High School Dropouts — The California Story

The Los Angeles Times published an article last week titled “1 in 4 California high school students drop out, state says.” The story indicates that the extent of the dropout crisis in California is worse than expected — and spotlights an issue that should concern everyone in this nation.

And to try to obtain even more reliable information on this serious problem, California is now tracking students by an identification number so that it is clear whether they transfer schools or drop out. The tracking system will reportedly cost $33 million and will provide better information about students who dropout such as their reasoning for leaving high school and where they go after they leave.

According to the Los Angeles Times article:

For the state overall, it [high school drop out rate] was 24.2%, up substantially from the 13.9% calculated for the previous school year using an older, discredited method. Statewide, 67.6% of students graduated and 8.2% were neither graduates nor dropouts. The last category included those who transferred to private schools or left the state.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, while commending the efforts to examine these numbers, emphasized that it is equally, if not more important, to look at the reasons behind the large dropout rates. And according to the article:

Jack O’Connell, state superintendent of public instruction, presented the new data, based on the 2006-07 school year, as a quantum leap forward in understanding the nature of the dropout problem. But, he said, “no one will argue that the number of dropouts is good news. . . . It represents an enormous loss of potential.”

Loss of potential. Clearly. With the job market looking less and less welcoming to young people, and with employers demanding higher academic and applied skills, it is a scary thought that many will enter the workforce so ill equipped to succeed.

For comprehensive information prepared by Corporate Voices for Working Families about workforce readiness and how the business community can help participate in solving the challenges facing our young people, visit our Corporate Voices website.

by Allison Keyser

Today spotlights flexibility successes

The NBC Today show featured a segment Thursday morning that looked at the importance and successes of flexible work strategies. Called “The Four-Day Workweek,” the segment with host Matt Lauer contains an excellent interview with John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray and Christmas.

Take a look. The video should start after a short commercial.

by Rob Jewell

Families and Work Institute: National Study of Employers

The Families and Work Institute released yesterday the results of the 2008 National Study of Employers. A key finding: employers with more women and more minorities in top positions, and nonprofit organizations, are more likely to offer flexible workplaces.

“There has been surprising stability in many of the practices, policies and programs of U.S. employers over the past 10 years,” said Ellen Galinsky, president and founder of Families and Work Institute and lead author of the study. “The NSE confirms that in the face of economic volatility companies have generally held steady or reduced benefits that carry hard costs. Yet in certain areas — including domestic partner benefits and access to information on support services — we are seeing an expansion of benefits. We find it particularly interesting that having an employee base composed of a greater percentage of women, or the presence of women and minorities in senior positions, is correlated with a more flexible workplace.”

First conducted in 1998, the 2008 National Study of Employers is described as “the most comprehensive and far-reaching study of initiatives provided by U.S. employers to address the changing needs of today’s workforce.”

An article in this morning’s Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “Study: Fewer monetary benefits, more flexibility at work,” says:

While employers are slashing benefits to save money, they are using other tactics to try to retain workers, according to a study that will be released today in Philadelphia.

In its “2008 National Study of Employers” the Families and Work Institute found that employees are more likely to stay with on the job if employers provide flexibility in the workplace.

The study also found that while employers are dealing with the faltering economy by cutting benefits, such as health care and pensions, that directly take away from the bottom line, programs that cost money but improve the quality of life at the workplace, such as on-site child care, are not being reduced.

The study will be presented today at the World at Work Conference in Philadelphia.

by Rob Jewell

Embracing workplace flexibility

Maggie Jackson, writing in the Boston Globe this morning, looks at flexibility in the workplace in an article, “More employers embrace flexible scheduling.”

The article profiles several recipients of the Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility, held by the Families and Work Institute and the Alfred E. Sloan Foundation.

Jackson writes:

“…the business case for flexibility is sound. Employees who have a measure of flexibility at work have significantly greater job satisfaction, commitment to work, and engagement with a company, along with lower stress, according to research compiled by the nonprofit Corporate Voices for Working Families. Increasingly, executives are dropping their past reluctance to part with the 9 to 5, in-office model of work.”

A copy of the research results is available on the Corporate Voices for Working Families Web site.

The Boston Globe article quotes Ellen Galinsky, president of the Families and Work Institute.

“We know from the research that if you have choice or autonomy and you have the support to make those choices and you’re held accountable, those are the things that most affect how you feel about your employer, as well as your health and well-being.”

Jackson concludes:

“Is flexibility a part of the fabric of work life in America? Not yet. There are still many organizations where different ways of working are forbidden, or handed out sparingly, along with lower pay or fewer promotions. The Sloan Award pioneers, however, are shifting that mindset, one flex-option at a time.”

by Rob Jewell

Re-entering the workforce: still difficult for mothers

I’ll admit that I first saw a reference to this in the online version of The Wall Street Journal. But figured I would go to the source — a press release distributed by Korn/Ferry International. As we approach Mother’s Day this Sunday here’s the message. It’s still difficult for mothers to re-enter the workforce.

Here are some highlights from a recent survey conducted by Korn/Ferry:

• Despite great strides made in the global workplace, more than three-quarters of executives (76 percent) indicate it is difficult for mothers re-entering the workforce today.
• Almost half (49 percent) believe it is as difficult, if not more, for female executives intending to return to work than five years ago.

Why?

“A likely explanation for the perceived difficulty may be that nearly half of executives surveyed (49 percent) work for companies where flextime is not offered for new mothers. Almost three out of four executives (69 percent) rank ‘flexible work schedules’ as the most valuable benefit their employers could offer working parents.”

Corporate Voices for Working Families commissioned Harris Interactive last fall to conduct a survey to assess executive perceptions of flexibility. Survey questions were added to the Fall 2007 Executive Omnibus survey, a national telephone survey administered to a random sample of 150 senior-level executives at large corporations. The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation sponsored the survey.

An executive summary of that survey is available on the Corporate Voices for Working Families Web site.

by Rob Jewell

Millennials and the changing workplace

If being an effective manager isn’t tough enough now, here comes another challenge: the millennials.

A story written by Robert Rodriguez in the Fresno Bee (and distributed by Post-Gazette Now) provides some interesting insights. Here’s the overview from “Millennials have potential to reshape the workplace”:

Ranging in age from 21 to 29, they [millennials] have the potential to create lasting change in the workplace because of the way they live, communicate and view their jobs.

The article points out that a recent study by JWT, a New York-based advertising agency, found that “millennials, compared with other generations, place a higher value on work-life balance, expect their employers to adapt to them and are more likely to rank fun and stimulation as one of their top five ideal job requirement.”

And that raises another challenge — although it is not addressed specifically in this article. How do you integrate into the workplace two generations that for the most part have very different values and approaches to work: millennials and baby boomers?

And equally important — how to you retain the experience and expertise of the baby boomers in the midst of a major demographic shift?

In October of 2006 WorldatWork, Corporate Voices for Working Families, and Buck Consultants conducted an
Internet-based survey to evaluate the impact of an aging workforce on the American marketplace. A copy of that survey — The Real Talent Debate: Will Aging Boomers Deplete the Workforce? – is available on our Corporate Voices Web site.

by Rob Jewell

Deloitte ethics and workplace survey

Deloitte, one of our partner companies, has released its 2008 Ethics & Workplace survey. And one key finding: transparency and openness by leadership lead to a more productive and engaging workplace.

Here’s part of the announcement about the survey results:

Transparency in the workplace, as described by an open and honest communication channel between employees and leadership regarding work-life issues, has a significant positive impact on workplace culture overall.

While continuing to make the transition to Corporate Voices, one of the courses I teach at Kent State University is Ethics and Issues in Mass Communication. We talk a lot about transparency and about communicating openly and honestly. That applies to the news media. It also applies to organizations. It’s interesting to me to see that Deloitte is looking at these issues from the standpoint of management — and how to create and maintain a work environment that meets the needs of both employees and the organization.

Here’s another part of the announcement:

“Today’s workforce demands a more ‘customized’ career path and a tremendous amount of flexibility,” said Sharon L. Allen, Chairman of the Board, Deloitte LLP. “One size fits all no longer attracts or retains the best talent. By promoting open and honest communications across organizations and setting the tone at the top, our survey tells us that the workforce of today can be motivated in different ways. This is increasingly critical to retaining talent and preserving the health of today’s organization.”

Honest and open communications. Those really are keys to engaging employees — and to the success of an organization.

by Rob Jewell

Just released: guide for making work ‘work’

Ellen Galinsky just sent us a note and a copy of the 2008 Guide to Bold New Ideas for Making Work Work!

Here’s a brief description:

“Featuring the latest winners of the Alfred P. Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility, the Guide details the latest and most innovative trends in workplace practices, based in large part on employees’ ratings.”

More detailed information is contained in a news release that was distributed this morning. And be sure to grab a copy of USA Today Wednesday morning. The newspaper will feature an advertisement congratulating all of the winners of the Sloan Award for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility.

by Rob Jewell

For working mothers: after a baby, full time or part?

Corporate Voices for Working Families and Donna Klein were featured in an article in The Washington Post Sunday morning that looked at several topics involving working mothers, including how to negotiate for benefits and pay.

That article accompanied a very comprehensive feature story by Amy Joyce, “After a Baby, Full Time or Part?”

Before the birth of her now 9-month-old son, Sam, Joyce wrote the Life at Work column in the business section of the Washington Post. Now after returning from maternity leave, she is an editor for the Weekend section.  She writes:

“The job allows me to work more predictable hours than I did as a daily reporter with a weekly column. That helped me easily make the decision (for now, at least) to work full time.”

Then Joyce adds:

“But the decision isn’t so easy for many women. For those who have a choice, family, finances and career success are all major considerations when settling on a work schedule.”

This is the second consecutive week that The Washington Post has printed a comprehensive article on work-life issues.

by Rob Jewell

Flexibility and career coaches

“Career or Family? Yes.” That was the headline for an interesting article in The Washington Post by Annys Shin on Saturday, March 22. The article focuses on the important issue of workplace flexibility from this perspective. A growing number of working mothers are turning to career and life coaches — the reporter calls them work-life gurus — to help them achieve a better work-life balance with employers.

The article says, in part:

While the demand for these services is real, questions remain about whether they can deliver. Despite the widespread acceptance of flex time and telecommuting, there is still resistance among employers, especially in time-intensive fields like law and finance, to accommodate parents who want to work reduced hours without harming their careers.

That view coincides with the results of a study Corporate Voices for Working Families commissioned last fall to assess executive perceptions of flexibility. One of the key findings: While business executives say that they view flexibility as a strategic solution to workplace issues, they report that their companies in practice use flexible work strategies as a way to accommodate individuals on a case-by-case basis.

Clearly, the results of that study — as well as The Washington Post article — indicate that more needs to be done to continue to demonstrate to chief executive officers and other business leaders that flexible work strategies are important to hiring and retaining the qualified workforce that is vital to financial success and competitiveness.

by Rob Jewell