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Proactive Technologies, Inc. Worker Development News |
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Apprenticeships That Make Money? Not as Impossible as it Seems (part 2 of 2) – Setting Up an Apprenticeship Center |
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
In the first part of a two-part article entitled “Apprenticeships That Make Money? Not as Impossible as it Seems (part 1 of 2)” appearing in the Proactive Technologies Report, I discussed what seemed to be the obvious differences in European and U.S. apprenticeship models. I suggested that visionary U.S. business leaders consider creating a revenue-generating “apprenticeship center” within the organization to cover the costs of the apprenticeship and, in some cases, make money. How could that be accomplished? In continuing the discussion I would like to offer a possible strategy.
American manufacturers turned to lower wage labor sources, such as Mexico, China and India, during the last 30 years to lower their production costs in the hope that they would be more profitable. It is now understood that with lower wage costs comes additional supply chain costs which can, if uncontrollable, erase some or all of the gains a lower wage level might offer.
But what if some of the services or operations to manufacture products or sub-assemblies that were, or are to be, off-shored could be done internally - at the labor cost of “training wages” as done in Europe - using equipment that would otherwise have to be idled, sold or shipped? What if those training wages could be furthered reduced by state grants? Could employers find that the source of lower wages is in their own back yard?
Although the following approach for determining if an apprenticeship center/cost-reduction center is right for your organization is simple, it should be scalable to any organization with slight modifications: Read More
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Are Advances in Technology Distracting Keeping HR From the Fundamentals of Worker Selection and Development? |
by Stacey Lett, Director of Operations - Eastern U.S. - Proactive Technologies, Inc.
Billions of investment dollars are driving the advancements in technology into every corner of our lives, including the selection and development of workers. Predictably, the emphasis often seems more on the technology and the money it can make for investors than the practicality for the end-user or those it effects.
It is not just the refrigerators that talk to your grocery store, or watches that talk to the phone in your pocket. Wall Street, with an accumulating mountain of cash, can drive any idea to fabricate a “trend” that often dissipates as quickly as it emerges, sometimes leaving disruption in the wake but yields a return for investors. For investors it is the means to an end. To many, it may negatively affect their life and their future.
In the 1990’s, investors started to look at the National Security Agency’s and Central Intelligence Agency’s “ key-word search” capabilities used to scan millions of documents from around the world for specific words and phrases to expand their intelligence gathering reach. They saw applications of this technology in the civilian world, including scanning the mounds of resumes and employment applications employers had to filter in order to find a few new-hires. On the surface, this seemed to be a godsend.
Soon employers and employment candidates saw what the developers of this technology did not. The technology first had to count on employers having accurately designed job descriptions in consistent formats, using standardized terms, words and phrases to describe pre-hire knowledge, experience, skills and abilities of interest. The fact was reality couldn’t have been farther from this, with job descriptions written 50 years prior, written precisely for someone the employer wanted to hire (not so reflective of the actual job requirements), or cut & pasted from a handy library resource.
Next, this technology had to rely the applicant knowing the right words and phrases to describe their own pre-hire knowledge, experience, skills and abilities of interest to the employer for the algorithm to recognize a closeness or match. In truth, most candidates even knew less about the difference between a skill and ability, knowledge and a trait, having “experience with” versus being “acquainted with,” or being “fluent” in a topic or having a passing knowledge.
Nevertheless, this technology, with all of its short-comings, stormed the market. Many who lost their jobs in 2008, as with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, had not written a resume or filled in a job application for 20 or 30 years, let alone were aware of how key-word search worked and the need to be precise in describing a life of work in terms used by employers which were evolving and who probably changed their own management line-up and company strategy. No one really knows how many highly skilled and perfect matches have seen their careers derailed by this technology, robbing the worker of the job they wanted and the employer of the worker they needed.
Today, while the matching technology is still in use, more and more employers recognize its shortcomings and have developed “work-arounds” to try to ensure more qualified candidates are fairly and more objectively measured. Some have thrown out the idea of key-word candidate screening but not before the years of damage was done. Read More
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Proactive Technologies Announces Summer "Turnkey Project" Discount Offer is Back - Expires September 30th, 2021 |
by Proactive Technologies, Inc. Staff
After a year-and-a-half long Covid-19 break, Proactive Technologies Inc. is once again extending to employers a generous discount offer of up to 30% from June 15 to September 30th, 2021 - extended as requested by employers!
This accelerated transfer of expertise™ approach is a tremendous offer without the discount, but with it can help any employer quickly and completely train the skilled workers they need AND realize an increase in worker capacity, work quantity/quality and compliance (ISO/TS/AS, engineering specifications and safety) while reducing the internal costs of training! New-hires and incumbent workers are driven to full job mastery and higher levels of return on worker investment (ROWI). The task-based, structured on-the-job training infrastructure is perfect for the apprenticeships; instead of marking the calendar for “time-in-job,” job-relevant tasks are mastered and documented.
Waiting on general classes or unstructured, ad hoc one-on-one training to improve performance and maximize the investment in each worker usually proves to be futile and disappointing. When a worker masters the work they were hired for, it can now be possible to explain, document, repeat and/or improve performance. When turnover occurs and puts you back to square one - wiping out any gains and wasting your investment - labor costs rise, quality and work consistency decreases and the "gap" skill remains. So why not treat workers as the investment it is and manage it for the outcome you need and expect?
In the event that anyone needs one more way (i.e. in addition to live online presentations, onsite presentations) to gather enough information to decide whether to move forward with structured on-the-job training to boost their training strategy, PTI is resuming onsite presentations. Contact Proactive Technologies t o schedule an appointment. Read More
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Environmental and Cultural Factors That Undermine a Successful Structured On-the-Job Training Program |
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
I’ll start by saying that every worker is a capital investment. It seems to be conceptually obvious, but sometimes overlooked in practice. Just as with all of the collective expertise is intellectual capital, it should be deliberately developed, protected, its use maximized. ISO9001:2015, TS 16949, AS 9100 and NADCAP emphasize this fact and have sections in their guidelines that pertain to, and require compliance with, this concept.
The saying “can’t see the forest for the trees,“ implies that one is too close to the subject to see it accurately. In the case of worker development, employers have often been marginally successful with the informal, ad hoc, unstructured one-on-one training that seems to gets them what they need, but not as effectively and efficiently as they think or would like.
Even when an effort is made to structure the unstructured, there are those that resist the effort for a number of reasons. Some have a vested interest in defending the program that they have struggled with through many years of legitimate effort. Some do not like change. Some fear change will interfere with other important goals, such as production quotas - even though the effort to structure what is loosely already there (which takes much longer with lesser results) should only be seen as a positive development. Some may think they know what they are doing or talking about, but are confused about the major differences between classroom lectures, unstructured one-on-one training and structured on-the-job training.
There are only a few true practitioners(with varying approaches) of structured on-the-job training in the world, but the approach is gaining ground with the reintroduction of conceptually similar approaches such as " Training Within Industry", an approach developed during WWII to help build a strong manufacturing supply chain,. And with the task-based knowledge capture and task-based training requirements of ISO/AS/TS that employers should literally comply with. It would be wise to follow the direction of whichever expert you bring in to help your firm build and implement your structured on-the-job training program until they are ready to hand it off to your trained staff. A professional firm would try hard to learn your culture and constraints before proceeding with a strategy right for your firm. Read More
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IN THIS ISSUE:
Proactive Technologies, Inc. Worker Development News
Industry News
Financial News
International News
International Trade News
Education and Workforce Development News
Training and Organizational Development News
Quality News
Science
Cyber and IT News
Human Resources Management News
Environmental, Health & Safety News
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Proactive Technologies, Inc.™ -
capturing worker expertise to build and support job specific, task-based worker development programs (with metric-based solutions) since 1986.
Experience the power of the
Develop all the expert workers you need in a fraction of the time, with a fraction of the investment! Increased worker capacity, work quality and quantity, and worker compliance (ISO9001:2015, AS9100D, TS16949, engineering and quality specifications, and safety requirements)."
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Proactive Technologies' Publications Archive
While at our website, check out past newsletters, articles and more. Helping employers to unlock worker value since 1986!
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Free - Live Online Presentation Schedule
If interested in attending one of the presentations below, click on the title, then select a date/time and press "Send." An online presentation invitation and link will be sent to you. On the date and time of the event, just click on link in email invitation and it will connect you to the presentation. No special equipment required.
Click here for descriptions of all of the available presentations. Click on a specific title for that specific description and schedule or to schedule a date and time that works for you.
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PTI Promo - (Recorded - Available Any Time): A Preview of an Upcoming Presentation (13 minutes)
FOR FORMER EMPLOYER CLIENTS:
FOR ANY EMPLOYER:
FOR EDUCATION, WORKFORCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS
If you would like more information or would like to discuss these presentations or anything else, click on the "View Live Upcoming Presentations/Calendar" button below and fill in the "Contact Us" with your request including information specifying an alternative date/time you prefer and how many will be attending. An invitation and link will be sent to you.
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Onsite and group presentations
are being scheduled for the following states, and a representative will be in your area, in the month of:
August, 2021
Proactive Technologies is scheduling stops in the following areas:
COLORADO
FLORIDA
ILLINOIS - Southern, I-80 Corridor
INDIANA
KANSAS - I-70 Corridor, Wichita
MISSOURI
NORTH CAROLINA
OHIO
SOUTH CAROLINA
ONLINE VIDEO PRESENTATIONS If you are interested in attending one of our regularly scheduled videoconferences, select from the schedule above or visit our website and select a videoconference from the calendar. An email invitation will be sent to you confirming your selection. This videoconference will be to your computer and no other equipment is required.
If you would like more information or would like to schedule a custom briefing and presentation videoconference for you and your staff, click on the "contact us" link below.
Contact Us to express your interest in an onsite or group presentation.
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U.S. Department of Commerce - Bureau of Economic Analysis |
Gross Domestic Product, 2nd Quarter 2021 (Advance Estimate) and Annual Update
Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 6.5 percent in the second quarter of 2021, reflecting the continued economic recovery, reopening of establishments, and continued government response related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the second quarter, government assistance payments in the form of loans to businesses and grants to state and local governments increased, while social benefits to households, such as the direct economic impact payments, declined. In the first quarter of 2021, real GDP increased 6.3 percent (revised). Read Report
Personal Income and Outlays, June 2021 and Annual Update
Personal income increased $26.1 billion, or 0.1 percent at a monthly rate, while consumer spending increased $155.4 billion, or 1.0 percent, in June. Compensation increased in June while pandemic-related assistance programs declined. Read Report
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U.S. Department of Commerce - Bureau of the Census |
Advanced Report on Durable Goods Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders
New orders for manufactured durable goods in June increased $2.1 billion or 0.8 percent to $257.6 billion.
June 2021: +0.8° % change; May 2021 (r): +3.2° % change. Read Report
Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders
New orders for manufactured goods in May increased $8.1 billion or 1.7 percent to $495.5 billion. May 2021: +1.7° % change; April 2021 (r): -0.1° % change. Read Report
Household Pulse Survey - (June 23 - July 5)
What is the Household Pulse Survey?
The U.S. Census Bureau, in collaboration with multiple federal agencies, is in a unique position to produce data on the social and economic effects of coronavirus on American households. The Household Pulse Survey is designed to deploy quickly and efficiently, collecting data to measure household experiences during the coronavirus pandemic. Data will be disseminated in near real-time to inform federal and state response and recovery planning. Read Data
Small Business Pulse Survey:
The Small Business Pulse Survey (Business Pulse) measures the effect of changing business conditions during the Coronavirus pandemic on our nation's small businesses. Business Pulse complements existing U.S. Census Bureau data collections by providing high-frequency, detailed information on the challenges small businesses are facing during the Coronavirus pandemic as well as their participation in federal programs such as the Paycheck Protection Program. Read Report
Monthly State Retail Sales
The Monthly State Retail Sales (MSRS) is the Census Bureau's new experimental data product featuring modeled state-level retail sales. This is a blended data product using Monthly Retail Trade Survey data, administrative data, and third-party data. Year-over-year percent changes are available for Total Retail Sales excluding Nonstore Retailers as well as 11 retail North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) retail subsectors. These data are provided by state and NAICS codes beginning with January 2019. The Census Bureau plans to continue to improve the methodology to be able to publish more data in the future. Access Tables
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U. S. Department of Labor Statistics |
Consumer Price Index
In June, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers rose 0.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis; rising 5.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.9 percent in June (SA); up 4.5 percent over the year (NSA). Read Report
Producer Price Index
The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 1.0 percent in June, as prices for final demand services rose 0.8 percent and the index for final demand goods moved up 1.2 percent. The final demand index advanced 7.3 percent for the 12 months ended in June. Read Report
Job Openings and Labor Turnover
Job openings were little changed at 9.2 million on the last business day of May. Hires were little changed at 5.9 million while total separations decreased to 5.3 million. Read Report
Unemployment Rate for States
Unemployment Rates for States, Seasonally Adjusted. Read Report
Job Creation - Employment Situation Summary
Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 850,000 in June, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 5.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Notable job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, public and private education, professional and business services, retail trade, and other services.
Civilian Labor Participation Rate
For a 20 year chart of the U.S. Civilian Labor Participation Rate. Read Report
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Cornell Law School - U.S. Private Sector Job Quality Index |
U.S. Private Sector Job Quality Index
For December 2020 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the U.S. Private Sector Job Quality Index (JQI)® has been revised to a level of 81.24, down by 0.91% from its revised level one month earlier and reflecting a higher proportion - relative to the prior month - of U.S. production and non-supervisory (P&NS) jobs paying less than the mean weekly income of all P&NS jobs (“Low Quality Jobs”), relative to those jobs paying above such mean. The JQI remains heavily impacted by the extraordinary disruption in the number and composition of private sector production and non-supervisory jobs since the beginning of the U.S. impact of the COVID19 global pandemic, with regard to which the following additional special factors should be noted: Read Report
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Reshoring Rose Significantly in 2020, Report Finds |
IndustryWeek
The Reshoring Initiative said the push by companies to return operations to the U.S. was a COVID-19 silver lining.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. found itself unexpectedly facing down a global pandemic it was not materially supplied for. Shortages of PPE and medical technology pushed 3M protective mask operations into the headlines, and country-wide shutdowns led many to question the wisdom of complex international supply chains.
That questioning has already begun to bear fruit, according to The Reshoring Initiative, which released its 2020 Data Report June 2. More jobs were created in the U.S. thanks to reshoring in 2020 than were created by foreign direct investment, the report says, the first time that’s happened since 2013. Reshoring created about 109,000 U.S. jobs out of about 161,000 total jobs created from reshoring and foreign direct investment in 2020. Read Article
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Parts Shortages Show Cracks in OEM Purchasing |
IndustryWeek - Paul Ericksen, Tim Biggs
A crisis should be the ideal time to consider significant changes to address weaknesses in current practice.
Over the last 100 years, American industry needed to continually evolve to adjust to changes in markets and technology. And for the most part, it has. For instance, automobile manufacturers have been able to develop and offer more technologically advanced vehicles that both deliver a good customer experience and meet government safety requirements.
However, over that same time, there has also been a business-as-usual attitude among supply chain and other C-Level executives in automotive. This has led to a multitude of problems such as those made visible with the impacts of COVID-19, including part shortages due to supply chain failures. Read Article
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Whirlpool Expands Oklahoma Assembly Plant |
Assembly Magazine
TULSA, OK—Whirlpool Corp. is investing $15 million in its assembly plant here. The project is expected to create 150 new jobs.
Most of the investment will go to machinery and equipment to increase production capabilities and capacity. The remaining funds to be used for key building and infrastructure improvements, including health and safety protocols to accommodate the increase in workers.
“Whirlpool is committed to U.S. manufacturing, and our investment in our Tulsa factory highlights our dedication not only to the Tulsa community but to our current and future colleagues in the region,” says Don Metzelaar, vice president of integrated supply chain and quality for Whirlpool. Read Article
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$155 Million Investment Will Create More Than 1,000 New Jobs |
SC Commerce
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Oshkosh Defense, a subsidiary of Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK), today announced plans to establish operations in Spartanburg County. The $155 million investment will create more than 1,000 new jobs.
Founded in 1917, Oshkosh Defense is a tactical vehicle manufacturer that specializes in designing and manufacturing a diverse portfolio of heavy, medium, light and highly protected vehicles and technologies for clients around the globe.
Located at the Flatwood Industrial Park in Spartanburg, Oshkosh Defense’s new operations will support the United States Postal Service (USPS) Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) program. The company will manufacture zero-emission battery electric vehicles and fuel-efficient low-emission internal combustion engine vehicles that will replace USPS’ existing fleet of delivery vehicles. Read Release
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Supply, Talent Shortages Weigh on Manufacturing Growth |
IndustryWeek - Ryan Secard
The ISM’s index for manufacturing employment slipped into contraction in June for the first time in 7 months.
The manufacturing sector grew last month for the thirteenth month running, albeit at a slightly slower pace than it had in May. The Institute for Supply Management, in its June report on manufacturing business, lowered its manufacturing PMI to 60.6%—above the 50% mark indicating growth, but 0.6 points lower than May’s 61.2% PMI. Read Article
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GM to Source Lithium for EV Batteries from US-Based Startup |
IndustryWeek - Ryan Secard
Controlled Thermal Resources says it can extract lithium in a way with a smaller environmental footprint than traditional methods.
General Motors announced July 2 it would move to source lithium for its electric-vehicle batteries from a U.S.-based startup. The automaker made a multi-million-dollar investment in Controlled Thermal Resources, Ltd., a California-based startup, to help fund a lithium plant in Southern California.
Without disclosing the precise amount of money in the investment, GM said “a significant portion” of its battery-grade lithium would come from CTR, which would provide GM a domestic source of lithium for its electrified vehicles. Read Article
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What Conditions Make Industry 4.0 Feasible? |
IndustryWeek - Arno Koch
Part three of a series.
Many factories are not yet ready to take the leap to 4.0. But is it necessary or even wise to take that leap?
Industry 4.0 can demonstrably only work if the following conditions are met:
1. Completely reliable machines that can be changed over very quickly - Each product is made individually to customer requirements and moves itself – based on its digital twin information- through the plant from one machine to another. The machine may require a different setup between each product, so machines have to be ready instantaneously. Read Article
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U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo Announces $3 Billion Investment in America’s Communities |
U.S. Department of Commerce
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo announced that the Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) will implement a series of programs, collectively called Investing in America’s Communities, to equitably invest the $3 billion it received from President Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act to help communities across the country build back better. The EDA investment is the largest economic development initiative from the Department of Commerce in decades.
Later today, Secretary Raimondo will address the White House Briefing Room to further lay out the Biden Administration’s vision for how this historic investment will help every community not only rebuild their local economy but also reimagine it for the future. Read Release
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GlobalFoundries Announces New Semiconductor Fab in New York |
IndustryWeek - Staff
CEO Caulfield said the plant would create 1,000 new high-tech jobs in the state.
A major semiconductor manufacturer is making a play to expand its U.S. manufacturing operations. GlobalFoundries Inc. announced July 19 it would be making a $1 billion expansion in order to address the global semiconductor shortage. According to CEO Tom Caulfield, the new expansion, a 'fab' for making semiconductor wafers, will increase production by 150,000 wafers a year. Read Article
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Amgen Establishes New Albany, Ohio, Manufacturing Complex |
Area Development - News Desk
Amgen, one of the world’s leading biotechnology companies, plans to invest $365 million to build a new manufacturing facility in New Albany, Ohio. The project is expected to create 400 jobs.
Greenfield construction of the new 270,000-square-foot facility is expected to begin in the fall of 2021. Amgen will invest in land acquisition, building construction and manufacturing equipment. Read Article
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No More Third-Party Cookies? 4 Strategies to Keep Your Marketing from Crumbling |
IndustryWeek - Randi Mohr
Google and others are responding to consumers’ data privacy concerns with new policies.
Marketers rely on data to analyze consumer behavior, measure campaign performance and maximize opportunities to engage through data-driven advertising and digital marketing strategies. As data collection practices and privacy continue to make headlines, customers are increasingly becoming more vocal about their discomfort with this marketing status quo.
In fact, a 2019 Pew Research study found that 81% of people feel like they have no control over how businesses collect their data, and 79% are concerned about how companies use it. Read Article
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What Happens When You Need the Same Chips as the Major Automakers? |
IndustryWeek - Peter Fretty
Fire truck manufacturer E-One discusses how it is addressing the ongoing semiconductor chip shortage
The semiconductor chip shortage has drawn significant attention, and for good reason. Simply put, a growing list of products on the market today are dependent on chipsets to offer key differentiators.
Unfortunately, the demand for chips does not seem to be waning – quite the opposite in fact. For instance, global tech market advisory firm ABI Research finds other key users for chipsets, the consumer robotics and smart appliance market, will generate US$80 billion in revenues in 2021, up a whopping 40% over 2020 revenues. Read Article
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Classes alone will not close the "skills gap," but structured on-the-job training can...every time! |
Under-capacity of workers is an enormous source of untapped value and unrealized return on worker investment. In addition, standardizing expert task performance -between workers and shifts - can add to worker ROI through lower scrap and rework.
- Increased worker capacity, productivity, work quantity, work quality and compliance (specifications, ISO/AS/TS programs and safety mandates);
- Decreased internal costs of training
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Higher return on worker investment! You would be surprised how small of an investment is needed to unlock enormous returns.
If budgets are tight, Proactive Technologies can be an extension to your training department, with our technical implementation support - included with every project!
There's nothing to lose by taking a minute to contact us to learn more.
www.proactivetechnologiesinc.com
Copyright © 2019-21 Proactive Technologies, Inc.™
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If your institution is interested in becoming a Proactive Technologies, Inc. project partner, contact a representative for more information. |
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Goldman Sachs Tests Tokenized Treasury Bonds |
CFO - Benzinga
Goldman Sachs Group has made its first trade on JPMorgan Chase’s private blockchain network.
A report from Bloomberg revealed that the repo trade was conducted on June 17, and the transaction was completed after three hours and five minutes. However, the value of the transaction remains unknown.
Goldman Sachs successfully swapped a tokenized version of a U.S. Treasury bond for JPM Coin — JPMorgan’s stablecoin, which is pegged 1:1 to the value of the U.S. dollar. Read Article
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The Behavioral Economics Manifesto Gets Revised |
NPR Planet Money – Greg Rosalsky
Sure, the book Nudge may have become a cultural phenomenon that ended up selling millions of copies. And, okay, it resulted in hundreds of governments and countless companies around the world adopting its concepts and methods. And, yeah, its co-author Richard Thaler went on to win the Nobel Prize and appear in an Oscar-winning movie starring Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, and Ryan Gosling. But, Thaler says, when they were trying to sell the book back in the mid-2000s, he and co-author Cass Sunstein had a hard time finding someone to publish it.
"Basically, all publishers rejected it," Thaler says. "So it was originally published by an academic press." It was only when the book was set to become a paperback that a commercial publisher saw its potential and bought the rights. Maybe it took off because the 2008 financial crisis sent society searching for alternative economic ideas. Or maybe it took off because the book had a catchy title and good artwork. Whatever the reason, Nudge caught fire and finally brought behavioral economics into the mainstream. Read Article
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Mutual Fund Operators Accused of $100M Fraud |
CFO - Matthew Heller
The operators of an offshore mutual fund that told investors it would invest their money in Treasury securities have been charged with misappropriating investor funds to buy Treasuries for themselves.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Ofer Abarbanel, 46, and Victor Chilelli, 51, have engaged in a scheme to defraud investors in their Income Collecting 1-3 Months T-Bills Mutual Fund from at least March 2018 to the present. Read Article
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CPA on Agreement of 130 Countries to Address Tax Avoidance by World’s Largest Corporations |
Coalition for a Prosperous America
WASHINGTON — The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today released a statement after 130 countries and jurisdictions, representing more than 90% of global GDP, joined a statement establishing a new framework for international tax reform. According to the announcement, the “framework updates key elements of the century-old international tax system, which is no longer fit for purpose in a globalised and digitalised 21st century economy.” This represents a positive step towards eliminating the ability of multinational companies to avoid paying U.S. corporate tax by shifting profits offshore to tax havens.
In June, CPA released a statement after the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G7 economies announced that they support the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) efforts to more fairly tax multinational profits. Read Article
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Whistleblowers Risk Getting Nothing from Bankrupt Companies |
CFO Dive - Robert Freedman, Editor
Critics in a Wall Street Journal report point to a big flaw in one of the most important tools the Securities and Exchange Commission has to catch fraud.
A technicality in the law that lets the Securities and Exchange Commission pay big rewards to corporate whistleblowers can leave some people who help the agency with nothing, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Congress established the whistleblower program in 2010 as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law. Read Article
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Beware Of 'Shrinkflation,' Inflation's Devious Cousin |
NPR Planet Money, by Greg Rosalsky
A couple weeks ago, Edgar Dworsky walked into a Stop & Shop grocery store in Somerville, Massachusetts, like a detective entering a murder scene. He stepped into the cereal aisle, where he hoped to find the smoking gun. He scanned the shelves. Oh no, he thought. He was too late. The store had already replaced old General Mills cereal boxes — like Cheerios and Cocoa Puffs — with newer ones. It was like the suspect’s fingerprints had been wiped clean.
But then Dworsky headed toward the back of the store. Sure enough, old boxes of Cocoa Puffs and Apple Cinnamon Cheerios were stacked at the end of one of the aisles. He grabbed an old box of Cocoa Puffs and put it side by side with the new one. Aha! The tip he had received was right on the money. General Mills had downsized the contents of their “family size” boxes, from 19.3 ounces to 18.1 ounces. Dworsky went to the checkout aisle, and both boxes — gasp! — were on sale for exactly the same price. It was an open-and-shut case: General Mills is yet another perpetrator of “shrinkflation.” Read Article
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Regulators Can and Will Crack Down on Crypto |
CFO - Benzinga
In a recent note to clients, UBS Bank said that regulatory crackdowns could pop the “bubble-like” crypto markets.
Swiss banking giant UBS Group AG said in a recent note to clients that regulatory crackdowns could pop the “bubble-like” crypto markets.
According to a report from Business Insider, UBS’s global wealth management division pointed to China’s crypto crackdown as an example of the considerable negative impact on price induced by regulators.
Since China’s recent enforcement of shutting down Bitcoin miners in the country and restricting businesses associated with cryptocurrency trading and operations, crypto prices have fallen drastically. Read Article
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PBGC to Provide Special Financial Assistance to Financially Troubled Multiemployer Pension Plans |
Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) today announced an interim final rule implementing a new Special Financial Assistance (SFA) Program for financially troubled multiemployer defined benefit pension plans. “The American Rescue Plan provides funding to severely underfunded pension plans that will ensure that over three million of America’s workers, retirees, and their families receive the pension benefits they earned through many years of hard work,” said PBGC Director Gordon Hartogensis. “These benefits are critical to the economic security of so many retirees and their families.”
The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2) — a historic law passed by Congress and signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021 — contains provisions to provide an estimated $94 billion in assistance to eligible plans that are severely underfunded. Additionally, it assists plans by providing funds to reinstate previously suspended benefits. ARP also addresses the solvency of PBGC’s Multiemployer Insurance Program, which was projected to become insolvent in 2026. Read Release
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Avoiding the Private-Equity 'Bear Hug of Death' |
CFO Dive - Robert Freedman, Editor
There’s often a mismatch between what a private equity firm wants and what its new portfolio company wants in the first 100 days of their partnership, so it makes sense for both sides to focus first on relationship building and having an open discussion about the path forward, specialists said in a Dechert webcast.
The PE firm will typically come in with plenty of resources to help the company address weak areas and build on strengths, but if it moves too aggressively, it risks damaging the very thing that attracted it to the company in the first place. Read Article
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FTC Moves to Beef up Antitrust Enforcement |
CFO.com - Matthew Heller
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has voted to scrap a 2015 policy statement that limited its ability to bring enforcement actions over anticompetitive conduct.
The guidance required the commission to follow the “consumer welfare” standard in deciding whether to sue companies for “unfair methods of competition” under Section 5 of the FTC Act.
The FTC’s 3-2 vote on Thursday to revoke the guidance “will give the FTC more leeway to pursue competition claims that may not fall squarely within the two existing antitrust statutes: the Sherman Act and the Clayton Act,” according to CNBC. Read Article
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Metric of the Month: Personnel Cost of Finance |
CFO - Perry D. Wiggins, CPA
Labor costs are on the rise. Here’s what you can do to help get the most from your investment.
Costs are rising across the board as the U.S. economy continues to move forward from a short but deep recession, and labor costs are no exception to this trend. Many employees who kept their jobs in 2020 were happy to stay put, but 2021 is a new year and the labor market is much more competitive. While you should prepare for rising labor costs, it’s possible to find savings in other areas while ensuring that finance employees are delivering value through the work they carry out.
Breaking Down Finance Personnel Costs
Personnel costs include employee compensation costs (salaries and wages, bonuses, overtime, and benefits) as well as company contributions made toward the employees’ retirement, workers’ compensation, insurance, and stock purchase plans. Fringe costs also include special allowances, such as relocation expenses and car allowances. Read Article
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10-Year Treasury Yield Drops to Five-Month Low |
CFO - Matthew Heller
The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield fell to the lowest level since February on Wednesday, continuing a slide that appears to reflect investor uncertainty over the pace of the economic recovery.
The yield on the benchmark Treasury note fell 5 basis points to 1.318% at 4:00 p.m., while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond dipped 6 basis points to 1.93%.
The 10-year yield rose as high as 1.78% in March as markets rode a wave of optimism that government stimulus and reopenings would spur a rapid economic acceleration. It has declined even though worries about surging inflation remain elevated.
“This is likely a shift in market narrative: away from inflation concerns to concerns about the sustainability of growth momentum,” said Vasileios Gkionakis, head of FX strategy at Banque Lombard Odier & Cie SA. Read Article
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The Untamed Rise of Hospital Monopolies |
NPR Planet Money – Greg Rosalsky
Hospitals are getting bigger and more expensive.
Last month, Michigan's two largest hospital systems, Spectrum Health and Beaumont Health, announced they wanted to become one. The $12.9 billion "megamerger" would create a health industrial complex spanning 22 hospitals, 305 outpatient facilities, and an insurance company. It would employ 64,000 people, making it the largest employer in Michigan. Local newspapers had expected the merger to "sail through" government approval. But now they're not so sure.
That's because President Biden recently signed an executive order saying his administration was serious about promoting competition, and he specifically singled out hospitals as an area where growing monopolization is a concern. The order, the White House says, "underscores that hospital mergers can be harmful to patients and encourages the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to review and revise their merger guidelines to ensure patients are not harmed by such mergers." Read Article
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CFOs Working Around Cost Pressures, Labor Availability |
CFO Dive - Jane Thier's
Dive Brief:
- While CFOs, on the whole, remain optimistic about an economic rebound this year, they’re concerned about labor availability and accompanying cost pressures, according to a quarterly survey by Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and the Federal Reserve Banks of Richmond and Atlanta.
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Over 75% of CFOs included in the survey said their companies faced challenges in finding workers. More than half of that group also said worker shortage reduced their revenue—especially for small businesses. The survey panel includes 969 CFOs across the U.S. Read Article
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Three Sued Over Blockchain Firm Trading |
CFO.com - Matthew Heller
The SEC says the controlling shareholder of Long Blockchain and two associates engaged in insider trading ahead of market-moving news.
The controlling shareholder of Long Blockchain has been charged with tipping off his broker about the company’s pivot to blockchain technology before it was publicly announced.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Eric Watson, a New Zealand national, engaged in an insider trading scheme with Oliver Barret-Lindsay, his friend and broker, and stock promoter Gannon Giguiere, that allegedly resulted in Giguiere making a profit of $162,500 on Long Blockchain shares.
According to the SEC, Watson tipped off Lindsay in December 2017 that the company formerly known as Long Island Tea would be switching from making iced tea and lemonade to providing blockchain technology and Lindsay passed the tip on Giguiere. Read Article
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Mexico, Latin America, South America and the Caribbean |
Haiti President Jovenel Moïse killed in attack at home
BBC
Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse has been killed and his wife injured in an attack on their home in the nation's capital, Port-au-Prince.
Unidentified gunmen stormed the property at 01:00 local time (05:00 GMT), interim PM Claude Joseph said.
He has called for calm and declared a state of emergency nationwide. Read Article
Mexico Reports Over 100 Journalists and Activists Killed Since 2018
DeutscheWelle
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador vowed to do more to protect journalists and activists, but government figures show scores have been killed during his time in office.
Mexican government figures released on Monday show that at least 68 human rights activists and 43 journalists have been killed since President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador came to office in late 2018.
These latest statistics have caused critics to question if the government is doing enough to keep its promise to safeguard the lives of journalists and activists in Mexico. Read Article
PM Says Increased Employment Within the BPO Sector
Caribbean Times Nyc
Prime Minister Andrew Holness engages a guest at the opening of the IBEX BPO facility (JIS Photo)
BROOKLYN, NY – Prime Minister Andrew Holness, says Jamaica’s business process outsourcing (BPO) industry has recorded a 15 percent increase in employment, despite the economic fallout resulting from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Addressing the opening of the IBEX BPO facility at the G-Tech Park in Portmore, St. Catherine, southeast of here on the weekend, Holness said approximately 44,000 persons were employed across the sector as of June 2021, relative to 38,400 for the corresponding period last year.
He said that the sector was among the few managing to navigate the ravages of COVID-19 to record growth. Read Article
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Canada, Europe and Great Britain |
U.K. Cracks Down on Crypto Exchange Binance
CFO - Matthew Heller
The U.K.'s financial watchdog “is sending a strong signal that it is worried about the dangers of investing in cryptocurrencies."
In the latest example of the regulatory crackdown on the cryptocurrency industry, the U.K.’s financial watchdog has barred Binance from offering certain services in the country.
The Financial Conduct Authority said in a news release that a U.K. affiliate of Binance “is not permitted to undertake any regulated activity in the U.K.” and “No other entity in the Binance Group holds any form of U.K. authorization, registration or license to conduct regulated activity in the U.K.”
The FCA does not directly regulate cryptocurrencies but it does have authority over crypto asset derivatives such as futures contracts, contracts for difference, and options. Read Article
Over 60 Dead, Dozens Missing as Severe Floods Strike Europe
Associated Press
BERLIN (AP) — More than 60 people have died and dozens were missing Thursday as severe flooding in Germany and Belgium turned streams and streets into raging torrents that swept away cars and caused houses to collapse.
Among those killed were nine residents of an assisted living facility for people with disabilities and two firefighters involved in rescue efforts across the region.
“I grieve for those who have lost their lives in this disaster,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel said during a visit to Washington, expressing shock at the scope of the flooding. Read Article
Top German Court Rules 'Cum-ex' Fraud Scheme Was Illegal
Barrons - Agence France Presse
In a landmark ruling on Wednesday, Germany's top court confirmed for the first time that the "cum-ex" tax fraud schemes which cost European treasuries billions of euros were illegal.
The use of the schemes to claim rebates on taxes which had never been paid amounted to a "criminal act of tax fraud", said the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe, southwestern Germany.
The ruling sets a key precedent with dozens of legal proceedings still ongoing over the scandal, and could allow the state to reclaim billions of euros worth of lost tax revenue. Read Article
Border Workers Vote to Strike, Putting Canada's Reopening Plans at Risk
CBC
Canada's reopening plans could be hindered as thousands of border officers gird themselves for possible strike action.
The two unions representing more than 8,500 Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) employees announced this morning that the majority of their members have given them a strike mandate.
That means they could begin strike action as soon as Aug. 6, mere days before Canada reopens the border to fully vaccinated U.S. residents, said the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and the Customs and Immigration Union (CIU) in a news release. Read Article
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China Floods: 12 Dead in Zhengzhou Train and Thousands Evacuated in Henan
BBC
Twelve people have died after record-breaking rainfall flooded underground railway tunnels in China, leaving passengers trapped in rising waters.
Video shared on social media shows evening commuters just managing to keep their heads above water. Water is seen rushing onto platforms.
Finance Firms Plan to Close Coal Plants in Asia
BBC
Some of the world's biggest financial institutions are working on a plan to speed the closure of coal-fired power plants in Asia, the BBC has been told.
The initiative was developed by UK insurer Prudential, is being driven by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and includes major banks HSBC and Citi.
The ADB hopes the plan will be ready for the COP26 climate conference, which is being held in Scotland in November. Read Article
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Asia, India and Australia |
Kashmir: Protracted Conflict Pushes Youth to Heroin Addiction
DeutscheWelle
Thousands of Kashmiri youth are becoming addicted to heroin, amid extreme economic and psychological stress. Experts say recent lockdowns and the widespread availability of the drug are major contributing factors. Experts say conflict plays a role in issues like drug addiction in Kashmir
Jibran Ahmad, 17, from Indian-administered Kashmir, led a normal life until two years ago, when his friends first offered him heroin.
Ahmad (name changed) had been a promising student before developing the addiction, which destroyed his and his family's lives. Read Article
What India’s COVID-19 Crisis Means for Africa
Brookings Institute - Jamie MacLeod, Trade Policy Expert - United Nations Economic Commission for Africa; Vera Songwe, Nonresident Senior Fellow - Global Economy and Development, Africa Growth Initiative Under Secretary-General and Executive Secretary, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Stephen Karingi, Director, Regional Integration and Trade Division - United Nations Economic Commission for Africa; Hopestone Chavula, Officer In-Chart, Macroeconomic Analysis Section - United Nations Economic Commission for Africa; Jean Paul Boketsu Bofili, Economic Affairs Officer - United Nations Economic Commission for Africa; Sokunpanha You, Associate Economic Affairs Officer - United Nations Economic Commission for Africa; Veerawin Su, Associate Economic Affairs Officer - United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
By May 9, 2021 India accounted for 57 percent of new COVID-19 cases anywhere in the world.
This phenomenon rippled through the interconnected economies of the world, including those in Africa. Indeed, India has risen over the past decade to become Africa’s thirdmost-important trading partner, after the European Union and China. In fact, the African market is precariously dependent on Indian suppliers for certain products, notably pharmaceuticals and rice. This is especially the case of East Africa, in which 35 percent of pharmaceutical imports come from India, and 20 percent of rice.
As India’s second COVID-19 wave raged, a concern for African countries has been the potential for economic and trade-related spillovers channeled through these trade sensitivities. Read Article
Why are Workers Still Dying in Factory Fires in Bangladesh?
EHS Today - Adrienne Selko
How can it be in this day and age factory owners are still locking doors preventing workers from escaping a fire?
In 2013, which to me is a very long time ago, Sandy Smith, then Editor-in-Chief of EHS Today, wrote: “How long until factories in Bangladesh manufacturing goods for U.S.- and European-headquartered companies are safe for workers?
So why eight years later are we writing about 52 workers who died in a factory fire in Bangladesh on July 8?
How can it be in this day and age factory owners are still locking doors preventing workers from escaping fire? Read Article
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Africa, Middle East, Eastern Europe and Russia |
South Africa Zuma Riots: Looting and Unrest Leaves 72 Dead
BBC News
The death toll in South Africa has risen to 72 as violence continues across the country following the jailing of former President Jacob Zuma.
Crowds looting and setting alight shopping centres clashed with police in several cities on Tuesday.
The BBC filmed a baby being thrown from a building in Durban that was on fire after ground-floor shops were looted. Read Article
In Numbers: Life in Afghanistan After America Leaves
BBC News
US and Nato troops are finally withdrawing from Afghanistan after 20 years of war. The Taliban, who they came to defeat, are rapidly retaking territory across the country.
How has the war changed Afghanistan, and what comes next?
Tunisia's PM Sacked After Violent Covid Protests
BBC News
Tunisia's president has sacked the PM and suspended parliament, after violent mass protests nationwide on Sunday.
Anger over the government's handling of a massive recent spike in Covid cases has added to general unrest over the nation's economic and social turmoil.
President Kais Saied, who was elected in 2019, announced he was taking over.
His supporters erupted in celebration, but opponents in parliament immediately accused him of staging a coup. Clashes among rival groups continued on Monday. Read Article
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Proactive Technologies' Project Partners |
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Frank J. Gibson Consulting |
"One thing is certain... nothing is certain!"
The rate of change affecting work, the worker, management and the educational institutions that service all three has been accelerating - made worse by the unexpected Covid-19 pandemic. The economy, the consumer, supply chains and operational strategies have all been disrupted in the short-term, casting doubt on the long-term.
Rapid adaptation is the key to survivability, sustainability and growth. Sometimes an experienced outside advisor can help facilitate needed improvements to take the worry out of change and the fear out of growth. Frank J. Gibson Management and Workforce Excellence Advisor
- Business Development & Growth
- Workforce Development and Optimization
- Training and Cross-Training
- Local,/Regional Workforce Development Projects and Community Development
- Facilitated Problem Solving
- Process Improvement Cross-Functional Leadership Coaching and Mentoring
- Internship and Apprenticeship Projects
- Strategic Doing/Strategic Planning
Copyright © 2021 Frank J. Gibson
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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PTI Systems
International, Inc.™
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- Affiliated with Proactive Technologies, Inc. for projects outside the United States;
- Workforce development partner for employers, and education/ training providers who support employers, to ensure every worker can be trained to full job mastery;
- Experienced with governmental, IDB, GIZ and economic development agency sponsored projects;
- Experienced in assuring multinational employers expanding to the U.S. have the skilled workforce they need.
- PTI Systems International sets-up complete worker development and performance management systems, and provides technical implementation support;
- We provide strategies for our project's transition to local management.
- Speakers for seminars and conferences.
Don't complain about a "skills gap," deliberately develop every worker to full job mastery!
© 2018-21 PTI Systems International, Inc.™
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“Inspection does not improve the quality, nor guarantee quality. Inspection is too late. The quality, good or bad, is already in the product. As Harold F. Dodge said, “You can not inspect quality into a product.”
American engineer, statistician,
professor, author, lecturer, and
management consultant
1900 - 1993
“As mass production has to be accompanied by mass consumption, mass consumption, in turn, implies a distribution of wealth ... to provide men with buying power. ... Instead of achieving that kind of distribution, a giant suction pump had by 1929-30 drawn into a few hands an increasing portion of currently produced wealth. ... The other fellows could stay in the game only by borrowing. When their credit ran out, the game stopped.”
American banker, economist,
Chairman of the Federal Reserve under President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
1890 – 1977
“Don’t forget a person’s greatest emotional need is to feel appreciated.”
American inspirational author of
Life's Little Instruction Book,
1940 –
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U.S. Department of Commerce - Bureau of Economic Analysis |
U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services
The U.S. monthly international trade deficit increased in May 2021 according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. The deficit increased from $69.1 billion in April (revised) to $71.2 billion in May, as imports increased more than exports. The previously published April deficit was $68.9 billion. The goods deficit increased $2.3 billion in May to $89.2 billion. The services surplus increased $0.1 billion in May to $17.9 billion. Read Report
U.S. International Transactions, First Quarter 2021 and Annual Update
The U.S. current account deficit widened by $20.7 billion, or 11.8 percent, to $195.7 billion in the first quarter of 2021, according to statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The revised fourth quarter deficit was $175.1 billion. The first quarter deficit was 3.6 percent of current dollar gross domestic product, up from 3.3 percent in the fourth quarter. Read Report
New Foreign Direct Investment in the United States
The statistics on new foreign direct investment in the United States provide information on the acquisition, establishment, and expansion of U.S. business enterprises by foreign direct investors. Read Reports
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U.S. Department of Commerce - Bureau of the Census |
Monthly Wholesale Trade
May 2021 sales of merchant wholesalers were $576.5 billion, up 0.8 percent (+/- 0.5 percent) from last month. End-of-month inventories were $709.8 billion, up 1.3 percent (+/- 0.2 percent) from last month. May 2021: +1.3 % change in Inventories; April 2021 (r): +1.1 % change in Inventories. Read Report
Manufacturing and Trade Inventory and Sales
U.S. total business end-of-month inventories for May 2021 were $2,039.3 billion, up 0.5 percent (+/- 0.1 percent) from last month. U.S. total business sales were $1,615.9 billion, down 0.3 percent (+/- 0.2 percent) from last month. May 2021: +0.5 % change in Inventories. April 2021 (r): +0.1* % change in Inventories. Read Report
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Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development |
U.S. Data versus the World
Find, compare and share the latest OECD data: charts, maps, tables and related publications. Access Data
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International Trade in Services - May, 2021 |
The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis announced today that the goods and services deficit was $71.2 billion in May, up $2.2 billion from $69.1 billion in April, revised. Read Report
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BEA Announcement: Detailed International Services Statistics Through 2020 Now Available |
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
The trade in services statistics in BEA’s annual International Services tables—BEA’s most detailed trade in services statistics by service type and geographic area—are now available with statistics through 2020.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis provides this service to you at no charge. Visit Their Site
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US Trade Gap Narrowed Slightly in April Thanks to Rising Goods Exports |
IndustryWeek - Staff
The U.S. maintained a trade deficit with China and the E.U., but both gaps shrank slightly.
According to the latest data available from the United States Census Bureau and U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the U.S. trade gap is narrowing. Information released June 8 shows that exports rose 1.1% in April while imports fell by 1.4%. The trade gap between exports and imports fell by 8.2% from April to March.
U.S. exports rose $2.3 billion from March to $205.0 billion, while imports fell $3.8 billion to $273.9 billion, leaving a trade gap of $68.9 billion. Read Article
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E-Commerce Propelling U.S. Trade Deficit to be Larger Than Norway and Sweden Economies |
Coalition for a Prosperous America
Thanks to the likes of Amazon, China’s Shein, and the burgeoning business of entrepreneurs advertising on YouTube for goods they sell directly from China, e-commerce is set to push the U.S. trade deficit to $1 trillion soon.
That’s the goods deficit. If it doesn’t happen this year, it will happen next year. Americans are buying more and more goods from Asia. Those goods often compete directly with American-made goods. As this e-commerce-direct-to-China model picks up steam, it will make less business sense to invest in job-creating manufacturing in the U.S. when you can just hang your shingle on a social media platform and outsource direct sales and manufacturing to China as if it were the 51st state. Read Article
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Can a Few ‘Made in the USA’ Investors Slow the Tide of ‘Made in China’ E-Commerce |
Coalition for a Prosperous America
On June 8, the U.S. Senate passed the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act of 2021, a bill aimed at countering China on a plethora of fronts, though some of its provisions leave the door open for unstrategic tariff removal.
Passing with a 68-vote majority, the bill is now with the House of Representatives where it awaits an uncertain future, as Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her committee chairs are eager to leave their own mark on U.S.-China policy. Where things currently stand, the bill contains many constructive measures to bolster U.S. competitiveness with China, along with a few bad eggs. Read Article
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US Department of Labor, Other Federal Departments issue Business Advisory for Xinjiang, China |
US Department of Labor
WASHINGTON, DC – In collaboration with the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. Department of Labor today issued an updated Xinjiang Supply Chain Business Advisory. The updated advisory alerts businesses to the heightened risks of supply chain and investment links to entities complicit in state-sponsored forced labor and other human rights abuses in Xinjiang and throughout China as part of labor transfer programs.
“The labor and human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other minorities in Xinjiang, China, are egregious, systematic and ongoing,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh. “Any company doing business in this region should take heed: these are reprehensible and illegal practices, and the goods produced under these conditions have no place in the U.S. economy.” Read Release
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The Trade Effects of the Economic Partnership Agreements Between the European Union and the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States: Early Empirical Insights from Panel Data |
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH -Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE)
This study provides early ex-post empirical evidence on the effects of provisionally applied Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) on trade flows between the European Union (EU) and the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP). Employing the gravity model of trade, we do not find a general EPA effect on trade between ACP countries and the EU, but identify heterogeneous effects across specific agreements and economic sectors. While the CARIFORUM-EU EPA rather reduced imports from the EU overall, other EPAs seem to have partly increased EU imports, particularly for the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) EPA partner countries. On the sectoral level, by comparison, we find increases in the EU's agricultural exports to SADC, Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) and the Pacific. In the area of manufactures trade, we find decreases of exports of the ESA and SADC countries to the EU, but increases in EU imports for SADC countries. Read Release and Download Report
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Global Economic Prospects |
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH - World Bank
The global economy is set to expand 5.6 percent in 2021—its strongest post-recession pace in 80 years. This recovery is uneven and largely reflects sharp rebounds in some major economies. In many emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs), obstacles to vaccination continue to weigh on activity. By 2022, last year’s per capita income losses will not be fully unwound in about two-thirds of EMDEs. The global outlook remains subject to significant downside risks, including the possibility of additional COVID-19 waves and financial stress amid high EMDE debt levels. Policy makers will need to balance the need to support the recovery while safeguarding price stability and fiscal sustainability and to continue efforts toward promoting growth-enhancing reforms. Read Release and Download Report
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US, Mexico Resolve Union Voting Dispute Under USMCA Rules |
IndustryWeek - Staff
The U.S. asked its southern neighbor to investigate a union vote at a Mexican GM factory.
The United States and Mexico made a joint announcement July 8 that they had come to an agreement on unionization activity at a General Motors plant in Mexico. It’s the first time the USMCA’s rapid response labor mechanism has been invoked by any of the countries involved in the trade agreement.
The dispute hinged over a vote by workers at GM’S Silao, Mexico location to legitimize a collective bargaining agreement with an affiliate of the Confederation of Mexican Workers (CTM) union. The vote was on whether or not to continue allowing the CTM to continue controlling workers’ contracts. Read Article
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World Investment Report 2021 |
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH - United Nations Committee on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
Global flows of foreign direct investment have been severely hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, they fell by one third to $1 trillion, well below the low point reached after the global financial crisis a decade ago. Greenfield investments in industry and new infrastructure investment projects in developing countries were hit especially hard.
This is a major concern, because international investment flows are vital for sustainable development in the poorer regions of the world. Increasing investment to support a sustainable and inclusive recovery from the pandemic is now a global policy priority. This entails promoting investment in infrastructure and the energy transition, in resilience and in health care. Read Release and Download Report
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FTC to Penalize Companies Who Falsely Label Their Products as Made in the USA |
Coalition for a Prosperous America – Kenneth Rapoza
After years of casting aside rulemaking in favor of letting the market do its work, the Federal Trade Commission said that it will now penalize companies as much as $43,280 if they label their goods as Made in the USA, when they are not.
The final rule, called the Made in the USA rule, was made official on July 14 and goes into effect on August 13. When a government agency wants to do a new regulation, they start with a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which is when the agency tells the public that they are thinking of doing a particular regulation and are open to comments. This process generally takes six months to a year, depending on the complexity of the regulation. A final rule means the process is complete. The decision has been made to penalize misleading Made in the USA labeling. Read Article
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Education And Workforce Development News |
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Skill-Building Work for Youth Is a Boon for Employers, Too |
IndustryWeek - Kimberly Green, Angel H. Malone
In South Carolina, businesses and students engaged in almost 83,000 work-based hands-on learning experiences in 2019-2020, ranging from apprenticeships to internships to facility tours and job-shadow programs.
Over 130 million Americans have filed for unemployment since March 2020 due to the economic disruptions caused by COVID-19. As economists work to describe and predict the short- and long-term impact of these unprecedented disruptions on workers and employers, the disparity and severity of the impact reflects the complexity of our national and systemic inequities. Read Article
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Student Persistence, Retention Rates Decline |
Community College Daily News - Staff
Of the 2.6 million students who entered college as first-time freshmen in fall 2019, 74% returned to college for their second year. This rate represents a one-year drop of 2 percentage points in this important early student success indicator, according to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
And for community colleges, that decline was even steeper. Persistence rates dropped 3.5 percentage points to 58.5% — the largest decline in all institution sectors. Retention rates also declined the most in the community college sector, down 2.1 percentage points to 51.6%.
Beginning part-time students at community colleges seem to have been most affected. They experienced declines of 5 percentage points and 4 percentage points in their persistence and retention rates, respectively. Read Article
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Accreditation During Covid |
Community College Daily News – David Tobenkin
Leaders of college accreditation organizations say the pandemic, potential federal higher education regulatory changes, and the drive for greater diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are recent trends affecting their accreditation and quality assurance review efforts.
Accreditors and the institutions they regulate are increasing their focus on DEI efforts, in part reflecting the Black Lives Matter racial reckoning and the #metoo and anti-gender discrimination and harassment social movements, they say. Read Article
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America Makes Announces the Ohio Secondary Education Additive Manufacturing Training Network to Address State’s Skilled Worker Shortage |
Quality Magazine
America Makes continues to fulfill its mission of building an additive manufacturing (AM) talent pipeline across the state of Ohio with the announcement of the Ohio Secondary Education Additive Manufacturing Training Network.
Created in collaboration with and support from the Ohio Development Services Agency (OSDA), this network will provide formal education and training of AM technologies to high school students and their educators to ensure the next generation of Ohio workers are equipped with the skills to fill advanced manufacturing jobs. Initially, 10 high schools statewide, including those in both urban and rural settings and representing public, charter, and career and technical schools are participating in the network. This America Makes Education and Workforce Development (EWD) program is funded through the Fiscal Year 2020-21 State of Ohio operations budget. Read Article
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The Manufacturing Talent Pipeline Is Broken. With Radical Collaboration, We Can Fix It |
IndustryWeek - Ethan Karp; Jessica Borza
Companies, educational institutions, communities and non-profits must come together to raise awareness and create innovative career on-ramps.
Despite US manufacturing activity hitting a 37-year-high this spring, half a million factory jobs remain unfilled.
The talent gap, which has plagued goods producers for over a decade, continues to hold back not only the industry’s growth, but our entire economy’s: A recent report suggested it could shortchange GDP by up to $1 trillion by 2030. In Northeast Ohio, it’s estimated that simply filling the 8,000 manufacturing jobs now open would boost the region’s economy by $5 billion annually. Read Article
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Quick College Credentials: Student Outcomes and Accountability Policy for Short-term Programs |
Brookings Institute - Stephanie Riegg Cellini, Nonresident Senior Fellow - Governance Studies, Brown Center on Education Policy; Kathryn J. Blanchard, Ph.D. Student - The George Washington University
A small, though important, set of postsecondary programs have largely escaped the notice of policymakers and researchers: short-term vocational programs lasting between 300-599 clockhours.
These short programs are not currently eligible for Pell Grants, but can access federal student loans under the Higher Education Act. We draw on information obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request from the Department of Education to generate counts of programs, basic statistics, and some measures of student outcomes for these short-term postsecondary programs participating in student loan programs. Our data include all short-term programs (lasting 300-599 clockhours over a minimum of 10 weeks) that applied to participate in federal student-loan programs between 2010 and 2019 under Section 481(b)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088(b)(2)). Read Article
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A Closer Look at Non-degree Credentials |
Community College Daily News - Staff
Interest in nondegree credentials has been growing among learners and employers over the past few years, but it has especially grown during the pandemic and now post-Covid workforce world. A new report by the Strada Education Network examines how learners are blending degrees and nondegree credentials.
Some of the information gathered from a national survey of nearly 14,000 adults for the report illustrates the significant role such micro-credential programs play in higher education, whether through short-term technical education training programs or professional licenses or certifications. For instance, the report noted that nearly as many Americans have completed a nondegree education or training program as degree programs (40% compared to 46%, respectively). Also, about 20% of adults reported a nondegree credential or program as their highest level of education, compared to 10% who reported an associate degree as their highest level. Read Article
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Training And Organizational Development News |
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Does Your Job Provide You with Purpose? |
IndustryWeek - Adrienne Selko
Employees who find a sense of purpose in their jobs are more resilient to stress, more engaged, more connected to co-workers and more likely to stay with their company.
Today, ask yourself a profound question. Why are you waking up? Dig deep past the answer that you are going to your job to support yourself, your family, your loved ones. Is there a larger, greater purpose to the work you are doing?
If you can answer yes and pinpoint how your work fulfills a specific purpose in your life that you want to achieve, then count yourself very lucky. Read Article
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Should Talent Be an Extension of Technology, or Vice Versa? |
IndustryWeek - Arno Koch
Removing the human factor from the daily process works perfectly—in theory.
The questions that bother me are these:
1. Factories are among the most complex technical and social systems in our societies. Is it possible to control such complex systems with even more complex algorithms?
2. Will the addition of complex technology solve the problems we failed to master over the past 50 years? Read Article
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Access Proactive Technologies' Recent "Proactive Technologies Workforce News" Article Quicklinks |
Located on the left panel below, this includes articles on structured worker development, achieving worker "full job mastery," engineering/quality/safety compliance, ISO/TS/AS quality program support and compliance, and many other contemporary worker development and management topics. |
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Recent Proactive Technologies News Article Quicklinks |
JULY
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Stacey Lett, Director of Operations - Eastern U.S. - Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Proactive Technologies, Inc. Staff
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
JUNE
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Stacey Lett, Regional Director of Operations – Eastern U.S. – Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Proactive Technologies, Inc. Staff
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
MAY
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Stacey Lett, Regional Director of Operations - Eastern U.S. - Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Dr. Dave Just, formally Dean of Corporate and Continuing Education at Community Colleges in MA, OH, PA, SC. Currently President of K&D Consulting
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
APRIL
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Stacey Lett, Director of East Coast Operations – Proactive Technologies, Inc..
by Dr. Dave Just, formally Dean of Corporate and Continuing Education at Community Colleges in MA, OH, PA, SC. Currently President of K&D Consulting
by Frank Gibson, Workforce Development Advisor, retired from The Ohio State University – Alber Enterprise Center
MARCH
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
by Stacey Lett, Director of Operations - Eastern U.S. - Proactive Technologies, Inc.
By Frank Gibson, former Program Manager-The Ohio State University - Alber Enterprise Center, currently and Independent Workforce Development and Management Consultant
by Dean Prigelmeier, President of Proactive Technologies, Inc.
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Proactive Technologies, Inc. Partners With Educational Institutions, Workforce/Economic
Development Groups, Government Agencies
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Structured on-the-job training attracts and engages employers in workforce development partnerships...some projects sustainable for more than 18 years!
This creates a steady need for your related technical instruction, services and a pathway for employment.
These partnerships:
- enhance your institution's opportunity to market your products and services to incumbent workers;
- allow your organization to include structured on-the-job training as a capstone to preemployment preparation;
- document a trainee-to worker's increasing value to the employer - the key to retention - rather than leaving it to chance;
- properly aligns workforce development resources and maximizes the impact and results; allows you to engage an employer's facility, equipment and staff in the training process;
- provides the best, sustainable infrastructure for apprenticeships and internships that last!
- is a win for the trainee, win for the worker, win for the employer, win for the institution and win for the community!
This approach has continued to prove itself since 1988, and does not compete with your school's or agency's products and services; it adds to your efforts the clear, tangible, measurable advantage that employers seek.
Copyright © 2021 Proactive Technologies, Inc.™ ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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To supplement onsite PROTECH™ system of managed human resource development classes, these regularly scheduled webinars are available to the registered staff of clients:
- Structured On-The-Job Training Instructor Certification
- Structured On-The Job Training Checklist Administrator Certification
- Management Structured On-The-Job Training Project Support Briefing
- Integrating Support for Plant-Wide ISO/AS/TS Quality and Safety Systems with PROTECH Workforce Development System
- Supporting "Pay-For-Value" Systems
- Promoting Continuous Process Improvement While Implementing the PROTECH System for the Accelerated Transfer of Expertise™
- PROTECH Onsite System Administrator Certification
Contact US to attend one of these seminars will send you an e-reservation. Include your client ID, name and user ID number and which webinar you would like to attend.
Copyright © 2019-21 Proactive Technologies, Inc.™ ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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Don't forget to take advantage of Proactive Technologies, Inc.'s "Turnkey Project Discount Offer"
OFFER EXPIRES
September 30th, 2021
(See third article above for more information and/or contact a representative)
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Thickness Measurement Basics |
Quality Magazine - Dave Wood
Whatever your material or its position, if it has a thickness, sophisticated tools exist to measure it.
On the surface, thickness seems like an easy measurement to take, as dimensional measurements go. You have two big, flat, parallel planes on which to plant your gage. For hard materials, like metal sheet, you can use three of the four measuring capabilities of a slide caliper. A micrometer does very nicely, too, if you have the time and need the accuracy. If the need is constant, then speed becomes a consideration. In this case, dedicated thickness gages exist, which are fast, simple, and spring-loaded to make the measuring force repeatable.
What if the Material is Irregular?
Non-flat materials can be checked with much the same methods. All this requires is a spherical or conical contact point for your gage. Dedicated gages are available, as are add-ons for most common gages. Read Article
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Innovation is Changing the World of Handheld Gaging |
Quality Magazine.- Kyle Johns
Within the Manufacturing Innovation Process, Metrology has Played a Predominant Role
Quality control has long been an integral part of the production process by contributing to smooth operations and avoiding extra costs. Today, we are seeing significant changes to the industrial metrology market due to the rising demand to collect data for statistical and monitoring analysis. Increased use of cloud services for metrological data management and the rising awareness of industry 4.0 standards are also expected to considerably boost the innovation in handheld gaging. Read Article
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Boeing Discloses a New Problem with 787 Dreamliner |
CNN Business - Chris Isidore
Even when Boeing has its best month in years, it has problems.
Boeing on Tuesday disclosed a new issue with the 787 Dreamliner widebody jet, which has been dogged with problems since August. The company said some of the planes' fuselage was not joined together to meet precise standards.
The locations where parts of the plane are joined must meet precise standards down to a small fraction of an inch. There are questions about the inspection process used to check that work.
The company said it has been working with the FAA on the problem and identified a way to fix the 787s that haven't yet been delivered to customers. Boeing said 787 planes already in service do not need to be grounded. Read Article
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NHTSA Orders Automated Driving System Crash Reporting |
EHS Today - David Sparkman
Self-driving vehicles also are targeted by the agency order.If you have driven a recent model car, you are well acquainted with all of the bleeps, blurps and whines emitted whenever you leave a traffic lane or come too close to another vehicle. We are told these are designed to improve safety, and they are essential elements of future driverless automotive technology. However, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) wants to know if that really is the case.
The agency has ordered companies involved in the manufacture of automated vehicle systems, including components and technology, to file crash reports if the SAE Level 2 advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) or SAE Levels 3-5 automated driving system (ADS) was engaged immediately before or during a road crash. The data must be reported on a monthly basis. Read Article
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Azerbaijan Mud Volcano Triggers Huge Blast in Caspian Oil and Gas Fields |
BBC
A huge explosion has been seen off the coast of Azerbaijan in the Caspian Sea, sending plumes of black smoke and flames into the sky.
The blast, which erupted in an area full of oil and gas fields on Sunday, was caused by a mud volcano, the government says.
None of the oil farms were damaged and no-one was hurt, it added. Read Article
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La Niña Climate Pattern Should Return This Fall and Last Through Winter. Here's What to Expect |
USA Today - Doyle Rice
La Niña is a natural climate cycle marked by cooler-than-average sea water in the central Pacific Ocean.
It's one of the main drivers of weather in the U.S. and around the world, especially during the late fall, winter and early spring.
La Niña can also act to put a damper on rain across much of the Southwest.
The La Niña climate pattern is forecast to return this fall and last through the winter of 2021-22, federal forecasters reported Thursday.
La Niña – a natural cycle marked by cooler-than-average seawater in the central Pacific Ocean – is one of the main drivers of weather in the U.S. and around the world, especially during the late fall, winter and early spring. Read Article
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Birds are Dying in the United States and No One Knows Why |
DeutscheWelle
There's a new epidemic, this time among birds. An illness is infecting them in the US capital ― and it's spreading. Experts say the cause is unknown.
While humans and other animals continue to grapple with COVID-19, a new epidemic seems to have hit multiple bird species in North America.
Across the United States, people have been finding dead birds. The birds appear to have been hit by a wave of mysterious illnesses since April.
Ornithologists (bird experts) say the dead or ailing aviators tend to have swollen eyes as well as neurological issues that seem to be causing the birds to lose balance. Read Article
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Reviving Scotland's 'Disappearing' Marine Life with No-take Zones |
DeutscheWelle
Dredging had devastated the once rich waters around the Scottish isle of Arran. But a small protected area has created a flourishing pocket of marine life and campaigners want to establish similar areas around Scotland.
It was the pace of change that made Howard Wood realize something was going badly wrong. In the 1970s, when he started scuba diving in the crystal-clear seas off the Scottish isle of Arran, the seabed was a mass of colorful fish, shellfish and plants.
"By the late 80s you were seeing species disappear year on year — you realize that this isn't a long slow evolution of change, this is rapid," said Wood, a diver and co-founder of the Community of Arran Seabed Trust (COAST). Read Article
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Cyber Security And IT News |
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First American Settles SEC Charges for Cybersecurity Disclosure Failures |
CFO - Lauren Muskett
Real-estate title insurer First American Financial reached a $487,616 settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for not maintaining cybersecurity disclosure controls and procedures that exposed sensitive customer information.
First American was notified by cybersecurity journalist Brian Krebs in May 2019 that its application for sharing document images had a vulnerability that exposed over 800 million images dating back to 2003. The images contained personal data such as Social Security numbers, financial information, and drivers’ license images.
In response, First American issued a press statement the same day they were notified of the vulnerability and provided a Form 8-K to the SEC four days later. According to the SEC, the senior executives at First American that issued the public statements “were not apprised of certain information that was relevant to their assessment of the company’s disclosure response to the vulnerability and the magnitude of the resulting risk.” Read Article
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How's Your Posture? Securing Today's Manufacturing Environments is Exhausting But Necessary |
IndustryWeek - Peter Fretty
As cyber criminals target manufacturers it is time for leaders to address inadequate security postures.
Outside of the two water treatment breaches in the Bay Area and in Florida, the recent cyberattacks that have claimed headlines are still occurring primarily within enterprise networks. However, the shift from retail and financial institutions towards manufacturers is a disturbing trend, especially as connected operational environments have become the norm.
The tilt towards manufacturers has reached the point where one in five manufacturing companies in the U.S. and UK have been victims of a cyberattack in the last 12 months, according to a report released by Morphisec. And, unless manufacturers take action, hackers will soon set their sights on operational technology (OT). Read Article
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Microsoft Reveals Windows 11, Latest Version Since 2015 |
CFO.com - Benzinga
Microsoft will integrate its Teams chat software directly into the OS and is adding videoconferencing features.
Microsoft made interesting revelations of its latest Windows operating system, Reuters reported.
The new Windows App Store will allow software developers to use their own in-app payment system and keep 100% of the fees or use Microsoft’s payment processor for a 12% commission. Read Article
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No Silver Bullet Will Solve the Cyber Crisis |
IndustryWeek - Peter Fretty
Intel executive discusses the importance of a big picture view to cybersecurity.
As the swarm of cyber attacks continues to disrupt business operations, it becomes crystal clear a serious issue exists. Companies have become increasingly digital, relying on an array of tools generating data, data that in many instances drives new efficiencies. Unfortunately, if something generates data, it is also susceptible to an attack -- and, in many instances, a very attractive target for today's sophisticated hacker. Read Article
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Microsoft Just Issued an Emergency Windows Fix. Why You Should Update Your PC Immediately |
MSN News – Inc, Jason Aten
A new vulnerability could allow hackers to take over your device.
Microsoft has released an out-of-band security update for most supported versions of Windows due to a critical vulnerability known as PrintNightmare. The exploit was made public by a security research firm, Sangfor, which accidentally published a proof-of-concept for the exploit.
It isn't uncommon for researchers and white hat hackers to search for exploits like these, but the findings aren't generally made public before a company has a chance to fix them. In this case, the vulnerability was first mentioned back in May, when Sangfor tweeted out that it would be presenting on its findings at the BlackHat CISO Summit. Read Article
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Slow PC? 3 Common Causes and How to Fix Them Yourself |
CNET - Jason Cipriani
We'll walk you through how to fix a sluggish computer on your own.
There's nothing more frustrating than a sluggish computer.
Is there anything worse than sitting down to get some quality gaming time in or finish that work project you've been laboring on, only to wait way too long for your PC to fully boot up after you sign in? A problematic computer is as annoying as it is frustrating, especially if you're without an IT department to troubleshoot issues.
So instead of sitting around and waiting for your computer, take a few minutes to go through some of the tried-and-true troubleshooting steps that, at the very least, give you a temporary reprieve from saying bad things about your computer under your breath. Better yet, you can do all of it for free. Read Article
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REvil: Ransomware Gang Websites Disappear from Internet |
BBC
Websites for a Russian-linked ransomware gang blamed for attacks on hundreds of businesses worldwide have gone offline.
Monitors say a payment website and a blog run by the REvil group became suddenly unreachable on Tuesday.
The reason behind the disappearance is unknown, but has sparked speculation that the group may have been targeted deliberately by authorities. Read Article
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Human Resource Management News |
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One Job, Two Good Candidates—Would You Hire for Attitude or Aptitude? |
IndustryWeek - Ted Pawela
The best person for the job is not always obvious.
It might seem silly to narrow candidates down based on a single ability or trait. Based on decades in the industry, though, I can say very genuinely that the ability to manage one’s attitude is a more valuable asset than aptitude.
You might be saying, “Really? What about digital fluency? Tech skills? Communication?”
I get it. Those things are vital as well. Psychology and manufacturing, meanwhile, may sound as much of a pair as peanut butter and steak. But if it involves a computer, a machine, or a process, it can be trained for with relative ease. Attitude, on the other hand, is notoriously hard to influence—and one of the most important aspects of productivity. Read Article
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EEO-1 Filing Deadline Is Now Aug. 23 |
EHS Today - David Sparkman
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has pushed back the deadline for employers to submit and certify 2019 and 2020 EEO-1 Component 1 data to Aug. 23. Earlier this year, the commission had set the deadline to be July 19.
Because of the high number of company support requests for reporting mergers, acquisitions and spinoffs and support requests to obtain user registration and login information, EEOC has a backlog of outstanding support requests, often taking up to four weeks to respond, explain attorneys Nancy Van der Veer Holt and Jill M. Harrison of the Ford & Harrison law firm. Read Article
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Why Remote Work Might Not Revolutionize Where We Work |
NPR Planet Money – Greg Rosalsky
It was only a few years ago that Apple finished construction of its 2.8 million-square-foot "spaceship"
headquarters in the San Francisco Bay Area. The glittering, donut-shaped building cost the company about $5 billion to construct, making it one the most expensive buildings in the world. It was all part of Steve Jobs' vision of a highly centralized company, where Apple employees collaborate under one roof in the place the company was founded. And now — record scratch — Apple seems to be abandoning that vision.
Apple is now "decentralizing" operations away from its expensive donut. The primary reason for the change, according to Bloomberg, is that housing in the Bay Area has gotten so excruciatingly expensive that even high-paid Apple employees are struggling to live there. Read Article
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Let’s Redefine Aging Workers and Tap into Those Talents |
IndustryWeek - Adrienne Selko
Employers need to take a closer look at the talent and preferences of older workers in order to ensure productivity.As many workers reach that age that traditionally calls for retirement, they feel they aren’t ready.
They don’t feel their age and don’t really want a chronological marker to determine the course of their careers.
It turns out there is something to this perception. In an article on MIT’s Sloan Management Review, authors Noemi Nagy, an assistant professor in the Department of Leadership, Policy, and Lifelong Learning at the University of South Florida and Michael S. North, an assistant professor of management and organizations at New York University’s Stern School of Business, make exactly this case. Read Article
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What the EEOC Says about Requiring Vaccines at Work |
IndustryWeek - Abby M. Warren, Emily A. Zaklukiewicz, Alisha N. Sullivan
Can you mandate employees to show proof? What are the HR rules around incentives for getting the shot?
For many months, manufacturers have been navigating issues related to the COVID-19 vaccine and its impact on the workplace. This includes implementation of vaccination programs that require or encourage vaccination of frontline workers, who remain at a higher risk of COVID-19 exposure and infection. Read Article
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U.S. Department of Labor Announces Final Rule to Rescind March 2020 Joint Employer Rule, Ensure More Workers Minimum Wage, Overtime Protections |
U.S. Department of Labor
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a final rule to rescind an earlier rule, “Joint Employer Status under the Fair Labor Standards Act,” that took effect in March 2020. By rescinding that rule, the department will ensure more workers receive minimum wage and overtime protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
The rescinded rule included a description of joint employment contrary to statutory language and Congressional intent. The rule also failed to take into account the department’s prior joint employment guidance. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York vacated most of the rule in 2020. Read Release
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Environmental, Health & Safety News |
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OSHA Changes Focus of COVID NEP |
EHS Today
The agency’s list of targeted industries is significantly reduced.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently made substantial changes to its National Emphasis Program (NEP) for COVID-19 that the agency kicked off earlier this year, including the removal of some industries from the list of targets for intensified inspection activities.
Of course, with such major changes comes a new name for the program, which from now on will no longer be called an NEP but instead is now designated as an updated Interim Enforcement Response Plan, or IERP. Read Article
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U.S. Department of Labor Sues Pennsylvania Manufacturing Company for Firing Employee in Retaliation for Reporting Safety Concerns |
U.S. Department of Labor
Midvale Paper Box Co., David Frank terminated worker who requested safety gloves
The U.S. Department of Labor has filed suit against a Luzerne County paper products manufacturing company and its owner after they fired a worker for raising safety concerns and asking several times for safety gloves to operate a shredder and baler. Prior to the employee suffering injury while operating the machine, their supervisor denied multiple requests for protective equipment.
The department filed a lawsuit against Midvale Paper Box Co. Inc. and owner David Frank in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in Scranton. Read Article
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Seeing Your Way to Becoming a Transformational Safety Leader |
IndustryWeek - Doug Pontsler
Leadership requires keen observation and a willingness to act, but leaders are not confined to management job titles.
When we think of leadership, there are many characteristics that come to mind. These include qualities such as integrity, self-awareness, communication, caring and empathy.
Leaders have the power to make decisions and allocate resources to achieve business objectives. Ultimately, leaders determine the culture of the organization and establish the norms by which behaviors are understood to be acceptable or unacceptable within the organization.
However, leadership isn’t always that complicated. Read Article
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Actions on How to Handle the Spread of Delta Variant of COVID Begins |
EHS Today - Adrienne Selko
Mask mandates are returning in some states for certain groups of employees.
The delta variant of the COVID-19 is causing governments and employers to rethink current protocols.
Viruses evolve over time, F. Perry Wilson, M.D., a Yale Medicine epidemiologist says in an article on yalemedicine.com, but the speed at which this variant is spreading is unique.
So the question is will we need to go back to wearing masks, social distancing and limiting group size? Read Article
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Can Employers Screen for Marijuana? |
EHS Today - Elizabeth McLean
Companies need to consider whether they want to screen new hires and employees for marijuana, and how they can comply with the laws in all the locations where they may do business.
Employers once knew just what to do. The drug-free workplace was everywhere, and companies could screen prospective hires for a host of drugs, including marijuana.
Things are now much hazier. Marijuana is legal in some capacity—either recreationally or medically—in all but three states. Some jurisdictions have completely decriminalized it, some allow only medical use, and some localities, like New York City, have rules forbidding companies from testing for it for hiring purposes. Read Article
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Having trouble finding, selecting, training and keeping the skilled workers you need? Are your employee turnover costs a concern?
Let's start with what we already know:
- Classes alone will not train workers to perform your tasks...
- Quality Control policies and Process Documents are not a substitute for task training...
- Putting 2 people together and hoping for the best is not a training strategy...
- Wishing and hoping won't develop the skilled workers you need...
The cost of one worker malperformance or one worker's under-capacity or under-performance - due to lack of proper training - can more than justify the investment to train all your workers properly!
AND, unstructured, uncontrolled, undocumented task training is going on all day, every day. But if you cannot explain the process, you surely cannot measure and improve it.
Proactive Technologies's approach to structured on-the-job training takes place where, and while, the work is performed. You need no additional staff and structured on-the-job training does not interrupt your work schedule like unstructured, haphazard and ad hoc training or classroom learning does.
You probably have most of the pieces are already in place; they just need structure around them to make the training experience work for everyone through the accelerated transfer of expertise™.
As part of every project, Proactive Technologies provides the support to set-up, implement, manage, document and revise the worker development system so you can stay focused on business.
Copyright © 2019-21 Proactive Technologies, Inc.™ ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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EMPLOYERS!
If your organization sees training as a cost, not as an investment, maybe you should consider another approach!
- Cuts the employer's internal costs of training;
- Lowers the costs associated with turnover;
- Drives new-hires and incumbent workers to "full job mastery;"
- Increases worker capacity, work quality, productivity and compliance (ISO/AS/TS training and records requirement, engineering specifications and safety mandates);
- Creates framework for cross-training, retraining and worker certification;
- Establishes the framework for employer specific/job-specific apprenticeships and internships - registered or not;
- Builds career development tracks and succession plans for hourly (and salary) workers;
- Ensures the increased and maintained "Return on Worker investment" through any type of change...
ALL OF THIS FROM ONE APPROACH!
This structured on-the-job training is performed where, and while, the work takes place!
You need no additional staff, and this will not disrupt your work schedule or burden your existing staff!
If your firm is partnered with local career and technical educational institutions, use of shared employer's equipment, facilities and paid wages of trainer(s) and trainee(s) are attractive match for potential grant assistance.
for more information.
Copyright © 2019-21 Proactive Technologies, Inc.™
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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Copyright © 1988 - 2021 Proactive Technologies, Inc.TM
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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