Workopolis sparks call for National Work From Home Day 

Job board Workopolis has undertaken to gather support for a National Work From Home Day. Peter Harris, one of the job board’s most active social media voices, kicked off the program in May on the company’s Facebook page. A poll was then launched on Workopolis.com, asking if visitors would support such a government-recognized holiday. Workopolis is also behind the new “National Work From Home Day” Facebook group created on June 15, which asks visitors to sign a petition to be submitted to the federal government. No closing date has been set, as the company plans to deliver its petition when it has gathered enough signatures. Some 1,400 people have signed to date.

Aon acquires Hewitt for $4.9 billion

Aon Corp., the leading global insurance provider, announced on July 12 that it would acquire human resources consulting firm Hewitt Associates for approximately $4.9 billion. Aon intends to integrate Hewitt with its existing consulting and outsourcing operations, and is anticipating annual sales of $4.3 billion. Aon is counting on the new entity—to be called Aon Hewitt and led by Russ Fradin, Hewitt CEO, to became number 1 in the in the human resources and benefits outsourcing sector. Its objective is clear: to compete against Mercer, the subsidiary of its competitor Marsh and McLennan.  

A record June for job creation 

Force Survey (LFS) released in early July. Conducted with 5l3,000 households, this study also estimates that the country’s unemployment rate fell by 0.2%, to 7.9%. It is the first time since January 2009 that the unemployment rate falls under 8%. Most of the gain appears to have been in Ontario (+ 60,000) and Quebec (+ 30,000). At the same time, decreases were recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador (- 8,100) and New Brunswick (- 4,400), with little variation in other provinces. 

Canadian workers feeling the winds of change 

Canadian employees are not afraid to change jobs, according to quarterly Workmonitor results, released by Randstad on July 7; in the second quarter, more workers expected to change jobs within six months. The same was true for Belgium, Italy and India. And while 55% of Canadian employees said that their workload had increased since the start of the year, 83% felt they were able to successfully balance their work and personal lives. Randstad Canada President Terry Power notes that the economic recovery is creating an atmosphere of opportunity in workers to explore the new job opportunities open to them. 

58% of Canadian employers plan to hire by the end of the year 

According to a recent CareerBuilder study, 58% of Canadian hiring managers plan to add employees in the months of July to December. The study, conducted with 239 recruiters and HR managers, also specified which areas they consider priority: 30% mentioned information technologies, 26% customer service, 22% sales, 19% administrative jobs, 17% business development and 16% accounting/finance. Some 46% of respondents polled feared the departure of their best employees, given the increasing number of opportunities on the market. 29% of 521 workers also polled said that they planned to change jobs as soon as the economy picks up.

Workplace health and safety: steeper fines for infractions 

As of July 1, Quebec companies face steeper fines if workplace safety rules are ignored. Under the National Assembly’s update of the Act respecting occupational health and safety, fines will double starting in July 2010, then triple as of January 1, 2011.  

The purpose of this amendment is to encourage more employers to take the preventive measures required to ensure the health, safety and physical well-being of their workers, and thereby reduce the number of accidents. According to the Commission de la Santé et de la Sécurité du travail du Québec (CSST), previous sanctions did not have enough of a deterrent effect. 

British men less engaged in work than women 

According to a recent study by Simon Easton and Darren Van Laar of the University of Portsmouth’s Psychology Department, British men have a much lower level of job satisfaction than women at the beginning of their careers; the opposite is true in mid-career, when women are usually less engaged.  

The study authors say that a possible explanation for this phenomenon is the Protestant work ethic of men working for money, not pleasure. They also said their research should encourage employers to hang onto older workers, and to find ways of increasing young men’s engagement and satisfaction.