AFSCME Information Highway

Source: C2ER, Research in Review, Vol. 13 no. 9

No doubt, outsourcing of US jobs has dominated headlines in many regions impacted by foreign competition. While many U.S. manufacturing jobs have been relocated to overseas, many economic developers have noted an emerging economic force that is propelling foreign-owned companies to invest in U.S. subsidiaries. The Organization for International Investment (OFII) recently released a study, "Insourcing Mergers & Acquisitions," that documents how U.S. firms and workers are benefiting from foreign mergers with or acquisition of U.S. businesses.

To get statistics on jobs supported by U.S. subsidiaries in each state, OFII compiled a database of insourcing jobs by state.

Posted by Info Center at 2:58 PM in Globalization | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: Transworkplace, September 2008

Resource Network on transgender workplace diversity for HR managers, diversity professionals, lawyers, transgender employees and allies

Posted by Info Center at 5:21 PM in LGBT | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: National Resource Center for Family-Centered Practice and Permanency Planning, August 28, 2008

This PDF provides direct links to online licensing standards to states with online access to licensing standards for residential child placement facilities

Posted by Info Center at 5:38 PM in Human Services | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), 2008

The goal of the National MRSA Education Initiative is to help Americans better recongnize and prevent MRSA skin infections.

Why is this important? Recent data show that Americans visit the doctor approximately 12 million times each year to get checked for suspected Staph or MRSA skin infection.

The good news is that a few simple steps can prevent and reduce the spread of MRSA.

Posted by Info Center at 5:29 PM in Health & Safety | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: Institute for Research on Labor and Employment Library, University of California

A one-stop public on-line clearinghouse for cataloged and digitized complete union contract text.

• Labor Contracts, by State
• Labor Contracts, by Union Name
• Labor Contracts, by Represented Occupation

This database serves as a one-stop public on-line clearinghouse for cataloged and digitized complete text of union contracts. Most of these contracts were found on the public Web in a wide variety of file formats.

Posted by Info Center at 5:20 PM in Collective Bargaining | Labor Unions | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: Institute for Quantitative Social Science at Harvard University, 2008

Access the world's largest collection of social science research data here by searching across or browsing through one of the virtual data archives (called "dataverses") listed below. You may also create a dataverse of your own which may easily be customized to appear as if it is on your web page, but in fact is served by the IQSS Dataverse Network. This means that all the scholarly credit, web visibility, and access control for the data devolve to you, but all the work, preservation guarantees, and software and hardware upgrades and maintenance are taken care of by IQSS.

Posted by Info Center at 5:07 PM in Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: Miriam Golden (University of California, Los Angeles); Michael Wallerstein; and Peter Lange (Duke University), 2007

This dataset contains mainly annual data on unions, employers, industrial relations and collective bargaining in 20 OECD countries from 1950 to 2000. Countries included are Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the US, the UK, and New Zealand. This has been partially updated and expanded to 2000.

Posted by Info Center at 5:05 PM in Collective Bargaining | Labor Unions | Statistics | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: UCLA School of Law and the UCLA Institute of Industrial Relations, 2008

The GALS Bibliographic Library contains abstracts of recent law journal articles exploring international labor standards and rights in the global economy. Taken from English language law journals from around the world, GALS provides an annotated bibliography categorized by subject heading. Current subject headings include: Codes of Conduct, Child Labor, NAFTA, WTO, Alien Tort Claims Act, ILO, European Union, Forced Labor, Trade Conditionalty, Women's Rights, etc.

The database allows researchers to search or browse the archive of current and previously posted abstracts by subject, author, journal, date, or keyword.

Posted by Info Center at 5:01 PM in Globalization | Labor Laws/Legislation | Labor Unions | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: AWWA, August 26, 2008

A new Drinking Water Treatability Database, which initially covers about a dozen contaminants, will be expanded to include data on control of more than 250 contaminants with more than 30 treatment processes.

Posted by Info Center at 6:06 PM in Health & Safety | Utilities | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: LERA Commons blog, August 2008

Welcome to the LERA Commons, a collection of blogs by members of the Labor and Employment Relations Association. Leading experts span theory, practice and policy in their comments -- with the aim of engaging dialogue and debate on all aspects of labor and employment relations. Sixty years ago (when LERA was known as the Industrial Relations Research Association), leaders in the field would each sit at tables during the reception at the annual meeting of the association. People would be able to sit down and raise question, engage in discussions and get to know these prominent individuals. Today, the LERA Commons makes this possible at any time during the year and from any location. Log on and post questions or comments to the blog authors. We only ask that you honor our policy, which limits LERA (and bloggers on the LERA web site) from advocating for specific political candidates or specific pending legislation. We also ask that you help to maintain a climate of constructive engagement. This is an important time for labor and employment relations -- we hope and trust that the LERA Commons will help us all to shape the workplace of the future.

Posted by Info Center at 6:01 PM in Labor-Management Relations | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

OAH Hosts National Collaborative for Women's History Sites
Source: National Collaborative for Women's History Sites, Organization of American Historians

The OAH serves as an online host to the National Collaborative for Women's History Sites (NCWHS) web site. NCWHS supports and promotes the preservation and interpretation of sites and locales that bear witness to women's participation in American life. The Collaborative makes women's contributions to history visible so that all women's experiences and potential are fully valued.

Posted by Info Center at 3:05 PM in Labor History | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Working Women | Permalink

Source: Harvard University Library, Open Collections Program

Women Working, 1800 - 1930 focuses on women's role in the United States economy and provides access to digitized historical, manuscript, and image resources selected from Harvard University's library and museum collections. The collection features approximately 500,000 digitized pages and images including:
• 7,500 pages of manuscripts
• 3,500 books and pamphlets
• 1,200 photographs

Posted by Info Center at 3:03 PM in Labor History | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Working Women | Permalink

Source: EBRI Employee Benefit Research Institute Notes, Vol. 29 no. 5, May 2008

Web Documents:
• 2008 Health Care for America Survey: Summary of Findings
• Changes in Family Health Insurance Coverage for Small and Large Firm Workers and Dependents: Evidence from 1995 to 2005
• Consumer-Driven Impact Study
• Current Strategies to Employ and Retain Older Workers
• Employer "Pay or Play" Requirements--Key State and Local Health Care Reform Initiatives
• EP Determination Letter Resource Guide [for retirement plan sponsors]
• FMLA Practices and Perspectives: A Survey of WorldatWork Members
• Hewitt FMLA Resources for Employers
• Improvement in Multiemployer Pension Plans' Withdrawal Liability Funded Ratios Continues
• MetLife Sixth Annual Study of Employee Benefits Trends--Findings from the National Survey of Employers and Employees
• Milliman 2008 Pension Funding Study: 2007 Gains Reversed in First Quarter of 2008
• Retirement Security for Women: Progress To Date and Policies for Tomorrow
• The Role of IRAs in U.S. Households' Saving for Retirement
• Social Security: An Essential Asset and Insurance Protection for All
• Summary of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)

Posted by Info Center at 2:52 PM in Benefits | Health Care | Health Reform | Laws/Legislation | Older People | Pensions | Retirement | Social Security | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Workforce | Permalink

Source: Gannett News Service, 2008

Use the database to search for trends affecting public library systems between 2002 and 2006. To get started, choose a state and then a county. Select a library system from the list to learn more about changes in circulation of items such as books and videos, number of visits to the library, operating expenses and the number of computers for public use. The reports on each system include general demographic information about the counties where those libraries are located.

You can compare how your local library system with others across the country by looking at these reports:
• Public library systems with the highest circulation per capita
• Public library systems with the most Internet-capable public computers per capita
• Public library systems with the largest operating expenses per capita

Posted by Info Center at 1:56 PM in Libraries | Statistics | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink

Source: Peggy Garvin and Deanna Gelak, Online, Vol. 32 no. 5, September/October 2008
(subscription required)

Public disclosure has come to mean availability on the internet, free of charge, for everyone. HLOGA [Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 (Public Law No. 100-81)] brings lobbying disclosure records into the modern world with a requirement that the House of Representatives - via the Clerk of the House's office - and the Senate - via the Secretary of the Senate's office - each make the filings available online "in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable manner."

See also:
■ Lobbying Law and Ethics Rules Changes in the 110th Congress
Source: Jack Maskell, Congressional Research Service, RL34166, September 2007
■ Regulating Lobbyists at the Statehouse
■ Links to State Disclosure Web Sites on Lobbying Disclosure
■ House Lobby Disclosure Filings Search
■ House Lobby Disclosure Website
■ Senate Lobby Disclosure Filings Search
■ Senate Lobby Disclosure Website
■ Foreign Agents Registration Act Disclosure (FARA Document Search)
■ Open Secrets
■ Lobbyists.info (subscription required)

Posted by Info Center at 1:04 PM in Laws/Legislation | Lobbying | Websites/Databases/Blogs | Permalink