While we would all hope to be judged strictly on our experience and qualifications when applying for a job, the truth is how you look really does play a role in a job search, and a new study suggests it plays a big part in whether or not you’ll even get called in for an interview.
Service provider Resume.io conducted an experiment to see whether looks played a role in the interviewing process and the results probably won’t shock too many people, although it certainly is disheartening. The company submitted 300 digital applications from two attractive and two less attractive candidates, both with more or less identical resumes to see what would happen. Overall, 17% of the attractive candidates got contacted about an interview, while only 3% of the less attractive jobseekers got an invitation for one.
Not surprising, gender played a big role in who got interviews, with recruiters more likely to be interested in attractive candidates of the opposite sex. In fact, male recruiters sent out 69% more positive responses to the attractive female candidate as opposed to the less attractive one, while female recruiters were 73% more likely to show a positive reaction to an attractive male candidate than a less attractive one.
Source:Market Watch
It’s no secret that women, for the most part, don’t earn the same amount of money as men, often when they are doing the same job. The gender pay gap is real, and while a new report suggests things are getting better, it also notes it’s happening very, very slowly.
Glassdoor’s “Progress on the Gender Pay Gap: 2019” report reveals the gender pay gap in the U.S. is currently 21.4%, which translates to women earning 79 cents for every dollar a man earns. That is a tiny improvement from 2016, in which women were earning 76 cents for every dollar a man earned. Now, if the gap continues to decrease at this pace, and if all current factors stay the same, economists suggest women in the U.S shouldn’t expect to see total pay equality until 2070.
According to the report, 64% of the pay gap can be “explained” by differences things like age, education and more, although 36% of the differences are “unexplained,” which means it could exist because of things like workplace bias, negotiation gaps and more. Another reason for gender pay gaps is the industry and jobs men and women traditionally take, so-called “occupational sorting,” which can explain 56.5% of the pay gap in the U.S.
Other results from the report:
- Jobs were men get paid the most over women include pilots (26.6%), chefs (24.6%) and C-suite professionals (24%).
- Women earn more than men in occupations like merchandiser (-7.8%) and research assistant (-5.9%).
- As for the industries with the widest gender pay gaps, retail and media tops the list (6.4%), followed by construction, repair and maintenance, and oil, gas, energy and utilities (6.2%).
- The biotech and pharmaceutical industry has the smallest pay gap (2.2%) followed by education (2.4%).
- As for the rest of the world, France has the smallest gender pay gap at 11.6%, while Germany has the largest at 22.3%.
Source:GlassDoor
While a lot of people read books on tablets and e-readers these days, when it comes to reading to your children, moms and dads should really think twice before taking out their devices.
A new study suggests that when it comes to reading to your children, nothing beats a printed book, and it will result in not only better bonding with your kids, but will get your children asking more questions, and more.
Researchers from the University of Michigan watched 37 sets of parents and their toddlers as they read shorts stories from “Little Critter” in a variety of formats, including print, basic electronic form and interactive form. What they found was that when reading the book in print form there was way more interactions between parent and child, with them talking about the book and what they were seeing on the page. They were also able to read more of the story in the allotted five minute time period than with other book forms. When it came to the electronic forms, most of the interactions between parent and child had to do with swiping to the next page or pushing buttons.
“The print book is a really beautiful object in that each parent and child interacts differently over a print book,” lead researcher Dr. Tiffany Munzer tells ABC News. “The print book is really the gold standard in eliciting positive interactions between parents and their children.”
Source:ABC News
When you work in an office, it seems there’s always some tempting food being offered up in the breakroom. And while indulging in an occasional slice of birthday cake for a coworker’s celebration isn’t a big deal, all that workplace snacking is taking its toll on our waistlines. According to a recent study from the CDC, during any given week, employees consume 1,300 calories worth of food and drinks in the office that are “high in empty calories, sodium, and refined grains.” So basically, all those free snacks and meeting pizza is catching up to us.
Saying no to the cupcakes in the office kitchen is one way to eat smarter at work, but nutritionist Carolyn Brown warns we also need to avoid what she calls “mindless munching” - snacking at our desks without paying attention to what we’re shoving in our mouths. And to beat the temptation of the vending machine or other office goodies, she suggests these picks for stocking your desk.
- A smarter salt fix- If crackers and chips are your go-to snacks then try a healthy alternative like popcorn or nut and seed-based crackers that will satisfy your salty craving. And if you don’t need the crunch, olives are a nutritious swap too.
- Go for whole foods- Ditch the packages and focus on “real” foods for “dining al desko.” Keep things healthy with nuts, seeds, a piece of fruit, carrots, and cucumber slices.
- Pile on the protein- when that afternoon slump hits, snack on some protein for a nutritious pick-me-up. Brown likes full-fat Greek yogurt because that healthy fat and protein keeps you full for longer.
- Just desserts- It’s hard to say no to your coworker’s home-baked cookies, but you can avoid temptation by having your own sweet treat on hand. Dark chocolate is a healthy option, just look for one that’s 60% cacao or higher and stick to just a few squares for your snack.
- Busy-day saves- We all have days where taking a real break for lunch just isn’t happening, so be prepared for when that happens and have some “safety snacks” around so you don’t hit the vending machine when your tummy rumbles. A bar made with ingredients you can actually pronounce is ideal for your desk drawer stash.
Source:New York Post
There are times in life when we need to apologize, but there’s more to it than just casually saying, “I’m sorry.” To make sure your apology comes off the right way and conveys how you feel, don’t make these common apology mistakes.
- You Say, “I’m sorry, but…”- Adding that “but” to the end of an apology undermines the sincerity of what you just said. The most successful apologies are short, genuine and include three parts: acknowledging how your action affected the person, the actual “I’m sorry,” and the plan for what you’re going to do to make sure it never happens again.
- You Say, “I’m sorry you felt…”- Lots of us make this mistake, but it pretty much invalidates the feelings of the person you’re apologizing to and puts the blame on them. Saying you’re sorry they felt hurt or sad or whatever they felt means you’re sorry they felt that way but not sorry you did it. If forgiveness is your goal, be sincere and humble.
- You’re over-explaining- A lot of explaining can start to sound like an excuse, so if you’re trying to give a reason why you treated someone a certain way, keep it short and simple.
- Your timing is off- If you say sorry too soon, people might not be ready to hear it yet and need time to cool down first. And on the flip side, if you wait too long to apologize, it may look like you don’t really care. So try to find the sweet spot in the middle, but also remember, better late than never.
Source:PureWow