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As we close out 2006, it is an opportune time to look ahead
to what 2007 may bring. In your efforts to recruit and retain top
talent in your organizations, you might want to consider what the
prognosticators are saying.
Overall pay increases are targeted to be 3.7%. Some
fields will see even greater increases. For example, senior
executive assistants are projected to see a 6.5% increase over 2006 in
starting salaries. Skilled professionals in the fields of
manufacturing, financial services, commercial real estate, and health
care will be in demand and will, in turn, demand higher than traditional
increases in salary to make a move. Additional skills, such as
bi-lingual capability can attract even higher salaries. Of course
what's weighing on everyone's mind when determining how much to increase
wages, is the projected 7.7% increase in health care rates in 2007.
There are other employer-provided incentives to consider as
you examine your competitive workplace practices. Employers are
anticipated to provide extra holidays in 2007. With busy work and
home schedules, time is recognized as an increasingly valuable commodity
for employees. Flex hours, paid time-off, bought time-off, and job
share options can be very attractive workplace enhancements. Many
companies struggle with funding and managing such arrangements.
However, companies that previously said "no way" are finding
ways to accommodate employee and candidate requests as part of
aggressive/progressive recruitment and retention strategies.
As employees look at the attractiveness of a work
environment, they will be examining wages, health care, other traditional
benefits, as well as those benefits that are considerate of the work-life
balance. How can we assist you to ensure you're optimizing your
employer-employee relationship?
As we look ahead to 2007, we wish all the best to you, your
family and your organization.
Happy Holidays!
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Jobs and Compensation Outlook
December 2006 Newsletter
In life, there is a lot of starting and finishing. Much of
our success is determined by how well we start and how strong we
finish. A good start to any enterprise lays the foundation for
achievement. Without a strong finish, much of our genius and efforts are
wasted. One thing is certain, starting and finishing well seldom happen
as a matter of chance. They require strategy and execution.
This month we find ourselves finishing 2006. Like a
college team headed for a holiday bowl game, we'd like to finish with a
victory. For some the intensity is like trying to execute a scoring
drive on the closing moments of the game. This month we are also
preparing to start 2007. This typically requires some evaluation,
determining what has made us successful in the past and what must be
improved for the future.
This issue offers articles to help you reflect on how to
finish strong in 2006, and start well in 2007. Those of us at OI Partners wish you a joyous holiday season and a
prosperous new year.
Anne Mahoney Glose
OI Partners (Buffalo, NY)
Please
click on the links below to read the complete articles.
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Considering a
Career Change? Now May be the Time.
It's that time of year, and resolutions are in the making. While
evaluating the passing year and identifying opportunities for growth
and positive change, don't limit your list to losing those 15 pounds.
It's time to take an objective look at the way you spend every day,
and the level of fulfillment found in your work.
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Powerful New
Year's Resolutions for Professionals
Looking ahead to the New Year frequently fills employees with either
excitement or trepidation or a mixture of both. Questions may arise
about how to make good work situations even better: "What will
my opportunities be this year?", "What have my accomplishments
been this year?", "How can I position myself for a
promotion?", or "Will my boss recognize the great work that
I do?".
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Winning in the 4th
Quarter
As a big high school football fan, I find this time of year very
exciting. For some teams, the end of the season is in sight and for
others "the second season," the playoffs, looms large on
the horizon. Most of the winning teams I watch have a tradition where
every team member raises his right hand and holds up four fingers at
the start of the fourth quarter.
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Accounting, Health
Care Contain Future of Employment
By Meg Richards THE ASSOCIATED PRESS If you want to see the future,
check out the classifieds. The help-wanted section of your local
newspaper offers a snapshot of today's labor market and a glimpse of
the hot jobs of tomorrow. As the baby boomers - born between 1946 and
1964 - amble into retirement, employers will be racing to fill the
positions they vacate and to provide for the needs of ...
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Report Says Health
Plans Must Be Altered
Nov. 15--Employers who make no changes to the health insurance plans
they offer to workers will face cost increases of between 10 percent
and 12 percent in 2007, according to a new report. Many employers
will use the projections to adjust the benefit packages they offer to
workers to avoid the double-digit cost increases, said the report
from PricewaterhouseCoopers.
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