Unemployment in December, 2005

REGIONAL AND STATE EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT: DECEMBER 2005

Regional and state unemployment rates were generally little changed in
December. Overall, 36 states and the District of Columbia registered over-the-month unemployment rate decreases, 10 states recorded increases, and 4 states had no change, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Over the year, jobless rates were down in 32 states and the District of Columbia, up in 17 states, and unchanged in 1 state. In December, the national unemployment rate, 4.9 percent, was little changed from November, but was down by 0.5 percentage point from a year earlier.

http://www.bls.gov

California experienced the largest employment gain (+24,300), followed by Florida (+16,100), Arizona(+14,800), and Texas (+13,400). Louisiana and Montana posted the largest over-the-month percentage increases in employment (+0.7 percent each), followed by Arizona and Utah (+0.6 percent each). The largest employment decreases occurred in Ohio(-10,700), Kansas(-3,700), Maryland(-3,300), Mississippi(-2,300), and Alabama (-1,800). The largest over-the-month percentage decreases in employment occurred in Kansas and Rhode Island (-0.3 percent each),followed by Mississippi and Ohio (-0.2 percent each).

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Additional Job Search information can be found at: Job Search Articles

Federal Minimum Wage

General Information on the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

Federal Minimum Wage:

$4.75 per hour beginning October 1, 1996
$5.15 per hour beginning September 1, 1997
Employees under 20 years of age may be paid $4.25 per hour during their first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment with an employer.

Certain full-time students, student learners, apprentices, and workers with disabilities may be paid less than the minimum wage under special certificates issued by the Department of Labor.

Tip Credit: Employers of "tipped employees" must pay a cash wage of at least $2.13 per hour if they claim a tip credit against their minimum wage obligation. If an employee's tips combined with the employer's cash wage of at least $2.13 per hour do not equal the minimum hourly wage, the employer must make up the difference. Certain other conditions must also be met.

Overtime Pay: At least 1½ times an employee's regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek.

Child Labor: An employee must be at least 16 years old to work in most non-farm jobs and at least 18 to work in non-farm jobs declared hazardous by the Secretary of Labor. Youths 14 and 15 years old may work outside school hours in various non-manufacturing, non-mining, non-hazardous jobs under the following conditions:

No more than -

3 hours on a school day or 18 hours in a school week;
8 hours on a non-school day or 40 hours in a non-school week.
Also, work may not begin before 7 a.m. or end after 7 p.m., except from June 1 through Labor Day, when evening hours are extended to 9 p.m. Different rules apply in agricultural employment.

ENFORCEMENT: The Department of Labor may recover back wages, either administratively or through court action, for the employees that have been underpaid in violation of the law. Violations may result in civil or criminal action.

Fines of up to $11,000 per violation may be assessed against employers who violate the child labor provisions of the law and up to $1,100 per violation against employers who willfully or repeatedly violate the minimum wage or overtime pay provisions. This law prohibits discriminating against or discharging workers who file a complaint or participate in any proceedings under the Act.

Note:

Certain occupations and establishments are exempt from the minimum wage and/or overtime pay provisions.

Special provisions apply to workers in American Samoa.

Where state law requires a higher minimum wage, the higher standard applies.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, contact the nearest Wage and Hour Division office -- listed in most telephone directories under United States Government, Labor Department.

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and

The Federal Government

Military Transitioning to Civilian Workforce

When a member of the military looks for work in the civilian workforce, he or she has a lot to consider - and a lot to learn. It doesn't matter if the time spent in the service was 4 years or twenty, finding a job is difficult.

There are many options available to former service members and benefits that only those with general or honorable discharges may be privy to.

http://www.military.com has some wonderful resources available to veterans.

Keep in mind, too, that a security clearance is of great value to many companies.

For more information on the job search, click here: Job Search Articles

The Cover Letter Masterpiece

Cover Letter Masterpiece

Creating a cover letter that employers find genuinely interesting is no small task. You have a very limited amount of time to arouse enough curiosity (in the mind of the employer) to warrant a look at your resume.

How do you make that happen?

Here are three extremely important considerations that you must firmly understand and incorporate into your cover letter masterpiece if you are to achieve the utmost success possible.

ONE: Avoid verbosity.

TWO: Write to sell.

THREE: Proofread, proofread, and proofread.

To read more about cover letters, click here: Cover Letter Tips

~Carla Vaughan
Owner/Webmaster
http://www.professional-resume-example.com

Employment Summary for December 2005

THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION: DECEMBER 2005

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 108,000 in December, and
the unemployment rate was little changed at 4.9 percent, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The December in-
crease in payroll employment followed a gain of 305,000 in November (as re-
vised). Several industries added jobs over the month, including food serv-
ices, professional and business services, health care, and manufacturing.

Both the unemployment rate, 4.9 percent, and the number of unemployed per-
sons, 7.4 million, were little changed in December. The unemployment rate
has ranged from 4.9 to 5.1 percent since March.

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics - http://www.bls.gov/cps/

Provided courtesy of Professional-Resume-Example.com

The Interview

Do you tremble at the thought of having to interview for a job?

Many people, in fact, probably most people, get nervous when faced with meeting someone for the first time. Consider the potential impact a job interview can have on your life and anxiety skyrockets for many individuals.

What are some ways to lower your stress levels?

The most important thing you can do to make the process go more smoothly is to prepare for the meeting. You may be a great conversationalist, but how well do you answer questions about your employment history? Do you remember dates well? What if the interviewer asks you why you want to work for them? Do you know anything about the organization so that you can answer the question intelligently and honestly?

Preparation is essential in making a good impression.

Knowing who you are is one thing, but knowing what the employer is looking for and matching your skills and accomplishments to those key needs is vital.

This link will provide some helpful tips for preparing for the interview:
Interview Help

Here are also two links to articles about Job Search Stress.

The first one is How to Avoid Job Search Stress

and the other is How to Control Job Search Stress

~C. Vaughan

Balance in the Workplace

Everyone wants to live a balanced fulfilled life, but it isn't easy in today's hectic, fast-paced environment. Finding fulfillment is often considered impossible as putting food on the table and working 50-60 hour workweeks is the focus of most people's lives.

How can anyone achieve contentment, much less, balance, in their everyday existence?

One of the difficulties in finding peace (or balance) in life is that we tend to focus on other people's priorities instead of our own. We dare not take time to delve deeply into our own thoughts because our truest desires might run counter to what we do each day.

The first, and most important step in finding harmony in your life is to reflect on yourself. Are you doing what you want to do? If not, why not? How can you make changes in your life to include more of what you enjoy (value) and less of what you don't?

To live an unbalanced life is to live an unfulfilled one. If you want your life to actually count for something, take some time to figure out what your priorities are. Then, make the time to inject your priorities into your daily life. If you don't, you will never find peace. You will always be living in conflict.

To find out more about career planning, job growth, stress in the workplace and much more, visit:

Job Search Articles

Carla Vaughan
Owner/Webmaster

Professional-Resume-Example.com

Transferable Skills

How to Sell Yourself With Your Transferable Skills

Transferable skills are the skills and abilities you possess which can be utilized in a variety of job positions. If you do not have a great deal of experience in the field of work you are pursuing, you will need to attract the prospective employer’s attention by emphasizing the skills that you DO have which relate to the position you are interested in. They are especially important to individuals who are changing careers or have little work-related experience, such as college students.

Some examples of transferable skills include: written communication skills, problem-solving skills, listening skills, decision-making skills, and so on.

When you understand what skills and abilities you have, you are better prepared to market yourself to employers. Take the time to find out what makes you a good candidate for the job(s) you are pursuing.

These skills could literally make the difference between you getting a call for an interview – or someone else getting that coveted phone call.

To learn more about Transferable Skills, click here:

Transferable Skills