Wage increases seen as major driver of US inflation | Monthly check-ins are important for employee retention | Companies find labor shortage offsets need for layoffs
Average hourly earnings in July grew 5.2% year on year while annual wage gains have breached 5% each month this year, according to the Labor Department, indicating that employers are constantly vying to attract and keep talent. This trend, along with rising costs in other areas for businesses, are the primary forces driving companies to raise prices, experts say. Full Story: The Wall Street Journal (8/9)
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Employees want support with health insurance enrollment A Harris Poll survey of over 1,000 US employees showed 82% considered themselves knowledgeable of the health insurance enrollment process, but 53% didn't feel like they were maximizing their health insurance options and 54% didn't know the full scope of their health coverage. Seventy-two percent of the respondents said they would like someone to guide them in choosing the best health plan for their situation. Full Story: Health Payer Intelligence (8/10)
Technology
T-Mobile program helps women re-enter tech workforce T-Mobile has used a six-month program beginning in 2019 that has helped 50 women re-enter the tech industry. The reacHIRE program uses the Aurora app as a professional development platform, which allows users to access training and skills videos as well as career advice and networking information. Full Story: Human Resource Executive (8/5)
The HR Leader
Tips to create job satisfaction for employees A clear, compelling vision that makes employees feel valued, along with regular communication and the opportunity to offer input can bring more satisfaction into the workplace, writes Naphtali Hoff. "Satisfied workers tend to learn more about their jobs and seek new content and skills to help them perform at higher levels," Hoff writes. Full Story: SmartBrief/Leadership (8/10)
About the Editor
Kanoe Namahoe
My son, Kiaha, was in college when I started this job at SmartBrief. When I got the offer letter, which outlined salary and benefits, I sat him down and walked him through it. The big-boy career world was soon approaching and I wanted him to get a sense of what it would look like and what decisions he would have to make. Overall, it was a great conversation. He asked some really good questions. But when he started asking about investment benefits -- 401(k)s and stock options -- I started to fumble. I was honest and admitted I wasn’t sure and that I just filled out the forms so I was enrolled in the programs. He nodded and said he’d look up his answers. Employers should not assume that all workers fully understand their benefits. Today’s Benefits & Compensation story talks about how many employees would like help walking through their health care options. I get it. Even when people do it annually, they can be confused or not know what they’re doing. And, they might be too embarrassed to ask for help. I encourage you to set up sessions for walking workers through your financial and health care benefits programs. Maybe let employees submit questions ahead of time, privately. Do post-session evaluations to see what went well and what questions remained. This can help identify those content areas where you may have blinders -- where you’re assuming that workers understand what they’re doing when they really don’t. How do you make sure that your work teams understand their employee benefits? Let me know! And if you enjoy this brief, tell others so they can benefit also.
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