Only the Employed Need Apply

White Chocolate Grill

Bobby Fitzgerald prefers to hire
the already employed even though
he gets two dozen or more unsolicited
résumés each day at his White Chocolate Grill.

With unemployment at 9.4% and rising, it’s a buyer’s market for employers that are hiring.

Dana Mattoli at Wall Street Journal Careers talked with some of the many employers who are bypassing the jobless to target those still working, reasoning that these survivors are the top performers.

Even a recruiter said many of his clients would rather look at "passive candidates," those not actively seeking a job because they have one already.

This practice assumes that hanging onto a job assures one's quality, aptitude, and leadership. I disagree heartily. Most of us can think of the person who was still in the office after 25 lame, unproductive, and in most cases whining, years. We don't know why they're still there. Do they have something on the boss, we speculate?

Probably not. They just forgot -- or refused -- to stay home when they quit. And someone else didn't notice.

On the other hand, I've known and worked with plenty of energized, engaged, and productive people who have had departments disappear beneath their feet, a job description change, or a merger move their job to St. Louis.

No, not all the best people are working, and not all of those unemployed are second stringers.

You can contribute to Millennials employment survey

A researcher who is concerned about the very high rate of unemployment among the Millennials (17.8%) is looking for people to contribute to her research.

Consultant Stacey Randall is conducting original research called "The Impact of the Recession on the Millennial Generation." She is looking for people under 30 who were laid off in 2008 or 2009.

The impact she is researching carries some alarming statistics:

• Unemployment among young Americans is nearly 9 points higher than the national average.
• Two-thirds of college students graduate with over $20,000 in debt, twice as much as a decade ago.

If you are or know of a Millennial who has been laid off since January 2008, please visit www.surveymonkey.com/recessionsurvey.

Women bullying Women

By MICKEY MEECE
New York Times

Published: May 9, 2009

Yelling, scheming and sabotaging: all are tell-tale signs that a bully is at work, laying traps for employees at every pass.

Peter DaSilva for The New York Times

Kent Kaufman and Laura Stek, right,
of the Growth and Leadership Center,
coach Cleo Lepori-Costello, left,
a vice president at a Silicon Valley
software company,
on communication skills.

During this downturn, as stress levels rise, workplace researchers say, bullies are likely to sharpen their elbows and ratchet up their attacks.

It’s probably no surprise that most of these bullies are men, as a survey by the Workplace Bullying Institute, an advocacy group, makes clear. But a good 40 percent of bullies are women. And at least the male bullies take an egalitarian approach, mowing down men and women pretty much in equal measure. The women appear to prefer their own kind, choosing other women as targets more than 70 percent of the time.

In the name of Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem, what is going on here?

Read full article.

What to do when nothing works

I just received an email from a client who has been job hunting for about a month and has made about 100 applications for jobs in another state. He's doing everything right. He's networking; he's narrowing his search and contacting companies of his choice to talk about how he might fit into their plans; he holds an excellent interview and has boatloads of confidence. He's an absolutely wonderful find for anyone in his industry.

So, what's going wrong? He's being turned down for positions he qualifies for, and even some he over-qualifies for.

Here are my recommendations:

1. Work more through your contacts: When you ask someone to recommend you, don't stop with a good word or a letter of endorsement. Ask them to put you in contact with someone they actually know at the company.

2. Give first: The heart of networking is its mutuality. When you contact people, ask what you can do to help them. Be ready to give and give first. Yes, you are looking for a job, but you are also and foremost looking to fill a need. This attitude alone can put you at the top of an employer's list.

3. Be persistent: If one thing with that person doesn't work out, ask them about other opportunities in their department, other departments, and other companies.

4. Recheck your list: Who have you thought of contacting that you haven't contacted yet? We often forget to make a contact or leave one out because it's a little uncomfortable. Find another way to make the contact that's more comfortable.

5. Maintain contacts you have: It's best if you've maintained communications with everyone you've ever met throughout the years, but few of us are that good. So, forgive yourself for not being an ubernetworker and start contacting people.

6. Do it again: Recontact the people you've called already and see if anything has turned up since you talked with them.

7. Develop more contacts. This is especially difficult with a long-distance job search, but there are ways around it. Go through your address book. I have relatives or friends in nearly every state. You probably do, too. In most cases, people will welcome the opportunity to help you.

8. Work your online social networks: Do more with contacting people through Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. There are usually groups you can find on Facebook, for example, that allow you to learn more about people there and perhaps find a friend or friend of a friend who can put you in direct contact with the right person. If you don't know much about these networks, read Jason Alba's book, I'm on LinkedIn, Now What?

9. Take off! Plan a trip to your target city to follow up with people face to face.

10. Get a pep talk: Find at least one person who encourages you, whether it is your career coach, your spouse, your best friend, or a job club.

When you're done with step 10, start over at step 1. This is the most sure-fire way to land a job in this economy or any other. Talk with your people, and make more people your people.

Which Muppet am I?

I know, I know, I haven't been back for awhile. I've been doing more friending and following; call it research. I'm still trying to integrate my networks and -- still -- not understanding which Muppet I am has to do with how social networks will help with a job search.

In one sense, I get Twitter more than I get Facebook, although as a writer, I have yet to cotton to the 140-character limit. I think of it as haiku, but then, it takes me three hours to write one tweet. That's not going to happen, even in my picky, resume-perfect world. The part I get is that I can follow people's projects and days and concerns. I like that. I like knowing what my friends and colleagues are up to.

Here's a good article that says what Twitter's about better than I can: Twitter Quitters Just Don't Get It.

The part I don't get is the games and quizzes in Facebook, particularly when I can't finish them without asking three more friends to do the same thing. Well, I get the marketing angle. That's how I find out the quiz exists: Rody takes it and Patrick comments about it. They're married. Now, my husband and I email and text each other all the time, but it's more like a to-do list. "Remember to pick up milk." "Here's the address of that place I told you about." "Are you going to be home for dinner?" These two have conversations. It's very sweet.

But I'm not looking for a way to connect with my husband. I want to know how this is going to help someone make contacts they need to make to find their dream job.

Could I be overthinking this? (Like that's never happened. )

Facebook is for giggles and finding out goofy "facts" to give us all something to talk about when we don't know each other well enough to have something in common. Or for keeping in touch with the groups of friends and family we're far away from. So, if we're "friends," keep sending the quiz scores. One of these days, I'll get around to taking a few and revealing my true Muppet nature.

How's the Terrain?

The buzz in managementland is that Dr. Spencer Johnson's new book, Peaks and Valleys, is a gotta have.

The author of No. 1 bestsellers Who Moved My Cheese?, The Present,
and The One Minute Manager, has the street creds to get away with a subtitle like Making Good and Bad Times Work For You -- At Work and In Life. He tells how to get through tough times sooner
and make good times enjoyable and longer.

Here's the link to the book on Amazon.com and the synopsis:

Peaks and Valleys is a story of a young man who lives unhappily in a valley until he meets an old man who lives on a peak, and it changes his work and life forever.

Initially, the young man does not realize he is talking with one of the most peaceful and successful people in the world. However, through a series of conversations and experiences that occur up on peaks and down in valleys, the young man comes to make some startling discoveries.

Eventually, he comes to understand how he can use the old man's remarkable principles and practical tools in good and bad times and becomes more calm and successful himself.

Now you can take a similar journey through the story and use what you find to your advantage in your own work and life.

UND management students learn about bullying at work

Yesterday, I caught up with Brett Rinke after teaching a couple of classes with Dr. Patrick Schultz in the Management Department of UND's College of Business and Public Administration. The classes were about workplace bullying, and coincidentally, Brett had just used an article in a presentation he had done about bullying. (I know Brett from the Northeast Dakota Area Human Resources Association, the local affiliate of the national Society of Human Resources Managers. He is president of UND's student affiliate of SHRM.

I am so pleased that the word is getting out more and more about workplace bullying, especially in a business school that educates our next generation of managers, directors, and C-levels. (If you're interested in hearing more, contact me at 218.399.1010 or jeri@workwrite.biz.)

The short version of the article Brett gave me is that a new study reveals bullying is causing more damage to employees than sexual harassment.

"Employees who experienced bullying, incivility or interpersonal conflict were more likely to quit their jobs, have lower well-being, be less satisfied with their jobs and have less satisfying relationships with their bosses than employees who were sexually harassed, the researchers found."

Here's the whole article:


Problem of Workplace Bullying Demands Attention, Researchers Say

By Rita Zeidner
3/31/2008

Workplace bullying appears to inflict more harm on employees than sexual harassment, according to a new peer-reviewed study.

“As sexual harassment becomes less acceptable in society, organizations may be more attuned to helping victims, who may therefore find it easier to cope,” said lead author M. Sandy Hershcovis, Ph.D., of the University of Manitoba. “In contrast, non-violent forms of workplace aggression such as incivility and bullying are not illegal, leaving victims to fend for themselves.”

Herschcovis presented her findings at the Seventh International Conference on Work, Stress and Health, co-sponsored by the American Psychological Association, the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and the Society for Occupational Health Psychology.

Hershcovis and co-author Julian Barling, Ph.D., of Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada, reviewed 110 studies conducted over 21 years that compared the consequences of employees’ experience of sexual harassment and workplace aggression. Specifically, the authors looked at the effect on job, co-worker and supervisor satisfaction, workers’ stress, anger and anxiety levels as well as workers’ mental and physical health. Job turnover and emotional ties to the job were also compared.

The authors distinguished among different forms of workplace aggression. Incivility included rudeness and discourteous verbal and non-verbal behaviors. Bullying included persistently criticizing employees’ work; yelling; repeatedly reminding employees of mistakes; spreading gossip or lies; ignoring or excluding workers; and insulting employees’ habits, attitudes or private life. Interpersonal conflict included behaviors that involved hostility, verbal aggression and angry exchanges.

Both bullying and sexual harassment can create negative work environments and unhealthy consequences for employees, but the researchers found that workplace aggression has more severe consequences. Employees who experienced bullying, incivility or interpersonal conflict were more likely to quit their jobs, have lower well-being, be less satisfied with their jobs and have less satisfying relationships with their bosses than employees who were sexually harassed, the researchers found.

Furthermore, bullied employees reported more job stress, less job commitment and higher levels of anger and anxiety. No differences were found between employees experiencing either type of mistreatment on how satisfied they were with their co-workers or with their work.

“Bullying is often more subtle, and may include behaviors that do not appear obvious to others,” said Hershcovis. “For instance, how does an employee report to their boss that they have been excluded from lunch? Or that they are being ignored by a co-worker? The insidious nature of these behaviors makes them difficult to deal with and sanction.”

From a total of 128 samples that were used, 46 included subjects who experienced sexual harassment, 86 experienced workplace aggression and six experienced both. Sample sizes ranged from 1,491 to 53,470 people. Participants ranged from 18 to 65 years old. The work aggression samples included men and women. The sexual harassment samples examined primarily women because, Hershcovis said, past research has shown that men interpret and respond differently to the behaviors that women perceive as sexual harassment.

Rita Zeidner is manager of the new SHRM Online Employee Relations Focus Area.
The Focus Area was launched in early March 2008.