Employment numbers are lagging indicators of the economy. While Gross Domestic Product gained 3.5% in the third quarter of 2009, payrolls continued to fall. Job losses announced in November were 11,000. The number is the lowest monthly job loss since December 2007 and the eighth consecutive month where losses were fewer than the month before. As we close out 2009, what is the U.S. employment outlook for next year?

Unemployment is expected to peak sometime next year, and remain around 10% through 2010 and into 2011. However, the huge losses suffered at the beginning of 2009, when 700,000 jobs were lost per month appear to be behind us.

In addition, temp jobs increased in November, and unemployment fell by 0.2% to 10%. Economists had expected an unchanged rate, so the drop is a good sign. The Labor Department also revised job losses for September and October, form 190,000 to 111,000 in October, and from 219,000 to 139,000 in September.

Other indicators are strengthening as well. The stock market is up and business investment in equipment and software increased in the third quarter.  According to economists, meaningful job growth is expected by the end of 2010, spurred both by federal government investment and private employer hiring. Additional indicators: consumer spending was up in November by .5%, while personal incomes were up .4%.

The average number of hours worked each week has fallen throughout the recession. But in November, the average workweek increased by .2 hour to 33.2 hours. The manufacturing workweek increased .3 hour to 40.4 hours. Still, there are 15.4 million unemployed persons in the U.S. and the number of folks working part-time due to cut hours or inability to find full-time work was little changed at 9.2%.

Americans are working hard; productivity is growing. Output rose by 4% while number of hours fell by 5%. This indicates that employers are doing more with less—and may not need to add workers just yet.

But in the long run, increasing productivity is expected to increase demand for workers, as well. What is your company’s employment plan for 2010?

What makes employees happy and loyal? Company culture, extra perks, feeling appreciated by their employers—all of these factors are important, but they are not the deciding ones when employees are faced with the decision: “should I stay or should I go?”  The two things employees put at the top of the list are pay and benefits.

According to a survey conducted for the last three years by a Florida staffing firm, compensation and benefits are the most important thing in their relationships with their employers.

Although fewer workers have quit jobs this year (according to the U.S. Department of Labor), history suggests that workers who are unhappy will start looking for employment elsewhere as the economy improves. And the main reason they’re unhappy?  Their pay has been cut during the recession.

One study, conducted last May, showed that employees at 235 large U.S. firms are less committed to their employers—so those firms who managed to keep their strongest people during the recession may be at risk of losing them.

What can employers do to hold on to good employees?

1. Make up for pay cuts: it’s a sure way of making affected employees happier. And if you plan on giving raises, say so! Now is not the time for surprises—people need reassurance more than ever. So don’t keep plans to yourself, or use a pay raise to bargain with an employee after they announce they’re quitting.

2. If you promise a pay raise, follow through: nothing is worse than making a promise and not delivering on it.

3. Be flexible: We’ve shared lots of ideas in this blog about boosting morale and supporting employees’ needs. Sometimes it can make up for lower pay—but not always.

4. Pay a performance bonus: If you can, write a bonus plan that rewards your staff for meeting objectives. Pay-for-performance is a good way to give a sense of ownership and commitment.

5. Be open and accountable: if management is getting raises and bonuses, and staff is not, be prepared to explain why.

Employers who cut staff to deal with a business slowdown, often experience a slowdown in worker productivity, too. Here are some free ways to boost it back up.

Be flexible: Not only do employees who work for managers they consider flexible produce more work, they are healthier. A recent study undertaken by eight federally-funded research teams in the U.S. show that employers’ policies affect employees in ways they might not have imagined. Cardiovascular disease is twice as prevalent in employees who have bosses unwilling to work with them on family issues like caring for sick children.

Employers with a culture of flexibility, such as remote work programs and flex hours, have workers who sleep an average of 30 minutes more per night. The same study reported that nearly 80 percent of workers want flexible work schedules, but many believe they will be overlooked for advancement if they ask for it.

The study also shows that businesses with open and flexible cultures have more engaged and supportive employees, and much less turnover.

Be supportive: Employers and workers are both feeling the strain of job cutbacks, losses in sales and profits, and an uncertain future. However, employers should try to be as supportive of their remaining employees as they are demanding of them. Listen to employees’ needs and suggestions, especially when re-prioritizing duties are necessary. Some tasks may have to be eliminated when staffing is decreased. Be empathetic to what your employees can physically and emotionally take on.

Be inclusive: When employers ask workers to take on more responsibility, productivity can be negatively affected. Consider giving your best workers leadership roles and the titles that go with them when you ask them to work longer and harder. A sense of ownership can boost morale and productivity.

After layoffs, benefits cuts and asking staff to do without, employers look for ways to boost employees’ spirits. Some buy lunch, while others encourage fun with Halloween costumes. But some inventive employers seek ideas beyond the norm to improve morale and keep employees productive.

Start an employee garden: One Indiana business owner invested $600 in a 1,500 square foot garden on her business property. Four employees shared the workload and the bounty, estimated at $2,400 worth of vegetables and herbs. Free produce is a sure bet for a crowd-pleasing morale booster, helping employees stay healthier by increasing the fresh vegetables in their diets and saving them money, too.

Take an afternoon off to play: Close the doors, turn on the voice mail, and take your crew to the movies, a comedy show, the ball park, or a pottery class. While it’s true that not all businesses can close the doors during regular hours, with proper planning, many can. Give customers plenty of notice, and do what’s necessary to meet their needs. Most customers can tolerate doing without your services for one afternoon a year—and knowing your business invests in your employees creates goodwill.

Throw a party: Thinking of cutting this year’s holiday bash? Think again—it could kill employee morale. (Unless the annual holiday party is lame, in which case it could boost it.) If funds are tight, ask your employees for ideas. They might come up with a celebration that costs less and is more fun than the one you’ve been doing for years. Try a gathering at your home instead of an expensive banquet room or restaurant. Do put out some nice finger foods or a big pot of chili with all the fixings. Do have a silly gift exchange, play some music, and relax. Don’t ask you staff to bring a dish, pitch in for a gift for the boss, or provide their own drinks. They’re likely already strapped for time and money.

Buy the coffee, tea, or hot chocolate this week: Many employers have cut the “free coffee” perk. Bring it back for a week—or one week a month. Anything helps!

Let the dogs in: Allowing employees to bring their dogs to work is a huge morale booster, when it works. First, all must be in favor of having canine companions around. Allergic staff members must be accommodated. Dogs must be well behaved—both on their own and in a group. If your business cannot handle every Molly, Spot, and Chance at once, set up a rotation schedule. Your employees will love having their furry family members close by, and studies show that dogs in the workplace lower stress.

The US Congress designated October as National Work and Family Month to remind employers to consider employees’ family needs when making business decisions.

When your staff is stressed out about family issues, work performance will likely suffer.

So encouraging a healthy balance of work and life can increase productivity. It also reduces turnover and increases employers’ gain on the investment they make in hiring and training staff.

How can employers accomplish good work/life balance in their businesses?

Tuning in to your employees’ needs is important to maintaining a happier work place for everyone. Look for cues of discontent and listen when your employees are expressing their needs.

Don’t meddle into your workers’ personal lives. Do offer concrete solutions to employees’ family life challenges. If one staff member is experiencing trouble with a day care provider, or another wants to accompany his mother to a doctor’s appointment, help them find ways to get these needs met.

Improve your staff’s physical health and your business will benefit, too. Healthy employees have lower levels of stress, illness and injuries, miss fewer days of work, and are more productive. Encourage wellness with company-wide gym memberships, by installing bicycle racks, and awarding employees for walking or biking to work.

Try flex schedules, such as position sharing and work-from-home options. If you have two employees who want to work fewer hours, perhaps there is a full-time job they can share. Do you have employees who could work from home a day per week or month? Just reducing those employees’ commutes can add valuable hours to their home lives.

Encourage employees to go for a walk on breaks and lunch hours. Fresh air and movement can make a huge difference in a worker’s day. Don’t require employees to stay onsite for lunch. Getting away is healthy, and could help employees keep their lives in order by allowing them to run errands.

It’s up to both sides of the employment equation to keep things healthy: employers should be creative in helping staff members achieve a healthy work/life balance, and employees should communicate their needs and take advantage of their employers’ attempts to help.

Employers are liable for most of their employees’ actions, especially when they put others in harm’s way. Most employers know that having staff members driving company-provided vehicles, or their own vehicles if on company business, must protect themselves with proper liability coverage.

Over the past several years, distracted driving by employees has been named the culprit in several liability cases—and employers have had to pay big settlements. In these cases, the cause of distraction was the ubiquitous—and dangerous—cell phone; these employers where found to be liable for permitting employees to use cell phones while driving for business:

• In Florida, a jury awarded $16 million to a woman struck by a salesperson who was talking on the phone while driving. The employer was found liabile.

• A Virginia court allowed a claim against a law firm for $30 million when an attorney struck and killed a 15-year-old girl while talking to a client on the phone. The law firm settled for an undisclosed amount.

• Another case involved International Paper Company, who paid a defendant over $5 million after she was rear-ended by an employee who was talking on a cell phone.

The IPC case is interesting because the company had a policy in place that only allowed employees to use hands-free phones in their company vehicles. Obviously, the policy didn’t protect the company from the lawsuit!

Several states have either banned or are regulating use of cell phones while driving. Employers everywhere are following suit, especially in light of several tragic mass-transit accidents where operators caused injuries and fatalities because of texting.

Last week, President Obama banned federal employees from using cell phones to call or send text messages while driving federally owned vehicles, using cell phones to conduct federal business while driving private vehicles, or using federally-owned cell phones in any manner whether driving public or private vehicles.

Well, that ought to cover it. Employers might consider using the federal ban as a guideline to protect their own companies, their employees, and the public from needless accidents and lawsuits. The important lesson is to institute a cell phone use policy, communicate it, and enforce it!

Employers slashed 467,000 jobs in June, to bring the US unemployment rate closer to double-digit levels. The jobless rate is now 9.5%, up slightly from May’s 9.4% figure.

Jobs fell farther than the 350,000 economists were predicting, and June marked the end of a declining trend that began after January’s peak job loss figure. Since then, the number of jobs lost each month had declined—until June’s number increased over May by 145,000. (May’s job decline had been reported at 345,000, but has been adjusted to 322,000.)

Since the recession began in December, 2007, the number of jobless Americans has increased by 7.2 million; the unemployment rate has increased by 4.6%. Blacks, Hispanics, and teenagers have higher rates of unemployment than the general population, at 14.7 percent, 12.2 percent, and 24 percent, respectively. These numbers show little change from May’s figures.

The number of long-term unemployed, who are classified as jobless for 27 weeks or more, increased by 433,000 in June, to 4.4 million.

Construction and manufacturing jobs continue to take the biggest hit in the sliding U.S. economy. Manufacturing dropped over 136,000 workers, and construction employment declined by 79,000 in June—a smaller decline than the rest of the year. Since the start of the recession, manufacturing employment has decreased by 1.9 million, and construction by 1.3 million.

The professional and business services sector lost 116,000 jobs, and federal government jobs were cut by 49,000 in June—mostly workers hired to prepare for the 2010 Census. Even temporary help services are on the decline: by 38,000 in June and 848,000 since the start of the recession. Automobile dealership closures affected June’s numbers: 9,000 jobs were lost in this category. And overall retail jobs declined by 21,000. Losses in retail jobs have leveled out over the past three months.

Financial services continue to shed jobs: 27,000 in June, to bring the total lost in financial services to 489,000 since the recession’s beginning in December, 2007. The information industry lost 21,000 jobs in June, and is down by 187,000 since the recession began. Publishing has accounted for about half the total job losses in this category.

The only real increase was seen in education and health care, which added 34,000 jobs in June. Health care job increases have averaged 21,000 per month, which is down from 2008’s average of 30,000 per month.

A broader indicator of the state of unemployment is the number of Americans who have given up looking for a job, or who are working part-time when they want full-time work: this number rose to 16.5% in June.

June’s unemployment figure tempered signs of progress in the US economy, and reiterate the fact that the job market remains weak—something 14.7 million Americans know only too well.

Source: United States Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

Right now, lots of good, smart people are looking for work. If your business is in hiring mode—and plenty still are, despite the economy—how can you focus your recruiting efforts and find the right people?

Employee recruitment has become more complicated as the usual practices have changed over the past several years. Mass advertising, online or in print, won’t always target your best hire—especially for higher-level professional positions. If the perfect employee never sees your ad, how can you hire them? And a better question is, where are they and how can let them know you’re hiring?

That’s where social networking comes in to boost your recruiting efforts.

LinkedIn is probably the largest online social network for business. You could think of it as a replacement for your Rolodex—only it contains 42 million names across the entire globe!  Once you join and complete your profile, you can easily search for people you know. LinkedIn does just what its name implies—it links business people, whether they work in the same building or worked together twenty years ago.

But LinkedIn goes much farther in building community. It links you to all the contacts held by each of your contacts—so through degrees of separation, you are connected to all those millions of people.  LinkedIn also finds commonalities among its members, who then form groups based on shared industry connections or interests. Whether you’re in manufacturing, medicine, or marketing, you can find thousands of like-minded folks quickly.

Once you’ve established contacts, you can easily put out the word about positions you need to fill. Rather than calling thirty of your Rolodex contacts, LinkedIn can automatically put your message out to thirty thousand of your contacts’ contacts! Plus, you can search by keyword through the entire LinkedIn network to find people with the skills and qualifications you require. So instead of waiting for the perfect employee to come to you, you can find them in seconds—even if they weren’t looking for a job.

But remember that online social networking is much like face-to-face networking. Just as smart people are always looking for their next great position, smart employers are always recruiting their next great hire. That means you have to stay involved, be helpful, keep adding to your contacts, and invite others into your circle.

Social networks can make recruiting employees a breeze!

Before you hire, screen every applicant. Check out our Pre-Employment Screening services. Increase your peace of mind and save training costs by hiring smart.

Our previous post covered diversity in the workplace, including being sensitive to employees who display their religious beliefs through clothing or hairstyle. We advised employers to avoid making an issue of any such break of dress code as long as job performance was not affected.

That leads us to today’s topic: are dress codes still being established in businesses? A look around a scattering of companies reveals a variety of policies that are currently in force:

Retail: Most major chains enforce dress codes. Target, Walmart, Macy’s, and Costco all require their employees to either dress in business wear or uniforms. Target’s red top and khaki bottom outfits are familiar to frequent shoppers. Costco’s guidelines forbid facial piercings (even after Costco was sued for the policy on religious grounds). And what would Walmart be without blue vests everywhere?

Smaller, locally-owned establishments are usually a reflection of their clientele and surroundings. Some stores allow employees to wear whatever they want—which can be dangerous! The definition of “too casual” depends largely on your industry and where you’re located. West coasters tend to be more casual, and we’ve seen plenty of t-shirts, jeans, and flip-flops worn by sales clerks. If that’s a normal look in your area, your customers probably won’t think it’s a big deal—especially if they’re dressed the same way. In bigger cities and on the east coast, people tend to dress up more, and retail clerks’ dress reflects it.

Restaurants: Most restaurants have established dress codes, at the very least for health and safety reasons. Customers don’t usually care for a guy in a tank top taking their dinner order (as happened to a friend of ours recently!). Upscale restaurants see dressed-up diners who expect professional appearances for host and wait staff.

Health Workers: Scrubs are the norm in all areas of health care, from walk-in clinics to emergency rooms. Nurses, doctors, and dental assistants are usually decked out in scrubs for their entire work day—even television’s Dr. Oz wears scrubs for every appearance on Oprah’s show.

Professionals: Most law offices and finance-related businesses still require corporate dress for all staff, from CEO to reception. You don’t expect to see a board room full of people dressed in sweat pants and tennis shoes. Nor would most folks feel comfortable if their lawyer represented them in court while wearing a t-shirt and shorts! Suits, dress shirts and ties, skirts, and hose are still considered proper attire in the legal and financial fields.

Dress codes can encourage professional conduct and increase productivity for your employees. But beware: if you do not currently have a dress code in your company, your employees may resist it—so be sure to communicate your reasons clearly, and to enforce it consistently. When deciding what the dress code will entail, ask the following questions to avoid legal trouble:

• Is the policy fair for employees of both genders and all ages?
• Does it infringe on any employee’s religious beliefs?
• Does it infringe on a cultural aspect of a specific race?
• Would a disability prevent an employee from complying?
• Can employees fulfill their job duties when complying?