By Jim Hopkinson

When the pilgrims sat down for that first Thanksgiving meal in Plymouth, they had certainly spent many more hours gathering the corn and preparing the turkey than we do these days. We have plenty of conveniences that make cooking the perfect meal easier. Let’s just say there was no canned cranberry sauce, ready-made pie crust, or microwave oven to heat up those leftovers.

By Lydia Dishman, PayScale.com

For Generation Y, access to the Web is as essential as air, water, food and shelter.

According to the 2011 Cisco Systems “Connected World Technology Report,” a whopping one of every three college students and employees surveyed globally believes the Internet is a fundamental resource. So it’s no surprise that having access to Facebook and Twitter is considered essential when deciding on where they’ll work. More than 40 percent of young adults surveyed worldwide said they would accept a job offer for less money if they had more access to social media at work.

Do you have a profile on LinkedIn? If not, I highly recommend it. There are plenty of ways for professionals to use LinkedIn to grow their careers and their paychecks. Whether you’re looking to switch jobs, improve your professional network or hire fresh talent, it’s important that you get familiar with LinkedIn.

By Bridget Quigg

Whether they manage every minute of your day or disappear most afternoons to “lunch meetings,” you know one thing for sure about your boss. He or she probably makes more money than you do. How much more? It depends on your gig.

Online salary database PayScale.com put together a list of common boss-subordinate relationships and calculated the earnings differences. Chances are your boss is doing well financially.

By Bridget Quigg, PayScale.com

What can you do before the end of the year to set yourself up for a higher salary? We asked Jim Hopkinson, author of "Salary Tutor: Learn the Salary Negotiaton Secrets No One Ever Taught You," this question. From how to prepare for a conversation with your boss to handling that initial “no,” he guides you through your must-do salary negotiation homework before Dec. 31, 2011.

By Bridget Quigg, PayScale

Where can veterans find work? The answer to this question is on many people's minds this Veterans Day. Between the announcement that all U.S. troops stationed in Iraq for the war should be home by 2012, and the recent signing of the federal employer tax credit for hiring veterans, the government and employers are focused on getting our military men and women quickly integrated into the civilian workforce. 

By Denene Brox

It’s a rare employee who isn’t guilty of a little slacking off every now and then. A Facebook status update here, a little discussion of last night’s 30 Rock there. And then there’s the time spent shopping online for a gift for your mother’s birthday, and the time spent on the phone dealing with personal issues.

October 26^th is “Least Productive Day” at work. We’ve done some sleuthing to find out how much time is really being wasted at work and tallied up how much money its costing companies in lost productivity.

Tips are a way of life for many service industry jobs. In fact, for some jobs tips make up over 50 percent of a worker's total take-home pay. During tough economic times these workers often suffer from a decrease in their tips, both due to a decrease in consumerism and to a decrease in generosity.

This is exactly what we found in our Tipping Study in 2009 -- the year after the beginning of The Great Recession, tips on average fell. However, the opposite is often true during good times. Tips rise as consumers feel their budgets loosen, causing both an increase in consumerism and a potential increase in generosity.

Today PayScale released our sixth annual Tipping Study, which highlights over 90 jobs that receive tips, the typical amount of these tips, the percent of total take-home pay from tips and the frequency of tips.

Do you work in a job where pay is dominated by tips and curious about how your pay compares to others like you? Find out with a free PayScale salary report.

By Bridget Quigg

Are you looking for work this holiday season? Need a little more jingle in your pocket?

We went out on to the streets and interviewed retail workers at some popular retail outlets - RadioShack, Gap, Sephora and more - that are hiring this holiday season. We tried to find out what it's like to work at these stores and how to get hired.

Every Friday we round up the salary trends, career stories and job news you may have missed this week.

The holiday season is right around the corner and many retailers have already started looking for temporary help. Seasonal jobs are a great way to earn extra income during the holidays but can have many other unexpected benefits, too.