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What I’ve Been Reading This Week: HR Edition


In recent weeks, we have had a post dedicated to labor law and minimum wage developments.  I suppose it is only appropriate that we dedicate this post to human resource related issues.  As the below articles point out, while burnout is an ongoing (and alarming) development in the Human Resources field, employer provided benefits continue to be a common situation many in Human Resources are dealing with as employers fight amongst themselves for a still small labor pool.

As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.


Human Resources Professionals Report 98% Burnout Rate

Ah yes, burnout in the workplace.  Even before the Great Resignation became a common phrase among workers and employers alike, burnout ran rampant in many industries.  As Jack Kelly at Forbes writes, with over 500 Human Resources professionals surveyed, a shocking 98% reported feeling burnout in their jobs.  As Kelly writes, the increasingly stressful workplace situations that many Human Resources professionals experienced (and continue to experience) following the impact the coronavirus has had in the workplace since 2020, has likely led to this high burnout rate.  Is there a “cure” for the burnout?  Unfortunately, there is likely not one simple solution to the matter.


Dollar General Announces Employer Paid Degree Program For Full Time Workers

On April 4th, Dollar General announced that it would offer its full time workers with a paid degree program at Strayer University or Capella University.  For those workers that want to obtain a degree elsewhere, Dollar General will offer a tuition reimbursement program to allow workers to get a degree somewhere besides Strayer or Capella.  Of course, some critics of this (and related paid degree programs) have argued that workers often do not know about these benefits and even if they are aware, do not have the time/ability to work full time and attend a university.  With that being said, criticism aside, this paid degree program is worth applauding.


Are Four Day Workweeks About to Become the Norm?

A recent study from Qualtrics found that approximately 92% of respondents wanted their employers to switch to a four day workweek.  While four day workweeks are common among some industries, I would not call it the norm by any stretch.  However, for many workers that have the option to do a four day workweek, they report a better work life balance and an increase in efficiency when working.  While I think some industries (in particular tech) might embrace a four day work week, I think it is going to be a long, hard slog to get a mass implementation of a four day work week.  However, I would love to be surprised to see this more commonly accepted across all industries!


Starbucks Weighs Implementing Better Benefits For Non Unionized Workers

In the ongoing battle at Starbucks amid its efforts to find ways to curb unionization efforts at the company, it has been reported that the company is considering implementing better benefits for workers that have not unionized and not applying those same benefits to unionized stores.  As Amelia Lucas at CNBC reports, Starbucks is considering using this offer of better benefits as a way to curb the onslaught of successful unionization votes over the past few months.  Whether it will actually be implemented (let alone effective in curbing unionization efforts) remains to be seen.

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