Thursday, June 26, 2014

Obama's NLRB Recess Appointments Shot Down By High Court


Today, by a vote of 9-0, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Obama's unconstitutional overreach in National Labor Relations Board v. Noel Canning. "In our view," declared the majority opinion of Justice Stephen Breyer, "the pro forma sessions count as sessions, not as periods of recess." Therefore, "We hold that, for purposes of the Recess Appointments Clause, the Senate is in session when it says it is." This ruling represents a resounding and well-deserved defeat for the Obama administration, which failed to garner even a single vote for its expansive theory of executive power.

More can be found here: http://reason.com/blog/2014/06/26/supreme-court-strikes-down-obamas-uncons

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Take Identical Twins, Give Gum to Just One of Them… and Watch What Happens Next


In the workplace, as in almost everyplace, little things that shouldn't matter do matter.

Watch this fascinating experiment . . .

http://www.mobiledia.com/news/199675.html

Is this a lesson about chewing gum? I think not. Rather, consider it a metaphor for being relaxed, or at least appearing relaxed is less threatening to others around us and thus opening opportunities that may not have existed absent this knowledge.


Saturday, June 21, 2014

The American Worker: More Sleep, Less Work


"It was about a year ago when we were surprised to learn that when it comes to spending their average day, American adults (15+, male and female), the typical American spent just over 3 hours per day working, less than the time allotted to eating/drinking and watching TV. The most time-consuming activity, not surprisingly, was sleep, taking up just over a third of the day, following by leisure and sports to which Americans devote over 5 hours a day.

"This week the BLS released its latest "American Time Use Survey" and unlike last year, this time we were not surprised to learn that not only are Americans far more preoccupied with sleeping and watching TV than working, but they have never slept more and worked less in the past decade. Perhaps in addition to obesity, the ongoing deterioration in the fundamentals of the US economy, already crushed by the Fed's central planning capital misallocation, may have something to do with this latest disturbing trend. Just perhaps . . ."

Article is here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-06-21/how-americans-spend-their-day-less-work-more-sleep-and-tv

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Even The Feds Admit Minimum Wages Cause Unemployment

If people with disabilities are exempt from minimum wage (and they are under federal law) because their earning capacity is impaired and finding employment might otherwise be impossible, why don’t people without disabilities whose earning capacity is equally low also qualify for an exemption?

Article is here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-06-17/even-feds-admit-minimum-wages-cause-unemployment http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-06-17/even-feds-admit-minimum-wages-cause-unemployment

Sunday, June 15, 2014

Why We Hate Work

". . . just 30 percent of employees in America feel engaged at work, according to a 2013 report by Gallup. Around the world, across 142 countries, the proportion of employees who feel engaged at work is just 13 percent. For most of us, in short, work is a depleting, dispiriting experience, and in some obvious ways, it’s getting worse."

That is from a New York Times article ths morning. Sadly, the figures about employee satisifaction and engagement have changed little since Fritz Aldrine and I wrote "Why Work Isn't Working Anymore" more than 10 years ago, indicating little has been done by most employers to improve the work experience.

The article is here: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/01/opinion/sunday/why-you-hate-work.html?_r=0