Consumerist
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aohell
Ex-Time Warner Employee's Zombie AOL Account Finally Put To Rest
You may remember Jennifer, who we wrote about on Wednesday. She suddenly started receiving collection notices for an AOL account she hadn't paid for since 2000. Her situation has since been resolved, and serves as an important reminder about accounts and benefits when changing jobs. More » -
dangerous workplaces
Watch Out For The Five Worst Teen Jobs Of 2009
Because we took a lot of seasonal jobs/were easily bored, we had quite a few jobs as a teenager. But although our workplaces exposed us to hazards like deli slicers and Christmas Eve mall shoppers, we're relieved to learn we never had one of the National Consumer League's Five Worst Teen Jobs. More » -
dish network
Call Center Disciplines Reps If You're Not Happy With Your Collections Call
You've most likely seen those surveys you receive on your receipt, or after a chat session or phone call. Most people ignore them unless they get something in return, or service was exceptionally bad or exceptionally good. According to our source R., though, not answering that survey could help the rep you've just talked to lose his or her job. More » -
privacy
Applying For A Job? Great, Give Us Your Google And Facebook Passwords
ReadWriteWeb has a scary article about the city of Bozeman, Montana. It doesn't sound like a scary place, but if you want to say, work for the City, you'll need to give them all your social networking usernames and passwords. More » -
jobs
You're Never Too Old To Have A Summer Job
Inspired by our post on thirty- and forty-somethings trying to snag traditionally teenage jobs? If you've always wanted to be a lifeguard, bar back, or roller coaster operator, here are some tips for beating the other applicants and letting teenagers worry about the unemployment rate. (Photo: Atwater Village Newbie) -
trustafarians
Investments Are Down - Won't You Hire A Poor Trust-Funder?
It's the end of an era. The parentally-subsidized idle urbanites of New York aren't getting the fundage they used to, and they have to get paying jobs now. Or move in with their parents. (Here I thought living with my parents after college was too much parental subsidy.) While Gawker's coverage of this story is not to be missed, let's look at it through a Consumerist lens, shall we? More » -
The Fourth District Court of Appeal in California reversed the $100 million award in a class action suit filed on behalf of current and former Starbucks baristas. The accusation? Starbucks illegally had shift supervisors share in tip jar proceeds instead of paying them a higher hourly wage. The appeals court ruled that shift supervisors are also hourly employees and not management, and are as entitled to tips as baristas. [Reuters]
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scams
Reminder: Don't Pay Private Companies For Postal Jobs
For those readers who are job-hunting for the first time, or for the first time in a long time, let this serve as a reminder: you do not need to pay a private company to get a job with the post office. No study guides. No sample exams. As T.J. learned, these companies will be happy to sell you all kinds of unnecessary exam-taking supplies...whether there are any postal jobs available or exams planned near where you live, or not. Multiple companies are masquerading as hiring for the post office. More » -
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recession
Consumer Confidence Is Up. Wait, Compared To What?
Do you feel more confident? According to the Conference Board, consumer confidence is up to its highest level in eight months, and made its biggest increase in six years. More » -
unemployment
Out-Of-Work Adults Try To Nab Summer Lifeguard Positions
Some adults who are out of work are now going after classic teen jobs, says ABC News. In Florida, which has the fourth-highest unemployment rate of the nation, men in their 30s and 40s "have pulled on swim trunks in hopes of beating out the teenagers for a few choice positions as $9.37 an hour lifeguards." The report also says adults are trying out for jobs at places like Six Flags. All of this reminds us a little of this Kids In The Hall Sketch (see below) where a young boy finds a stray businessman and brings him home. More » -
employment
Where Are New Job Opportunities? Try Wyoming, North Dakota, Virginia
As unemployment grows, MainStreet looked at where in the U.S. there are actually new job opportunities. Ranked #51 is Michigan. #1? North Dakota.
Note that the statistics don't talk about the type of jobs, so don't pack your futon and your BA in comp lit and move to North Dakota.
(Photo: TMQ.st.louis)
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employment discrimination
Forced Arbitration: You Can't Sue Us For Discrimination
Besides banning forced arbitration in consumer and franchise contracts, the Arbitration Fairness Act bans mandatory binding arbitration clauses in employment contracts. John's story illustrates why this is necessary, inside. More » -
entrepreneurs
Two Guys In A Garage Invent Bacon Salt, Quit Their Day Jobs
They say recessions are good times for innovation and a time to start your own business, and Justin Esch and Dave Lefkow are proving both true with their invention, Bacon Salt. Building from the simple idea that "everything should taste like bacon," these two entrepreneurs quit their successful tech jobs and started their alchemical project out of their garage. By showing up at sporting events dressed as bacon and using Facebook and Twitter, they racked up 800 orders in the first week and sold out of Bacon Salt in 6 days. An inspiration for anyone with the entrepreneurial desire sizzling inside them.
'Bacontrepreneurs' Building Bacon Empire [ABC]
Baconsalt [Official Site] -
truth in advertising
Icon Parking Accidentally Reveals Why Their Service Is Cheap
Eli Lansey took photos of recent Icon Parking ads on NYC subway cars and posted them on his blog. They promise customers "$10 for up to 10 hours" of parking at various lots in the city. Wow, that's a good price! On the same ad they have a help wanted section that says they're looking for employees, "no experience necessary." Ah. More » -
public transit
Public Transit Ridership Highest In 52 Years
See, here's some good news to the wallet-gouging gas prices of 2008: ridership of public transportation was up to 10.7 billion trips last year, "the highest level of ridership in 52 years" according to the American Public Transportation Association. It was the fifth consecutive year that ridership increased, but it may come to an end in 2009 because of skyrocketing unemployment.
"U.S. public transit 2008 ridership highest in 52 years" [Reuters]
(Photo: Kriston Lewis) -
taxes
10 Tax Deductions For Freelancers
Freelance Switch has 10 deductions freelancers can take. For instance, if you have a cellphone as a second line and primarily use it for business, deduct it. Work from home? There's the complex but worth it home-office deduction. The "research" category is very useful, especially for journalists and writers. Just about any piece of entertainment can go in there. Hey, you got to keep in touch with the zeitgeist, right?'
10 Tax Deductions Freelancers Can Make [Freelance Switch via Lifehacker] (Photo: NabityPhotos)
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annualcreditreport
Don't Fall For The Job Hunting Credit Report Scam
Christine is looking for a new job, and she found this neat little credit report scam. The scam is pretty transparent in this case, but we thought we'd put it out there as a reminder anyway. Remember, if you want a truly free credit report, only use annualcreditreport.com. Everything else comes with a hidden cost or enrollment in a billed membership—and if a potential employer inists on a specific "free" service that isn't free when you read the fine print, you can be pretty sure it's a scam. More » -
jobs
Here's A Shock: Fewer People Are Quitting Their Jobs
NPR's Planet Money blog alerts us to the existence of a statistic called the "quits" rate — which, you guessed it, monitors how many people are quitting their jobs. You'll be shocked to hear that for months the quits rate has been at the lowest point since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started tracking it. More »
employment
New York, 8:14 PM
Sun Jul 5
6 posts in the last 24 hours
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