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The majority of U.S. companies have a formal, written plan for emergency preparedness, according to a report released by The Conference Board. But a widely adopted certification standard for such plans does not exist yet. Three-quarters of the 302 senior corporate executives surveyed in mid-2007 said that an emergency preparedness plan exists in their companies. A “voluntary” certification process for preparedness was adopted as part of the 2007 homeland security legislation (Public Law 110-53). The choice of standards that would permit certification under the law is currently under review. As this report goes to press, it is expected that several different standards may qualify for certification. CCH Human Resources Management Daily Document Update ¶24,843.
A report from the Center for Immigration Studies demonstrates that most H-1Bs visa holders are ordinary people doing ordinary work, not the geniuses claimed by industry lobbyists. Those arguing for an increase in the number of H-1B visas, many of whom are in the computer industry, claim that continued US leadership in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics hinges on our ability to import the world's best engineers and scientists, yet the data analysis shows that the vast majority of H-1B workers—including those at most major tech firms—are not the innovators industry portrays them to be. CCH Human Resources Management Daily Document Update ¶24,828.
There were a total of 5,840 fatal workplace injuries in 2006, an increase from the year before, with significant increases in fatalities among Latino and foreign-born workers, according to a report released last week by the AFL-CIO. The nation's workplace safety laws and penalties are too weak to effectively protect workers, according to "Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect," the labor federation's annual workplace safety report, released April 24. On average, 16 workers were fatally injured and another 11,200 workers were injured or made ill each day in 2006. These statistics do not include deaths from occupational diseases, which claim the lives of an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 more workers each year. CCH Human Resources Management Daily Document Update ¶24,822.
Human resource practitioners strongly support most of the Department of Labor's (DOL) proposed modifications to Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) regulations, according to a member survey conducted by WorldatWork. Overall, total rewards professionals support the DOL's proposed regulations as these will help ease the administrative burden of implementing a very time-consuming and labor-intensive set of requirements. CCH Human Resources Management Daily Document Update ¶24,820.
A rapidly shrinking talent pool, coupled with increased work-life pressures and a more diverse, global and independent workforce, have prompted an increasing number of companies to offer flexible work arrangements as another way to attract, retain and engage talent, according to Hewitt Associates. But while companies believe that workplace flexibility is a critical retention and recruiting tool, most do not have the structure or support in place to maximize the value that these programs can provide. CCH Human Resources Management Daily Document Update ¶24,837.
A significant number of employees are leaving their employers due to ineffective leadership and a lack of opportunities or challenges within the organization, according to an online survey conducted by Right Management. Thirty percent of 1,308 respondents said they left their jobs to seek new challenges or opportunities that were lacking with their previous employers. In addition, 25 percent of respondents reported leaving employers because of ineffective leadership, 22 percent cited poor relationships with their managers and 21 percent said their contributions were not valued. CCH Human Resources Management Daily Document Update ¶24,831.
Participants in the April online poll don’t have very high hopes for the Department of Labor’s (DOL) revisions to the FMLA regulations. A majority of participants (60 percent) do not expect big changes to be in the DOL’s revised regulations and think that the new regulations will produce new grey areas. Only 20 percent of you do expect big changes and believe that the DOL will address employer concerns while another 20 percent don’t really know what to expect. There were 179 respondents to the online poll.
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