|
Fact
#56
25% of employees caring for elderly relatives have changed
jobs due to caregiving responsibilities
Fact
#57
39% of caregivers reported being distracted at
work
Fact
#58
22% of caregivers had considered quitting
Fact
#59
14% of caregivers have quit. Source: Family and
Work Institute
Fact
#60
Caregiving costs employers $17 billion a year or
$2500 per caregiver per year, including time missed
from work and the cost of replacing those who quit to
care for relatives
Source:
MetLife Healthcare 1999
Fact #61
The age group between 35 and 54 - the so-called Baby Boomers - has increased from 41 percent in 1975 to over half of U.S. workers in 2003. Source: BLS
Fact #62
Between 2000 and 2030, the U.S. population will grow by 26%. Source: BLS
Fact #63
The 65 and over segment of the population will grow by more than 80%. Source: BLS
Fact #64
The ratio of entry-level wage earners to retirees has fallen from 9 to 1 in 1955 to 4 to 1 in 1995 and will fall to 2 to 1 in 2020. Source: Hudson Institute
Fact #65
Nearly all of the 24 million people who will stop working this decade will be experienced employees headed into retirement. Source: The Kiplinger Letter, May 17,2002
Fact #66
Active adults (adults over 60) account for 60% of all healthcare spending. Source: Agelight
Fact #67
Active adults purchase 70% of all prescriptions. Source: Agelight
Fact #68
Active adults purchase 51% of all the over-the- counter drugs. Source: Agelight
Fact #69
Although only 13% of the population is 65 and older, they account for 36% of the total national healthcare expenditures, 36% of hospital admissions, and 50% of all days in the hospital. Source: Committee for Economic Development
Fact #70
The total expenditures for health care from the age of 65 until death:
Death at 65: $ 31,181
Death at 90: $200,000
Source: Committee for Economic Development
Fact #71
American businesses spend $61 billion a year on Alzheimer's Disease. Source: "Alzheimer's Disease: The Costs to U.S. Businesses in 2002"
Fact #72
This amount is equivalent to the net profits of the top 10 Fortune 500 companies. Source: "Alzheimer's Disease: The Costs to U.S. Businesses in 2002"
Fact #73
Lost productivity of caregivers accounts for $36 billion. Source: "Alzheimer's Disease: The Costs to U.S. Businesses in 2002"
Fact #74
Healthcare and research accounts for $24.5 billion. Source: "Alzheimer's Disease: The Costs to U.S. Businesses in 2002"
Fact #75
The number of people with Alzheimer's in the workplace will explode from 4 million today to 14 million in the next 50 years.
Source: "Alzheimer's Disease: The Costs to U.S. Businesses in 2002"
Fact #76
In 2000, 26.7 million women ages 15 to 44 were childless, 44% of the women in that age group. Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Fact #77
In 1990, 24.3 million women ages 15 to 44 were childless. Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Fact #78
Percentage of women who worked during pregnancy: Source: U.S. Census Bureau
1961-65: 44.4%
1991-95: 66.8%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Fact #79
Percentage of women who returned to work within six months after first child:
1961-65: 13.7%
1991-95: 52.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Fact #80
Percentage of women who worked during pregnancy and then quit job:
1961-65: 62.8%
1991-95: 26.9%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Fact #81
Forty percent of workers plan to change jobs within the year (2004)
Resource: careerbuilder.com - survey of more than 1900 US workers Nov 18-Dec 4, 2003.
Fact #82
For the first time since tracking began 20 years ago, U.S. women outnumber men in higher paying, white collar managerial and professional occupations. . . Bureau of Labor Statistics data indicates that, as of Nov. 30, women represent 50.6 percent of the 48 million employees in management, professional and related occupations. In 1983, the first year the government began recording gender data for its occupational statistics, women accounted for 40.9 percent of managers and professionals.
Fact #83
16 percent of adult Americans have at least one tattoo, believing the body art makes them feel sexier, more rebellious and even, in some cases, more intelligent. Source: Harris Interactive
Fact #84
Nearly one in five Americans speaks a language other than English at home, a surge of nearly 50 percent during the past decade. Most speak Spanish, followed by Chinese, with Russian rising fast. Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Fact #85
In California, nearly 12.5 million people - 39.5 percent of those 5 and older in the state - spoke another language.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Fact #86
The retail industry spends $2,379 for each new hire. Source: Staffing.org
Fact #87
Between 600,000 and 700,000 associates walk out the door at Wal-Mart each year. At $2,379 per hire, that's $1.4 billion each year that Wal-Mart spends on replacing employees. Source: Workforce Magazine, Feburary 2004
Fact #88
Wal-Mart's workforce is 1.5 million worldwide, three times the size of the U.S. Army. Source: Workforce Magazine, Feburary 2004
Fact #89
Wal-Mart expects to expand its workforce to 2.3 million within a few years. Source: Workforce Magazine, Feburary 2004
Fact #90
A 20 percent reduction in turnover at a 5,000 employee firm results in a cost savings of $1 million to $5 million annually.
Source: Workforce Magazine, February 2004
Fact #91
The proportion of bachelor's degrees awarded to women reached a post-war high in 2003 at an estimated 57 percent. Source:Employment Policy Foundation
Fact #92
The gender gap is even greater among Hispanics women and men-- only 40 percent of that ethnic group's college graduates are male -- and African Americans, who are now seeing two women earn bachelor's degrees for every man. Source:Employment Policy Foundation
Fact #93
Within the next 10 years, 18 million jobs will require individuals with baccalaureate degrees. At the current level of graduations, we will have a shortfall of 6 million. Source:Employment Policy Foundation
Fact #94
In 2000 1.56 million U.S. residents ages 16 to 19 were not high school graduates AND not enrolled in school. Source:Employment Policy Foundation
Fact #95
50 percent of the U.S. population ages 16 to 65 are functionally illiterate. Source:Employment Policy Foundation
Fact #96
The cost of job stress to businesses is estimated at $200 billion per year. Source: Integra
Fact #97
A recent Integra survey found that 12 percent of employees have called in sick, as a result of stress. Source: Integra
Fact #98
One in five employees has quit a job because of job stress. Source: Integra
Fact #99
Depression Costs US Employers More Than $23 Billion Per Year Due to Absenteeism and Reduced Productivity.
Source: Journal of Clinical Psychiatry
Fact #100
On an average work day, 14 people will be killed on the job and more than 10,000 will be disabled. This staggering figure is equivalent to a major airline crash every two weeks! Many of these accidents are linked to job stress and depression.
Fact #101
Only one in ten workers has a clear line of sight between his or her task and company goals. Source: Stephen Covey and Harris Interactive
Fact #102
Only 50 percent of employees feel they follow through with discipline on their key priorities. (What would you pay a taxi driver who spent only 50% of the time trying to reach your destination?)
Source: Stephen Covey and Harris Interactive
Fact #103
The cost of replacing a senior executive averages two to five times his or her annual salary.
Source: Training and Development, February 2004
Fact #104
17 percent of employees are actively disengaged from their job - they don't see the link between their performance and company profitability. Source: U.S. Employee Engagement Index
Fact #105
By 2010, nearly 30% or 765,000 of our nation's public school teachers will retire.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Education
Fact #106
99% of all workers perform some reading-related work each day; to keep pace on the job they 113 minutes a day. Source: Adult Literacy Survey
Fact #107
50% of the U.S. population, ages 16-65, are functionally illiterate. Source: Adult Literacy Survey
Fact #108
52% of high school graduates lack the basic skills required to do their jobs adequately; only 25% are considered to have excellent skills. Source: Adult Literacy Survey
Fact #109
The U.S. ranks among 156 countries in literacy. Source: Adult Literacy Survey
Fact #110
The estimated yearly cost of illiteracy due to non- productivity, crime and loss of tax revenue is $225 billion.
Source: Adult Literacy Survey
Fact #111
In the United States, four of every 10 people in the work force will be older than 45 in just two years. By the end of this decade, one of every five employees will be older than 55, according to the AARP Global Aging Program.
Fact #112
Twice as many people older than 50 have college degrees as did 20 years ago, according to a report by the AARP.
Fact #113
By the year 2050, there will be 2 billion people older than 50 in the world, compared with 600 million today, according to the AARP Global Aging Program.
Fact #114
In 2050, people older than 50 will rise to 21 percent of the worldwide population, up from 8 percent today, while the percentage of children will decline to 20 percent, from 33 percent today, according to the AARP Global Aging Program. By the middle of this century, there will be more older people than children on the planet for the first time in human history.
Fact #115
Out-of-pocket health costs average 19 percent of income for persons 65 and older, according to the AARP. Medicare beneficiaries without Medicaid coverage spend 49 percent of their total income on health care.
Fact #116
Obese employees are twice as likely to be absent 14 or more times per year. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #117
Paid sick leave associated with obesity costs employers an estimated $2.4 billion per year. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #118
25% of obese workers under-perform because of infirmities related to their weight. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #119
Obesity is associated with 39 million lost work days. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #120
Obesity is associated with 239 million restricted activity days. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #121
Every year, between 280,000 and 325,000 suffer premature deaths related to obesity. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #122
An estimated one-third of Americans do no exercise at all. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #123
20.9 percent of the U.S. Adult population is obese; in 1991, only 12 percent of the population were obese. Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #124
Obesity costs U.S. companies an estimated $12.7 billion annually. (National Business Group on Health)
Fact #125
The total costs to society from obesity are estimated to be as high as $300 billion.
Source:HR Magazine, March 2004
Fact #126
Forty percent of U.S. workers plan to leave their current job within the next five years.
Source = Accenture
Fact #127
58 percent will leave because of the lack of opportunities for advancement.
Source = Accenture
Fact #128
30 percent will leave to work for a different boss or management team. Source = Accenture
Fact #129
Twenty-seven percent said they would stay in their current jobs if they received better or more training, but more than half (51 percent) of all respondents said that their employers are not providing training to expand their skills.
Source = Accenture
Fact #130
58 percent of more than 5,000 respondents said that they "may" or "definitely" will start looking for a new job if the economy improves. Source = AOL survey
Fact
#131
99% of all workers perform some reading-related work
each day; to keep pace on the job they read 113 minutes
a day.
Fact #132
50% of the U.S. population, ages 16-65 are functionally
illiterate.
Fact
#133
52% of high school graduates lack the basic skills required
to do their jobs adequately.
Fact
#134
Only 25% of high school graduates are considered to
have excellent basic skills.
Fact
#135
The estimated yearly cost of illiteracy due to non-productivity,
crime and loss of tax revenue is $225 billion.
Source = Adult Literacy Survey
Fact
#136
Alzheimer's disease is costing American businesses $61
billion a year, double the amount just 4 years ago.
Fact #137
$36 billion per year is lost in worker productivity
by caregivers needing to leave work or being distracted
on the job. Source: Training, October 2002
Fact #138
Half of all people who suffer from carpal tunnel sundrome
miss 30 or more days of work per year.
Fact #139
The average cost per employee with carpal tunnel syndrome
is more than $13,000 per case.
Fact #140
More than half of carpal tunnel syndrome cases are not
work related.
Source = Workforce, September 2002.
Fact #141
Employee fraud is on the rise, soaring from $400 billion
in lost revenue for U.S. businesses in 1996 to an estimated
$600 billion in 2002
Fact #142
The majority of employees who steal--68.6 percent --have
no prior criminal record.
Fact
#143
Of those who steal, males make up 53.5 percent versus
46.5 percent females who have a high school education
or less
Fact #144
As the employee's education level rises, the incidence
of theft declines: 56.9 percent of thieves have a high
school education or less, 32.7 percent have a bachelor's
degree, and 10.4 percent have a postgraduate education.
Source: Association of Certified Fraud Examiners
Fact #145
On a per-company basis, one out of every 30 employees
was apprehended for theft from their employer in 2002.
Source = CHC Forecast Inc.
Fact #146
Of the approximately 12.3 million illicit drug users
in the United States, 77% are employed.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor
Fact #147
For every 1000 employees, there are 84 problem drinkers.
Fact #148
For every 1000 employees, there are 453 lost workdays
due to sickness, injury, and absence as a result of
problem drinking.
Fact #149
For every 1000 employees, there are 417 work days of
lowered productivity.
Fact #150
The cost of alcohol-related problems costs each business
$56,686 in work days lost to sickness, injury and accidents.
Source: Ensuring Solutions to Alcohol Problems, George
Washington U.
Fact
#151
A national survey by Rutgers' Management Education Center
of 4,500 high school students found that 75 percent
of them engage in serious cheating.
Fact #152
More than half of the high school students have plagiarized
work they found on the Internet.
Fact #153
Fifty percent of those responding to the Rutgers' survey
said they don't think copying questions and answers
from a test is even cheating.
Fact #154
Fifty percent of college professors admitted to overlooking
cheating at least once.
Fact #155
Thirty percent of all college papers submitted have
significant levels of plagiarism.
Source: ABC
PrimeTime, April 29, 2004
Fact #156
The annual growth rate of the nation's workforce will
slow to 0.4 percent by 2010.
Fact #157
The annual growth rate of the nation's workforce was
1.1 during the 1990's.
Fact #158
The annual growth rate of the nation's workforce was
2.6 during the 1970's.
Source: The 21st
Century at Work: Forces Shaping the Future Workforce
and Workplace in the U.S. (Rand Corporation)
Fact #159
Half of all workers (51 percent) trust their companies
to tell them the truth in employee communications.
Source: Towers
Perrin
Fact #160
Obesity-related disability claims cost an average of
$8,720 per employee each year.
Source: UnumProvident
Fact #161
In 1950, there were seven working age people
for every elderly person in the United States. By 2030,
there will be only three.
Fact #162
Since 1950, the number of people aged 65 and
older in the United States has increased from 8% to
12%.
Fact #163
By the end of 2002, the number of older workers
in the labor force aged 55 to 64 - employed or seeking
work - increased to 62.9%, the highest level during
the postwar era.
Fact #164
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics,
more than 25% of the working population will reach retirement
age by 2010, resulting in a potential worker shortage
of nearly 10 million.
Fact #165
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the number
of people aged 55 and older will increase to 73% by
2020, while the number of younger workers will grow
only 5%.
Fact
#166
For dual career couples with kids under 18, the combined
work hours grew from 81 a week in 1977 to 91 in 2002.
Source: Families and Work Institute
Fact
#167
72% of mothers with children under 18 are in the workforce,
up from 47% in 1975. Source: Families and Work Institute
Fact #168
Husbands are unemployed in 6.4% of all married couples.
Source: Time, March 22, 2004
Fact
#169
1 in 3 women with M.B.A.s are not working full-time;
it's 1 in 20 for males with M.B.A.s Source: Catalyst
Fact #170
Women in high positions: In 1971 only 9% of women earned
medical degrees, 7% law degrees, and 4% M.B.A.s. In
2001, 30% or women earned medical degrees, 47% law degrees,
and 41% M.B.A.s.
Fact
#171
In 2000, 4 million Americans were age 85 and older,
the part of the population most in need of long-term
care. By 2040, that number is projected to more than
triple, to 14 million. Source: U.S. Census Bureau. (2000)
Fact #172
More than 13 million Americans need some level of long-term
care, but only a fraction of those, about 1.6 million,
receive that care in nursing homes. Source: Facts on
Long-term Care, 1997.
Fact #173
While most individuals who need long-term care are over
65, 40 percent are adults younger than 65, and 3 percent
are children. Source: Facts on Long-term Care, 1997.
Fact #174
By the year 2020, the number of Americans 85 and older
will more than double to 6.4 million. The number of
people 65 to 84 will almost double to 47.1 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau. (2000)
Fact #175
If obesity trends continue through 2020, without other
changes in health behaviors or medical technology, the
proportion of people 50-69 with disabilities (those
who are limited in their ability to care for themselves
or perform other routine tasks) will increase by 18
percent for men and by 22 percent for women between
2000 and 2020.
Fact
#176
There are 2
million people locked up in federal, state, and county
facilities. More than 6 million people are under state
supervision in the form of parole or probation.
Fact #177
One out of
every 130 people will serve prison time at some point
in their lives.
Fact #178
One of every
three young (20-29) African American men are under some
kind of correctional control-whether they are imprisoned,
paroled, or on probation.
Fact #179
There are almost
100,000 women in US prisons today. Almost all of these
women are single mothers.
Fact #180
States are
spending more money on prisons than education. Over
the course of the last 20 years, the amount of money
spent on prisons was increased by 570% while that spent
on elementary and secondary education was increased
by only 33%.
Source: Coalition Against The American Correctional
Association
Fact
#181
In 2002, an estimated 22 million Americans
suffered from chemical dependence or abused drugs, alcohol
or both.
Fact #182
Illicit drug use is highest among adults 18
to 25 years old.
Fact #183
15.9 million American s considered themselves
to be heavy drinkers.
Fact #184
Treating the short-term and long-term medical
complications of addiction costs $133 billion a year.
Source: Department of Health and Human Services; National
Institute on Drug Abuse.
Fact #185
15 percent of all full-time workers and 19
percent of all part-time workers - about 23 million
workers - used an illicit drug in the past year.
Source: 2002
National Household Survey on Drug Abuse
Fact
#191
Employers are spending an average of $280 per
employee equating to $38 billion a year for injuries
suffered at home.
Fact #192
A non-work related, home injury that results in a hospital
stay costs nearly $20,000 and a fatal injury costs an
employer nearly $30,000.
Fact #193
Health care (medical) spending associated with home
injuries cost employers $15.8 billion in a single year.
Fact #194
Employers spend $11.8 billion on sick leave and disability
insurance caused by home-based injuries.
Fact #195
$9.6 billion was spent on costs related to workplace
disruption plus the costs for training/retraining or
hiring new employees.
Source: The State of Home Safety in America(TM)(2004)
Fact
#186
Businesses spend $36.5 billion on costs related
to workers who are Alzheimer's caregivers.
Fact #187
$18 billion is lost on productivity due to absenteeism.
Fact #188
Recruitment, training and productivity loss when caregivers
quit exceeds $6.3 billion.
Fact #189
Insurance benefits paid out to caregiver workers
who are on leave - $1.2 billion.
Fact #190
By 2030, it is estimated there will be 7.7
million people with Alzheimer's disease.
Source: Alzheimer's Association - Alzheimer's Disease
Fact #196
More than 75 percent of the workforce must be retrained
to keep the jobs they have.
Fact #197 In the near future 80 percent
of jobs will require some sort of postsecondary education.
Fact #198
61 percent of these will require more than a high school
education but less than a bachelor's degree.
Fact #199
97 percent of our youth hope to go to college; 63 percent
actually enroll but only 30 percent actually receive
a bachelor's degree.
Source: US Department of Labor
Fact #200
The Latino market is the country's fastest growing population.
But it is also the youngest, poorest and least educated.
Fifty percent of US Latinos are under the age of 26
- 35% are younger than 18, compared to 32% of African
Americans, and 23% of non-Latino whites.
Source:: US. Census 2000
Fact #201
Since 1996, graduates of U.S. medical schools
who enter obstetrics and gynecology training programs
has dropped 23 percent.
Fact #202
The number of residents training in orthopedic specialties
dropped from 3,029 in 1993-1994 to 2,759 in 1998-1999,
Fact #203
Residents training in the area of cardiovascular disease
has been steadily declining between the same period,
from 2,440 to 2,055.
Fact #204
In radiology, 4,236 residents entered the field in 1993-1994
compared with 3,687 in 1998-1999.
Fact #205
The number of oncologists in training dropped from 659
in 1992-1993 to 247 in 1998-1999.
Source: Journal of the American Medical Association.
Fact #206
There are now 34 million Americans over 65.
Fact #207
There are now 1.5 million Americans over 90.
Fact #208
There are roughly 300,000 Americans over the age of
100.
Fact #209
There are now
more people over 90 or 100 than in all of American history
put together.
Fact #210
Currently
there are 2.4 million deaths in the U.S. annually.
By 2040, that number will double. (Do you see a shortage
of funeral directors on the horizon?)
Source: American Demographics, June 2004
Fact #211
A record 6.9 million adults were in prison or on probation
or parole last year, nearly 131,000 more than in 2002,
according to a Justice Department study.
Fact #212
Put another way, about 3.2 percent of the adult U.S.
population, or 1 in 32 adults, were incarcerated or
on probation or parole at the end of last year.
Fact #213
About 3.5 percent of the 2.1 million prisoners in
the USA produced goods and services worth an estimated
$1.5 billion in 2002.
Fact #214
Women-owned businesses generate nearly $2.3 trillion
in annual revenues in the U.S.
(Center for Women's Business Research)
Fact #215
By 2030, women will hold a larger share of management
and professional jobs than men. (Employment Policy
Foundation)
Fact #216
Nearly 67% of people entering the workplace have used
drugs, 44% have used them in the past year (N.I.D.A.)
Fact #217
35% of all cocaine users sell drugs to co-workers
to support their own drug habit (D.E.A.)
Fact #218
More than 75 percent of all drug users are employed
somewhere. (SAMHSA, a division of the Health and Human
Services Department (HHS)).
Fact #219
About 9% of Americans abuse alcohol. (National Institute
on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism)
Fact #220
Sixty-five percent of all work related accidents are
the direct result of substance abuse (O.S.H.A.)
Fact #221: Alcoholism causes 500
million lost work days annually. Absenteeism among
alcoholics or problem drinkers is 3.8 to 8.3 times
greater than normal (Bernstein & Mahoney, op.
cit.) and up to 16 times greater among all employees
with alcohol and other drug-related problems. (US
Department of Labor)
Fact #222: Family members of alcoholics
and substance users use ten times as much sick leave
and have higher than average health care claims than
family members of non alcoholic and substance using
families. (HSS and NCADD Fact Sheet)
Fact #223: Up to 40 percent of industrial
fatalities can be linked to alcohol use. Forty-seven
percent of all industrial injuries are attributed
to alcohol use.(NCADD Fact Sheet)
Fact #224: 60% of alcohol-related
work performance problems can be attributed to employees
who are not alcohol dependent, but who occasionally
drink too much on a work night or drink during a weekday
lunch (JSI Research & Training Institute)
Fact #225: Drug-using employees take
three times as many sick benefits as other workers.
They are five times more likely to file a worker's
compensation claim (Strategic Planning for Workplace
Drug Abuse Programs, NIDA)
Fact #226: Alcoholism causes 500
million lost work days annually. Absenteeism among
alcoholics or problem drinkers is 3.8 to 8.3 times
greater than normal (Bernstein & Mahoney, op.
cit.) and up to 16 times greater among all employees
with alcohol and other drug-related problems. (US
Department of Labor)
Fact #227: Family members of alcoholics
and substance users use ten times as much sick leave
and have higher than average health care claims than
family members of non alcoholic and substance using
families. (HSS and NCADD Fact Sheet)
Fact #228: Up to 40 percent of industrial
fatalities can be linked to alcohol use. Forty-seven
percent of all industrial injuries are attributed
to alcohol use.(NCADD Fact Sheet)
Fact #229: 60% of alcohol-related
work performance problems can be attributed to employees
who are not alcohol dependent, but who occasionally
drink too much on a work night or drink during a weekday
lunch (JSI Research & Training Institute)
Fact #230: Drug-using employees take
three times as many sick benefits as other workers.
They are five times more likely to file a worker's
compensation claim (Strategic Planning for Workplace
Drug Abuse Programs, NIDA)
Fact
#231: On the Road Jack No More
- Truckers Short of Staff: Trucking executives are
having a tough time filling jobs in the United States,
according to the San Francisco Examiner. Competing
industries such as construction are paying more, and
driving 500 miles a day can be lonely and sometimes
stressful. J.B. Hunt CEO Kirk Thompson says, "Growth
is at a virtual standstill until additional truck
drivers are attracted."
Fact #232: According to the Tulsa
World, trucking companies are trying to combat the
105 to 110 percent turnover rates with higher wages
and signing bonuses. But drivers are less concerned
about money than about being treated with honesty
and respect.
Fact #233: The Canadian Medical Association
wants the government to provide $765 million (U.S.
dollars) to address the shortage of doctors, nurses
and other health-care professionals, according to
the Associated Press. The money would be used for,
among other things, workforce planning--such as forecasting
the number of practitioners needed to reduce the waiting
lines for medical care.
Fact #234: One in every 278 Americans
now work for Wal-Mart (Source: Business Week)
Fact
#235: More than 75 percent of the workforce
must be retrained to keep the jobs they have; 80 percent
of jobs will require some sort of postsecondary education;
61 percent will require more than a high school education
but less than a bachelor's degree.
(Source: U.S.
Department of Labor)
Fact
#236: A recent study has found
that entrepreneurial activity in the United States will
grow over the next five years....BUT the entrepreneurs
will be doing little to no hiring. The study found that
80 percent of American entrepreneurs plan to hire fewer
than five employees over the next five years. (Source:
Global Entrepreneurship Monitor)
Fact #237: The study also found
that 11.9 percent of Americans created or grew new businesses
in 2003. This is up from 10.5 percent in 2002. (Source:
Global Entrepreneurship Monitor)
Fact #238: More and more American workers
will opt to telecommute from home in the next few years.
One-third of the nation's workforce - about 44 million
people - is expected to work from home on at least a
part-time basis in 2004. That number is expected to
rise to 51 million in 2008 with about 14 million people
working full-time from home.
(Source: In-Stat/MDR)
Fact #239: Small busineses provide
approximately 75 percent of the net new jobs added to
the economy. (Source: SBA)
Fact #240: Small businesses
represent 99.7 percent of all employers.
Fact #241: 53 percent of American workers
say work leaves them "overtired and overwhelmed". (Source:
Kronos, Inc.)
Fact #242: 30 percent of workers say
they are "always" or "often" under stress at work. (Source:
National Opinion Research Center )
Fact #243: 1 out of 5 workers
are at risk for stress related health problems. (Source:
LLuminari® Landmark Study)
Fact #244: 1 in 10 are so tired at
the end of the work day that they do not enjoy their
non-work time. (Source: LLuminari® Landmark Study)
Fact #245: Workplace stress costs the
nation more thasn $300 billion each year in health care,
missed work and stress reduction efforts. (Source: American
Institute of Stress)
Fact
#246: 62 percent of workers don't
think their employer tries to minimize unnecessary stress.
(Source: LLuminari® Landmark Study)
Fact #247: One in 5 workers stated
that their work regularly interfered with their responsibilities
at home and kept them from spending time with their
family.
(Source: LLuminari®
Landmark Study)
Fact #248: Workplace stress costs the
nation more than $300 billion each year in health care,
missed work and stress reduction efforts. (Source: American
Institute of Stress)
Fact #249: Workers who report
they are stressed incur health care costs that are 46
percent higher, or $600 more per person, than other
employees. (Source: NIOSH)
Fact #250: The risk of a heart attack
doubled among permanent employees after a major round of downsizing,
with the risk growing to five times normal after four
years.
(British Medical
Journal, 2/2004)
Fact #251: Although 41
million people are expected to enter the American workforce
by 2010, 46 million college-educated baby boomers will
retire in the next 20 years. (Source: Bureau of Labor
Statistics)
Fact #252: A serious lack of
skilled workers will begin in 2005 and grow to 5.3 million
by 2010, and to 14 million by 2015. (Source: Bureau
of Labor Statistics)
Fact
#253: Employers estimate that 39 percent of
their current workforce and 26 percent of new hires
will have basic skills deficiencies. (Source: Bureau
of Labor Statistics)
Fact #254: Sixty-five percent
of all American employment now requires specific skills.
(Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Fact #255: Seventy-five percent of the
American workforce will need to be re-trained merely
to retain their jobs. (Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Fact #256: Nearly 26 percent of Americans
now live alone.
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #257: Unmarried adults now head
half of all households.
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #258: Almost half of the nation's
employees are unmarried.
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #259: In 2000, 3.8 million couples
were living together.
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #260: 22 percent of children in
the U.S. were living with their mother only.
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #261: One-fourth of health services
workers plan to change jobs by February 2005.
(Source: careerbuilders.com survey)
Fact #262: Sixteen percent of health
services workers search for a new job on a weekly basis.
(Source: careerbuilders.com survey)
Fact #263: Thirty-three percent of
health care workers are looking for stability in their
next job, followed by fairness at 12 percent. (Source:
careerbuilders.com survey)
Fact #264: The top three factors motivating
job changes for health services workers are better compensation,
more career advancement opportunities and improved work-life
balance.
(Source: careerbuilders.com survey)
Fact #265: 11 percent of health services
workers stay at their current employer for benefits
while 10 percent say it is due to the fear of the unknown.
(Source: careerbuilders.com survey)
Fact
#266: Sixty-one percent of the human
resource (HR) professionals surveyed said they find
inaccuracies in résumés after carrying
out background checks. (Source: SHRM Background Checks/
Résumé Inaccuracies online survey, 2004)
Fact #267: 80 percent of HR
professionals reported that their companies did at least
some criminal background checks on prospective employees
in 2003, up from 51 percent in 1996.
(Source: Society of Human Resource Management, 2004)
Fact #268: And 35 percent
looked at candidates' credit records, compared with
19 percent seven years earlier. (Source: Society of
Human Resource Management, 2004)
Fact #269: The rate of unscheduled
absenteeism has climbed to a five-year high of 2.4 percent,
according to the findings of the 14th annual CCH Unscheduled
Absence Survey, conducted by CCH INCORPORATED..
Fact #270: Last-minute no-shows
are costing organizations an average of $610 per employee,
adding up to more than a million dollars annually for
large companies. (Source: CCH)
Fact #271: Fewer than one in
four high school graduates who took the ACT test have
taken the coursework necessary to succeed in college.
(Source: ACT, Inc)
Fact #272: Only 22 percent of
the 1.2 million high school graduates who took the exam
this year (2004) were ready for college coursework in
math, English and science. (Source: ACT, Inc)
Fact #273: Skills that
employers are increasingly demanding are ability to
work in a team, solve complex problems, and communicate
clearly in print and in person. (Source: Coplin,
10 Things Employers Want You to Learn in College)
Fact #274: Skills that will
keep workers marketable in the near term are self-motivation,
time management, strong oral and written communication,
relationship building, salesmanship, problem solving,
information evaluation and leadership. (Source: Futurist
Update, Feb 2004)
Fact #275: In the future, even
more emphasis will be placed on skills that cannot be
automated - caring, judgment, intuition, ethics, inspiration,
friendliness, and imagination. (Source: Futurist, Sep-Oct
2004)
Fact #276: Depression
set U.S. employers back $35 billion a year. (Source:
JADA)
Fact #277: Arthritis, headaches,
and back problems cost U.S employers nearly $47 billion
a year. (Source: JADA)
Fact #278: The total cost
of presenteeism in the United States is more than $105
billion a year. (Source: American Productivity
Audit)
Fact #279: On-the-job productivity
loss resulting from depression and pain is roughly 3X
greater than absence-related productivity loss attributed
to these conditions. (Source: American Productivity
Audit)
Fact #280: Allergies, which
affect rougly 25% of the U.S. population during the
spring and fall seasons cause a productivity loss of
7 percent among workers.
Fact
#281: One in every eight Americans is
now 65 or old.
(Source: Adminstration of Aging, 2002)
Fact
#282: Since 1900, the percentage of Americans
65 and older has tripled.
Fact #283: In 2000, the 65 - 74 age
group was 8 times larger than in 1900.
(Source: U.S.
Census Bureau)
Fact #284: In 2000, the 75 -
84 age group was 16 times larger than in 1900.
(Source: U.S.
Census Bureau)
Fact
#285: In 2000, the 85 and over age group
was 34 times larger than in 1900.
(Source: U.S.
Census Bureau)
Fact #286: In 2000, physicians
spent an estimated 32 percent of patient care hours
providing services to the age 65 and older population.
If current consumption patterns continue, this percentage
could increase to 39 percent by 2020. (Source: HRSA)
Fact #287: The aging population
will increase the demand for physicians per thousand
population from 2.8 in 2000 to 3.1 in 2020. Demand
for full-time-equivalent (FTE) registered nurses per
thousand population would increase from 7 to 7.5 during
this same period. (Source: HRSA)
Fact #288: The aging of the health
workforce raises concerns that many health professionals
will retire about the same time that demand for their
services is increasing. Furthermore, the declining
proportion of the population age 18 to 30 raises concerns
regarding the ability to attract a sufficient number
of new health workers. (Source: HRSA)
Fact #289: The aging population could
result in rising average patient acuity, which could
in turn requires higher nurse and physician staffing
levels. (Source: HRSA)
Fact #290: Total requirements for
FTE RNs are expected to increase from approximately
2 million in 2000 to 2.8 million in 2020 (a 41 percent
increase). Requirements for FTE LPNs are expected
to increase from 618,000 in 2000 to 905,000 in 2020
(a 46 percent increase). There is an expected increase
in FTE nurse aide and home health aide requirements
from 1.5 million in 2000 to 2.3 million in 2020 (a
50 percent increase). (Source: HRSA)
Fact #291: 21 percent of retail workers
plan to change job in the fourth quarter of 2004.
(Source: CareerBuilder.com)
Fact #292: 49 percent of retail
hiring managers say they'll add workers to their staffs
by the end of 2004. (Source: CareerBuilder.com)
Fact #293; 50 percent of retail
workers say they're upset with their pay and have
not received a raise this year.. (Source: CareerBuilder.com)
Fact #294: 62 percent of those
polled said their workloads have increased in the
last six months. (Source: CareerBuilder.com)
Fact #295: 44 percent of retail
workers say they're being asked to do too much. (Source:
CareerBuilder.com)
Fact #296:
Half of today's working nurses will reach retirement
age by 2015 (Source: John Challenger)
Fact #297: The average age
of construction workers is approaching the mid-50s.
(Source: John Challenger)
Fact #298: By 2006, 31 percent
of workers in the federal government - nearly half
a million - will be eligible to retire. (Source: John
Challenger)
Fact #299: Nationally 14 percent
of the workforce is 55 or older. (Source: BLS)
Fact #300: While one in eight Americans was
65+ in 1999, this ratio will rise to one in five by
2030, (Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #301: The ratio of entry level
wage earners to retirees has fallen from 9 to 1 in
1955 to 4 to 1 in 1995 to 2 to 1 by 2020. (Source:
Hudson Institute)
Fact #302: In 1991 less
than 24% of dentists were over age 54 and past their
most productive years. (Source: American Dental Association)
Fact #303: By 2010 over 38%
of practicing dentists will be older than 54, a 60%
increase. (Source: American Dental Association)
Fact #304: The labor market
grew approximately 1.2 % a year in the 1990s.
From 2000 to 2010 is expected to grow only 0.8%.
From 2010 to 2020 growth declines to 0.4 percent and
0.2 percent from 2020 on.
Fact #305: Active adults account
for 60% of all healthcare spending. They purchase
70% of all prescriptions and 51% of all over the counter
drugs.
Fact
#306: The rate of unscheduled absenteeism
has climbed to a five-year high of 2.4 percent.
(Source: CCH Inc.)
Fact #307: Late minute no-shows
cost organizations an average of $610 per employee.
(Source: CCH Inc.)
Fact #308: Only 38 percent of employee
who fail to show up for work are due to personal illness.
62 percent are for other reasons including family
issues (23 percent), personal needs (18 percent),
stress (11 percent) and entitlement mentality (10
percent). (Source: CCH Inc.)
Fact #309: Paying the price for low
morale: Organizations reporting low employee moral
have higher rates and costs of absenteeism.
Rates are more than one-third higher among companies
with poor/fair morale. (Source: CCH Inc.)
Fact #310: Employers with poor'fair
morale set aside 4.9 percent of their budgets to cover
the costs of absent workers compared to just 4.0 percent
for organizations with good/very good morale. (Source:
CCH Inc.)
Fact #311: Companies with low
morale are more likely to experience unscheduled absenteeism
due to stress (15 percent). (Source: CCH Inc.)
Fact #312: Employees showing up sick
for work (presenteeism) is a far bigger problem for
companies with low morale - 52 percent of organizations
with poor/fair morale compared to 31 percent with
organizations with good/very good morale. (Source:
CCH Inc.)
Fact #313: 39 percent of employers
said presenteeism is a problem in their organizations.
(Source: CCH Inc.)
Fact #314: About half the full time
workforce gets no paid sick days. (Source: U.S. Department
of Labor)
Fact #315: The number of employers
offering emergency back-up child care or child care
when employees have sick family members has dropped
from 14 percent in 2001 to 9 percent in 2004. (Source:
SHRM)
Fact #316: The percentage of US employers
offering paid vacations dropped to 87 percent in 2003
from 95 percent in 1999, (Source: SHRM)
Fact #317: Americans receive
16 days off each year, but are so consumed with work
that they take 14. Italians receive 42; the French,
37; Germans, 35, and South Korean and Japanese employees
get 25 each. (Source: Expedia.com)
Fact
#318: As many as 47 million adults may be
putting themselves at risk for injury, health and
behavior problems because they aren't meeting their
minimum sleep need in order to be fully alert the
next day. (Source: National Sleep Foundation)
Fact #319: Nearly 40 percent
of US employees working more than 50 hours per week experience some degree of insomnia.
(Source: National Sleep Foundation)
Fact #320: Two-thirds of older adults
(67%) report frequent sleep problems, however only
a small fraction, one in eight, says those problems
have been diagnosed. (Source: National Sleep Foundation)
Fact #321: Direct costs of
insomnia, which include dollars spent on insomnia
treatment, healthcare services, hospital and nursing
home care, are estimated at nearly $14 billion annually.
Indirect costs such as work loss, property damage
from accidents and transportation to and from healthcare
providers, are estimated to be $28 billion. (Source:
National Sleep Foundation and NIH)
Fact #322: 15 medical conditions
accounted for half of the inflation-adjusted growth
of $200 billion in health spending between 1987 and
2000. (Source: U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services)
Fact #323: The five illnesses where
costs increased the most between 1987 and 2000 were
heart disease, asthma, mental disorders, cancer and
hypertension. (Source: Health Affairs, August 2004)
Fact #324: The cost of treating
heart disease rose 70 percent, diabetes by 44
percent. (Source: Health Affairs, August 2004)
Fact #325: Out-of-pocket health
costs average 19 percent of income for persons 65
and older. Medicare beneficiaries without Medicaid
coverage spend 49 percent of their total income on
health care. (Source: AARP)
Fact #326:
In the United States, four of every 10 people in the
work force will be older than 45 in just two years.
By the end of this decade, one of every five employees
will be older than 55. (Source: AARP Global
Aging Program)
Fact #327: Twice as many people
older than 50 have college degrees as did 20 years
ago, Source: AARP)
Fact #328: By the year 2050,
there will be 2 billion people older than 50 in the
world, compared with 600 million today. (Source:
AARP Global Aging Program)
Fact #329: In 2050, people
older than 50 will rise to 21 percent of the worldwide
population, up from 8 percent today, while the percentage
of children will decline to 20 percent, from 33 percent
today. (Source: AARP Global Aging Program)
Fact #330: By the middle of
this century, there will be more older people than
children on the planet for the first time in human
history. (Source: AARP Global Aging Program)
Fact #331: Three of four companies
are not confident their current talent pool will meet
future needs. (Source: RHR International,
2004)
Fact #332: Half of companies will
lose half of their current senior management by 2010.
(Source: RHR International, 2004)
Fact #333: Approximately 50
percent of privately held, women-owned firms in the
top 50 metropolitan areas collectively employ 9.5
million people and generate $1.3 trillion in annual
sales. (Source: Center for Women’s Business
Research) More Women-Owned
Business
Fact #334: Almost half of Canada's
workforce will be over age 45 within a decade.
(Source: WarrenShepell Research Group)
Fact #335: Workers age 50 years and
older experience about 60 per cent more workplace
stress than in 2003 and twice the level of workplace
conflict. (Source: WarrenShepell Research Group)
Fact #336: Since 1970 the percentage
of U.S. households containing five or more people
has fallen in half. In 1970, 21 percent of households
had five or more people; in 2004 the number has dropped
to 10 percent. (Source: US Census Bureau)
Fact #337: Since 1970 the percentage
of U.S. households containing one or two people has
increased from 46 percent to 60 percent. (Source:
US Census Bureau)
Fact #338: The number of households
consisting of single women 30 to 34 has tripled since
1970. (Source: US Census Bureau)
Fact #339: Mother's are juggling
work and family: 5.5 million stay-at-home parents,
5.4 million are women and only 98,000 true stay-at-home
dads. (Source: Current Population Survey)
Fact #340: 20 percent of stay-at-home
moms lived in households earning $100,000 or more,
while 2.3 percent were in households earning less
than $10,000. (Source: Current Population Survey)
Fact #341: The number of families
where both spouses are working increased to 51 percent
compared to 33 percent in 1976. (Source: Current Population
Survey)
Fact #342: Students in the United
States finished in the bottom of mathematics skills
when compared to students in 40 surveyed countries. Yet
72 percent of the US students said they got good grades
in math, more than any other country. (Source: Organization
for Ecocomic Cooperation and Development)
Fact #343: The United States
ranked 28th of 40 countries in math and 18th in reading
when comparing outcomes per dollar spent on education.
(Source: Organization for Ecocomic Cooperation and
Development)
Fact #344: In 1991 in the United
States, only four states had an obesity prevalence
of 15 percent to 19 percent. No state had an obesity
prevalence of 20 percent or more. (Source: U.S.
Centers for Disease Control)
Fact
#345: In 2003, 15 states had an obesity
prevalence of 15 to 19 percent, 31 states had an obesity
prevalence of 20 to 24 percent, and four states --
West Virginia, Indiana, Alabama and Mississippi --
had a prevalence of 25 percent or more. (Source: U.S.
Centers for Disease Control)
Fact #346: A shortage of physicians
is expected to reach 200,000 by 2020. (Jan/Feb 2002
issue of Health Affairs)
Fact #347:
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects growth from
2000 - 2010 in 107,000 new physician positions (a
17.9% growth rate).
Fact
#348: The percentage of physicians nationally
over 55 years of age is 31%, for those over 65 it
is 17%. (With a trend toward early retirement,
this is a troubling trend.) (Source: BLS)
Fact #349: Of all U.S. workers 18
and older, 21.2 million - or 16% - are actively disengaged
at work. Gallup estimates the lower productivity
of actively engaged workers costs the U.S. economy
about $300 billion. (Source: GMJ's 2004 Q3 survey)
Fact #350: Sixty-two percent
of engaged workers (those who work with passion and
feel connected to the company) feel their work lives
positively affects their physical health: Among the "not-engaged", only 39% feel work affects
their personal lives positively. More alarming is
that 54 percent of actively disengaged employee think
their work lives are having a negative effect on their
physical health. (Source: GMJ's 2004 Q3 survey)
Fact #351: Half of current federal employees will be eligible to retire between now and the end of 2008, including 70 percent of supervisors. (Source: Bernard Hodes Group, Feb 2005)
Fact #352: Half of the Federal air traffic controllers are eligible to retire over the next nine years. (Source: Bernard Hodes Group, Feb 2005)
Fact #353: Scientists and engineers who are over 60 at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration outnumber those under 30 by nearly 3 to 1. (Source: Bernard Hodes Group, Feb 2005)
Fact #354: Forty-three percent of the 650,000 civilians at the Department of Defense will be eligible in the next five years. (Source: Bernard Hodes Group, Feb 2005)
Fact #355: Sixty percent of federal employees are over 45, compared with 31 percent in the private sector. (Source: Bernard Hodes Group, Feb 2005)
Fact #356: The U.S. Department of Defense needs to hire more than 14,000 scientists and engineers in each of the next two years. The problem is the pool of candidates is shrinking.
- More than half of science and engineering graduates from American universities are
foreign nationals, off limits to federal agencies.
- Fewer American students are entering science and tech fields.
- DOD must compete with the private sector and other government agencies.
Fact #357: Retirement rates are acclerating faster than expected. In 2003, the number of people retiring exceeded OPM's expectation by more than 10 percent or 10,000 workers.
Fact #358: As of 2004, there were 73.4 million people younger than 18 in the U.S., or approximately 25 percent of the population. In 1970 the percentage of kids under 18 was 34 percent. By 2010, the number will be only 24 percent.
(Source: childstats.gov)
Fact #359: The Labor Department projects that more than 600,000 nursing jobs will open up over the 10 years that end in 2012, a 27 percent increase over 2002.
Fact #360: Other high growth jobs:
- Physician assistant jobs will grow nearly 50 percent.
- Physical and occupational therapists will grow by more than 35 percent.
- Home care worker jobs will increase by more than 40 percent.
- Dental hygienists will increse by 43 percent.
- Ambulance drives will grow by 26.7 percent.
- Hazardous materials removal jobs will increase by 43 percent.
- 420,000 new customer support workers and 307,000 software engineers.
Fact #361: Half of all Americans today say they are satisfied with their jobs, down from nearly 60 percent in 1995. But among the 50 percent who say they are content, only 14 percent say they are "very satisfied." (Source:
The Conference Board, 2005)
Fact #362: Job satisfaction has declined across all income brackets in the last nine years. While 55 percent of workers earning more than $50,000 are satisfied with their jobs, only 14 percent claim they are very satisfied. (Source:
The Conference Board, 2005)
Fact #363: The largest decline in overall job satisfaction, from 60.9% to 49.2%, occurred among workers 35-44. This is also the worker group next in line for management and leadership positions. (Source:
The Conference Board, 2005)
Fact #364: The second largest decline took place among workers aged 45-54, with the satisfaction level dropping from 57.3% to 47.7%. (Source:
The Conference Board, 2005)
Fact #365: With less than 47% of householders claiming to be satisfied with their current job, workers in the Middle Atlantic and Mountain states are the least satisfied workers in the U.S.
(Source: The Conference Board, 2005)
Fact #366: The East South Central region has the most content workers. Close to 59% of residents in these states claim they are satisfied with their jobs. (Source:
The Conference Board, 2005)
Fact #367: 40% of workers feel disconnected from their employers. (Source: TNS)
Fact #368: Two out of every three workers do not identify with or feel motivated to drive their employer's business goals and objectives. (Source: TNS)
Fact #369: 25% of employees are just 'showing up to collect a paycheck.' (Source: TNS)
Fact #370: Less than one-third of all supervisors and managers are perceived to be strong leaders. (Source: TNS)
Fact #371: Declines in death rates from major causes such as heart disease and cancer have pushed Americans' life expectancy to a record 77.6 years. Women now have a life expectancy of 80.1 years and men have a life expectancy of 74.8 years. ( Source: National Center of Health Statistics)
Fact #372: One in 7 Americans suffer from some sort of arthritic pain. It is estimated that over 40% of North Americans suffer from severe disabling of the joints or muscle pain that severely affects their quality of life.
Currently in North America, over $3.9 billion is spent on over the counter and prescription medication for arthritis, joint and muscle related pain. (Source: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)
Fact #373:Within the next 10 years, the number of physicians retiring will outstrip the 25,000 new doctors graduating each year. (Source: Health Policy Institute at Medical College of Wisconsin)
Fact #374: The U.S. needs to train 3,000 to 10,000 more physicians a year - up from the current 25,000 - to meet the growing medical needs of an aging, wealthy nation. It is estimated the U.S. will have a shortage of 85,000 to 2000,000 doctors in 2020. (Source: Council on Graduate Medical Education)
Fact #375: Another major change is that nearly half of new physicians are women. Studies show they work an average of 25% fewer hours than male counterparts. The aging physicians also work 15 percent less than younger doctors. (Source: Health Policy Institute at Medical College of Wisconsin)
Fact #376: The demand for coal is increasing. A real labor crunch will occur in five to seven years just at a time that coal is in demand because of higher oil and gas prices. The number of coal miners nationwide dropped from 159,777 in 1990 to 99,358 at the end of 2003. More than half of all coal miners are older than 50 are nearing retirement. (Source: Mine Safety and Health Administration)
Fact #377: About 35 percent of new managers and executives failed in their jobs within the first 18 months during 2004. (Source: Right Management Consultants)
Fact #378: The top reasons new manager and executives fail is their inability to build strong relationships and teams with subordinates and peers. (Source: Right Management Consultants)
Fact #379: The second biggest reasons new managers and executives fail is their inability to accomplish goals, followed by their lack of internal political savvy. (Source: Right Management Consultants)
Fact #380: Fifty-two percent of over 1,000 executives surveyed by TheLadders.com say they search job listings on the Web from the office.(2005)
Fact #381: 60 percent of managers and executives are happy with their pay, compared to only 44 percent of non-management workers. The pay satisfaction has widened by 45 percent since 1997. (Source: Sirota Consulting, 2005)
Fact #382: In a survey of HR managers and CEOs from 54 U.S. companies, respondents were asked the most common reasons for unscheduled absences in their organizations. The top 3 reasons were employee's minor illness (70%), child's illness (65%), and employee's chronic medical condition (35%). (Source: The Segal Co.)
Fact #383: The top traits of those most likely to succeed in the international business arena are: flexibility (97%), open-mindedness (97%), supportive family (82%), good listening skills (77%), and sense of self-direction (76%). (Source: RW3)
Fact #384: Despite management's best efforts to communicate business strategy, only 64 percent of employees think management has set a strategic direction and only 62 percent say they know what the direction is. (Source: Novations Group)
Fact #385: Unclear objectives, lack of team communication and ineffective meetings are among the top time wasters that workers around the world say make them feel unproductive for as much as a third of their workweek on average, according to results of an online Microsoft® Office survey (March 2005). According to the survey of nearly 40,000 people in 200 countries, U.S. workers clock an average of 45 hours per week, but consider 16 hours are wasted.
Fact #386: One in three American workers says he or she has been a victim of some type of verbal assault at their jobs. (Source: Compas, a public opinion and customer research company, November 2004)
Fact #387:
Twenty-two percent of those surveyed about workplace bullying had seen company property damaged or thrown. Another 7 percent had been attacked physically at work. (Source: Compas, a public opinion and customer research company, November 2004)
Fact #388: What workplace bullying evidence Americans have seen in the workplace
33 percent: Yelling and verbal abuse
22 percent: Equipment damaged as a result of rage
7 percent: Physical violence.
(Sources: Workplace Bullying & Trauma Institute and Compas)
Fact #389: Top 5 tactics of a workplace bully
71 percent: Falsely accuses someone of errors not actually made.
68 percent: Stares, glares and is nonverbally intimidating. Clearly shows hostility.
64 percent: Discounts the person's thoughts or feelings in meetings in front of others.
64 percent: Uses the silent treatment to ice out and separate from others.
61 percent: Exhibits presumably uncontrollable mood swings.
(Sources: Workplace Bullying & Trauma Institute and Compas)
Fact #390: Top 5 health-related symptoms of being bullied
76 percent: Anxiety, stress, excessive worry
71 percent: Loss of concentration
71 percent: Disrupted sleep
60 percent: Feeling edgy, irritable, easily startled and some paranoia
55 percent: stress headaches
(Sources: Workplace Bullying & Trauma Institute and Integra Realty Resources)
Fact #391: Our society is aging as well. Between 1870 and 1990, the number of U.S. citizens aged 65 and older grew from 1 million to approximately 32 million. By 2030, the proportion of people over 65 will be 20% of the population. (Source: U.S. Census)
Fact #392: As a result of an aging society and more active lifestyles for "older" Americans, the above 55 years old crowd described as follows: aging boomer (ages 55-64), young-old (ages 65-74), old-old (ages 75 -84), and oldest old (ages 85+).
Fact #393: Baby boomers has 27 million more people than the one that preceded it and about 10 million more than the one that follows.
Fact #394: As 38 million baby boomers reached employment age in the 1970s and 1980s, the workplace exploded by 50 percent. In the decade following 2010, the portion of the population under age 45 - the principal talent pool for managers and workers - will shrink by 6 percent.
Fact #395: In 2003 the United States experienced its lowest recorded birthrate in history.
Fact #396: The population of undocumented residents in the United States increased by about 23 percent from 8.4 million in 2000 to 10.3 million in 2004. (Source: Pew Hispanic Center)
Fact #397: The U.S. foreign-born population, regardless of legal status, was 35.7 million in 2004. Those of Mexican descent comprised the largest group - more than 11 million. (Source: Pew Hispanic Center)
Fact #398: When asked to provide a ranking of factors, executive women identified corporate culture as the number-one reason why they left their executive positions. The women stated they felt their roles were not valued and that they were not "heard" by senior management. Additionally, they felt information was not openly shared and they were excluded from important meetings, pipelines of information and informal networks. (Source: The Leader's Edge 2005)
Fact #399: A recent poll of 7,718 American workers revealed some of the feelings employees have about their current position:
42% Coping with feelings of burnout
33% Feeling at a dead end in current job
21% Looking for new job at another company
20% Looking for a major career change
9% Feeling I do not have adequate training of knowledge for my job
(Source: New Employer/Employee Equation Survey, Harris Interactive 2005)
Fact #400: The population of the nation's prisons and jails has grown by about 900 inmates each week between mid-2003 and mid-2004 (Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics)
Fact #401: By June 30, 2004, the U.S. prison system held 2.1 million people, or one in every 138 U.S. residents. (Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics)
Fact #402: Starting in 2012, the total number of Americans over age 65 and eligible for Medicare will double to over 70 million within this generation, while the population over age 85 will increase nearly five-fold, to almost 19 million, by mid-century.
Fact #403: As noted in the 2002 State of Aging & Health in America and other sources, older adults use more health care services than any other age group. Americans over age 65 today are only 13% of the population, but account for half of physicians' visits and half of all hospital stays. The average 75 year old has three chronic conditions and uses five different prescription drugs.
Fact #404: Only a small proportion of practicing health care providers have had any formal training in geriatrics. Out of 650,000 practicing physicians in the U.S., less than
9,000 are geriatricians, or about 2.5 geriatricians per 10,000 elderly, and that number is expected to fall to about 6,000 in the near future. Fewer than 3% of current medical students take any elective geriatric courses.
Fact #405: Only 720 pharmacists, out of 200,000, have geriatric certification.
Fact #406: One in 3 employees say they are chronically overworked.
(Source: Families and Work Institute, 2005)
Fact #407: We are in a race for IQ points. The countries (and companies) that accumulate the most IQ points wins.
In a race for IQ points, the kinds of jobs we produce will be different:
Jobs are declining in the following industries:
Timber: - 32%
Farm workers: - 20%
Sewing: - 50%
Typesetters: - 62%
Jobs will be created in the following positions:
Electrical Engineers: +28%
Medical Sciences: +33%
Architects: + 44%
Legal Assistants: + 66%
Financial Services: + 78%
Source: Todd Buchholz, Bringing the Jobs Home
Fact #408: Job Outlook 2005
The top in-demand bachelor's degrees are:
1. Accounting
2. Electrical Engineering
3. Mechanical Engineering
4. Business administrator/management
5. Economics/finance
6. Computer Science
7. Computer Engineering
8. Marketing/Marketing Management
9. Chemical Engineering
10. Information Sciences and Systems
Source: National Association of Colleges and Employers
Fact #409: Since the late 1970s, the number of obese adults in the United States has grown by over 50 percent. (Source: An Economic Analysis Of Adult Obesity)
Fact #410: Nearly 59 million Americans are classified as obese.
(Source: An Economic Analysis Of Adult Obesity)
Fact #411: Obesity and its attendant sedentary lifestyle result in 300,000 premature deaths annually, a toll second only to the early mortality figure attributed to smoking.
(Source: An Economic Analysis Of Adult Obesity)
Fact #412: The annual costs of medical treatment for obesity have been estimated at nearly $100 billion, or $732 higher on average for obese people than for people of normal weight.
(Source: An Economic Analysis Of Adult Obesity)
Fact #413: Approximately half of the estimated $78.5 billion in medical care spending in 1998
attributable to excess body weight was financed through private insurance (38%) and patient out-of-pocket payments (14%). (Source: An Economic Analysis Of Adult Obesity)
Fact #414: In the residency match this spring, only 79 percent of the available family practice positions were filled, and the percentage of total slots matched by US medical graduates sank to 41 percent. In internal medicine, 97 percent of residency positions were filled (up slightly from the previous year), and US seniors took 55 percent of the available positions.
Fact #415: In addition to a lack of applications, medical schools have no more money for training and the faculty is aging or unprepared and/or unskilled.
Fact #416: Recruiting is on the rise. In the March (2005) Spherion Job Transition Index, more thirty-five percent of working adults say they are likely to look for a new job in the next 12 months. In a poll by the Society of Human Resource Management and CareerJournal.com, 48 percent of respondents are actively searching for new job and 33 percent are passively receptive to new job opportunities. And in a survey by ExecuNet, 61 percent of employed executives are not satisfied with their current jobs.
Fact #417: As more Baby Boomers reach their 50s, the number of "seniorpreneurs" will continue to climb. By 2020, there will be 118 million Americans aged 50 and older – 31 million more than today. These individuals will be healthier and more active than today’s seniors. More significantly, Boomers will continue to define themselves by what they do. Therefore, many will not want to be “retired,” per se. In response, many of them will create new businesses, as well as new opportunities for other businesses that are savvy enough to market to them. This explosion of new small businesses will be crucial for keeping the U.S. economy growing during the demographically weak period from 2011 to 2022.
Fact #418: According to a report in USA Today, 5.6 million Americans aged 50 and older are now self-employed. That’s an increase of 23 percent from 1990. The same trend is unfolding in Canada, where the fastest-growing sector of the small business market consists of businesses started by people aged 55 and older.
Fact #419: 48 percent of America’s privately-held companies are at least half-owned by women, an increase from 44 percent in 1997, according to the Center for Women’s Business Research. The reasons these entrepreneurs cited for starting their own businesses included the freedom to set their own schedules, the chance to pursue an opportunity, and the desire to escape from the “glass ceiling” that they felt limited their careers in corporations.
Fact #420: In 2003, 1.3 million Hispanic-Americans were self-employed, which is more than five times the 241,000 who were self-employed in 1979. Meanwhile, the number of African-American entrepreneurs increased to 710,000 in 2003, up 2 percent; and self-employed Asian-Americans increased 26 percent, to 590,000.
Fact #421: Average turnover costs reached $13,355 per full-time private-sector worker in 2004, according to a new analysis from the Employment Policy Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based research group. The result is based on an earlier study that found turnover costs average 25 percent of a worker’s annual salary. Turnover costs, which include recruiting, selection, training and lost productivity expense, have climbed 6.8 percent from a $12,506 average cost in 2002.
Fact #422: Over the twelve months ending in August 2004, net hires to replace workers who quit or retired totaled 27.8 million. The total represents hiring to replace 24.9 million workers who voluntarily quit—typically to take another job—and 2.9 million who retired or left because of death, disability or other reasons.
Fact #423: The statistics are stunning. Starting in 2012, nearly 10,000 Americans will turn 65 every day. Twenty percent of the population, 71 million people, will be 65 or older in 2030. The total number of Americans over age 65 and eligible for Medicare will double to over 70 million within this generation, while the population over age 85 will increase nearly five-fold, to almost 19 million, by mid-century. (Source: Social Security Administration)
Fact #424: In 1940 just a few years after the start of Social Security, only 54 percent of the population lived to 65 years old. The average remaining life expectancy for those surviving to age 65 was less than 13 years. Today, the percentage of men living to 65 is nearly 75 percent and for women it is almost 85 percent. For those who live to age 65, men are expected to live almost another 16 years and women more than 20 years.
(Source: Social Security Administration)
Fact #425: When social security legislation was enacted in 1935, the ratio of contributing workers to each beneficiary was 41.9:1. That ratio dropped to 16.5:1 in 1950. The current ratio is 3.4:1. Social security trustees predict the ratio will drop to 2:1 in 2040. These numbers reduce the issue to this: how will we afford to fund the retirements of a growing population and care for an aging population?
(Source: Social Security Administration)
Fact #425: “Replacement workers.” The ratio of entry-level wage earners to retirees has dropped from 9:1 in 1955 to 4:1 in 1995, with projections that the ratio will further decline to 2:1 by 2020. The labor market, which grew at approximately 1.2 percent a year in the 1990s, is expected to decrease to 0.8 percent from 2000 to 2010, and 0.4 percent and 0.2 percent in subsequent decades. Are you beginning to get the picture? (Source: Social Security Administration)
Fact #426: The U.S. Department of Education reports that over the next decade, more than two million new teachers will walk into a classroom for their first day. Unfortunately, as the National Center for Education Statistics found, 666,000 of those new teachers will leave sometime during the first three years of teaching and one million of them will not make it past five years.
Fact #427: The cost of high teacher turnover and attrition rates is enormous. Every year, American schools spend $2.6 billion on teacher attrition.
Fact #428: Between the end of the 1999-2000 and the beginning of the 2000-2001 school years, about 67,000 teachers retired, accounting for only 24 percent of the 278,000 turnover and only 12 percent of the total turnover of 546,000 during that period. Rather, the data show that the demand for new teachers, and subsequent staffing difficulties, are primarily due to pre-retirement teacher turnover. (Source: U.S. Department of Education)
Fact #429: According to a National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) survey of 8,400 public and private school teachers, the main reasons for high teacher turnover and attrition rates are with inadequate administrative support (38 percent) and workplace conditions (32 percent).
Fact #430: Two-thirds of the nation's mathematics and science teaching force will retire by 2010.
(National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century)
Fact #431: The number by which U.S. male births exceed female births per thousand: 48. (Source: National Center for Health Statistics)
Fact #432: The number by which male births have exceeded female births since 1940: 5.7 million. (Source: National Center for Health Statistics)
Fact #433: The age at which the number of females in the U.S. population surpasses the number of males: 39. (Source: National Center for Health Statistics)
Fact #434: Half of America's scientists and engineers are forty or olders, and the average age is steadily rising, (Source: National Science Foundation)
Fact #435: Nearly 40 percent of NASA employees are age fifty or older. (Source: NASA)
Fact #436: Twenty-two percent of NASA workers are fifty-five or older. NASA over sixty outnumber those under thirty by a ratio of about three to one. Only 4 percent of NASA workers are under thirty.
(Source: NASA)
Fact #437: From 1997 to 2002, Americans' private spending on obesity-linked medical problems increased from $3.6 billion to $36.5 billion, and swelled from 2% of all health spending to 11.6%.
A study published in the journal Health Affairs found the rise in obesity has boosted the costs for treating arthritis, asthma, diabetes, and heart disease. In 2002, treating an obese person cost $1,244 more than treating a healthy-weight person.
Fact #438: One of the biggest worries facing the Army and other armed services recruiters is finding enough recruits. An even bigger worry is finding enough recruits who can fit in their uniforms. Nearly 2 out of 10 men and 4 out of 10 women of recruiting age weigh too much to be eligible, a record number for that age group. (Source: U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, 2005)
Fact #439: From 1980 to 2000, the male nurse population grew from 2.7 percent to 5.4 percent, according to a survey by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Fact #440: About 18 percent of all first-home buyers in the U.S. were single women in 2002, compared with 9 percent for single men, according to the Detroit News.
Fact #441: Eighty-nine percent of all lawyers are white, according to the 2000 census. Blacks comprise 4 percent of all lawyers, while Latinos make up 3 percent, Asian Americans 2 percent and Native Americans less than 1 percent.
Fact #442: Eighty-three percent of all judges are white, according to the 2000 census. Blacks comprise 9 percent of the country’s judges while Latinos account for 5 percent, Asian Americans 2 percent and Native Americans 1 percent.
Fact #443: Forty percent of the current public school teaching force expects not to be teaching five years from now. (Source: Profile of Teachers in the U.S. 2005)
Fact #444: The K-12 teaching force is aging rapidly. The proportion of K - 12 teachers who are 50 years of age and older has risen from one in four (24 percent) in 1996 to 42 percent in 2005. (Source: Profile of Teachers in the U.S. 2005)
Fact #445: The proportion of the K - 12 public school teaching force has 25 or more years of teaching experience has doubled in the last 15 years - from 12 percent in 1990 to 20 percent in 1996 to 27 percent in 2005. (Source: Profile of Teachers in the U.S. 2005)
Fact #446: Teacher attrition is expected to average about 8 percent per year in the next five years. (Source: Profile of Teachers in the U.S. 2005)
Fact #447: One in five (22 percent) current public school teachers expects to be retired five years from now. Twelve percent expect to be in an education job other than K - 12 teaching. (Source: Profile of Teachers in the U.S. 2005)
Fact #448: Half (50 precent) of current high school teachers expect not to be teaching in K - 12 schools in 2010. One-third (34 percent) of high school teachers to be retired by then. (Source: Profile of Teachers in the U.S. 2005)
Fact #449: A decade ago, the United States had the highest overall graduation rates at the bachelor's level. Today there are fewer U.S. entrants in these programs than the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development averages. (Source: Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development)
Fact #450: According to the U.S.Census Bureau, one of the largest and fastest-growing groups of young people in the United States are dropouts, rising to almost one out of three Americans in their mid-20s. (Source: Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development)
Fact #451: The number of women obtaining degrees is outpacing that of men. Women obtained between 40 percent and 60 percent of the bachelor's degrees in mathematics and sciences in 2000.
Fact #452: Only 36 percent of doctorate-level faculty in the U.S. are currently under 45 years of age.
Fact #453:Compliance with the Family and Leave Act (FMLA) cost employers $21 billion in 2004, according to results of a new study from the Employment Policy Foundation (EPF). According to the survey, 14.5 percent of employees took leave in 2004 with 35 percent of those taking leave more than once during the year.
Fact #454: The U.S. currently produces about 25,000 doctors a year. To keep up with demographic trends, we'll need between 3,000 and 10,000 more per year. (Source: USA Today)
Fact #455: As recently as 2000, the Journal of the American Medical Association predicted the U.S. would have 165,000 more doctors than the nation would need. Due to Baby Boomer retirement and a growing aging propulation, by the year 2020, the U.S. will face a shortage of as many as 200,000 doctors. (Source: USA Today)
Fact #456: The nation now has 800,000 doctors. That won't be enough when the current generation of physicians reaches retirement age. (Source: Council on Graduate Medical Education)
Fact #457: In 2004, more than 9.2 million plastic surgery procedures were performed. This is an increase of 24 percent since 2000. (Source: American Society of Plastic Surgeons)
Fact #458: In 1980, Americans spent 8.8 percent of their income on health care. Today (2005) the figure is up to 15.4 percent, and it will climb to 18.7 by 2024. (Source: Medicare)
Fact #459: By 2015, the Baby Boom doctors who started practicing in the 1960s and 1970s will retire faster than the new generation of physicians can replace them.
Fact #460: Half of new doctors are women, who typically work about 25 percent fewer hours than male doctors.
Fact #461: Between 2002 and 2012, the number of physician assistants will increase by 49 percent, compared to only a 15 percent increase in U.S. employment. PAs will be the third-fastest growing profession in the U.S. (Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Fact #462: More than 40 percent of the U.S. labor force will reach traditional retirement age by the end of the decade. (Source: Conference Board)
Fact #463: The number of U.S. workers between ages 55 and 64 will grow 51 percent to 25 million by 2012, meaning the fastest-growing portion of the work force is the one at most risk of retiring soon. At the same time, the number of workers between ages 35 and 44 is expected to shrink by 7 percent.(Source: Wall Street Journal, Sept 20, 2005)
Fact #464: About half the country's 400,000 electric-utility workers will be eligible to retire by 2010. (Source: Carnegie Mellon University)
Fact #465: About 40 percent of the manufacturing work force is expected to retire by 2015. (Source: National Association of Manufacturers)
Fact #466: Sicty-two percent of HR professionals reported difficulties hiring workers with the skills essential for a 21st century workforce. (Source: SHRM - 2005 Future of the U.S. Labor Pool)
Fact #467: The average "cost-to-hire" and "time-to-fill" were $7,123 and 37 days, respectively. The number goes up exponentially when recruiting and hiring knowledge workers. (Source: 2005 SHRM Human Capital Benchmarking Study)
Fact #468: If you come from a family earning over $96,000 a year, your odds of getting a bachelor's degree by age 24 are 1 in 2. If you come from a family earning under $36,000, it's 1 in 17.
(Source: Time, October 24, 2005)
Fact #469:
Work time spent reading and posting to blogs this year (2005) will consume 2.2% of U.S. labor force hours. (Source: AdAge.com.
October 24, 2005)
Fact #470: Work time spent at blogs unrelated to work will eat up 1.65% of labor force hours.
(Source: AdAge.com. October 24, 2005)
Fact #471: U.S. workers this year will waste the equivalent of 551,000 years (based on a 24-hour day) or 2.3 million work years (based on a typical nearly 40-hour work week) reading blogs unrelated to the job. (Source: AdAge.com. October 24, 2005)
Fact #472: A woman age 65 has a 19% chance of living to 95; a man has an 11% chance.
(Source: American Academy of Actuaries)
Fact #473: The average American retires five years earlier than in 1950 and lives 12 years longer.
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #474: The United States will have more than 1 million centenarians in 2050, up from 71,000 today. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
Fact #475: Medicare has four workers paying taxes for every senior getting medical coverage. In 25 years, the ratio will be 2.4 workers for every beneficiary. That is assuming the system does not pay for a single new medical treatment. Workers and retirees in the system will take out an estimated $12.7 trillion more than they contributed.
(Source: Social Security and USA Today, October 25, 2005)
Fact #476: Four-year college grads make roughly $20,000 more than their high school trained counterparts. People with two year degrees make only about $7,000 more a year than high school grads. The bottom line: A four-year degree is becoming America's most reliable elevator of class and key to a middle-class standard of living. (Source: Business Week, October 31, 2005)
Fact #477: It takes a staggering 83% of a poor family's annual income to fund the annual costs at private four-year college - up from 60% a decade ago. (Source: Business Week, October 31, 2005)
Fact #478: Individuals with less than a ninth-grade education earn an estimated $976,350 over their lifetime. A high school dropout earns $1,150,968. A high school graduate earns $1,455,253. And a person with a bachelor's degree earns $2,567,174. (Source: Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas).
Fact #479: Employers who hire young people right out of school and college professors who teach freshmen and sophomores said the public high school graduates they encounter had just "fair" or "poor" skills in:
- Grammar and spelling (73 percent of employers and 74 percent of college professors)
- Ability to write clearly (73 percent of employers, 75 percent of professors)
- Basic math (63 percent of employers, 65 percent of professors)
(Source: Reality Check 2002)
Fact #480: Employers and college professors also were not impressed with the attitudes high school graduates bring to the job or the classroom.
- Young people were given fair or poor ratings for "work habits, such as being organized and on time" by 69 percent of employers and 74 percent of professors
- Students also were given low marks for "being motivated and conscientious" by 72 percent of employers and 58 percent of professors.
(Source: Reality Check 2002)
Fact #481: In 1964, 47 percent of Americans and 31 percent of workers ages 24 to 29 had not completed high school, compared with 13 percent for both groups today.
(Source: Workforce Management, October 24, 2005)
Fact #482: Though there are more than 9 million males ages 17 to 21 in the U.S., only about one is there have the educational and other qualifications needed to become a member of the armed forces. And of those 3 million qualified males, about half already are in the military or in college.
Fact #483: Every year India graduate 2 million proficient English speakers with strong technical and quantitiative skills,
China graduated 325,000 engineers in 2004, five times as many as the U.S.
The number of researchers in China reached 811,000 in 2002, compared to Japan's 676,000, European Union's 1 million, and the United States' 1.3 million. (Source: A.T. Kearney)
Fact #484: The National Association of Chain Drug Stores reported about 5,950 full- and part-time openings in July 2005 in its 37,000 member stores. The American Hospital Association reported a 7.4 percent vacancy rate for pharmacists as of December, 2004, with 38 percent of its members saying it was harder to recruit pharmacists last year than in 2003. A consortium of pharmacy groups called the Pharmacy Manpower Project issued a report in 2002 predicting 157,000 unfilled pharmacy openings by 2020.
Fact #485: According to a 2005 Accenture Study, 58 percent of mid-level managers are mulling changing jobs. Thirty percent are currently looking for another job. Twenty-two percent want to change jobs to get promoted and 21 percent are searching for better working conditions. Forty-seven percent are most frustrated with compensation while 40 percent are looking to balance work and personal time. Thirty eight percent felt they had too much work and don't get enough credit. Thirty five percent wanted a career path, not available with their current employer.
Fact #486: Spam will cost businesses more than $50 billion in 2005, according to Ferris Research. In the U.S. alone, the tab will run $17 billion in productivity losses and technology expenses to curb the effects of viruses brought by spam. This will increase to $198 billion by 2007 as spam messages will increase to 70 percent of all messages. When you factor in the cost of time that information technology staff spends fighting spam and viruses, Nucleus Research puts the cost at an average $1,934 per employee.
Fact #487: In 1964, 47 percent of Americans and 31 percent of workers age 24 to 29 had not completed high school. Today the percentage has fallen to 13 for both groups.
(Source: Yankelovich Partners, 2005)
Fact #488: Two-thirds of employers said that public school students don't have the basic cognitive skill to succeed. One-third of the employers said the recent graduates had poor writing skills and 23 percent had poor match skills. One-third also said that young workers have problems with punctuality and attitude. (Source: Yankelovich Partners, 2005)
Fact #489: In 2002, almost 35% of high school graduates in the U.S. did not go on to attend a four-year institution or a two-year college program. That's 972,000 high school grads. Of those 972,000, 131,000 were unemployed and 197,000 (35 percent of the 35 percent not working) were not even in the labor force. By 2020 we're going to have a shortfall of some 14 million skilled workers who will need some type of post-secondary education or training to qualify for the high skilled jobs our economy demands. In fact, 80% of the U.S.'s fastest-growing jobs over the next decade will require at least two years of college. Think of that - 80 percent!
Fact #490: 2005 American universities will award engineering degrees to roughly 65,000
undergraduates. At the same time, about 325,000 newly-minted engineers will emerge from
China's universities. (Source: BusinessWeek)
Fact #491: U.S. business and industry leaders estimate spending an average of $600 million per year on remedial reading, writing, and math skills training for employees.
(Source: National Institute for Literacy, Literacy Skills for 21st Century America)
Fact #492: The health care industry estimates $73 billion per year of unnecessary health care expenses attributable to poor literacy. While the average American spent $5,440 for health care in 2002, the average health care cost for adults with low literacy skills was four times that amount, or $21,760. This may be due to the higher rate of hospitalization and the increased number of medication and treatment errors that they experience.
(Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Statistics, 2004; Center for Health Care Strategies, Inc. Health Literacy and Understanding Medical Information Fact Sheet)
Fact #493: Thirty-two percent of 587 employees said they spend 20 or more hours in an average month complaining about, or listening to others complain about, bad bosses.
(Source: Development Dimensions International Inc.2005)
Fact #494: The five biggest reasons new hires fail:
26% can't accept feedback
23% can't understand and manage emotions
17% lack necessary motivation
15% possess wrong temperament
11% lack technical competence
Source: Leadership IQ, Inc Survey of 5, 247 hiring managers (2005)
Fact #495: The U.S. population is projected to grow 42% to about 420 million people by 2050, according to the Population Reference Bureau. This compares with a forecast drop of 10% in Europe and a hefty 21% plunge in Japan.
Fact #496: 85 percent of adult Americans have at least a high school degree today, up from just 25 percent in 1940. Similary, 28 percent have a college degree, a fivefold increase over the period. Today's workforce is the most educated in the world.
That is all about to change. As recently as 1980, the U.S. workforce was 82 percent white. By 2020, it will be just 63 percent white. Over this 40-year span the share of minorities will double to 37 percent and that of Hispanic workers will triple to 17 percent. (Source: Nation at Risk)
The problem is that both Hispanics and African Americans are far less likely to earn degrees than their white counterparts. If these gaps persist, the number of Americans age 26 to 64 who don't even have a high school degree could soar by 7 million to 31 million by 2020. Meanwhile, although the actual number of adults with at least a college degree would grow, their share of the workforce could fall to 25.5 percent. (Source: Nation at Risk)
Fact #497: U.S. high school students are getting their lunches eaten when it comes to math and science scores compared to the most advanced economies of Europe and Asia. On the recently released National Assessment of Educational Progress exams, 39 percent of white eighth graders were proficient in reading vs. just 15 percent of Hispanics and 12 percent of blacks. (Source: Nation at Risk)
Fact #498: In 2002 just 68 percent of high school students graduated four years after they started ninth grade. That's down from 75 percent in the early 1980s. And just 10 percent of students from the bottom quartile of family income brackets earn a BA by the time they're 24 vs 81 percent from the top quartile. (Source: Nation at Risk)
Fact #499: U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the construction industry will need to add 100,000 jobs a year each year through 2102, while also filling an additional 90,000 openings annually for positions vacated by retiring baby boomers and those leaving the industry for other reasons.
Fact #500: Over 31 percent of college-educated male workers are regularly logging 50 or more hours a week at work, up from 22 percent in 1980. About 40 percent of American adults get less than seven hours of sleep on weekdays, up from 34 percent in 2001. Almost 60 percent of meals are rushed, and 34 percent of lunches are choked own on the run.
(Source: BusinessWeek, October 3, 2005 )
Fact #501: In 1955, 40.5 percent of the U.S. workforce was engaged in manufacturing, construction, and mining. By 2005, those industries employed only 15.8 percent of the workforce while service-producing industry sent paychecks to 41.8 percent of workers.
(Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Fact #502: By 2025, one in five Europeans will be more than 65 years old, up from 16 percent in 2002. Across the European continent, the number of working-age citizens will stagnate or shrink while the number of retirees explodes. As a result, household financial wealth, which had enjoyed steady, healthy growth during past decades, will slow drastically over the next 20 years, according to new research by the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI).
Fact #503: Japan is getting much older. By 2024, more than a third of the population will be over age 65—one of the developed world's largest proportions of elderly citizens. Retired households will outnumber households in their prime saving years, so savings rates will fall drastically. (Source: McKinsey Quarterly)
Fact #504: In just two decades, the proportion of people aged 80 and above will be more than 2.5 times higher than it is today, because women are having fewer children and people are living longer. In about a third of the world's countries, and in the vast majority of developed nations, the fertility rate is at, or below, the level needed to maintain the population. Women in Italy now average just 1.2 children. In the United Kingdom, the figure is 1.6; in Germany, 1.4; and in Japan, 1.3. Meanwhile, thanks to improvements in health care and living conditions, average life expectancy has increased from 46 years in 1950 to 66 years today.
(Source: The State of World Population, 1999 and 2004, United Nations Population Fund.)
Fact #505: One out of every ten persons is now 60 years or above; by 2050, one out of five will be 60 years or older; and by 2150, one out of three persons will be 60 years or older.
(Source:
The Aging of the World's Population, United Nations)
Fact #506: The older population itself is ageing. The oldest old (80 years or older) is the fastest growing segment of the older population. They currently make up 11 percent of the 60+ age group and will grow to 19 percent by 2050. The number of centenarians (aged 100 years or older) is projected to increase 15-fold from approximately 145,000 in 1999 to 2.2 million by 2050. (Source:
The Aging of the World's Population, United Nations) |
