenging, the lower their levels of emotional stress. Never-married women were laid-off more, and they reported more mental health symptoms following recurrent job loss than did married women. The findings suggest that perception of job loss as a threatening event might cause mental health problems as results of lay-off.

Flattening the organization: implementing self-directed work groups.

PubMed

Brandon, G M

1996-01-01

In response to tremendous growth of managed care and threats to financial stability and job security, the Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC) restructured itself into independent business units. The radiology department at GBMC resolved to reduce cost per unit-of-service, improve service, determine optimal staffing levels and reduce the number of layers of organization. It was decided to achieve those goals by implementing self-directed work groups. Staff buy-in was critical to success of the project. To begin, the staff was educated intensively about current trends in healthcare, managed care and potential changes in the job market. The radiology department was allowed to reduce the size of its staff through attrition and worked hard to focus staff concern on the impact each individual could have on the bottom line and the resultant effect on job security. Self-directed work groups were designed on a matrix that used small "service teams" in combinations to form larger "work groups." Actual work and daily activities occur at the service team level; information exchange and major decisions occue at the work group level. Seventeen months after beginning the project and 10 months after implementation, the organization has flattened, staff members have adjusted well to new roles, there have been no lay-offs, and the matrix system of small and large groups have proved particularly valuable.

Middle-class mythology and the Houdini disappearing act: health care and jobs joined at the hip.

PubMed

Ehrle, Lynn Howard; Cleveland, Robert W

2010-01-01

Myths have long legs. Once they become integrated into the cultural ethos they are almost impossible to dislodge. The Middle Class Myth is a case in point. Spoken of in reverential terms, the conventional wisdom holds that the U.S. economy is driven by a vast middle class, anchoring its consumer-driven system of goods and services. But contrary to frequent statements by pundits, politicians, and many economists, the middle class has actually disappeared. Another commonly held myth--that the United States has the best health care system in the world--is perpetuated by medical leaders and the mainstream media. Despite huge worker layoffs causing 50 million to be without health insurance, and millions more who are underinsured, the myth persists. A third myth, one currently in vogue among media pundits and politicians, is that health care and jobs are two separate issues and policymakers can deal with them as unrelated to each other, when in reality they are inextricably interwoven--the connective tissue of a physically and mentally robust workforce. The authors use Census Bureau after-tax income and Federal Reserve data to demonstrate that the middle class has disappeared, leaving millions of Americans with little disposable income, meager savings, and no health care safety net.

Reasons for job separations in a cohort of workers with psychiatric disabilities.

PubMed

Cook, Judith A; Burke-Miller, Jane K

2015-01-01

We explored the relative effects of adverse working conditions, job satisfaction, wages, worker characteristics, and local labor markets in explaining voluntary job separations (quits) among employed workers with psychiatric disabilities. Data come from the Employment Intervention Demonstration Program in which 2,086 jobs were ended by 892 workers during a 24 mo observation period. Stepped multivariable logistic regression analysis examined the effect of variables on the likelihood of quitting. Over half (59%) of all job separations were voluntary while 41% were involuntary, including firings (17%), temporary job endings (14%), and layoffs (10%). In multivariable analysis, workers were more likely to quit positions at which they were employed for 20 h/wk or less, those with which they were dissatisfied, low-wage jobs, non-temporary positions, and jobs in the structural (construction) occupations. Voluntary separation was less likely for older workers, members of racial and ethnic minority groups, and those residing in regions with lower unemployment rates. Patterns of job separations for workers with psychiatric disabilities mirrored some findings regarding job leaving in the general labor force but contradicted others. Job separation antecedents reflect the concentration of jobs for workers with psychiatric disabilities in the secondary labor market, characterized by low-salaried, temporary, and part-time employment.

Cracking the code of change.

PubMed

Beer, M; Nohria, N

2000-01-01

Today's fast-paced economy demands that businesses change or die. But few companies manage corporate transformations as well as they would like. The brutal fact is that about 70% of all change initiatives fail. In this article, authors Michael Beer and Nitin Nohria describe two archetypes--or theories--of corporate transformation that may help executives crack the code of change. Theory E is change based on economic value: shareholder value is the only legitimate measure of success, and change often involves heavy use of economic incentives, layoffs, downsizing, and restructuring. Theory O is change based on organizational capability: the goal is to build and strengthen corporate culture. Most companies focus purely on one theory or the other, or haphazardly use a mix of both, the authors say. Combining E and O is directionally correct, they contend, but it requires a careful, conscious integration plan. Beer and Nohria present the examples of two companies, Scott Paper and Champion International, that used a purely E or purely O strategy to create change--and met with limited levels of success. They contrast those corporate transformations with that of UK-based retailer ASDA, which has successfully embraced the paradox between the opposing theories of change and integrated E and O. The lesson from ASDA? To thrive and adapt in the new economy, companies must make sure the E and O theories of business change are in sync at their own organizations.

Random Matrix Theory Approach to Indonesia Energy Portfolio Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahardhika, Alifian; Purqon, Acep

2017-07-01

In a few years, Indonesia experienced difficulties in maintaining energy security, the problem is the decline in oil production from 1.6 million barrels per day to 861 thousand barrels per day in 2012. However, there is a difference condition in 2015 until the third week in 2016, world oil prices actually fell at the lowest price level since last 12 years. The decline in oil prices due to oversupply of oil by oil-producing countries of the world due to the instability of the world economy. Wave of layoffs in Indonesia is a response to the decline in oil prices, this led to the energy and mines portfolios Indonesia feared would not be more advantageous than the portfolio in other countries. In this research, portfolio analysis will be done on energy and mining in Indonesia by using stock price data of energy and mines in the period 26 November 2010 until April 1, 2016. It was found that the results have a wide effect of the market potential is high in the determination of the return on the portfolio energy and mines. Later, it was found that there are eight of the thirty stocks in the energy and mining portfolio of Indonesia which have a high probability of return relative to the average return of stocks in a portfolio of energy and mines.

Ontario pharmacists' crisis over Bill 16: A missed opportunity?

PubMed

Rosenthal, Meagen; Austin, Zubin; Tsuyuki, Ross T

2012-01-01

In 2010, the Ontario government brought forward Bill 16, which, among other things, removed pharmacists' professional allowances. While many would disagree with this unilateral action by the Ontario government, it also could have served as a crisis for change towards patient-centred care. We sought to examine the response of the pharmacy profession in Ontario to this crisis as it relates to the vision outlined in the Blueprint for Pharmacy. We systematically examined publicly available responses to Schedule 5 of Ontario's Bill 16 during the period from April to June 16, 2010. A rapid textual analysis of the data using tag or word clouds and a qualitative content analysis were performed on all of the data collected. The rapid textual analysis revealed that the most frequently used terms were "pharmacist," "pharmacy" and "professional allowances"; the least used were "layoffs," "service cuts" and "patient care." Content analysis revealed 4 themes: the desire to maintain the status quo of practice, a focus on the business of pharmacy, pharmacy stakeholders' perceptions of government's attitude towards the profession and changes to patient services. It is notable that patient care was almost completely absent from the discussion, a reflection that our profession has not embraced patient-centred care. This also represents a missed opportunity - a crisis that could have been used to move the profession towards the Blueprint's vision. We thought that the Blueprint had already achieved this consensus, but the Ontario experience has shown that this may not be the case.

The toxic handler: organizational hero--and casualty.

PubMed

Frost, P; Robinson, S

1999-01-01

You've watched them comfort colleagues, defuse tense situations, and take the heat from tough bosses. You've seen them step in to ease the pain during layoffs and change programs. Who are they? The authors call them toxic handlers--managers who voluntarily shoulder the sandness, frustration, bitterness, and anger of others so that high-quality work continues to get done. Toxic handlers are not new. They are probably as old as organizations themselves. But there has never been a systematic study of the role they play in business. In this article, the authors introduce the role of toxic handlers, explaining what they do and why. Managing the pain of others is hard work. Toxic handlers save organizations from self-destructing, but they often pay a high price--emotionally, professionally, and sometimes physically. Some toxic handlers experience burnout; others suffer far worse consequences, such as ulcers and heart attacks. The authors contend that these unsung corporate heroes have strategic importance in today's business environment. Effective pain management can--and does--contribute to the bottom line. No company can afford to let talented employees burn out. Nor can it afford to have a reputation as an unhappy place to work. The authors offer practical advice for managers and organizations about how to support toxic handlers--before a crisis strikes. The role of toxic handler needs to be given the attention it deserves for everyone's benefit, because the health of employees is a key element in the long-term competitiveness of companies and of society.

Health-related quality of life of young women with breast cancer. Review of the literature.

PubMed

Yfantis, Aris; Intas, George; Tolia, Maria; Nikolaou, Michail; Tsoukalas, Nikolaos; Lymperi, Maria; Kyrgias, George; Zografos, George; Kontos, Michalis

2018-01-01

The purpose of the present article was to investigate the health related quality of life (QoL) of young women with breast cancer. For the purposes of this article, we reviewed the literature via the electronic databases Pubmed, Scopus and Google Scholar. Key words used were breast cancer, young women, health related quality of life, and quality of life. Young women reported fatigue, pain in the breast and hand problems with lymphedema as the most frequent physical effects of treatment. Other physical problems were the not periodic and painful menses, vaginal dryness and loss of libido. Many young women had depressive symptoms such as depressed mood, helplessness, hopelessness, sleep loss, psychomotor retardation and disorders of appetite. There were often concerns about the health monitoring and self-image, while they were anxious if they will have a baby in the future or if they can nurture the existing ones. Many problems arose in the career of young women. They faced discrimination in the labor supply and/or layoff because they were considered unable to do their job effectively. In addition, they reported isolation problems and feeling different from other women of similar age. Young women consider that their healthrelated QoL is worse compared with older women. Young women worry about their future, with particular reference to their role as mothers and especially to children-bearing. The free screening and non-exclusion of young women is particularly important for breast cancer prevention and women's well-being.

Mitigating the impact of hospital restructuring on nurses: the responsibility of emotionally intelligent leadership.

PubMed

Cummings, Greta; Hayduk, Leslie; Estabrooks, Carole

2005-01-01

A decade of North American hospital restructuring in the 1990s resulted in the layoff of thousands of nurses, leading to documented negative consequences for both nurses and patients. Nurses who remained employed experienced significant negative physical and emotional health, decreased job satisfaction, and decreased opportunity to provide quality care. To develop a theoretical model of the impact of hospital restructuring on nurses and determine the extent to which emotionally intelligent nursing leadership mitigated any of these impacts. The sample was drawn from all registered nurses in acute care hospitals in Alberta, Canada, accessed through their professional licensing body (N = 6,526 nurses; 53% response rate). Thirteen leadership competencies (founded on emotional intelligence) were used to create 7 data sets reflecting different leadership styles: 4 resonant, 2 dissonant, and 1 mixed. The theoretical model was then estimated 7 times using structural equation modeling and the seven data sets. Nurses working for resonant leaders reported significantly less emotional exhaustion and psychosomatic symptoms, better emotional health, greater workgroup collaboration and teamwork with physicians, more satisfaction with supervision and their jobs, and fewer unmet patient care needs than did nurses working for dissonant leaders. Resonant leadership styles mitigated the impact of hospital restructuring on nurses, while dissonant leadership intensified this impact. These findings have implications for future hospital restructuring, accountabilities of hospital leaders, the achievement of positive patient outcomes, the development of practice environments, the emotional health and well-being of nurses, and ultimately patient care outcomes.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, D.H.

In 1992 there were over 6,000 employees involved in defense related activities at the Y-12 Plant. By late 1994 the plant had undergone a dramatic change in operations including a reduction of the work force to less than 4,000 employees. That this major downsizing was accomplished without a layoff is a tribute to the combined efforts of the Y-12 employees, union leadership, the DOE, Martin Marietta and local and state governments. The keys to the success are: (1) the end of the Cold War and the potential impact was recognized early and a plan of action was developed and implemented,more » the plan was based on a total reorientation of the historical role and mode of operation of the plant; (2) everyone who had an interest in the outcome was invited to join in the planning; (3) the plan was developed and implemented as if no barriers to success existed; (4) opening about one-third of the classified portion of the Y-12 Plant as the initial activity was critical to the success of the plan. The historical opening of the gates was a major factor in convincing employees and a skeptical public that change could and would occur. As the debate on the future of the DOE weapons complex evolves it is clear that the Y-12 Plant will be a major contributor to improving productivity and the competitiveness of current and future industry in Tennessee and the country while continuing to provide unique expertise to support the nation`s nuclear weapons program.« less

The fiscal crisis in the health sector: Patterns of cutback management across Europe.

PubMed

Ongaro, Edoardo; Ferré, Francesca; Fattore, Giovanni

2015-07-01

The article investigates trends in health sector cutback management strategies occurred during the ongoing financial and fiscal crisis across Europe. A European-wide survey to top public healthcare managers was conducted in ten different countries to understand their perception about public sector policy reactions to the financial and economic crisis; answers from 760 respondents from the healthcare sector (30.7% response rate) were analyzed. A multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the characteristics of respondents, countries' institutional healthcare models and the trend in public health resources availability during the crisis associated to the decision to introduce unselective cuts, targeted cuts or efficiency savings measures. Differentiated responses to the fiscal crisis that buffeted public finances were reported both across and within countries. Organizational position of respondents is significant in explaining the perceived cutback management approach introduced, where decentralized positions detect a higher use of linear cuts compared to their colleagues working in central level organizations. Compared to Bismark-like systems Beveridge-like ones favour the introduction of targeted cuts. Postponing the implementation of new programmes and containing expenses through instruments like pay freezes are some of the most popular responses adopted, while outright staff layoffs or reduction of frontline services have been more selectively employed. To cope with the effects of the fiscal crisis healthcare systems are undergoing important changes, possibly also affecting the scope of universal coverage. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ontario pharmacists' crisis over Bill 16: A missed opportunity?

PubMed Central

Rosenthal, Meagen; Austin, Zubin; Tsuyuki, Ross T.

2012-01-01

Introduction: In 2010, the Ontario government brought forward Bill 16, which, among other things, removed pharmacists' professional allowances. While many would disagree with this unilateral action by the Ontario government, it also could have served as a crisis for change towards patient-centred care. We sought to examine the response of the pharmacy profession in Ontario to this crisis as it relates to the vision outlined in the Blueprint for Pharmacy. Methods: We systematically examined publicly available responses to Schedule 5 of Ontario's Bill 16 during the period from April to June 16, 2010. A rapid textual analysis of the data using tag or word clouds and a qualitative content analysis were performed on all of the data collected. Results: The rapid textual analysis revealed that the most frequently used terms were “pharmacist,” “pharmacy” and “professional allowances”; the least used were “layoffs,” “service cuts” and “patient care.” Content analysis revealed 4 themes: the desire to maintain the status quo of practice, a focus on the business of pharmacy, pharmacy stakeholders' perceptions of government's attitude towards the profession and changes to patient services. Discussion: It is notable that patient care was almost completely absent from the discussion, a reflection that our profession has not embraced patient-centred care. This also represents a missed opportunity — a crisis that could have been used to move the profession towards the Blueprint's vision. We thought that the Blueprint had already achieved this consensus, but the Ontario experience has shown that this may not be the case. PMID:23509486

The contribution of attenuated selection in utero to small-for-gestational-age (SGA) among term African American male infants.

PubMed

Goodman, Julia M; Karasek, Deborah; Anderson, Elizabeth; Catalano, Ralph A

2013-07-01

Natural selection conserves mechanisms allowing women to spontaneously abort gestations least likely to yield fit offspring. Small gestational size has been proposed as an indicator of fitness observable by maternal biology. Previous research suggests that exposure to ambient stress in utero results in more "culling" of small fetuses and therefore lower rates of small-for-gestational-age (SGA). However, African American women persistently have higher rates of SGA than non-Hispanic white women, despite experiencing more ambient stress. This paper tests whether attenuation of the stress response among highly stressed African American women, as suggested by the weathering hypothesis, may help to explain this apparent inconsistency. We apply time-series modeling to over 2 million African American and non-Hispanic white male term births in California over the period of January 1989 through December 2010. We test for the parabolic (i.e., "U" shaped) relationship, implied by an attenuated stress response, between unusually strong labor market contraction and the rate of SGA among African American term male infants, and a linear relationship among non-Hispanic whites. We find the hypothesized parabolic relationship among term male African American infants. As expected, we find a linear relationship between unexpected layoffs and the rate of SGA among term male non-Hispanic whites. These results are robust to sensitivity analyses. These results may help to explain the high rates of SGA among term male African American infants, despite greater maternal exposure to ambient stress during pregnancy. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The epidemiology of ankle injuries occurring in English Football Association academies.

PubMed

Cloke, D J; Spencer, S; Hodson, A; Deehan, D

2009-12-01

To ascertain the epidemiology of ankle injuries in elite youth football. Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected injury data from English Football Association (FA) academies. Forty-one FA football academies, between 1998 and 2006. For the complete seasons studied, a total of 14 776 players was registered from U9 to the U16 age category, a mean of 2463 players per year. All ankle injuries of sufficient severity to miss 48 h or more of training were studied, 2563 injuries in total. The incidence and burden of ankle injuries in this population and factors associated with injury. There was a mean incidence of one ankle injury per player per year, and a mean of 20 training days and two matches were missed per ankle injury. Increased injury rates were seen in older players, in competition and later in each half of match time. Peaks in injury were observed early in the season and after the winter break. In competition, more injuries were associated with a contact situation than in training. Eighty-eight injuries (3.4%) required a lay-off of 3 months or more and in 18 (0.7%) cases the player failed to return to training. In total, 52 290 training days and 5182 match appearances were lost through ankle injury. The majority of injuries were sprains, but more severe injuries occurred accounted for 3.9% of the total. Ankle injuries are common in young football players and are often severe, with prolonged loss of training time. This has potential far-reaching implications, both on and off the field.

Workforce planning and development in times of delivery system transformation.

PubMed

Pittman, Patricia; Scully-Russ, Ellen

2016-09-23

As implementation of the US Affordable Care Act (ACA) advances, many domestic health systems are considering major changes in how the healthcare workforce is organized. The purpose of this study is to explore the dynamic processes and interactions by which workforce planning and development (WFPD) is evolving in this new environment. Informed by the theory of loosely coupled systems (LCS), we use a case study design to examine how workforce changes are being managed in Kaiser Permanente and Montefiore Health System. We conducted site visits with in-depth interviews with 8 to 10 stakeholders in each organization. Both systems demonstrate a concern for the impact of change on their workforce and have made commitments to avoid outsourcing and layoffs. Central workforce planning mechanisms have been replaced with strategies to integrate various stakeholders and units in alignment with strategic growth plans. Features of this new approach include early and continuous engagement of labor in innovation; the development of intermediary sense-making structures to garner resources, facilitate plans, and build consensus; and a whole system perspective, rather than a focus on single professions. We also identify seven principles underlying the WFPD processes in these two cases that can aid in development of a new and more adaptive workforce strategy in healthcare. Since passage of the ACA, healthcare systems are becoming larger and more complex. Insights from these case studies suggest that while organizational history and structure determined different areas of emphasis, our results indicate that large-scale system transformations in healthcare can be managed in ways that enhance the skills and capacities of the workforce. Our findings merit attention, not just by healthcare administrators and union leaders, but by policymakers and scholars interested in making WFPD policies at a state and national level more responsive.

Talent management for the twenty-first century.

PubMed

Cappelli, Peter

2008-03-01

Most firms have no formal programs for anticipating and fulfilling talent needs, relying on an increasingly expensive pool of outside candidates that has been shrinking since it was created from the white-collar layoffs of the 1980s. But the advice these companies are getting to solve the problem--institute large-scale internal development programs--is equally ineffective. Internal development was the norm back in the 1950s, and every management-development practice that seems novel today was routine in those years--from executive coaching to 360-degree feedback to job rotation to high-potential programs. However, the stable business environment and captive talent pipelines in which such practices were born no longer exist. It's time for a fundamentally new approach to talent management. Fortunately, companies already have such a model, one that has been well honed over decades to anticipate and meet demand in uncertain environments: supply chain management. Cappelli, a professor at the Wharton School, focuses on four practices in particular. First, companies should balance make-versus-buy decisions by using internal development programs to produce most--but not all--of the needed talent, filling in with outside hiring. Second, firms can reduce the risks in forecasting the demand for talent by sending smaller batches of candidates through more modularized training systems in much the same way manufacturers now employ components in just-in-time production lines. Third, companies can improve their returns on investment in development efforts by adopting novel cost-sharing programs. Fourth, they should seek to protect their investments by generating internal opportunities to encourage newly trained managers to stick with the firm. Taken together, these principles form the foundation for a new paradigm in talent management: a talent-on-demand system.

Effects of illness and disability on job separation.

PubMed

Magee, William

2004-03-01

Effects of illness and disability on job separation result from both voluntary and involuntary processes. Voluntary processes range from the reasoned actions of workers who weigh illness and disability in their decision-making, to reactive stress-avoidance responses. Involuntary processes include employer discrimination against ill or disabled workers. Analyses of the effects of illness and disability that differentiate reasons for job separation can illuminate the processes involved. This paper reports on an evaluation of effects of illness and disability on job separation predicted by theories of reasoned action, stress, and employer discrimination against ill and disabled workers. Effects of four illness/disability conditions on the rate of job separation for 12 reasons are estimated using data from a longitudinal study of a representative sample of the Canadian population-the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID). Two of the four effects that are statistically significant (under conservative Bayesian criteria for statistical significance) are consistent with the idea that workers weigh illness and disability as costs, and calculate the costs and benefits of continuing to work with an illness or disability: (1) disabling illness increases the hazard of leaving a job in order to engage in caregiving, and (2) work-related disability increases the hazard of leaving a job due to poor pay. The other two significant effects indicate that: (3) disabling illness decreases the hazard of layoff, and (4) non-work disability increases the hazard of leaving one job to take a different job. This last effect is consistent with a stress-interruption process. Other effects are statistically significant under conventional criteria for statistical significance, and most of these effects are also consistent with cost-benefit and stress theories. Some effects of illness and disability are sex and age-specific, and reasons for the specificity of these effects are discussed.

After the layoffs, what next?

PubMed

Wetlaufer, S

1998-01-01

Harry Denton, the CEO in this fictional case study, has been caught off guard. As the head of Delarks, a venerable department-store chain in the Midwest, he has engineered a remarkable turn-around in only a year. Sales have rebounded, and Wall Street is applauding. Sure, a few trees were felled in the process--to make room for new growth, Denton had to clear out 3,000 pieces of what he privately refers to as "dead-wood"--but he'd saved the company. Didn't people understand that? Not exactly. When Delarks's head of merchandising defects to a competitor, Denton is shocked to realize that many of the survivors, in fact, have had it with him and with the company. The last straw was the recent closing of the Madison store, which Denton announced without warning to anyone--not even the company's head of HR, Thomas Wazinsky, a supposedly trusted adviser. In the wake of that coup, store employees from Wichita to Peoria are wondering, Are we next? The rumor mill says that many of them are considering leaving before Denton can inflict the next blow. And senior managers are not immune to the fear and anger. Even Wazinsky, one of the few links to Delarks's proud past, confesses to Denton, "I'll bet you're thinking of firing me." Denton has to act--and fast. He calls a "town meeting" for the 600 employees of the St. Paul store. The plan: rally the troops. Instead, Denton is routed. Angry questions are hurled at the CEO, and he is forced to beat a hasty retreat through the back door. Five experts offer advice on how to revive morale at the successful but troubled company.

Gilded and gelded. Hard-won lessons from the PR wars.

PubMed

Martin, Dick

2003-10-01

A golden statue of a winged youth once perched on the roof of AT&T's old headquarters. But when AT&T lowered the 24-foot-high statue for regilding so that it could be placed in the company's new headquarters, the chairman was shocked to discover that the figure was anatomically correct. So he decreed that it also be gelded. The altered "Golden Boy" thus became a metaphor for AT&T's recent embattled history, and it serves as a cautionary symbol for all companies operating in today's brutal business environment, where perception can be as important as reality. While image consultants and executives work to gild a company's image, special interest groups and the media can geld a company with countless little cuts. The author, a former executive vice president of public relations for AT&T, provides an insider's view of some of the company's most painful public-relations scrapes. They include the collapse of two apparent CEO succession plans, AT&T's inability to meet heightened expectations after Mike Armstrong was appointed CEO, and the racially charged furor over a cartoon in an employee publication. The author offers four lessons: Don't become hypnotized by your own buzz; understand the way the business media think; address the needs of all your stakeholders; and be sensitive to the possible emotional resonance of what appear to be straightforward facts. To illustrate the final point, the author mentions AT&T's elimination of 40,000 jobs in 1996. Wall Street was impressed, but NBC's Tom Brokaw said the workforce reduction might signal "another long, anxious year for the American middle class." No rational argument from AT&T could overcome the layoffs' symbolic impact. Wounded but wiser after numerous public-relations battles, the company eventually learned to stop aggregating job-reduction information for the media.

How Fleet Bank fought employee flight.

PubMed

Nalbantian, Haig R; Szostak, Anne

2004-04-01

In the late 1990s, Fleet Bank was facing high and rising employee turnover, particularly in its retail operations. Overall turnover had reached 25% annually, and among some groups, such as tellers and customer service reps, turnover was as high as 40%. Using a new methodology developed by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Fleet set out to determine why so many employees were leaving and what could be done to retain them. It began examining data from HR, finance, operations, and sales about employee behavior and the factors that influence it in different locations and labor markets, departments or work groups, in positions with different pay and benefits, and under different supervisors. Fleet's analysis showed that people were leaving not so much for better pay--their personal testimony notwithstanding--but for broader experience, which they thought would enhance their marketability. Additionally, the analysis revealed a link between the turnover problem and the company's busy history of mergers and acquisitions. Fleet's mergers and acquisitions. frequently meant that it had to consolidate operations. That consolidation resulted in layoffs, which provoked higher levels of voluntary turnover, perhaps because remaining employees began worrying about their job security. While the obvious solution to the turnover problem might have been to compensate the remaining employees--say, with higher pay--the more effective and less costly solution, Fleet discovered, was to focus on employees' career opportunities within the company. Those who moved up the hierarchy, or who even made lateral moves, stayed longer. By offering better internal opportunities for career development, the bank was able to stanch much of the hemorrhaging in personnel. Its solutions required only modest investments, which in the end saved the company millions of dollars.

Occupational health and health care in Russia and Russian Arctic: 1980–2010

PubMed Central

Dudarev, Alexey A.; Odland, Jon Øyvind

2013-01-01

Background There is a paradox in Russia and its Arctic regions which reports extremely low rates of occupational diseases (ODs), far below those of other socially and economically advanced circumpolar countries. Yet, there is widespread disregard for occupational health regulations and neglect of basic occupational health services across many industrial enterprises. Study design and methods This review article presents official statistics and summarises the results of a search of peer-reviewed scientific literature published in Russia on ODs and occupational health care in Russia and the Russian Arctic, within the period 1980–2010. Results Worsening of the economic situation, layoff of workers, threat of unemployment and increased work load happened during the “wild market” industrial restructuring in 1990–2000, when the health and safety of workers were of little concern. Russian employers are not legally held accountable for neglecting safety rules and for underreporting of ODs. Almost 80% of all Russian industrial enterprises are considered dangerous or hazardous for health. Hygienic control of working conditions was minimised or excluded in the majority of enterprises, and the health status of workers remains largely unknown. There is direct evidence of general degradation of the occupational health care system in Russia. The real levels of ODs in Russia are estimated to be at least 10–100 times higher than reported by official statistics. The low official rates are the result of deliberate hiding of ODs, lack of coverage of working personnel by properly conducted medical examinations, incompetent management and the poor quality of staff, facilities and equipment. Conclusions Reform of the Russian occupational health care system is urgently needed, including the passing of strong occupational health legislation and their enforcement, the maintenance of credible health monitoring and effective health services for workers, improved training of occupational health personnel, protection of sanitary-hygienic laboratories in industrial enterprises, and support for research assessing occupational risk and the effectiveness of interventions. PMID:23519691

Relationships between impact on employment, working conditions, socio-occupational categories and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder after the industrial disaster in Toulouse, France.

PubMed

Diene, Eloi; Agrinier, Nelly; Albessard, Artus; Cassadou, Sylvie; Schwoebel, Valerie; Lang, Thierry

2012-08-01

The aims of this paper were (1) to analyze the prevalence of symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (S-PTSD) in a population of workers 1 year after an industrial disaster; and (2) to assess the role of factors of vulnerability such as the occupational impact of a disaster and economic conditions. A cross-sectional survey assessing the relationships between socio-occupational category, impact on employment and S-PTSD was conducted by the self-administered impact of event scale-revised. The prevalence of S-PTSD in workers in the peripheral zone (<3 km around the explosion site) was 12% in men and 18% in women. Factors significantly associated with S-PTSD in men were non-managerial socio-occupational category: employees (ORa = 4.3; [2.3; 7.8]), factory workers/laborers (ORa = 3.7; [1.8; 7.6]), intermediate professions (ORa = 3.3; [1.9; 5.9]), and artisans (ORa = 3; [1.3; 7.7]); and layoff (ORa = 2.6; [1.5; 4.5]) or unusable workplace after the explosion (ORa = 1.8; [1.1; 2.8]). In women, factors significantly associated with S-PTSD were the socio-occupational categories of employees and factory workers (ORa = 2.2; [1.4; 3.5]), artisans (ORa = 2.7; [1.3; 5.7]) and intermediate professions, (ORa = 1.5; [1; 2.3]) and reporting of an occupational accident (ORa = 1.5; [1.1; 2.2]). Impact on the workplace and socioeconomic conditions were associated with S-PTSD. The epidemiological approach in disaster situations needs to be improved, particularly in the social and occupational dimension when economically active populations are involved. Vulnerable subgroups, defined by occupational impact and low socioeconomic category, should be taken into account.

Occupational health and health care in Russia and Russian Arctic: 1980-2010.

PubMed

Dudarev, Alexey A; Odland, Jon Øyvind

2013-01-01

There is a paradox in Russia and its Arctic regions which reports extremely low rates of occupational diseases (ODs), far below those of other socially and economically advanced circumpolar countries. Yet, there is widespread disregard for occupational health regulations and neglect of basic occupational health services across many industrial enterprises. This review article presents official statistics and summarises the results of a search of peer-reviewed scientific literature published in Russia on ODs and occupational health care in Russia and the Russian Arctic, within the period 1980-2010. Worsening of the economic situation, layoff of workers, threat of unemployment and increased work load happened during the "wild market" industrial restructuring in 1990-2000, when the health and safety of workers were of little concern. Russian employers are not legally held accountable for neglecting safety rules and for underreporting of ODs. Almost 80% of all Russian industrial enterprises are considered dangerous or hazardous for health. Hygienic control of working conditions was minimised or excluded in the majority of enterprises, and the health status of workers remains largely unknown. There is direct evidence of general degradation of the occupational health care system in Russia. The real levels of ODs in Russia are estimated to be at least 10-100 times higher than reported by official statistics. The low official rates are the result of deliberate hiding of ODs, lack of coverage of working personnel by properly conducted medical examinations, incompetent management and the poor quality of staff, facilities and equipment. Reform of the Russian occupational health care system is urgently needed, including the passing of strong occupational health legislation and their enforcement, the maintenance of credible health monitoring and effective health services for workers, improved training of occupational health personnel, protection of sanitary-hygienic laboratories in industrial enterprises, and support for research assessing occupational risk and the effectiveness of interventions.

Female employment and the social reproduction of the Puerto Rican working class.

PubMed

Safa, H I

1984-01-01

The rapid industrialization, migration and urbanization processes in Puerto Rico since 1940 have been responsible for the increase in the rate of female employment from 22.1% in 1960 to 27.8% in 1980, while the rate of male employment has fallen. This rise in female employment is significant in an era of growing unemployment and economic crises. There is a tendency for management to prefer young, single women workers over the older, married or formerly married women. The former tend to be better educated, work harder, complain less and are likely to be burdened with household or childcare responsibilities, which can lead to fatigue or even absenteism on the job. Their strong background in patriarchal rural traditions makes it easier for them to accept the authority of thier employers without question. With a knowledge that they can find other, similar work, the younger women are not troubled by plant problems such as production cutbacks, and layoffs. Their primary concern is not job stability, but money, which is used for future plans which include marriage, children and a new home. In contrast, older women view job security as more important. Their years of being in the labor force and the sense of self worth they have acquired as a result of it, tend to make them critical of authority. The contribution of working women to the household economy in Puerto Rican working class families varies with age and marital status. Older, married and formerly married women carry a heavier financial burden, assume a larger share of household responsibilities, and are often the sole supporters of their families. Younger women usually share their responsibilities with a relatively large number of siblings. Export-led industrialization has contributed to male outmigration from Puerto Rico, but as women lose their factory jobs due the factories being relocaged elsewhere as part of Operation Bootstrap, women too may join the migration flows.

Evidence for a dose-response relationship between occupational noise and blood pressure.

PubMed

Talbott, E O; Gibson, L B; Burks, A; Engberg, R; McHugh, K P

1999-01-01

In this study, we investigated the role of occupational noise exposure and blood pressure among workers at 2 plants. A noise-exposed plant (plant 1, > or = 89 dBA) and a less-noise-exposed plant (plant 2, < or = 83 dBA) were chosen. Exposure was based on department-wide average noise measures; on the basis of job location and adjusting for layoffs during their employment at the plant, a cumulative time-weighted average noise level was calculated for each worker. The study population comprised 329 males in plant 1 and 314 males in plant 2. Their ages ranged from 40 to 63 y (mean ages = 49.6 and 48.7, respectively), and they had worked at least 15 y at the plant. The clinical examination was administered prior to the workday and measured height, weight, pulse, and blood pressure. In addition, we noted medical and personal-habits histories, including alcohol intake and cigarette smoking patterns. We used a questionnaire to determine in-depth occupation, military history, noisy hobbies, and family history of hypertension. When individuals who took blood-pressure medication were removed from the analysis, t tests for differences in average blood pressure between plants showed a mean systolic blood pressure of 123.3 mm Hg in plant 1 versus 120.8 mm Hg in plant 2 (p = .06) and a mean diastolic blood pressure of 80.3 mm Hg versus 77.8 mm Hg in Plant 1 and 2, respectively (p = .014). On the basis of data from the combined plants, multivariate analysis revealed that age, body mass index, cumulative noise exposure, current use of blood pressure medications, and alcohol intake were significant predictors for systolic blood pressure. Cumulative noise exposure was a significant predictor of diastolic blood pressure in plant 1 but not in plant 2, possibly reflecting a threshold effect.

A narrative review on the effect of economic downturns on the nursing labour market: implications for policy and planning

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Economic downturns and recession lead to budget cuts and service reductions in the healthcare sector which often precipitate layoffs and hiring freezes. Nurses, being the largest professional group in healthcare, are strongly affected by cost reductions. Economic downturns destabilize the nursing labour market with potential negative outcomes, including serious shortages, extending beyond the recessionary period. The objectives of this manuscript are to provide an overview of the potential short- and long-run impact of economic downturns on the supply and demand of nurses, and present healthcare decision makers with a framework to enhance their ability to strategically manage their human resources through economic cycles. A narrative review of the literature on the effects of economic downturns on the nursing labour market in developed countries was carried out with a special focus on studies offering a longitudinal examination of labour force trends. Analysis indicates that economic downturns limit the ability of public payers and institutions to finance their existing health workforce. As salaried healthcare workers, nurses are especially susceptible to institutional budget cuts. In the short run, economic downturns may temporarily reduce the demand for and increase the supply of nurses, thereby influencing nursing wages and turnover rates. These effects may destabilise the nursing labour market in the long run. After economic downturns, the market would quickly display the pre-recessionary trends and there may be serious demand–supply imbalances resulting in severe shortages. Potential long-term effects of recession on the nursing labour market may include a downsized active workforce, difficulty in retaining younger nurses, a decreased supply of nurses and workforce casualisation. Lack of understanding of labour market dynamics and trends might mislead policy makers into making misinformed workforce downsizing decisions that are often difficult and expensive to reverse. In the aftermath of an economic downturn, the costs of attracting nurses back often outweigh the short term cost savings. Effective management should support the nursing workforce by creating attractive and stable work environments to retain nurses at a manageable cost. PMID:22905739

“The 3/3 Strategy”: A Successful Multifaceted Hospital Wide Hand Hygiene Intervention Based on WHO and Continuous Quality Improvement Methodology

PubMed Central

Mestre, Gabriel; Berbel, Cristina; Tortajada, Purificación; Alarcia, Margarita; Coca, Roser; Gallemi, Gema; Garcia, Irene; Fernández, Mari Mar; Aguilar, Mari Carmen; Martínez, José Antonio; Rodríguez-Baño, Jesús

2012-01-01

Background Only multifaceted hospital wide interventions have been successful in achieving sustained improvements in hand hygiene (HH) compliance. Methodology/Principal Findings Pre-post intervention study of HH performance at baseline (October 2007– December 2009) and during intervention, which included two phases. Phase 1 (2010) included multimodal WHO approach. Phase 2 (2011) added Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) tools and was based on: a) Increase of alcohol hand rub (AHR) solution placement (from 0.57 dispensers/bed to 1.56); b) Increase in frequency of audits (three days every three weeks: “3/3 strategy”); c) Implementation of a standardized register form of HH corrective actions; d) Statistical Process Control (SPC) as time series analysis methodology through appropriate control charts. During the intervention period we performed 819 scheduled direct observation audits which provided data from 11,714 HH opportunities. The most remarkable findings were: a) significant improvements in HH compliance with respect to baseline (25% mean increase); b) sustained high level (82%) of HH compliance during intervention; c) significant increase in AHRs consumption over time; c) significant decrease in the rate of healthcare-acquired MRSA; d) small but significant improvements in HH compliance when comparing phase 2 to phase 1 [79.5% (95% CI: 78.2–80.7) vs 84.6% (95% CI:83.8–85.4), p<0.05]; e) successful use of control charts to identify significant negative and positive deviations (special causes) related to the HH compliance process over time (“positive”: 90.1% as highest HH compliance coinciding with the “World hygiene day”; and “negative”:73.7% as lowest HH compliance coinciding with a statutory lay-off proceeding). Conclusions/Significance CQI tools may be a key addition to WHO strategy to maintain a good HH performance over time. In addition, SPC has shown to be a powerful methodology to detect special causes in HH performance (positive and negative) and to help establishing adequate feedback to healthcare workers. PMID:23110061

A narrative review on the effect of economic downturns on the nursing labour market: implications for policy and planning.

PubMed

Alameddine, Mohamad; Baumann, Andrea; Laporte, Audrey; Deber, Raisa

2012-08-20

Economic downturns and recession lead to budget cuts and service reductions in the healthcare sector which often precipitate layoffs and hiring freezes. Nurses, being the largest professional group in healthcare, are strongly affected by cost reductions. Economic downturns destabilize the nursing labour market with potential negative outcomes, including serious shortages, extending beyond the recessionary period. The objectives of this manuscript are to provide an overview of the potential short- and long-run impact of economic downturns on the supply and demand of nurses, and present healthcare decision makers with a framework to enhance their ability to strategically manage their human resources through economic cycles.A narrative review of the literature on the effects of economic downturns on the nursing labour market in developed countries was carried out with a special focus on studies offering a longitudinal examination of labour force trends. Analysis indicates that economic downturns limit the ability of public payers and institutions to finance their existing health workforce. As salaried healthcare workers, nurses are especially susceptible to institutional budget cuts. In the short run, economic downturns may temporarily reduce the demand for and increase the supply of nurses, thereby influencing nursing wages and turnover rates. These effects may destabilise the nursing labour market in the long run. After economic downturns, the market would quickly display the pre-recessionary trends and there may be serious demand-supply imbalances resulting in severe shortages. Potential long-term effects of recession on the nursing labour market may include a downsized active workforce, difficulty in retaining younger nurses, a decreased supply of nurses and workforce casualisation.Lack of understanding of labour market dynamics and trends might mislead policy makers into making misinformed workforce downsizing decisions that are often difficult and expensive to reverse. In the aftermath of an economic downturn, the costs of attracting nurses back often outweigh the short term cost savings. Effective management should support the nursing workforce by creating attractive and stable work environments to retain nurses at a manageable cost.

Epidemiological and clinical outcome comparison of indirect ('strain') versus direct ('contusion') anterior and posterior thigh muscle injuries in male elite football players: UEFA Elite League study of 2287 thigh injuries (2001-2013).

PubMed

Ueblacker, Peter; Müller-Wohlfahrt, Hans-Wilhelm; Ekstrand, Jan

2015-11-01

Data regarding direct athletic muscle injuries (caused by a direct blunt or sharp external force) compared to indirect ones (without the influence of a direct external trauma) are missing in the current literature--this distinction has clinical implications. To compare incidence, duration of absence and characteristics of indirect and direct anterior (quadriceps) and posterior thigh (hamstring) muscle injuries. 30 football teams and 1981 players were followed prospectively from 2001 until 2013. The team medical staff recorded individual player exposure and time-loss injuries. Muscle injuries were defined as indirect or direct according to their injury mechanism. In total, 2287 thigh muscle injuries were found, representing 25% of all injuries. Two thousand and three were valid for further analysis, of which 88% were indirect and 12% direct. The incidence was eight times higher for indirect injuries (1.48/1000 h) compared to direct muscle injuries (0.19/1000 h) (p<0.01). Indirect muscle injuries caused 19% of total absence, and direct injuries 1%. The mean lay-off time for indirect injuries amounted to 18.5 days and differed significantly from direct injuries which accounted for 7 days (p<0.001). 60% of indirect injuries and 76% of direct injuries occurred in match situations. Foul play was involved in 7% of all thigh muscle injuries, as well as in 2% of indirect injuries and 42% of direct injuries. Muscle anterior and posterior thigh injuries in elite football are more frequent than have been previously described. Direct injuries causing time loss are less frequent than indirect ones, and players can usually return to full activity in under half the average time for an indirect injury. Foul play is involved in 7.5% of all thigh muscle injuries. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Determinants of job turnover of young men and women in the United States: a hazard rate analysis.

PubMed

Donohue, J J

1988-01-01

Hazard models were used to examine the expected job tenure of male and female entrants to the full-time labor force after they appear to have completed their full-time education. Other analysts who have examined the relative quit rates of men and women have not limited their analyses to the 1st job, but they have implicitly assumed that hazard rates from 1st jobs are completely representative of hazard rates from any random nth job. This is 1 of the most important and questionable aspects of their implicit assumption that job terminations can be treated in semi-Markov processes. The basic goal is to analyze the hazard rates for a set of workers who have in some sense terminated their primary tie to education and have shifted toward a primary commitment to the labor force. The compilation of the durations of 1st full-time (20 or more hours/week) jobs yielded a sample of 1431 men and 1527 women. Female workers on average had about a half-year less education than the men: 12.47 years compared to 12.89 years. The percentage of workers with less than a high school education was similar for men (18.1%) and women (18.6%). The percentage of workers with 18 or more years of education was almost 6 times as high for men as for women: 2.73% versus 0.46%. The racial composition of the sample reflected the higher labor force participation rates of black women over white women. For the male sample, 73.2% of the workers were white and 25.7% were black. For the female sample, 70.7% were white and 28.3% were black. For the period 1968-71, female full-time workers quit their 1st job after completing school at substantially higher rates than male workers. This finding was robust to several different model specifications and selection criteria, as well as to estimations with and without duration dependence and with and without corrections for unobserved heterogeneity. While changes were not marked, increasing the definition of full-time employment from 20-30 hours reduced overall quit rates and tended to widen the tenure gap between men and women workers. Treating layoffs as completed spells of work raised overall quit rates and tended to narrow slightly the male-female tenure differential. Also contrary to the other microdata studies, the following were among the results: increased education had a significant and negative effect on quitting for both men and women; the unemployment rate had a significant, negative effect on quit rates for men; the hazard rates for women did not decline monotonically with duration but increased sharply after 18 months; and nonwhites did not have lower rates than whites.

Are physical performance and injury risk in a professional soccer team in match-play affected over a prolonged period of fixture congestion?

PubMed

Carling, C; Le Gall, F; Dupont, G

2012-01-01

In this study, the effects of a prolonged period of fixture congestion (8 successive official matches in 26 days) on physical performance and injury risk and severity in a professional soccer team were investigated. Computerised motion-analysis was used to analyse the overall distance covered and that run at light- (0.0-11.0 km·h - 1); low- (11.1-14.0 km·h - 1); moderate- (14.1-19.7 km·h - 1) and high-intensities (≥19.8 km·h - 1) for the team as a whole. Distances were measured in metres per minute. Information on match injuries was recorded prospectively. The overall distance covered varied across successive matches (p<0.001) as more distance was run in games 4 and 7 compared to 2 and 3, respectively (126.6 ± 12.3 m·min - 1 and 125.0 ± 13.2 m·min - 1 vs. 116.0 ± 8.0 m·min - 1 and 115.5 ± 11.0 m·min - 1). Distance run in light-intensity exercise also varied (p<0.001) as more distance was covered in game 4 vs. 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 (75.5 ± 3.8 m·min - 1 vs. 70.6 ± 2.4 m·min - 1, 71.8 ± 3.4 m·min - 1, 69.3 ± 2.6 m·min - 1, 71.5 ± 3.1 m·min - 1, and 70.3 ± 2.8 m·min - 1) and in game 8 vs. game 3 (73.1 ± 3.8 vs. 69.3 ± 2.6 m·min - 1), respectively. When comparing match halves, there were no differences across games in overall or high-intensity distance covered and performance in these measures was similar for matches played before, during and after this period. Globally, no difference over the 8 games combined was observed between the reference team and opponents in any of the performance measures whereas the overall distance covered and that in low- (both p<0.001) and high-intensity running (p=0.040) differed in individual games. The incidence of match injury during the congested fixture period was similar to rates reported outside this period but the mean lay-off duration of injuries was substantially shorter during the former (p<0.05). In summary, while the overall distance run and that covered at lower intensities varied across games, high-intensity running performance and injury risk were generally unaffected during a prolonged period of fixture congestion. These results might be linked to squad rotation and post-match recovery strategies in place at the present club. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Lessons learned from the 12 May 2008 Wenchuan earthquake: Impact on industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krausmann, E.; Cruz, A. M.; Affeltranger, B.

2009-04-01

The earthquake that shook Wenchuan County in China's Sichuan Province on 12 May 2008 was a major event with a moment magnitude of MW = 7.9 and a depth of only 19 km. It caused a fault rupture of 270 km length and affected a total area of about 500,000 km2. With the intensity reaching XI in the region near the epicentre and peak ground acceleration values as high as 0.63g the earthquake killed almost 70,000 people, injured over 374,000 and rendered 5,000,000 homeless. Over 18,000 are still listed as missing. Prior to the earthquake the area was considered a region of moderate seismicity with a design intensity of 7. Sichuan Province is home to a significant proportion of Chinese chemical and nuclear industry and consequently has a very strong economy. The direct economic loss due to the earthquake amounts to over 1.1 billion Euros. In addition to economic damage there is also concern about earthquake-triggered damage to and destruction of industrial facilities housing or processing hazardous substances and the potential consequences of their release to man or the environment. In order to understand how well the chemical industry fared in the earthquake-affected areas a reconnaissance field trip was organised from 15-21 November, 2008, which included visits to industry in Deyang, Shifang, Mianzhu, Mianyang, Anxian and Dujiangyan. In total we collected information on earthquake effects at 18 industrial facilities. Lessons learned from this reconnaissance field trip confirm the devastating consequences that natural disasters can have on industrial facilities. In addition to casualties and environmental harm the economic losses due to damage, prolonged shut-down periods and business interruption are often ruinous and may result in lay-off of workers. In the case of the visited facilities the shut-down time was up to 6 months. Two facilities were damaged beyond repair and have resulted in significant ammonia, sulphuric acid and other releases that in addition to polluting a river also necessitated the evacuation of 6,000 residents. The main cause of worker death and injury was the collapse of warehouses, office and manufacturing buildings. This concerned mostly concrete structures with insufficient confinement or poor reinforcement that could not withstand the earthquake loads. The falling debris resulted in equipment damage and loss, as well as pipe severing and crushing in buildings housing machinery. This was brought about either by direct debris impact or by support failure inside buildings. Pipes were also severed, bent or crushed outside of structures when connected tanks were displaced or buildings collapsed, although in many cases anchoring proved to be effective in avoiding displacement. Pipe support concrete columns in the open generally performed well. In some sites soil-liquefaction induced damage was evident, highlighting the need to consider potential site effects when selecting the location for a facility.

Sexually transmitted infections: prevention and management.

PubMed

Jackson, Denis; Dallabetta, Gina; Steen, Richard

2004-02-01

In the early 21st century, STI and HIV have been linked inextricably. Although the focus of this article is STI, some discussion on the diagnosis and management of individuals with HIV infection is necessary. The history of HIV diagnosis in the workplace is checkered. The authors have seen cases of prospective workers being subjected to HIV testing without their knowledge as part of a pre-employment medical examination. If the test came back positive, the men were told that they would not be employed without explanation. This approach is a breech of the human rights of the individual being tested and cannot be condoned. Any HIV testing must be done with the full and informed consent of the individual, with counseling given before and after testing to enable individuals with HIV infection to seek care and protect their families and to give individuals without HIV infection counseling on risk reduction. Men and women who present with an STI are at risk for HIV infection. With increasing options for management and secondary prevention, it is important to recognize people who are at risk. This identification should be done through HIV VCT. The location, funding, and supervision of VCT sites related to workplace populations should be a subject for serious debate. Although fears of mass layoffs after HIV testing largely have been unfounded, it is natural for workers to be fearful, unless there is a clearly articulated policy stating that the company observes and enforces nondiscriminatory practices. The workplace examples show that syndromic STI management, allied to comprehensive prevention programs, can have a genuine and measurable impact on STI prevalence. The potential interventions and partners are listed in Table 2. A community-based, randomized study in Tanzania showed that the institution of a well-managed STI syndromic management program can reduce HIV incidence by up to 40%, in the context of a rising HIV epidemic. Presumptive STI treatment for female sex workers (see Box 1) may prove useful as a short-term measure to reduce high STI prevalence rates while more sustainable preventive and curative services are established. The laboratory diagnosis of STIs remains problematic in the face of commonly available technologies of limited sensitivity and specificity and often substandard quality-assurance practices. For these and other reasons, syndromic management became the recommended strategy for treating STIs. The availability of rapid, accurate, and inexpensive diagnostics, especially for cervical infections for women, would alter management recommendations. Work is being done by the WHO and others to develop and assess low-cost diagnostics. Managing STIs and altering the behavior that leads to STIs are essential elements of any HIV prevention and management program. The issues surrounding a practical, compassionate, and comprehensive HIV program can be difficult. Numerous publications exist to help program managers navigate these issues and appropriately tailor a program to the needs of individual organizations. Some of these publications are listed in the next section.

Job loss, retirement and the mental health of older Americans.

PubMed

Mandal, Bidisha; Roe, Brian

2008-12-01

Millions of older individuals cope with physical limitations, cognitive changes, and various losses such as bereavement that are commonly associated with aging. Given increased vulnerability to various health problems during aging, work displacement might exacerbate these due to additional distress and to possible changes in medical coverage. Older Americans are of increasing interest to researchers and policymakers due to the sheer size of the Baby Boom cohort, which is approaching retirement age, and due to the general decline in job security in the U.S. labor market. This research compares and contrasts the effect of involuntary job loss and retirement on the mental health of older Americans. Furthermore, it examines the impact of re-employment on the depressive symptoms. There are two fundamental empirical challenges in isolating the effect of employment status on mental health. The first is to control for unobserved heterogeneity--all latent factors that could impact mental health so as to establish the correct magnitude of the effect of employment status. The second challenge is to verify the direction of causality. First difference models are used to control for latent effects and a two-stage least squares regression is used to account for reverse causality. We find that involuntary job loss worsens mental health, and re-employment recaptures the past mental health status. Retirement is found to improve mental health of older Americans. With the use of longitudinal data from the Health and Retirement Study surveys and the adoption of proper measures to control for the possibility of reverse causality, this study provides strong evidence of elevating depressive symptoms with involuntary job displacement even after controlling for other late-life events. Women suffer from greater distress levels than men after job loss due to business closure or lay-off. However, women also exhibit better psychological well-being than men following retirement. The present study is the first to report that the re-employment of involuntary job-loss sufferers leads to a recapturing of past mental health status. Additionally, we find that re-entering the labor force is psychologically beneficial to retirees as well. It is well established that out-of-pocket expenditures on all forms of health care for seniors with self-diagnosed depression significantly exceeds expenditures for seniors with other common ailments such as hypertension and arthritis in the U.S. Thus, our research suggests that re-employment of older Americans displaced from the labor force will be cost-effective with regard to personal mental health outcomes. That re-employment of involuntary job loss sufferers leads to a recapturing of past mental health status illuminates one potential policy trade off - increased resources dedicated to job training and placement for older U.S. workers could reap benefits with regard to reduced private and public mental health expenditures. Further research could more clearly assess the degree to which the mental health benefits of employment among older Americans would warrant the expansion of job training and employment programs aimed at this group.