GMU establishes health workforce center
George Mason University has established the Mason Center for the Health Workforce, the university announced Monday. The new center, directed by PJ Maddox and Caroline Sutter, will address the shortage and immediate need for health care workers in Virginia. It will serve as a technical assistance center for health workforce research, program evaluation, planning and […]
Va. bills advance to halt minimum wage increases
RICHMOND, Va. – Two bills introduced by Republicans to halt future minimum wage increases have advanced to the House floor. Minimum wage in Virginia increased to $11 an hour on Jan. 1 and is set to increase to $12 next January. The House Commerce and Energy committee approved House Bill 320, introduced by Del. Nicholas […]
Flex time
The traditional 9-to-5 workday at the office is a thing of the past at forward-thinking companies looking to recruit and retain top talent. “That’s out the door,” says Melody Donovan-Hopkins, a director and senior human resources consultant with Fahrenheit Advisors in Richmond. In its place is a flexible work model that was gaining popularity even […]
Primary care
When the pandemic rocked employees‘ well-being last year, executives at McLean-based software solutions company B&A went out of their way to make people feel valued and connected. “We realized that a lot of folks were struggling with what was going on in the country and the world,” says Jonathan Evans, president and CEO of B&A, […]
Gimme a break
Of all the company perks offered by Ryan LLC, the paid, weeklong summer break often tops the list of employee favorites. Summer break dates are announced ahead of time, and the whole company shuts down. Clients are notified that the international tax services and software provider’s employees will be off. The setup allows Ryan’s workers […]
Happy place
Sriven Technologies LLC’s leader has a clear stance on the value of satisfied workers. “If all the employees are happy, everything is in a good place,” says Raj Kilaru, CEO of the Ashburn-based IT services company that works with retail, financial, insurance and health care clients. The company didn’t have any resignations in 2020 after Sriven switched to […]
United Way launches child care initiative
The gap between the need for child care and its availability and accessibility is nearly three times higher than the state average in Southwest Virginia, where parents lack child care services for more than 7,000 children under age 5, according to a 2019 report from the Bipartisan Policy Center. Child care is not cost-effective for […]
Daikin dojos offer workforce training
In the U.S., the Japanese word “dojo” generally refers to a martial arts training space, but in recent years, the term’s also been adopted in business for workforce development. In October 2021, Daikin Applied, a Minneapolis-based commercial HVAC equipment manufacturer, expanded the training dojo program at its Verona production facility, doubling the number of welding […]
Operation Next expands to Hampton Roads
Operation Next, a federally backed advanced manufacturing workforce development program for military veterans and their spouses, has expanded to Hampton Roads. The Maritime Base Industrial Ecosystem (MIBE) will recruit service members and their spouses to enroll in the program and will guide them to attain portable and nationally recognized credentials from the National Institute of […]
NoVa biz leaders optimistic about recovery
Northern Virginia businesses are optimistic about economic recovery but are feeling the effects of labor shortages, according to the 2021 Northern Virginia Workforce Index released Wednesday by Northern Virginia Community College and the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce. Fifty-one percent of employers said that they felt “somewhat optimistic” and 24% felt “very optimistic” abo[...]
Amazon has hired 3,000+ HQ2 workers so far
So far, Amazon.com Inc. has hired more than 3,000 of the 25,000 employees it plans to recruit by 2030 for its multibillion-dollar HQ2 East Coast headquarters in Arlington, the global online retailer announced Wednesday. In 2019, the Virginia General Assembly passed an incentive package that would pay Amazon up to $550 million in grants for […]
Caution ahead
This year was expected to be a rough one for employers, following predictions of a coming tidal wave of costly employee lawsuits and labor complaints powered by the COVID-19 pandemic and last year’s racial justice protests. So far, though, that onslaught of litigation hasn’t materialized. Why not? Partly because the pandemic itself closed courts for […]