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Posts Tagged ‘small business employment’


President Challenges Business to Hire Military Veterans

August 25th, 2011 ::

By Karen Axelton

Is your business looking to hire? Well, consider these numbers:

  • Some 1 million military veterans are unemployed.
  • Among veterans who joined the military post-9/11, the jobless rate is 13.3 percent.
  • More than 1 million more service members are projected to leave the military between 2011 and 2016.

These numbers are the reason the White House has proposed new tax incentives for businesses that hire military veterans, and has launched other initiatives to help veterans find jobs. Here’s what President Obama has proposed:

Returning Heroes and Wounded Warrior Tax Credits: Under the Recovery Act, employers who hired certain unemployed veterans were eligible for a tax credit of up to 40 percent of the first $6,000 of wages, for a maximum credit of $2,400. This credit expired at the end of 2010. The President has proposed two new tax credits:

1)    A new Returning Heroes Tax Credit for firms that hire unemployed veterans (maximum credit of $2,400 for every short-term unemployed hire and $4,800 for every long-term unemployed hire)

2)     A Wounded Warriors Tax Credit that will increase the existing tax credit for firms that hire veterans with service-connected disabilities who have been unemployed long-term (maximum credit of $9,600 per veteran) and continue the existing credit for all other veterans with a service-connected disability (maximum credit of $4,800).

The White House estimates the cost of the tax incentive program to be $120 million over two years, depending on the number of hires.

A Challenge to the Private Sector: The President has challenged businesses to commit to hire hiring or training 100,000 unemployed veterans of their spouses by the end of  2013. Companies including Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, Accenture, JP Morgan and AT&T have already announced new commitments to training or employing veterans.

A Career-Ready Military: The Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs will lead a task force to develop reforms to ensure that every member of the service receives the training, education and credentials they need to transition to the civilian workforce or pursue higher education. This will include designing a “Reverse Boot Camp” that extends the transition period to better prepare veterans for private sector careers.

Transition to the Private Sector: The Department of Labor will establish a new initiative to provide better career development and job search services to transitioning veterans, and The Office of Personnel Management will create a “Best Practices” Manual for the private sector to help businesses identify and hire veterans.

With big business stepping up to the plate to help veterans transition back to civilian life, shouldn’t small business do the same? As President Obama noted in a recent speech, veterans gain a lot of skills that transition to the business world. And their leadership abilities can be especially valuable in a small business with a lean staff.

If you’re looking to hire veterans, the following job search sites are places to check out:

Image by Flickr user Denise Krebs (Creative Commons)

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Posted in Resources, Small Business, small business, Workforce | No Comments »

Using “Summer Hours” to Motivate Employees

July 19th, 2011 ::

By Karen Axelton

Does your business use “summer hours” to motivate or reward employees? A summer hours program, where employees enjoy shortened or altered workweeks during the summer months to give them more free time, can be a great way to make your staff happier and more productive with no cost to your business.

More productive, you say? How can that be when my employees are working shorter hours? Well, first of all, summer hours don’t necessarily involve a shorter workweek. Many companies add time on to the rest of the days of the week so that employees can leave early on Fridays, or have every other Friday off.

Even if you don’t take this approach, and you actually give your employees every other Friday off or every Friday afternoon off, you’re likely to find that employees are supercharged to get their work done before that magical Friday hour approaches. Consider the old saying “Work expands to fill the time available” and you’ll see why giving workers fewer hours often inspires them to make better use of the time they do have.

If you’re considering offering summer hours, here are some things to consider:

  • What type of scheduling does your business need? Summer hours need to be offered to all employees equally. If that won’t work for you, then you need to figure out a different type of summer reward.
  • How will you handle exceptions? Make it clear to employees that if an urgent or emergency situation arises, you might have to rescind summer hours one week.

Clearly, summer is well underway, but there’s still time to implement a plan for August—traditionally a slow time in many businesses. Tell your staff you are using August as a “test run” and if the plan works for your business, you will implement it in full next summer.

If you’re struggling with what type of summer schedule would work for your business, consider getting employees’ input—being on the front lines, they often have more insights into how to handle workflow.

Once you create your summer hours policy, be sure to communicate it to all employees so there are no misunderstandings. Make it clear that summer hours are a privilege, not a right, and that your policy will change back to standard hours if workers abuse the privilege.

Summer hours can be a great way to reward your staff, take some time off yourself and save money on utilities and other expenses.

Image by Flickr user Virtual Photography Studio (Creative Commons)

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Posted in Small Business, small business, Workforce | No Comments »

Small Biz Resource Tip: LinkedIn Recruiter

July 15th, 2011 ::

LinkedIn Recruiter

Your future star employee could be as close as your LinkedIn account if you use the social networking site’s talent recruiting services. LinkedIn Recruiter can help your search by making accessible a complete list of candidates that fit your job description based on location, industry and more. And when new candidates pop up, you’ll be the first to know. You can also collaborate with others in your business by sharing candidates’ information and keep track of your interaction with candidates. Coming soon: You’ll be able to add an “Apply with LinkedIn” button to your business website to direct interested candidates where to apply for a job.

 

 

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Posted in Resources, Small Business, small business, Workforce | No Comments »

Will They Stay or Will They Go? (Your Employees, That Is)

June 8th, 2011 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

Are your employees going to stay with your business as the economy improves and more job opportunities arise? This is a crucial consideration for small businesses, who can ill afford the time it takes to lose the knowledge of key employees, or to find and train new workers to replace them.

Recent findings from Deloitte’s Talent Edge 2020 survey series, which polled more than 350 employees at large companies worldwide, give some insights into employee attitudes toward the workforce. What interested me about this study is that it’s not just the state of the economy, but the generation of the worker, that is affecting their outlook about their jobs. In other words, employees in different age ranges have different frustrations and needs that will affect whether they stay with their current employers or attempt to leave.

Deloitte found that many companies are failing to address the critical needs and potential frustrations of their employees, and often do not have a realistic picture of how employees see them. Since this survey was targeted at big companies, this means opportunity for your business to address the issues that big firms are not.

The report found that employees aren’t waiting for things to improve—they are already actively testing the job market. Only 35% of employees surveyed expect to remain with their current employers, while nearly two out of three (65%) want to leave their current employers.

What are they looking for? Among employees surveyed who are actively or passively seeking out new employers, 53% say the prospect of job advancement or promotion would convince them to stay with their current employers. But there are some significant differences among generations when it comes to what triggers employees to stay or leave.

Baby Boomers expressed the greatest discontent with their employers. They were frustrated that their loyalty and hard work has been neither recognized nor rewarded. Nearly one-third (32%) of Baby Boomers also cited lack of trust in leadership as a key turnover trigger. In fact, this was their top-ranked reason to leave a job, and the highest percentage of any generation citing this issue.

While Boomers may be unhappy, Generation X employees are the most likely group to actually be considering exit from their current jobs. Only 28% of surveyed Gen Xers say they plan to stay with their current employers. What’s the biggest turnover trigger for them? Lack of career progress, cited by 65%. Generation X is at the time of life when they want to see forward movement.

Millennials’ idea of a good workplace differs sharply from the other generations. They are more likely to consider their employers’ commitment to “corporate responsibility/volunteerism” and a “fun work environment” important.

What do employees think of their workplace? Very few employees described their employers’ overall retention efforts as “world-class” or even “very good.” However, survey results show that employers who make an effort to keep their employees satisfied will be rewarded with employees who are far more likely to remain in their jobs.

Image by Flickr user mtellin (Creative Commons)

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Posted in Small Business, small business, Workforce | 2 Comments »

The Benefits of Employee Benefits

May 27th, 2011 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

With the economy improving, your employees are likely considering their job options for the first time in the last few years. If you’re worried about keeping key employees on board, attracting new employees to help you handle increased demand, or simply rewarding the employees who have worked hard for you during the recession, what employee benefits will have the best results?

The 2011 National Workplace Benefits Survey, recently released by HR consultancy Employers Group, surveyed more than 400 employers to determine the current state of employee benefits. Among the findings:

  • Despite the still-rocky economy, nearly 70 percent of companies do not plan to cut their benefit packages for employees in the coming year.
  • For those who are increasing benefits, the biggest focus is on health coverage, with 24 percent of companies planning to increase funding in that area.
  • Retaining employees is a key goal behind companies’ benefits strategies in 2011.

Companies offer benefits for a range of reasons, including:

  • Retain existing employees, 39 percent
  • Motivate existing employees, 25 percent
  • Attract new talent 19 percent
  • Reward existing employees, 17 percent

The survey also determined the most popular benefits offered by companies. Medical insurance, dental insurance and 401(k) or other retirement plans topped the list, all offered by more than 95 percent of companies. Also high on the list were life insurance, prescription drug coverage and vision coverage, offered by more than 90 percent of responding firms.

Clearly, medical coverage and retirement are big issues for employeesyou’re your company can’t afford to offer health care coverage, consider offering employees some type of financial assistance with health care, such as a monthly amount they can put toward the coverage of their choice. (Talk to your accountant about your options for providing health care coverage under the new health insurance laws.)

A big part of retaining employees for your small business is simply showing that you care. While formal employee assistance/counseling programs (which help with issues such as drug and alcohol addiction) were offered by more than 70 percent of responding companies, if this is too costly for your small company, simply being understanding of employees’ personal problems and accommodating their needs is sometimes all that’s required. (Talk to your attorney if an employee’s personal issues are affecting their work performance to a substantial degree.)

Finally, some of the desired and most popular benefits are ones that even small companies can often provide. A mobile phone or PDA was offered by 65 percent of companies—surprisingly low, if you ask me. A mobile phone/PDA can not only help your employees feel trusted and professional, but also benefits your business by helping them work more efficiently. And entertainment discounts, offered by more than 60 percent of companies, can often be negotiated with providers such as movie theaters and local amusement parks.

Last, but not least, some 48 percent of companies offered an education supplement. Paying for your staff’s continuing education is probably beyond your budget, but you can offer them opportunities for professional learning via industry seminars, webinars and conferences, which are sometimes low-cost or even free. Try saving money by sending one employee to a seminar or conference, then have him or her report back on what was learned and train coworkers.

Image by Flickr user Tess Watson (Creative Commons)

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Posted in Small Business, Workforce | 5 Comments »