Economists See No Growth Until 2nd Half of 2009

Via
The Wall Street Journal

The U.S. economy is in the midst of the worst part of the recession, but growth may return by the second half of next year, according to economists in the latest Wall Street Journal forecasting survey. Nearly two-thirds of respondents say the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program, which has taken stakes in major financial institutions, is helping markets. On average, respondents expect the unemployment rate to rise to 7.7% by December 2009, up from 6.5% last month.

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Keep employees in loop for maximum productivity

By Marcia Heroux Pounds
The Sun Sentinel


Iris Harris has two jobs.

First, she was recently promoted from an executive assistant to an office manager for the Daszkal Bolton accounting firm when it opened a new office in Sunrise, Florida. Then, she was asked to assume the additional duties of an executive assistant.

"I was thinking, 'Wasn't I promoted from that?' " she says.

But Ms. Harris saw the company's need and recognized she could generate revenue for the firm by working with its professionals.

"At the end of the day, we all have the same goal," she says.

Employees today are often being asked to do more than one job. Sometimes, a layoff has occurred and the work still has to be done. Other times, there is a need to add staff but the business is taking a cautious approach to hiring in a slow economy.

More companies are looking at improving efficiency. Sometimes, that means merging two functions into one, says South Florida compensation specialist Ralph Parilla. "Employees are really responsive to it. They see it's difficult out there," he says.

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