Executive vision: a forum for Georgia government leaders, Vol. 2, no. 1 (Feb. 15, 1999)

A Publication of the Georgia Merit System Volume 2, Number 1 February 15,1999

A Forum for Georgia Government Leaders

Surprisel Training Boosts Satisfaction at Work

R esults of a recent survey conducted by the Gallup Organization support what many trainers and human resource professionals already know: workers who receive employer-sponsored training are more satisfied with their jobs and more likely to stay with their companies than those who receive little or no training.
Commissioned by Training magazine and Bridgeville, Pa.-based Development Dimensions International, the telephone survey polled more than 1,000 U.S. workers aged 16 or older who work at least 35 hours a week in companies with more than 100 employees.
Fifty-four percent of the respondents were baby boomers (in this study between the ages of 33 and 52). Thirty percent were GenerationXers (between the ages of 16 and 32), and 16 percent were 53 years old and older.
The survey found a strong and clear relationship between the availability of training and job satisfaction. Among the respondents, younger workers appear most satisfied, viewing training as a key to their advancement. Almost 60 percent of Gen-Xers believe training will help advance their careers, compared to only 42 percent of those aged 33 and older.
However, some dissatisfaction with the quality of training was noted. Nearly half of respondents said the training they received did not meet their expectations.

Training also affects recruitment and retention rates, according to the survey results. Eighty percent of the workers polled said training is important or very important when considering a new job opportunity.
Twenty-three percent of those who said they receive no training said they are dissatiified or very dissatiified with their jobs. In fact, 24 percent of those who said they receive no training plan to change employers within the next year, compared to 14 percent of those who do receive some training.
The survey found the most satisfied workers receive 14 or more days of training annually, and they want even more. While workers have a say in their company's training decisions less than 10 percent of the time, 83 percent of those who are involved in training plans say they are satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs.
Computer skills training (30 percent) was cited as the most needed. Respondents also considered commu-
nications skills 06 percent), job skills OS percent), and management training 04 percent) important. These were
followed in importance by team training, customer service and problem-solving skills training.
Copies of the survey, Employees Speak Out on job Training: Findings of a New Nationwide Study, can be purchased. Call 1-800-707-7757 for information.
Source: HRWire, Nov. 16, 1998. Used with permission.

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viewpoint
Collaborating to Bring People and Jobs Together
By Commissioner Tommy C. Olmstead Department of Human Resources
With the federal welfare reform initiative in 1996, DHR became more focused on our mission to help Georgians become self-sufficient. Several of our divisions, including those that assist older people, people with disabilities, and people on welfare, have programs to help our clients get jobs. It only made sense to combine the resources of these divisions and create new initiatives aimed at helping people become employed. Now, we've become more effective and efficient, and we've made better use of staff and budget resources.
But DHR is not the only agency concerned with moving people into the workforce. The Department of Labor and the Department of Technical and Adult Education also help people develop skills and get jobs. In 1997 we began the Georgia Work Connection, a partnership among DHR, DOL, and DTAE to help Georgians move from welfare to work.
It was not easy to get past our old habit of turfguarding. There's a lot of competition for state and federal dollars. But we had learned from our internal
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Workplace Stress Posing

Greater Health Risk

Problems at work are now more strongly associated with health complaints than any other source of stress, including financial difficulties or family problems, according to research by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). NIOSH is a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and is the federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related illness and injury.
A recent publication by NIOSH (Stress at Work, Pub. No. 99-101) highlights knowledge about job stress and outlines steps that organizations can take for prevention.
NIOSH defines job stress as the harmful physical and emotional responses fo wotkingc6nditiofis. While the capacity to cope varies with the individual worker, NIOSH says that there is scientific evidence that certain working conditions are stressful to most people.
According to the research, task design is at the top of the list of working conditions that affect most

people. Tasks or job requirements that do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker appear to cause the most stress. Other stressful conditions include a management style that excludes workers from participation in decision making; a poor social environment and lack of support or help from coworkers and supervisors; conflicting or uncertain job expectations; a lack of opportunity for development and advancement; and unpleasant or dangerous physical conditions.
While immediate responses to job stress may be headache, sleep disturbances, difficulty in concentrating and short temper, NIOSH says unresolved stress can seriously compromise the body's ability to repair and defend itself. The long-term effects of stress -~fhaybe cafdiOvasculafdisease, musculoskeletal disorders, psychological disorders, and workplace injury.
Stressful working conditions are associated with absenteeism, tardiness, and intentions by workers to quit their jobs-all factors that affect an organization's productivity.
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reorganization that we could accomplish much more-and do it more efficiently-if we joined forces.
The Georgia Work Connection gives each agency a chance to focus on what it does best. DOL identifies jobs and matches employers with job seekers; DTAE gives clients the job skills they need to get and keep meaningful jobs; and DHR provides services (such as helping with transportation or child care) to help them continue working and stay em-' ployed.
At DHR we can see the successes. A recent Georgia study shows that two thirds of the adults who left welfare went to work. Another source of pride is that 3,200 people with disabilities returned to the workforce last year. Instead of

depending on the government for a check, now they are taxpayers themselves.
Thanks to this partnership, we are making a difference in people's lives. We are giving them an opportunity to contribute to Georgia's society, to stand tall before their own children and to break the cycle of welfare dependency.
But this isn't just a welfare issue. For the sake of Georgia's future, we must continue to develop a competent workforce with people who are productive and well-trained. We look forward to continuing this partnership with DOL, DTAE, and the other agencies and organizations that have joined us. Together we can create a better economy and a better life for Georgians.

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newsbriefs

Nearly one half of the large companies in the United States help employees manage stress by offering programs that teach stress reduction techniques and by providing employee assistance programs that counsel individuals with work or personal problems. However, NIOSH says stress management programs have two major disadvantages: the beneficial effects on stress symptoms are often short-lived, arid they often ignore the causes of stress because they focus on the worker and not the environment.
As a general rule, actions to reduce job stress should give top priority to organizational changes that improve working conditions, according to NIOSH. Yet, even the most

conscientious efforts to improve working conditions are unlikely to eliminate stress completely for all workers. For this reason NIOSH recommends a combination of organizational change and stress management programs as the most useful approach for preventing stress at work.
For more information on managing stress in the workplace, consult the NIOSH Web site at http:! www.cdc.gov/niosh. Stress at Work (Pub. No. 99-101) is available by calling 1-800-356-4674.
In addition, the American Psychological Association and NIOSH will present a conference on workplace stress in March. (see the calendar on page 1).

Figures compiled by Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., a Chicago-based international outplacement fmn, show that as of December 1998 merger-related job cuts (54,908) in the United States were 48 percent higher than during all of 1997 (37,033). Challenger believes the driving forces behind merger mania are global competition, the stock market, technology products that allow companies to track an incredible amount of data, and the availability of cash.
Explaining the seeming paradox between layoffs on the rise and record unemployment lows, Challenger says that the act of cutting duplicated warehouses and headquarters is creating companies that can produce the same amount of products and services with much less structure.
The 22nd annual nationwide salary survey by Hewitt Associates showed that employer spending on pay in 1998 was higher than expected for all levels of employees. Hewitt Associates attributes the increase in salary budgets to continued use of variable pay plans and the current workforce shortage.
Of the 1,069 employers surveyed, 72 percent reported using at least one variable pay plan, up from 67 percent in 1997. Special recognition awards (52 percent) were the most common variable pay plan. Information technology and engineering continue to exert the most pressure on salary budgets, but finance and accounting and sales and marketing are surfacing as salary hot spots.
A study of 1,200 Americans with Disabilities Act employment cases by the American Bar Association's (ABA) Commission on Mental and Physical Disability Law reveals that employers prevailed in approximately 92 percent of the final case decisions. The Commission studied the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's ADA statistics for fiscal years 1992 through 1997, focusing on administrative complaints that have been resolved by that agency. Complete study results were published in the Commission's May-June 1998 issue of Mental and Physical Disability Law Reporter.

New Software to Allow GAAP Compliance

The new software that the state is installing to eliminate the Y2K bug will also bring the state's accounting of revenues and expenditures into compliance with the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) set by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board.
Under the current accounting system used by most state entities to report revenues and expenditures, compliance with GAAP is limited in several instances, according to Sandra Warr, who is a supervisor in the Professional Practice Division of the Department of Audits and Accounts.
Ms. Warr said the instances of GAAP noncompliance are described

in the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report that the Audits and Accounts Department prepares for the state.
Noncompliance occurs because the current system is unable to account for or to
depreciate certain fixed assets. does not facilitate recording
encumbrances. recognizes accrual of revenue
based on encumbrances. is unable to identify, classify, and
report leases as either operating leases or capital leases. is unable to identify transactions between agencies whose financial activity is within the same fund. Once the new accounting software is

fully functional, these particular noncompliances to GAAP will be eliminated.
"Adjusting to GAAP will be a monumental undertaking for all agencies, but it will be easier on the smaller agencies because conversion of data will not be as difficult," Ms. Warr said.
In addition, the training aspect of GAAP is expected to be somewhat daunting for agencies. While some training has already taken place, she said that it would be necessary for GAAP training of agency personnel to continue for some time to come.

Georgia Merit System Suite 502, West Tower 200 Piedmont Avenue Atlanta, GA 30334
EXECUTIVE VISION
Published quarterly by the Georgia Merit System
Dana R. Russell Commissioner
]udyW Hall Editor
Submissions are welcome and should be sent to ]udyW Hall Georgia Merit System Suite 502, West Tower 200 Piedmont Avenue Atlanta, GA 30334 Tel: 404-657-0375 Fax: 404-656-5979 Email: jwh@gms.state.ga.us www.gms.state.ga.us