Leading-edge firms (LEFs)--at the forefront of their industry in terms of growth or market share--may influence skill development through diffusion of technology, products, or practices and use of market power to set standards or change customer businesses. Study of LEFs can identify the type and mix of skills needed in the industry. LEFs are…

Lawyers' work, home, and family demands and their strategies for coping with those demands were examined through telephone interviews with practicing lawyers from Calgary, Alberta. Of the 121 lawyers interviewed, 56 were men and 44 were women who worked full-time and 21 were women who worked part-time. Sixty-seven percent of them were associates…

Use of flexible staffing arrangements--including temporary help agency, short-term, on-call, regular part-time, and contract workers--is widespread and two-thirds of employers believe this trend will increase in the near future. A study examined which employers use flexible staffing arrangements, why they use these arrangements, and their…

The reciprocal process of engaging in and learning through work was examined. Reciprocity between how workplaces invite individuals to participate in and learn through work (its invitational qualities) and individuals' engagement in the workplace was proposed as a means of understanding how learning through work proceeds. Workplaces' invitational…

The General Accounting Office (GAO) analyzed Current Population Survey (CPS) data for 1995-2000 to assess the situation of women managers in 10 industries that employ over 70 percent of women workers. Despite a sense of continued progress toward gender equality in the workplace, in the 10 industries employing 71 percent of United States (US) women…

This report, which is based on a review of practitioner-oriented sources and scholarly journals, uses a three-part framework to organize annotated bibliographies that, together, list a total of 104 sources that provide the following three perspectives on work force reduction issues: organizational, organizational-individual relationship, and…

This paper outlines and explains legal issues related to race-based affirmative action, which is defined as race-conscious action designed to overcome manifest racial imbalance. The paper highlights the history of affirmative action and its following objectives: (1) to overcome the effects of past discrimination; (2) to ensure against future…

The development of the "learning organization" may be traced to three converging trends: the tradition of organizational development; economic shifts to globalization, deregulation, and information-based industry; and total quality management. Learning organizations are generally characterized as follows: organizations that create…

This document consists of four papers presented at a symposium on contextual learning issues moderated by John Henschke at the 1996 conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development (AHRD). "Self-Directed Learning in Organizations: An Analysis of Policies and Practices of Seven Resource Companies in Western Canada" (H. K. Morris…

This document contains 29 statistical tables grouped into five sections: "General Statistics,""Occupations and Earnings,""Earnings of Selected Professional Occupations,""Women and Higher Education," and "Family Income and Composition." Among the tables are those that show the following: (1) 1991 annual average U.S. civilian work force by…

Following a workshop on "Innovations in Employment Testing that Improve Validity and Reduce Adverse Impact," the City of Louisville (Kentucky) implemented a strategy to develop a comprehensive testing and recruiting program for police recruits. To improve candidate expectations and preparation, the following activities were undertaken:…

Predictions of occupational growth to the year 2000 show how important the "new crafts" are becoming. Workers who possess the new crafts perform jobs that often involve sophisticated technical knowledge but are not done by people with bachelor's degrees. The growth of technical jobs in the middle of organizations threatens the familiar division…

Tennessee employers were surveyed regarding secondary vocational education as a source of entry-level employees and on their perceptions of issues in the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Act of 1990. A survey instrument secured ratings for various types and levels of educational and governmental agencies. The population consisted…

The collective bargaining agreement between Pittsburg State University and Pittsburg State University/Kansas National Education Association, an affiliate of the National Education Association, covering the period May 19, 1989 to June 30, 1990 is presented. The contract covers the following items: recognition; equal opportunity; salaries…

The collective bargaining agreement between Peninsula College, the Penninsula College Faculty Association, and the Board of Trustees of Community College District Number 1 is presented. This contract, covering the period from 1989 through 1992, deals with the following topics: bargaining agent recognition; compliance and conformity to law;…