Author: Bridget Quigg

Writer, editor, performer, musician and instructor Bridget Quigg is convinced that every person is a creative genius. Her goal is to get each person to believe that, too. Website: bridgetquigg.wordpress.com

Research Reports

On demand webinar

On demand webinar

What’s New in Payfactors – Webinar On-Demand

What’s New in Payfactors Webinar Recording Join us to learn about recent feature updates and releases in Payfactors! We’ve been hard at work updating Payfactors with exciting new features. Hear from Russ Wakelin, Chief Experience Officer, and Matt Maguire, Vice President of Customer Success as they dive into recent product enhancements and...

Building Your Compensation Calendar Webinar

Building Your Compensation Calendar Webinar Recording Join PayScale compensation professional Olga Hasty for a education webinar on how to build your compensation calendar. One of the questions we get most frequently from companies where compensation is becoming a larger part of their companies focus is when throughout the year makes the most...

Fundamentals of Compensation Customer Webinar

Fundamentals of Compensation Webinar Recording Join the PayScale Compensation Professionals team for a special education webinar on the Fundamentals of Compensation. Whether you are brand new to compensation or looking to brush up on the building blocks, this session is for you! Join us as we review the fundamentals of compensation. We...

PayScale Enterprise Virtual Lunch and Learn Insight Lab Prospect Webinar

Virtual Lunch and Learn: See How PayScale Insight Lab Helps You Manage Compensation Webinar – Tuesday, October 27th at 11:00 am Pacific Making the right compensation decisions is even more important during an economic recession. Access to the compensation data that moves in almost real time can help you make smart choices...

Test Simulated Webinar

Test Simulated Webinar Webinar – Thursday, September 24th at 11am Pacific. In 2019, only 3.6% of employees worked from home more than half the time. By the end of 2021, 25% – 30% of the workforce is predicted to work from home at least a few days a week. Are you ready...

PayScale Crowdsourced Data in MarketPay Webinar

PayScale Crowdsourced Data in MarketPay Webinar Recording Now, more than ever is the time for businesses to be strategic with their compensation dollars. With buzzwords like remote work, upskilling, and hazard pay in the ears of every compensation team it’s critical to have confidence in the data resources you’re using to price...

PAY COMMUNICATION E-COURSE Pay communication is critical in ensuring your employees feel valued and stay engaged. Whether you have a solid pay communication plan in place or are unsure of what it even entails, this 6-day e-course will help set your organization and employees up for long-term success. What’s in the e-course?...

How PayScale Customers are Navigating the Challenges of Remote Work and Comp Webinar

Adapt and Communicate: How PayScale Customers are Navigating the Challenges of Remote Work and Compensation Webinar – Friday, August 21st 11am PST The challenges that face HR and Comp professionals in the wake of COVID-19 and the economic recession and how to solve them are continuing to evolve. As we move into...

How PayScale Customers are Navigating the Challenges of Remote Work and Compensation Webinar

Adapt and Communicate: How PayScale Customers are Navigating the Challenges of Remote Work and Compensation Webinar Recording PayScale’s team of Compensation Professionals will share their insights from working with customers currently navigating the challenges of remote work and compensation. In the webinar, the PayScale Compensation Professionals team will discuss questions and approaches...

Insight Lab Informational July 2020 Webinar

Insight Lab Informational Session Webinar Recording Join the PayScale Customer Education Team for a special informational session on Insight Lab. With the majority of organizations using multiple sources of compensation data, and an increased focus on strategy and structure, having information easy to access is more important than ever. Insight Lab allows...

Making the Most of your Benchmark Subscription Webinar

Making the Most of your Benchmark Subscription Webinar Recording Join Laura Richardson from our Customer Education team and compensation professionals Olga Hasty and Miranda Longakor for a special session on making the most of your Benchmark subscription. We’ll plan to cover: Key reports and analytics Labor Market Analysis and a highlight on...

Making the Most of Your PayScale Insight Account Webinar

Making the Most of Your PayScale Insight Account Webinar Recording On June 25th, the PayScale Customer Education team hosted a special session on the Insight platform. We cover: Key analytics you might not have seen like Disparate Pay, Employee Pay to Market, and Labor Market Analysis Employee Compensation Reports Best practices Save...

Using Your PayScale Tools to Navigate Today’s Climate Webinar

Data-Driven Decisions: Using Your PayScale Tools to Navigate Today’s Climate Webinar Recording When most organizations set out to plan for 2020, few incorporated provisions for dealing with a global pandemic. If you did, kudos! But for rest of the world, many businesses are faced with difficult decisions to make and wondering where...

Join the CBPR Canada Mailing List PayScale’s Annual Compensation Best Practices Report (CBPR) is the largest compensation and benefits survey in North America with over 100 questions and responses from over 4,000 participants in 2019. The report is released in Q1, but a version that looks at just responses from companies headquartered...

THANK YOU Thanks for your interest in “Compensation Budgeting For Business Leaders” We’ve sent you an email with a link to the whitepaperor you can click on the button below to access it right away. READ IT NOW Book a Demo Wondering how to build a competitive compensation plan?Get a live demo...

Compensation Budgeting For Business Leaders Infographic

Compensation Budgeting For Business Leaders INFOGRAPHIC For executives, business growth is top of mind. So, how should executives and HR leaders align to design and execute a compensation budget built to take your organization to the next level? Dive into this data-packed infographic to learn: Where to focus your compensation budget The...

Performance Management Keys for Employee Retention Webinar

Be Open: Performance Management Keys for Employee Retention Webinar Recording Trust is the key ingredient for an effective manager-employee relationship because employees won’t bring their real concerns to someone they don’t trust. But it takes more than an annual review to build and keep the mutual trust that keeps employees working for...

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3 Ways to Win the War For Talent Webinar

3 Ways to Win the War For Talent Webinar Recording According to PayScale’s recent study, the top three reasons people took new jobs were: the opportunity to do more meaningful work (27 percent), increased responsibilities in role (17 percent) and increased pay (16 percent). When you’re looking to hire the best talent,...

3 Key Elements to Keeping High Performers Engaged Webinar

3 Key Elements to Keeping High Performers Engaged Webinar Recording A research study conducted by PayScale found that HR professionals plan to invest more in employee training and development than any other area in 2019. Why? Lack of career development opportunities is the number one reason employees are leaving their companies (HubSpot,...

Agile Compensation Software for the Modern Enterprise – Webinar

Webinar Recording- Agile Compensation Software for the Modern Enterprise Increasingly, your talent knows what it’s worth. To keep pace and effectively retain and motivate the skills that drive your business, requires smart, agile compensation strategies. PayScale Marketpay is purpose-built to help elevate comp teams output with innovative technology and market-leading service. Join...

Retaining PayScale Compensation Platform Overview Webinar

Webinar Recording – PayScale Compensation Platform Overview In today’s tight labor market, it’s critical that organizations understand what the market is paying for key skills and develop fair and competitive ranges for these positions. This requires that you have reliable pay data to inform your decisions, easy to use software to automate...

How to Conduct a Pay Equity Analysis Webinar

Webinar Recording – How to Conduct a Pay Equity Analysis Pay equity is a top concern for HR professionals in 2018. In the past couple of years, state and local legislators have ramped up requirements for employers to address the pay gap between men and women, and between white and minority employees....

What Strategic HR Really Means (and How to Achieve It) Webinar

Webinar Recording – What Strategic HR Really Means (and How to Achieve It) In the past, many organizations viewed HR as an afterthought, a chore, or even a hurdle to work around. Fortunately, times are changing. According to a 2016 study, 70 percent of HR leaders have increased the amount of time...

Defining your Compensation Philosophy Customer Webinar

Webinar – What Strategic HR Really Means (and How to Achieve It) Tuesday, July 24, 11am Pacific In the past, many organizations viewed HR as an afterthought, a chore, or even a hurdle to work around. Fortunately, times are changing. According to a 2016 study, 70 percent of HR leaders have increased...

How to Make Sure Your Employees Feel Valued Webinar

Webinar Recording – How to Make Sure Your Employees Feel Valued at Work We have a foundational human need to feel valued, to feel appreciated, to feel like what we do matters, and is recognized. In HR we talk about “total rewards” or “rewards and recognition”. We may use all sorts of...

Comp is a Team Sport Webinar

Webinar Recording – Comp Is a Team Sport: How to Help Managers Play the Game Organizations rely on managers to talk to employees about pay, yet many organizations don’t involve managers in setting pay for those they supervise, explain to managers the rationale behind how they make pay decisions, or train managers...

Gender Pay Gap Whitepaper

The State Of The Gender Pay Gap In 2018 WHITEPAPER In PayScale’s latest research on the gender pay gap, we’ll give you an overview on the current state of the pay gap, including data on how large the pay gap is, and how much the pay gap has shifted from 2016 onward....

PayScale Team Webinar

PayScale Team Time to Get Started With Team! Join our Implementation team and learn step-by-step how to prepare your employee data in PayScale Insight before your increase cycle in PayScale Team. The first 60-minute session will walk through the required templates needed to successfully sync your Insight and Team products. Our second...

Customer Webinars Webinar

PAYSCALE PRODUCT TRAINING Welcome! Payscale’s Education team is excited to share the following training resources, each designed to take your compensation and Payscale product knowledge to the next level. Choose from a variety of on-demand videos, help articles, and live webinars to better understand your Payscale tools and help you #getpayright! PRODUCT...

Insight 101 Webinar

PayScale Insight Introduction Time to Get Started With Insight! Same great content, with a new name. Insight 101 is now “Insight Introduction.” Join us for a web based interactive training on the Insight platform. This 60 minutes session will be especially valuable for users who are looking for an introduction and best...

Jobs That Pay $20 Per Hour

Ready for a gig that pays you $20 per hour? There are many options out there. And, of the following list of ten jobs, less than half require school beyond a high school diploma. See which skills you might already have or are interested in and get started. 1. Dry Wall Finisher...

Find a New Job Using LinkedIn

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....

The Secrets of Your Boss’ Salary

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...

Most Common Post-Military Jobs

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...

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What “Percent” Is Your Household?

In the worldwide effort to call forth the one percent of Americans who hold a disproportionate amount of our country’s wealth, the 99 percent stay united in a single group. But, if you are hard working college grad with a steady gig, especially if you’re in a dual-income household, you might be...

National Coffee Day: Highly Stressed Scientists Win

By Bridget Quigg Steamy, alluring and refreshing, coffee starts most workers' engines each morning. It helps us think brilliant thoughts and actually interact with workmates before noon. For one group of professionals, though, the highest coffee consumers on the job, it may be the difference between fuctioning or not. On National Coffee Day,...

“Fixers” and Firemen: Kids Describe Their Dream Jobs

By Bridget Quigg Ah, childhood dreams. Ride a unicorn. Fly on a magic carpet. Perform an aortic valve replacement through a median sternotomy incision. Okay, the last one probably wasn't on your list when you were little, but growing up to be a doctor may have been. From pilots to zookeepers, chefs...

Does Casual Dress Hurt Your Income?

By Lydia Dishman Do you dress for success? It’s no secret that most people will formulate an opinion of you based on your appearance within minutes of an introduction. But can that short space of time mean the difference between a lucrative career and a low-paying job? According to data from PayScale,...

Big Money in Minutes: NFL Salaries vs. Average Fan Salaries

Larry Fitzgerald agrees to continue his job as a wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals for the next eight years for $120 million. Chris Johnson accepts an offer from the Tennessee Titans to continue as their running back for the next six years in exchange $53 million. Quarterback Michael Vick signs a...

Salary Hero: School Superintendent Cuts Own Pay

By Bridget Quigg In the competitive world of salary numbers, negotiations and earning goals, you sometimes you run into surprises. Fresno County school superintendent Larry Powell chose to give up $800,000 in salary over the next three years to help fund education and the arts in Fresno, rather than add to his...

More Apples in Alabama: Teacher Pay by State

By Lydia Dishman Now that sales of pencils and notebooks are in full swing, kids everywhere are facing the inevitability of going back to school. Their teachers have already been prepping for the new academic year. Though envied for their months long “break” from work, the teaching profession involves some trade-offs. One...

“Be Nerdier” and Other Tips for Working in Gaming

By Bridget Quigg The gaming industry tends to attract highly intelligent, creative and fun-loving people. Who wouldn’t want to work in “interactive entertainment”? But, how do you get started in the industry and what is it really like to work on a game? Two industry veterans, and PayScale.com, weigh in with some...

Strange Salary Negotiation Strategies

The debate rages on: Should a job candidate name a salary number first, or wait to hear from the employer? Money is on the line and feelings are strong on both sides of the issue. Most experts suggest that applicants should keep their mouths shut and make the employer talk first. New...

Panel Interview Tips: Prepare for Success

Getting invited to interview for a job can feel exhilarating. After all of the resume editing and networking, you’re full of hope for your career and your bank account. But, you still have to get through the interview. And, when the big day arrives, it can be especially frightening to face a...

How to Resign with Dignity

By Laura Beth Roberts, PayScale.com The year 2011 has brought us many goodbyes. Oprah said goodbye to CBS, Michael Scott bid a tearful adieu to The Office, and I resigned and said goodbye to my former co-workers. You might not have heard about the last one, but it was tough. And, it...

Love and Salaries on “The Bachelorette” TV Show

By Bridget Quigg Another season of the “The Bachelorette” is winding down after a dizzying display of alpha-male behavior and slurpy make-out sessions. Ashley barely wipes the make-up off her eyes from one romantic dinner before she’s whisked away on a motor scooter, her cheek resting on some guy’s brawny back. How...

Road to Riches: Engineering Disciplines Pay Off

Does an aerospace engineer really earn more than a history major? Absolutely. An aerospace engineer’s typical starting salary ($60,700) practically matches what a history major earns, on average, after 15 years of working ($69,000). In fact, according to PayScale’s data, if you choose to pursue math, science or engineering disciplines, you are...

Facebook vs. Google: Which Employer Suits You Best?

By Denene Brox Google and Facebook are not your typical technology companies. They are innovators that have literally changed the way people all over the world interact online. Both companies had humble beginnings. Google was founded in 1996 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, two Stanford University PhD students. CEO of Facebook,...

8 Summer Jobs – Make a Buck Off Vacationers

By Rob DiGiacomo With so-called “staycations” common in these sluggish economic times, Las Vegas, Miami and other tourism spots that cater to out-of-town visitors may not be the best bets for summer employment. Vegas and Miami rank among the worst places to find work, with seven people on average vying for every...

Who Is Your Best Employer? Mac vs. PC

By Susan Johnston For years, consumers have self-identified as Mac or a PC people, a label fueled in part by Apple’s Mac vs. PC ads. Some research about the two companies' customers was even done by Hunch.com and it showed that many of the stereotypes are true. Mac lovers are typically younger...

PayScale Study Points North: Average Pay in Canada Up

By Bridget Quigg It’s time that PayScale admits it. We have found out more glowing facts about Canada. After humbly complimenting our neighbors to the north when they won gold in men’s hockey (beating the US) back in 2010, and congratulating them on a great run in the NHL playoffs, we now...

Walmart Employment Practices: Gender Discrimintation Questions

Walmart's legal team is busier than it would like to be. They just won a nationwide sexual discrimination lawsuit, settled by the Supreme Court in their favor. But, their troubles may be far from over, as similar, though smaller, suits on the way – possibly a lot of them. What's really happening,...

Congrats, Canucks! Canada Fun Facts from PayScale

By Bridget Quigg The Vancouver Canucks are one game away from an NHL Stanley Cup championship. So long Detroit, say goodbye San Jose and adios Anaheim. The Canucks are unlikely leaders of the tournament and Canadians are thrilled. We’ve decided to honor their success in our own PayScale way – with Canada...

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Executive Bonus Planning: An Overview of Short-Term Incentives

Executive Bonus Planning: An Overview of Short-Term Incentives By Bridget Quigg, PayScale.com Executive pay planning can be an intimidating process, even for seasoned HR professionals. In the upcoming series of posts on the topic, we hope to enlighten you on the basics of executive pay, as well as get into the details on...

Pay Off: New List of College Majors by Salary

Curious how you can make your college degree pay off quicker? More data is emerging now about which college majors lead to the most lucrative careers. PayScale has been publishing a list of college majors by pay since 2008. But, now, a new study of Census Bureau data supports PayScale’s conclusions. Sorry...

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Become a certified compensation professional (CCP)

If you work in HR and want to find a way to advance your career, why not earn a Certified Compensation Professional certificate? This certification, offered by World at Work, requires you to pass nine tests and, as their website states, is a “mark of expertise and excellence in all areas of...

Ready to Move? Cost of Living Comparison

The economy is starting to perk up a little. Hiring is up and is supposed to continue to improve for the rest of the year. That said, this isn’t happening everywhere. Some areas of the country are recovering faster than others. Are you willing to move for a job? You would be...

Top Paid Jobs Post-Military Service

How can you make your transition form military work to a civilian job as easy as possible? Earning a healthy paycheck might help. Al Lee, director of quantitative analysis at online salary database PayScale.com recommends that that military folks in search of good pay take advantage of three special areas of knowledge...

Not Average: Starting Salaries That Start High

If you’re ready to start a new career and want to earn the highest possible salary from the start, you need to know which fields are hot and high paid. Online salary and career site PayScale.com has scoured its database for the latest information about which jobs are paying top dollar to...

Spend Smart on Your College Tuition: Rankings by ROI

Do you have $200,000 handy? How about $120,000? Okay, let’s go as low as $70,000. Got that? Outside of a few public schools’ in-state tuition, you’ll be paying $70,000 or more for a bachelor’s degree these days. It’s a lot of money so what if you thought of it as a financial...

Jobs That You Can Start Today

It’s another month, another rent check to write and now you have a dental bill that’s bigger than you expected. Maybe you’re a student or a parent who has been staying home and out of the workforce, but you now really need to get working. What is a job that you can...

Princeton Wins! 2011 Salary Madness Predictions

Is someone in your office setting up a pool to predict the winner of the NCAA Division I Men’s basketball tournament? Maybe you’re rooting for the team with the best record in your favorite conference or are participating just for fun. While it may not make sense when it comes to strength...

IT Startup Salary Hotspots: Top Locations for IT Startup Jobs

If you’re a whiz at writing code or a super-smart network systems analyst, which town is a hotbed for startup companies offering the most job opportunities and bucks for your talents? Online salary database and career site PayScale.com has explored its data on technology jobs to answer this question and come up...

Job Wages and Salaries: Not Better or Worse

What’s happening with the incomes of private sector workers in the U.S.? Not much. PayScale recently released the results of The PayScale Index for Q4 of 2010. And the basic story is that, while 2010 wasn’t as terrible as 2009, it wasn’t great. The PayScale Index goes back as far as 2006...

Low Stress Jobs That Pay Well

Do you feel like you’re just making it through day after grueling day of work while only barely keeping up with your bills? Maybe it’s time you considered a low stress job that pays well. They do exist, according to the fortunate folks who have discovered them. Online salary database PayScale.com recently...

Tipping Guidelines for the Holidays and Beyond

If you’re pinching your pennies a little tighter this year, you may be tempted to hold back on handing extra dollars to the service providers in your life. But, if you do, remember that skipping a worker’s gratuity, in many cases, would be like your boss saying to you, “Hey, guess what?...

How to Work Your Way Up to Management

You’re sharp, you’re hardworking and you feel ready to become the boss. But, how do you get yourself into a management position? What really moves people from the factory floor to the corner office? Career experts have weighed in with their advice. From dressing the part to being smart about how you...

Congress Average Salary: Is It Too High?

Most people don’t earn six figures every year, but they sure would like to. By comparison, members of Congress, in both the US Senate and US House of Representatives, make at least $174,000 a year. And, other federal politicians and presidential Cabinet members earn even more. Are these politicos worthy of the...

The PayScale Index: Watching Salaries Go Up and Down

Did you know that PayScale has collected over 23 million salary surveys from people just like you? That means that we have a lot of salary data – gobs and gobs. And, while we like to use it to help you make decisions about your future career, we’ve decided to also use...

Careers That Earn You $30 per Hour

1. Commercial Diver – $25.58 – $35.75 Welding work can be rigorous and demanding. Can you imagine doing it in the dark, under 1,000 feet of water? Commercial divers do all kinds of repairs, construction work, search and rescue, and other tasks while floating over river beds or past schools of fish....

NFL Player Salaries: Do the Best Players Really Earn the Most?

Imagine this scenario. You’re the most skilled and best-paid football player in your position. NFL player salaries tend to be big but yours in super-big. Your millions are the most millions. You diamonds shine the brightest. Then, suddenly, everything changes and now another player who isn’t necessarily better than you is earning...

JetBlue Flight Attendant: No Salary Would Be Enough

When JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater felt the impact of a passenger’s bag on his head, something inside of him snapped. He was angry. He had had it. He was done. No salary, no job security and no benefits could keep him from unleashing his anger over the intercom, grabbing two beers...

6 Surprising Six-Figure Jobs: No Degree Required

How can you find a steady job that makes six figures without a four-year or associate’s degree? You may think first of typical blue collar trades, like electrician or plumber. But, there are some other options that will surprise you. Would you believe that court reporters can make over $100,000 a year?...

Does Private School Tuition Really Pay Off?

By Bridget Quigg When you hear that someone graduated from Harvard or Princeton, do you automatically assume that they’re making the big bucks? You’re probably right, according to PayScale’s data on what different college graduates earn. But, they also likely paid the big bucks to go to an elite private school rather...

Marry for Money! Advice for Ali on “The Bachelorette” TV Show

How does someone pick their partner for life – great looks, a quick mind, a generous heart, deep pockets? Ali on “The Bachelorette” TV show has an impressive group of men with lots of good qualities to sort through. How will she decide? Online salary database PayScale.com decided that her suitors’ charms...

Salaries of “Different” Jobs

How many job titles can you name? From software developer to welder to baggage handler, most of us could maybe come up with a hundred jobs or so. But, there are thousands of job titles out there. You know, the ones that make you say, "Huh, that's different." And, some of those...

A Close Look at CPA Salaries

Tax season has ended. The heaviest lifting is over for America’s many CPAs, staff accountants, business owners, and average citizens. We’ve all pushed passed the April 15 deadline, filing for an extension or not. Did you get help with your taxes this year? How much did you pay for that help? It...

Federal Employee Salaries: Some Above Private Sector

You’ve likely heard frustrated friends compare some federal employee salaries and generous health benefits with private sector employees' slender paychecks and missing benefits. Some fact-finding shows that your friends may have reason to gripe. A recent study by technology news site InformationWeek found that federal IT workers earn 10 percent more, on average,...

Flight Attendant Salary per Hour Takes Off

Are you considering working for the airlines? Good idea. It's wise to keep your head in the clouds. Besides exotic lands, generous travel benefits and your new "cool" status at cocktail parties, you'll likely also enjoy a solid financial future. Did you know that the average hourly salary for a flight attendant...

Corrosion Engineering Jobs: Hot Industry Leads to High Demand

I recently received information about job opportunities from the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE). Until I received their fact sheet about this line of work, I didn’t even know that it existed. It turns out if you have a mind for math and science, are good with your hands and want a...

March Madness Graduate Salaries: Do Private or Public Schools Win?

March Madness has arrived, and with it all of the number crunching, predicting and name calling that college basketball fans can muster. And, the school comparisons go beyond the court. While everyone knows that Duke is the number one seed for the tournament, did you know its graduates are also ranked number one for...

What Can You Earn With an IT Certification?

The technology industry news site, Channel Insider, recently published an article titled, Tech Certifications That Pay the Best Salary. Curious what those might be, I took a look at the list. Their information is based on a survey of 17,000 technology professionals conducted by technology training and certification company, Dice Learning. Dice...

Fast Food Jobs and What They Pay

Plenty of people start their working lives wearing a visor and asking, “Would you like fries with that?” Most then move on to higher paying gigs in other industries. While it’s true that many fast food jobs don’t pay the big bucks, if you stay in the industry, there’s potential to make...

No Bloody Monday Job Loss, But Minority Unemployment Filing Steady

On Dec. 26, 2009, I wondered whether the fourth Monday in January 2010 would be anything like the “Bloody Monday” we saw on January 26, 2009, when 65,400 job cuts were announced. Looking at the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data on employment for last month, it’s clear that no such repeat day occurred....

Why Is Volunteering Important? Advice for Job Hunters

The search for work continues. Besides rubbing more polish on your resume, what can a work-hungry American do to get a job? If you know which career interests you, you could consider volunteering in your chosen field. From networking and skill building to resume improvement, the benefits of volunteering seem endless. Volunteerism...

Job Relocation? Salary Calculator and More to Support You

As the ice begins to thaw – just slightly – on our frozen, recession-era job market, opportunities are popping up in some cities at a faster rate than others. A recent article written for Yahoo! Hotjobs by PayScale titled, “10 Great Cities for Salary Growth” offers a list of cities that, against...

Another Bloody Monday? Job Loss Figures Make It Unlikely

We are one month away from the one year anniversary of Bloody Monday. On January 26th, 2009, 65,400 job cuts were announced, according to a CNN article, “Bloody Monday: Over 65,400 Jobs Lost.” Up until that point, an alarming 200,000 jobs cuts had been announced nationwide for the year but on this...

Career Path Suggestions for Midlife Career Changes

A down economy brings one thing to most everyone’s career path: change. Whether it’s learning new skills for the same job or searching for a different one, these added work pressures can be especially hard on people who have been in their job for 20+ years. Rather than wind down or hit...

Executive Pay Limits: Introducing “Government Executive Pay”

They’re happening. The oft spoke of, much debated, feared, and cheered executive pay limits are in motion. While they’ll most likely target only companies that received bailout funds, executive pay limits are still a significant shift in where government’s hands can go. CEO of Bank of America, Ken Lewis, has become the...

Mad Men: Are They Making Mad Money?

From naughty secretaries in tight, red dresses to sexist, chain-smoking account executives, the TV drama Mad Men has fans all a flutter about 1960s culture. Right down to single malt scotch during meetings, Mad Men’s Sterling Cooper ad agency gets wide acclaim for re-creating the ‘60s Madison Avenue scene almost flawlessly. But,...

10 Dangerous Jobs for Big Money

When it comes to your career, you may worry about your commute time, benefits and your company’s chance of surviving. But, do you ever worry about your own survival? Believe it or not, a good number of folks work dangerous jobs for big money each day. They work in occupations that place...

Get a Glamorous Job at QVC: Host Salaries and More

Cooing at the sparkle of a diamond bracelet, answering questions about holiday flatware and pushing laptops designed for the whole family – are these job skills? Absolutely. Welcome to the wild, live world of a QVC TV host. These bright-smiled folks seem to fascinate viewers. Could they have one of the most...

Salary Negotiation Tips: What Not to Do

If you want to make adults squirm like kindergarteners, broach the subject of salary negotiation. Talking money makes most workers uncomfortable. And while they want such talks to succeed, they make plenty of blunders. If only they had some basic negotiation guidelines. So what’s the best way to avoid stumbling and also...

Jobs for English Majors: They Do Exist

The butt of every cocktail party joke – the English major. “Oh, that’s nice that you read Shakespeare. But, how does that get you a job?” Well, it turns out that wordsmithing just might be the ticket in to today’s job market. According to a survey of HR professionals by global outplacement...

Your Salary and the Obama Equal Pay Bill

Since January, many HR managers and company owners have been shaking in their boots. Why? They have some research to do about how they pay their employees. If you haven’t heard of it yet, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, often referred to as the Obama equal pay bill, was signed into...

Best Colleges for Earning the Big Bucks

The cost of college is skyrocketing and graduates risk being saddled with more debt than ever. What’s a smart solution when even state schools aren’t cheap? Earn more after you graduate. Last week PayScale debuted its 2009-10 College Salary Report, which lists best schools for starting and mid-career salaries by regions of...

Job Security: Earn a TSA Screener’s Salary

From the guy in the lobby at your work to the gal scanning luggage at the airport, security officers surround us – even more than we know. Beside the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) folks in bright blue shirts at the airport, there are thousands of plainclothes security folks, like air marshals, secret...

To Cap or Not to Cap: Obama Answers the Executive Compensation Question

Back on February 12 of this year in a post titled, “Loopholes, Lawyers and Obama’s Executive Compensation Cap,” I wrote that President Obama was considering an executive compensation cap of $500,000, at least for financial institutions that received Trouble Asset Relief Program (TARP) money. I wondered what the actual effects of the...

Celebrity Salaries: What Is Oprah Winfrey’s Annual Salary vs. Joe the Plumber’s?

Have you ever considered the reality that many famous people make more in a year than most of the world’s population makes in a lifetime? I thought about this recently when looking at the Forbes Celebrity Top 100 list for 2008. At the top of list, solidly in the lead, sits a...

How Rich is Larry King? Salary Secrets of the Stars

When Kathy Griffin appeared on Larry King Live last June she asked Mr. King, “What’s your annual salary?” He responded, “I can’t tell you that.” She went on to badger him with questions about whether or not he gets paid per show or bimonthly. Larry dodged her bullets but she got his...

Swine Flu: Potential Pandemic Has Many People Working Harder

Swine flu has arrived in the US and has most people either a little more cautious in public spaces or very scared of any public contact. I’ve spoken with more than one friend who is washing their hands more often or thinks twice about what that tickle in their throat might mean....

Online Degrees: For Baby Boomers, They Could Be Essential

The job market is tough. Real tough. Darn tough. Only the most skilled, educated and savvy shall thrive. And, if you’re older than 45, your age can work for or against you. Offering exceptional skills based upon years of experience is a plus. Being closer to your retirement age without more skills...

7 Most Recession Proof Jobs

We’ve heard the tales of career devastation from real estate to investment banking; doesn’t it make you wonder which jobs may be secretly, silently thriving amid the chaos? Well, before you read this list of jobs in the highest demand, prepare to cringe. All of the debt, stress and job hunting going...

More Millions, More Mishaps: Washington Struggles with AIG’s Executive Compensation Bonuses

A remnant from the previous administration’s carelessness is now an enormous problem for the current one. When American International Group, Inc, AIG, accepted taxpayers’ bailout funds last year, no member of the Bush administration bothered to address how AIG planned to reward their employees in the coming year. Then, according to an...

Need Some Income and Love Sports? Try Living Off the Starting Salary for a Sportscaster

According to The Bureau of Labor statistics report titled “The Employment Situation: February 2009,” the national unemployment rate reached 8.1 percent in February of 2009, up from 7.6 percent the previous month. Not a cheery statistic. In fact, I was watching a news segment on this very subject when it dawned on...

Loopholes, Lawyers and Obama’s Executive Compensation Cap

President Obama’s recent work to limit executive compensation makes my heart sing – or at least hum a bit. Like most Americans, I am shocked and scared over what’s happened in our country, and I cling to signs of hope. President Obama’s recent push to limit executive compensation sounds like a something...

NFL Player Salaries and the Playoffs: What Can We Predict?

A workmate and I recently sipped peppermint tea and vented our frustrations over NFL players’ outrageous salaries. I fretted over whether they are doing good for the world with all that money when this friend said with disgust, “I wonder how much the winning quarterback of the Super Bowl will get for...

10 Jobs with Great Employee Rewards

For most people, job satisfaction doesn’t completely correlate with job salary. Smart employers know the value of using employee rewards and perks to build morale in a work place. And depending on your personality and lifestyle, extrinsic job rewards like free rounds of golf or trips around the globe might mean more...