Temp-tation April 2013

In this issue

What is a

"Full-time" Employee?

Earlier this month the House of Representatives passed the Saving American Workers Act. The legislation would repeal the Affordable Care Act's 30-hour definition of full-time employment, and change it to the traditional 40-hour definition. It was approved by the House in a 248-179 vote.

The ACA's definition of full-time employment as 30 hours or more has had the unintended, but not unexpected, consequence of causing many employers to reduce the work hours of their employees to below the 30 hour threshold to avoid having to pay the penalty for not offering health insurance.

While nearly everyone can agree that having health insurance is important, most can agree that so is having full-time employment.

The White House stated that the president would veto the bill if it was presented to him, and it also appears unlikely the bill will receive approval from the Senate.

Temptation Trivia

When this wounded Civil War Colonel became addicted to morphine, he sought to find a substitute to replace this dangerous opiate. The product that he developed launched a company that today has annual sales of more than $40,000,000,000, and is a household name in more than 200 countries.

Name this Civil War Colonel, and the product he invented.

If you know the answer, call or e-mail your local branch office by noon this Friday. One winner will be chosen at random from those that answered correctly, and that person will get treats delivered!

Last issue answer: The former King or Denmark and Norway whose nickname lives on in a common communications protocol was Harald "Bluetooth" Gormsson.

Anniversaries

Maria Servin-Ybarra

Staffing Specialist

Appleton

1 year

Quick Links

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Celebrating Over 40 Years of Staffing Excellence!

The results are in!

Flex-Staff would like to thank all of you who took the time to complete our recent Client Satisfaction Survey. The

feedback we receive from these surveys enables us to fine-tune the services that we provide, and make us a more valuable asset for our client companies.

Based on a scale where 4.0 is the highest achievable, here are the categories measured, and Flex-Staff's results:

Speed of response to your staffing needs: 3.7

Reliability of our employees: 3.5

Matching employees to your qualifications: 3.5

Problem resolution (if there was a problem): 3.5

Professionalism and knowledge of Flex-Staff's internal staff: 3.8

How Flex-Staff compares to other staffing services: 3.7

How well we keep you informed of our progress in filling your orders: 3.7

As in past years, the results in every category were very good overall, which is a positive reflection on the hard work, dedication, and service attitude of the staff in Flex-Staff's offices across the state. Of course there is always room for improvement. We will work to incorporate the feedback and suggestions we received so that we can provide an even higher level of client satisfaction.

One Minute Ideas

How to Be a Good Manager: 8 Quick Tips

1. Do Your Job - First and foremost do your own job. Managing people isn't an excuse to let them do the work while you look on. Your staff will respect you for doing what needs to be done and being willing to pitch in like everyone else at times.

2. Acknowledge the Positive - See the positives in your staff and their work. Don't be one of those bosses who only sees what's missing rather than what's been achieved.

3. Be Vulnerable - If you make a mistake, be big about it and apologize. No one expects a manager to be super human.

4. Be Real with People - The way we work is changing. You don't have to be untouchable. Be the real human being that you are. If you let people know the "real you" it is much easier than having different personalities for your work and home life.

5. Lead by Example - If you want your staff to behave in a certain way (professional, good team players), then lead by example. It is not fair to expect your staff to do something if you are not doing it yourself.

6. Be Self-Aware - Be aware of your moods and how you communicate. You may not realize how much of an impact you have on your team as a manager.

7. Have Fun - Having fun at work can help make the work easier for everyone, forge positive relationships, and strengthen your team. There is usually room for more fun in any work environment, but if the nature of your work makes that difficult, be sure to schedule fun activities when you can.

8. Trust Yourself - At the end of the day, there is no one right way to be a manager. Trust yourself and learn through your mistakes.

By Jen Smith at workawesome.com

Recipe

Amaretto-Almond Pound Cake

1 1/4 cups butter, softened

1 (3oz) package cream cheese, softened

2 1/2 cups sugar

3 tablespoons almond liqueur (Amaretto)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

6 large eggs

1/3 cup slivered almonds

Amaretto glaze*

Preheat oven to 325�. Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add liqueur and vanilla, beating just until blended. Gradually add flour to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended after each addition.

Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating at low speed just until blended after each addition. Sprinkle almonds over bottom of a greased and floured 12-cup Bundt pan; pour batter into pan.

Bake at 325� for 1 hour and 5 minutes to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

During last 10 minutes of baking, prepare Amaretto glaze*. Remove cake from oven, and gradually spoon hot Amaretto Glaze over cake in pan. (Continue to spoon glaze over cake until all of glaze is used, allowing it to soak into cake after each addition.) Cool completely in pan on a wire rack (about 1 hour and 30 minutes).

*Amaretto Glaze

3/4 cup sugar

6 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup almond liqueur (Amaretto)

2 tablespoons water

Bring sugar, butter, almond liqueur, and water to a boil in a small 1-qt. saucepan over medium heat, stirring often; reduce heat to medium-low, and boil, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Remove from heat, and use immediately.

Inspirational Quote

There are no traffic jams along the extra mile. - Roger Staubach