Daily Archives: July 25, 2008

Is that Picture For Real?

We all get the forwarded emails from our uncles, parents, and of course our co-workers. Typically the story is very compelling and we tell it to other people only to find out some time later that it is bogus. Thanks to sites like Snopes.com who verify all of those freaky, chilling, scary, and just plain weird stories you are able to reply to that co-worker with a “hey check your facts email”.

Well Snopes.com has gone even farther than verifying stories. Now they are verifying pictures too. I am sure your corporate I.T. department is thrilled with all of those believe it or not pictures flying from co-worker to co-worker, but now even those can be verified. Snopes.com has launched a Fauxtography section to their site. So the next time you get an email with a man spinning a Honda Accord on his head you can see if it is real.

Click here to start checking your spam pictures out.

Where What and Which Degree is Worth Persuing

WORKFORCE METRICS  
 

MBA Offers

Average pre-MBA salaries, MBA graduate total starting median pay, and percentage increase, top 10 business schools, 2008

  Pre-MBA salaries Median total pay Percentage increase
1. University of Pennsylvania (Wharton) $60,000 $156,000 160%
2. Northwestern (Kellogg) 56,000 142,000 154
3. Stanford 65,000 165,000 155
4. Harvard 65,000 160,000 146
5. Columbia 50,000 142,500 185
6. Duke (Fuqua) 49,000 128,500 162
7. MIT (Sloan) 55,000 149,000 171
8. University of Chicago 55,000 140,000 155
9. Cornell (Johnson) 50,000 135,000 170
10. Dartmouth (Tuck) 50,000 149,500 199
Source: BusinessSchoolAdmission.com

Talent Gaps
Fastest-growing occupations 2006-2016, the number of additional workers needed, percentage increase and primary source of training required, 2008 update

Employment change
2006-2016

Number (thousands) Percentage increase Postsecondary training
Network systems and data communications 140 53.4 Bachelor’s degree
Personal and home-care aides 389 50.6 Short-term on-the-job training
Home health aides 384 48.7 Short-term on-the-job training
Computer software engineers, applications 226 44.6 Bachelor’s degree
Veterinary technologists and technicians 29 41.0 Associate degree
Personal financial advisors 72 41.0 Bachelor’s degree
Makeup artists, theatrical and performance 1 39.8 Postsecondary vocational award
Medial assistants 148 35.4 Moderate-term on-the-job training
Veterinarians 22 35.0 First professional degree
Substance abuse/behavioral disorder counselors 29 34.3 Bachelor’s degree
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

 

 

 

 

Iowa’s Minimum Wage vs. Other States

Below is a listing of states that keep their minimum wage above the federal guideline minimum of $6.55 an hour. As wages are always a debate in Iowa I thought it would be interesting to see how we stack-up to these other states:

  • Alaska (the state minimum wage is $7.15)
  • Arizona (state minimum wage is $6.90, indexed to inflation)
  • California (state minimum wage is $8.00)
  • Colorado (state minimum wage is $7.02, indexed to inflation)
  • Connecticut (state minimum wage is $7.65)
  • Delaware (state minimum wage is $7.15)
  • Florida (state minimum wage is $6.79, indexed to inflation)
  • Hawaii (state minimum wage is $7.25)
  • Illinois (state minimum wage increased to $7.75 on July 1)
  • Iowa (state minimum wage is $7.25)
  • Kentucky (state minimum wage increased to $6.55 on July 1)
  • Maine (state minimum wage is $7.00)
  • Massachusetts (state minimum wage is $8.00)
  • Michigan (state minimum wage increased to $7.40 on July 1)
  • Missouri (the state minimum wage is $6.65, indexed to inflation)
  • New Jersey (the state minimum wage is $7.15)
  • New York (state minimum wage is $7.15)
  • Ohio (the state minimum wage is $7.00, indexed to inflation)
  • Oregon (the state minimum wage is $7.95, indexed to inflation)
  • Pennsylvania (the state minimum wage is $7.15)
  • Rhode Island (the state minimum wage is $7.40)
  • Vermont (the state minimum wage is $7.68, indexed to inflation)
  • Washington (the state minimum wage is $8.07, indexed to inflation)
  • West Virginia (The state minimum wage rose to $7.25 on July 1. Note: Many employers in West Virginia are exempt from state law and can pay the lower federal minimum wage.)

After seeing this listing do you think Iowa has a fair minimum wage or do we need an increase?

Friday Funnies: Chess Boxing, Is This a Great Job?

You may wonder if Chess-Boxing is real, and the unfortunate answer is yes it is. I am sure for many of you reading this, it is not your idea of a smart career move. I can imagine the trainer in between rounds “keep your gloves up and slip the jab – oh and don’t lead with your queen to quickly“. Believe it or not Chess-Boxing is real and they are being paid for this work. My biggest question is do you win by knockout or checkmate?

Watch the video to see it in action.