In-office workers get the highest pay rises
The battle to lure staff back to the office is being won by paying them more, it seems, according to new research. Despite data consistently showing staff would give a proportion of their salary up to work remotely, new research by ZipRecruiter finds that those who fully return to the office are enjoying significantly increased earnings. It found full-time office workers earned an average of $82,037 in March 2024, an increase of more than 38% compared to the previous year. By comparison, remote workers saw far more modest salary increases – of around 9%, taking their earnings to an average of $75,327. According to the job platform’s analysis, hybrid employees, working both in-office and remotely, experienced an 11% salary growth, reaching an average of $59,992. Commenting on the research Julia Pollak, chief economist at ZipRecruiter, said: “The recruitment and retention benefits of remote work have translated into lower wage growth pressure for remote employers.” The research comes on the back of previous ZipRecruiter data showing that new hires in in-office jobs received more significant pay increases during the fourth quarter of 2023. It found that people already holding an in-person role who moved to another in-person job received a 23.2% average pay increase, while those who switched to a fully-remote job only received a 15.8% pay rise. Fully remote workers who moved to an in-person role gained a 29.2% pay rise, compared to the 22.1% rise moving to another fully remote role.
Newly unionized Apple store workers strike first contract deal
Details have this week emerged of the first employment contract negotiated between The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Coalition of Organized Retail Employees (IAM CORE), and Apple. Employees at Apple’s Towson Town Center became the first in the US to unionize in 2022, and the new pay deal that’s been struck up includes giving staff pay rises averaging 10% over the term of the three-year contract; an increase in starting salaries for most positions; scheduling protections for both part-time and full-time employees, and a disciplinary process that includes full “protections and accountability.” The contract also includes maintenance of current benefits and an agreement to bargain over future additions. According to IAM CORE – which represents around 85 workers at the store – the new contract was ratified with 96% approval. In a statement, Apple said: “Throughout this process, we have bargained in good faith and are pleased to have an agreement that allows Towson team members to enjoy similar performance-based wage increases this year as last year, along with the same benefits our US retail employees currently receive.” IAM International President Brian Bryant said in a statement that the contract “sets a new standard for Apple retail workers nationwide.”
McDonalds worker sentenced to five years in jail for setting fire to restaurant
A former McDonalds employee has been sentenced to five years behind bars for setting the restaurant he worked in ablaze after becoming “overwhelmed” by the numbers of customers there. Joshua Daryl McGregor, who was actually training to be a manager at the restaurant in Savannah City of Chatham County, lit a piece of cardboard and threw it in a bin containing flammable materials. This then ignited, and forced customers to leave the building while fire fighters dealt with it. McGregor was identified as having started the fire via CCTV, and admitted in court that he had become frustrated because the restaurant was too crowded. McGregor pleaded guilty to arson, and was also ordered to pay restitution for property lost in the fire, and to serve three years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. He was arrested by Savannah Police Department investigators.
Judge rules transgender healthcare ban discriminates against state employees
A federal judge has ruled that Florida’s transgender health care ban discriminates against state employees and violates their civil rights. Chief US district judge, Mark Walker, ruled that the state’s ban violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects employees and job applicants from employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin. The ruling was made in a case presented to Walker by three current and former state employees against the Florida Department of Management Services. The employees had challenged the denial of medically necessary treatment for their gender dysphoria under the state’s exclusion of coverage for “gender reassignment or modification services or supplies.” In his ruling Walker said health and pension benefits frequently represent a crucial component of an employee’s compensation, so the practical effect of denying or reducing such benefits on the basis of sex is to deny the employee an employment opportunity on the basis of sex. Walker found that the treatment of all medical conditions, including gender dysphoria, should be based on the unique needs of the patient rather than blanket exclusions. Commenting on behalf of the employees, Simone Chriss, Southern Legal Counsel attorney said: “We are so grateful the court is holding the state accountable for its facially discriminatory policy that carves out transgender state employees for unequal treatment.” The court will now schedule a trial to determine the amount of plaintiffs’ damages.
Service sector rebound eases recession fears…
A big rebound in the US service sector has helped quell talk of recession. New data from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) finds its non-manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI), increased to 51.4 last month from 48.8 in June, which was the lowest level since May 2020. A PMI reading above 50 indicates growth in the services sector, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the economy. The ISM views readings above 49 (over time), as generally indicating an expansion of the overall economy. This news comes after a jittery week on the world’s stock exchanges, where fears were circulating around reduced spending in America. The PMI data also comes amidst news at the end of last week which revealed unemployment had now reached a three-year high of 4.3%. However, the ISM finds new orders measure rebounded to 52.4 from 47.3 in June. Its measure of services employment increased to 51.1 from 46.1 in June. This would support views that the slowdown in nonfarm payrolls in July should not signal the start of labour market deterioration. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 114,000 last month, the second-smallest gain this year.
…as tech layoff trend continues
While the economy overall seems to be baring up, the tech layoff trend is now continuing into the second half of 2024, with new data finding that more than 8,000 IT professionals across 34 technology companies lost their jobs in July. Massachusetts-based software company, UKG, made the largest cull in July, shedding 14% of its workforce – or around 2,200 employees. Meanwhile, California-based company, Intuit, announced that 1,100 staff would be losing their jobs (10% of its total headcount). The July data news follows an announcement Intel made at the start of the week, in which it said it would be laying off around 15,000 roles by the end of the year. In an earnings call, Intel said it needed to make cost savings of $10 billion by the end of 2025, and that the only way to do this was by reducing headcount. It said revenue was higher in 2020 than 2023, and yet during this time, headcount had grown by 10%. In a memo, it said: “We will reduce layers, eliminate overlapping areas of responsibility, stop non-essential work, and foster a culture of greater ownership and accountability.” It added: “This is a tough day for all of us and there will be more tough days ahead. But as difficult as all of this is, we are making the changes necessary to build on our progress and usher in a new era of growth.” While headcount dipped roughly 5% in 2023 (from 131,900 employees to 124,800 employees), Intel hired its way back to 130,700 employees as of March 30th, 2024, its financial records show.
Workers compensation claims revealed
Slips, trips and falls continue to account for the greatest proportion of employee compensation claims in America, according to the results of the just-published 2024 Injury Impact Report. Compiled by workers’ compensation insurer, The Travelers Companies, the report analyzed 1.2 million worker claims between 2017-2021 and found slips, trips and falls accounted for 29% of claims, followed by ‘being struck by an object’ (12%), and motor vehicle accidents (5%). Slips, trips and falls also occupied the top spot on the list of claims costing $250,000 or more, but the second-placed most expensive type of claim was found to be ‘overexertion’. Consistent with previous reports, the 2024 analysis found that staff in their first year in a job were the most susceptible to workplace injuries, representing 35% of all workers’ compensation claims. The study also exposed an increase in missed workdays due to injuries. The construction sector had the highest average of lost workdays per injury (103 days – up from from 99 previously), followed by the transportation industry with 83 days (up from 77). Injured employees in small businesses missed an average of 82 workdays, higher than last year’s 79.