Green Buds On The Branch

We baptized three people at St. Christopher's, Boulder City today and received another into the Episcopal Church. Last week, we confirmed three teenagers at Christ Church, Pioche. That may not seem like a big deal to larger congregations. But to me it is something special.<br /><br />Christ Church, Pioche is in a small community that has been bypassed by the economy since its mining hey day now long past. A couple of years ago, their matriarch and priest -- then in her 90's -- suffered a fall and had to move away to assisted living. The congregation went through a difficult time of grief and adjustment.<br /><br />Unlike Pioche, Boulder City is thriving but St. Christopher's was not. They went from being a 3 priest church to a no priest church in a short time, as one moved, one became ill, and the third retired. Their understanding of themselves and how they could go about being church was no longer working, but they had not yet found a way forward. That was just last Fall.<br /><br />But Christ Church, Pioche just had an engaging upbeat home made curriculum confirmation class modeled on Jeopardy -- a class that ushered 3 teens into the Church. The congregation, inspired by the teens who now know so much interesting stuff, has decided to take the course themselves and reaffirm their Baptismal Vows next year. Meanwhile to the South, St. Christopher's, Boulder City, continues its strong tradition of community ministries, and is now growing again. I saw lots of new faces today in a church considerably more full than I've ever seen it. They are continuing a process of discernment about their future with an outside consultant. They have called Fr. Jim Lyons to serve as their priest, at least for now, and they celebrated his ministry with grateful statements interrupted by several outbursts of spontaneous applause at our forum.<br /><br />Since I have been in Nevada, there have not been intitation rites (baptisms, confirmations, receptions) at either Christ Church, Pioche or St. Christopher's, Boulder City. But now on back to back weekends, we have celebrated new life in Christ in these congregations. There are green buds on the branch. It must be Spring.

Green Buds On The Branch

We baptized three people at St. Christopher's, Boulder City today and received another into the Episcopal Church. Last week, we confirme...

Read more »

25 Best-Paying Jobs for Women

By Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder Editor <br /><br />When you look at Forbes magazine's most recent list of highest-paid CEO's (chief executives of the 500 biggest companies in the United States), you won't see a woman until No. 48: Irene B Rosenfeld, CEO of Kraft Foods. In a country where women make up 47 percent of the workforce, women make up just 3 percent of Fortune 500 CEO's. In addition, women who worked full time earned an average of just 80 percent of what men earned in the same positions in 2008, according to the BLS. <br /><br />But is salary disparity between genders the issue or is it something deeper? <br /><br />In the Harvard Business Review blog, Avivah Wittenberg-Cox wrote: "Women represent one of the world's biggest and most under-reported opportunities. The business world has been so focused on stories like the rise of China that it has not been invited to see that, much closer to home, business could be reaping the benefits of the rise of women. Companies -- and their business school feeders -- have been slow in adapting and profiting from this shift, and part of the reason is that media too often focus on small, sensational and misleading parts of the story, including aspects like the wage gap." <br /><br />Catalyst's February 2010 Pipeline's Broken Promise report examining high potential graduates from top business schools around the world found that, even after taking into account experience, industry and region, women start at lower levels than men, make on average $4,600 less in their initial jobs, and continue to be outpaced by men in rank and salary growth. Only when women begin their post-MBA career at mid-management or above do they achieve parity in position with men -- a situation that accounted for only 10 percent of the women and 19 percent of the men surveyed.<br /><br />Whatever the cause, the BLS reports there are only a handful of occupations where women's earnings are equal to or exceed men's including construction and extraction occupations; special education teachers; installation, maintenance and repair occupations; life, physical and social science technicians; and counselors.<br /><br />We wanted to know, what jobs pay women the most money? Here are 25 jobs where women earn $1000 a week or more, according to the BLS. One thing to note is that they all earn a fraction of their male counterparts.<br /><br />Pharmacists<br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,647 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,914 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 86.1%<br /><br />Chief executives <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,603 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,999 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 80.2%<br /><br />Lawyers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,509 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,875 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 80.5%<br /><br />Computer software engineers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,351 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,555 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 86.9%<br /><br />Computer and information systems managers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,260 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,641 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 76.8%<br /><br />Physicians and surgeons<br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,230 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,911 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 64.4%<br /><br />Management analysts <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,139 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,391 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 81.9%<br /><br />Human resources managers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,137 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,433 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 79.3%<br /><br />Speech-language pathologists <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,124 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: * <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **<br /><br />Computer and mathematical occupations <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,088 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,320 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 82.4%<br /><br />Computer scientists and systems analysts <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,082 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,240 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 87.3%<br /><br />Physician assistants <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,077 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: ** <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **<br /><br />Medical and health services managers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,066 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,504 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 70.9%<br /><br />Physical scientists, all other <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,061 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,535 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 69.1%<br /><br />Postsecondary teachers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,056 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,245 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 84.8%<br /><br />Marketing and sales managers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,024 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,601 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 64%<br /><br />Physical therapists <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,019 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,329 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 76.7%<br /><br />Occupational therapists <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,016 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: ** <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **<br /><br />Registered nurses<br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,011 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,168 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 86.6%<br /><br />Managers, all other <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,010 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,359 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 74.3%<br /><br />Psychologists <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,004 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: ** <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **<br /><br />Computer programmers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,003 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,261 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 79.5%<br /><br />Architecture and engineering occupations <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,001 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,286 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 77.8%<br /><br />Advertising and promotions managers <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,000 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: ** <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **<br /><br />Education administrators <br />Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,000 <br />Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,398 <br />Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 71.5%<br /><br />*No data or data that do not meet publication criteria.<br /><br />** Data not shown where the male employment base is less than 50,000.<br /><br />Kate Lorenz is the editor for CareerBuilder.com and its job-seeker blog, www.TheWorkBuzz.com. She researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues. Follow CareerBuilder on Twitter www.twitter.com/CBforjobseekers.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

25 Best-Paying Jobs for Women

By Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder Editor When you look at Forbes magazine's most recent list of highest-paid CEO's (chief executives of ...

Read more »

Why Do Employers Care About Your Credit?

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/sv/ar5m6ly680lntn7gd7sv.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/sv/ar5m6ly680lntn7gd7sv.gif" wt="true" /></a></div>By Rachel Farrell, CareerBuilder.com writer <br /><br />When you're looking for a job, you're probably not thinking about your credit score. <br /><br />But, you might want to start. <br /><br />Though many people argue that credit scores have nothing to do with their capabilities on the job, some employers say differently. Sixty percent of employers recently surveyed by the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) said they run credit checks on all or some potential new hires. That's up from 43 percent in 2006 and 25 percent in 1998.<br /><br />Opinions on whether or not this is fair vary. Supporters of credit checks don't think it's any different than checking a candidate's references. But opponents see it as unfair -- especially in this economy. And rightfully so. Medical issues, divorce or a job layoff and subsequent missed bills can wreck an otherwise perfect credit score in an instant. <br /><br />"There are lots of good reasons not to hire someone. Usually, bad credit alone isn't one of them. And yet, it's become the reason du jour, to disqualify an otherwise highly qualified person to do a job they're particularly well suited for," says Milan P. Yager, president and CEO of the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations. "As job fields become closed and increasingly competitive, you can bet that more employers are utilizing credit check options than ever before." <br /><br />So, why do employers look at your credit history?<br /><br />The reasons vary. Sometimes it may be because of the nature of the position to which you're applying. <br /><br />"Certain categories of employers regularly review credit histories [such as] banks, brokerage houses, government and other financial institutions. Evaluation of credit history is [also] frequently applied to accounting and money management positions where there is potential for fraud and embezzlement," says Wendy Powell, author of "Management Experience Acquired." "Employers have a responsibility to assure that the proper due diligence is applied. Be prepared for the possibility of a credit review, not only in the application process, but also throughout the employment relationship."<br /><br />Other employers look at credit histories in order to separate one candidate from another.<br /><br />"Credit report information is an excellent data point when comparing and contrasting two or more candidates for the same position," says Jay Meschke, president of EFL Associates, an executive search company. "If, for example, an applicant reports a significant level of personal debt obligations or credit delinquencies that might distract that person from his or her job responsibilities, then a hiring entity may take that information into consideration when comparing such an applicant to another comparative candidate without such distractions."<br /><br />Or, maybe a company just wants to get a better idea of the person it's considering to hire.<br /><br />"Financial information may not be the employer's priority. Insuring that your employees are responsible and ethical is a must," Yagar says. "Relying on character references is becoming less reliable than verifying records and professionally screening workers beforehand. It's true that credit checks can verify demographic and location information. They will include identifiers such as name, spouse, social security number, alias, address, phone and previous employment."<br />Barry Maher, author of "Filling the Glass," adds that a credit report can provide a snapshot of a person's economic life that may confirm or contradict the résumé. <br /><br />"Perhaps someone claims they made a good six-figure income for the last 10 years yet they show repeated credit problems during that period. Are they lying about their income? Are they poor money managers? Do they have a major financial issue that's draining their resources? Any of these might (or might not) have a negative effect on their job." <br /><br />The Fair Credit Reporting Act governs almost all issues related to the use of credit reports. Job applicants have the right to a copy of his or her credit report, and law requires the hiring entity to provide a copy to the job applicant. In addition, if an employer decides not to hire a candidate based on the results of a credit report, the candidate must be told the reason why and be provided with the credit report information.<br /><br />Job seekers must be prepared with how to deal with a potential employer looking at their credit report.<br /><br />If you have a less than stellar credit score, here are three things you can do: <br /><br />1. Be prepared for the scrutiny<br /><br />"Just as you would if showing your home to a prospective buyer, tidy up your credit record before you put your career on the market," Yager says. "Know your credit score, and examine your credit record. If there's an error, U.S. residents can visit the Federal Trade Commission's website to learn step-by-step how to dispute and correct the error. But keep in mind, there is no quick fix that instantly raises a credit score so have some patience."<br /><br />2. Bring up issues on your own<br /><br />"As an applicant, if you've got credit problems and the company asks permission to run a credit report, you're far better off if you bring up any issues they're likely to uncover proactively, getting out your side of the story before the company even realizes there is a story," Maher says. "A lot of people have problems with their credit, particularly nowadays. But you need to control the story, not let the credit reporting company control it. Hiring companies understand no applicant is perfect but they want to understand that imperfection, whatever it may be."<br /><br />3. Realize you're not alone<br /><br />"In most cases, a degradation of credit history is a slow process and would most likely affect those candidates that have been out of work the longest the most. Remember, if your credit history has been damaged, you're in the same boat as countless job candidates. And don't forget, it's a huge boat!" Powell says. "Employers have a responsibility to hire the most competent and qualified candidate. Be prepared and have a plan."<br /><br />Get the latest job search news and advice on CareerBuilder.com's job seeker blog www.TheWorkBuzz.com and follow us on Twitter @CBforJobSeekers.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

Why Do Employers Care About Your Credit?

By Rachel Farrell, CareerBuilder.com writer When you're looking for a job, you're probably not thinking about your credit score. But...

Read more »

Forget low energy, I have NO energy

I'm not sure what is wrong with me today but I just want to curl up in a ball and sleep forever. I'm exhausted and that's after eight hours of sleep last night. Maybe it's the twelve and half hours of flying in the last week and a half. Seattle-Denver-Seattle, Seattle-Dallas-Seattle, almost back to back.<br /><br />I just feel like my life's blood has been sucked out of  me. I managed a really good workout last night at the gym. Thirty minutes on the StairMaster and fifty minutes of heavy strength training. I'm dressed right now for the gym but just the thought of exercising is exhausting me. I'm not sure how I'm going to actually get there and do a good workout. <br /><br />In addition, I'm hungry! Sometimes I just have days where all I can think about is food. Today is one of those days. It's not even lunch yet, and I'm starving. <br /><br />Tired and hungry is a really bad combination for me. It makes me feel weak and really susceptible to out-of-control eating. I guess today is going to be one of those "one minute at a time" kind of days. <br /><br />I'm heading out to the gym and then run a few errands. My plan is to be home by 2pm so we can just relax before the work week starts. Maybe a nap is in my future. :)

Forget low energy, I have NO energy

I'm not sure what is wrong with me today but I just want to curl up in a ball and sleep forever. I'm exhausted and that's after ...

Read more »

Planning de la semaine du 17 au 21 mai 2010

<BR><br /><h2><strong><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 113%;color:#005c9b;" >Permanences<br /></span></strong></h2><ul><br /><li>Le <strong>Conseil Général du Loiret</strong> sera présent dans les locaux de la Maison de l'Emploi du bassin d'Orléans<br />- le lundi 17 mai de 9h à 12h30,<br />- le mardi 18 mai de 9h à 12h30 et de 13h30 à 17h,<br />- le mercredi 19 mai de 13h30 à 17h<br />- le jeudi 20 mai de 13h30 à 17h<br />- le vendredi 21 mai de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2007/11/boutique-de-gestion.html">Boutique de Gestion</a></strong> (sur rendez-vous)<br />- lundi 17 mai de 13h30 à 17h <br />- vendredi 21 mai de 09h à 12h30<br /><br /><li><strong><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2007/11/solidarits-nouvelles-face-au-chmage.html">Solidarités Nouvelles face au Chômage</a></strong> - mercredi 19 mai de 10h à 12h30</ul><br /><h2><strong><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 113%;color:#005c9b;" >Ateliers</span></strong><br /></h2><br /><ul><li><strong>CV</strong> - mardi 18 mai de 9h à 12h30 et mercredi 19 mai de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong>Lettre de Motivation</strong> - mardi 18 mai de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong>Préparation à l'entretien</strong> - jeudi 20 mai de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong>Pôle-emploi.fr</strong> - vendredi 21 mai de 10h à 11h30<br /><br /><li><strong><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2009/07/atelier-situtilises-tu-trouves.html">Sit'Utilises tu trouves</a></strong> - vendredi 21 mai de 14h à 16h</ul><br /><h2><strong><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 113%;color:#005c9b;" >Rendez-vous Grand Maillage</span></strong><br /></h2><br /><ul><li><strong><a href="http://www.grandmaillage.org/article-petit-dej-grandmaillage-20-mai-2010-48887931.html">Petit déj Grand Maillage</a></strong> - jeudi 20 mai de 08h30 à 10h <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEineha-kWXe2qGMxu8B4N0rXcx-SNjM0dfZr9KBWe4E8lYbWyGP9zbBODLp8i4_Fw82ul8fvXc6J7SiaHnJBMSuJyyriXIaRYj_9yf_6vMInRNmZeH-dpmDibjau1Yl71qauPgjcHQ4hIdC/s1600/Petit-Dej-20-mai-2010-copie-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5472145936295213938" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEineha-kWXe2qGMxu8B4N0rXcx-SNjM0dfZr9KBWe4E8lYbWyGP9zbBODLp8i4_Fw82ul8fvXc6J7SiaHnJBMSuJyyriXIaRYj_9yf_6vMInRNmZeH-dpmDibjau1Yl71qauPgjcHQ4hIdC/s200/Petit-Dej-20-mai-2010-copie-1.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 146px; height: 200px;" /></a></ul>

Planning de la semaine du 17 au 21 mai 2010

Permanences Le Conseil Général du Loiret sera présent dans les locaux de la Maison de l'Emploi du bassin d'Orléans - le lundi 17 ma...

Read more »