A railroad company is expanding and plans on hiring hundreds for skilled trade jobs in Pennsylvania and a variety of other locations.

Norfolk Southern Corporation plans to hire 500 employees in eight states by the end of 2011 to meet the growing demand for freight rail service and to replace employees retiring in coming years. Read the rest of this entry »

A new survey posits there has been a big increase in the number of jobs in Maryland.

The Intuit Inc. Small Business Employment Index found that small business employment grew by 0.3 percent in September, equating to an annual growth rate of 3.3 percent. Hours worked and compensation both increased by 0.3 percent.

“Small business employment at the division and state level also looks more positive,” said Ginny Lee, senior vice president and general manager of Intuit’s Employee Management Solutions division. “The Pacific division posted the greatest increase of 0.5 percent while the East South Central division showed a slight decline but one that’s statistically insignificant. At the state level, California, Florida and Maryland all showed the highest growth with an increase of 0.5 percent. Oregon and New York were the only states to show slight declines but again these were statistically insignificant and therefore not worrisome.”

Florida jobs are also marking an increase.

Since the hiring trend began in October 2009, small businesses have created 720,000 new jobs. The Index is based on figures from small businesses with fewer than 20 employees that use Intuit Online Payroll.

Based on these latest numbers and revised national employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Intuit revised upward the previously reported growth rate for August to 0.3 percent from 0.18 percent. This equates to 65,000 jobs added in August, up from a previously reported 35,000 jobs.

“September’s small business employment figures are a big relief,” said Susan Woodward, the economist who worked with Intuit to create the Index. “After all the uproar over the threatened European financial meltdown, good news is very welcome. Unlike in August, there is no softness in September’s numbers: employment is up, hours worked are up and compensation is up.

“These solid numbers may be due to the fact that residential property prices have increased for five months in a row. There are all kinds of small businesses linked to property, such as construction contractors, real estate agents and brokers.”

Small business hourly employees worked an average of 110.4 hours in September, making for a 25.5-hour workweek. This is a 0.3 percent increase from the revised August figure of 110.0 hours.

According to a recent survey, human resources jobs in Washington, D.C. are burgeoning.

In August, more than 6,800 new jobs were advertised online for Human Resources positions, according to WANTED Analytics , the source of real-time business intelligence for the talent marketplace. Hiring demand for HR professionals has seen a steady increase this year, now up 28% versus the beginning of 2011 and up 33% versus August 2010. Approximately 3,500 job ads were placed by direct employers, representing 52% of the total hiring demand.

The metropolitan areas with the highest hiring demand for Human Resources professionals during this period were New York, Washington, DC, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Boston. Employers and staffing firms in New York placed more than 530 new online job ads for this field, the most of any city.

Human resources jobs in Chicago are also increasing.

The five most common HR job titles that have been advertised online are Recruiter, Human Resources Assistant, Payroll Specialist, Human Resources Specialist and Payroll Clerk. Personnel Recruiters were the most demanded HR function during August, with demand up 58% versus the same period in 2010.

Despite overall flat employment in the U.S., demand for HR skills has steadily increased since 2009 and recruiting conditions will be moderately difficult across the US. According to the Hiring Scale, the nationwide talent pool consists of approximately 9 potential candidates in the workforce for each recruiting related job ad and 10 potential candidates for each training and development job. However, each location will experience varying degrees of difficulty. For example, the talent pool in Washington, DC is smaller than average, with about 7 potential candidates per recruiting job and 6 candidates per training specialist opening.

Sheetz announced that it will be recruiting for management jobs in Pennsylvania, among other positions.

Hundreds of Chambersburg area residents are expected to be waiting in line for 400 gallons of free gas and $6,000 in gift cards as part of the opening celebration for Sheetz’ 400th store beginning at 11 a.m. this Thursday, August 25. The new 5,700 square foot store located at 1819 Wayne Road also includes a car wash and is Sheetz’ fourth location in the Chambersburg area.
During Thursday’s grand opening activities the first 50 people in line when the store opens will receive a $100 Sheetz Z-Card with one additional customer receiving a $1,000 Sheetz Z-Card.

On Friday, August 26th, Sheetz will give away a total of 400 gallons of gas at randomly selected pumps beginning at noon.
As part of the grand opening, Sheetz will make a donation to Special Olympics Pennsylvania, a cause the company has supported since 1992 through financial and product contributions as well as providing event volunteers.

“Our customers have come to expect the best from Sheetz,” says Stan Sheetz, company president and CEO. “That is why this new store is so important. The milestone of reaching 400 stores is special, but the new store gives us a higher level of excellence in service for our customers”

The new Sheetz will be open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and will offer a full line of fresh food and drinks including sandwiches, wraps, donuts and muffins, along with the signature MTO® line of freshly made foods including burgers, subs, sandwiches and fresh salads.

Also available will be Sheetz Bros. Coffeez® from a full-service espresso and smoothie bar, staffed by a trained barista, where customers can order hand-made specialty hot, frozen or iced coffee drinks including lattes, cappuccinos and mochas.
“This is a special day for the entire Sheetz organization and we are excited to be able to show our appreciation in an extra special way with the residents of the Chambersburg area who have been great customers of ours for more than 30 years,” Sheetz says.

A new survey posits that jobs in Washington, D.C., especially federal jobs, might be on the chopping block come next year.

Employers announced plans to shed 115,730 workers from their payrolls in September, making it the worst jobcut month in over two years. Heavy reductions planned by the military accounted for a large portion of September job cuts, signaling what may lieahead as the federal government seeks across-the-board cuts in spending.

September job cuts were 126 percent higher than the 51,114 announced in August, according to the latest report on monthly job cuts released Wednesday by global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. They were 212 percent higher than September 2010, when employers announced just 37,151 job cuts. Last month’s total is the highest since April 2009, when 132,590 job cuts were announced.

The September surge brought the number of job cuts announced in the third quarter to 233,258, the highest quarterly toll since the third quarter of 2009. That figure is up 103 percent from the previous quarter and 105 percent higher than the same quarter a year ago.

One-third of the layoffs announced this year came from government employers. It is, by far, the largest job-cutting sector, with 159,588 announced job cuts to date. This figure includes 54,182 government-sector cuts in September, 50,000 of which are the result of a five-year troop reduction plan announced by the United States Army.

This means Jacksonville federal jobs may also get cut.

The second largest job-cutting sector to date is the financial sector, which announced 54,013 planned layoffs between January 1 and the end of September. That is up 177 percent from the 19,474 job cuts recorded over the first three quarters of 2010. Of the 54,013 financial job cuts this year, 31,167 occurred in September, with 30,000 resulting from Bank of America’s multi-year workforce reduction plan aimed at saving the struggling bank $5 billion per year.

According to a new survey from Manpower, jobs in Maryland are experiencing significant growth, especially in the Baltimore area.

Recently ManpowerGroup surveyed more than 18,000 employers in 100 metropolitan areas to find out who’s hiring, who’s firing and who plans to maintain their current staff levels in the fourth quarter of 2011, October through December.

In Baltimore-Townson, twenty percent of that metro area’s hiring managers anticipate a bright fourth quarter.

Seven percent expect to terminate workers, 71 percent anticipate no change and 2 percent are uncertain. Read the rest of this entry »

A new bill has just been introduced that would make the federal hiring process more efficient and improve jobs in Maryland.

U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) joined Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) and Congressman John Sarbanes (D-Maryland) in introducing the Federal Hiring Process Improvement Act of 2011. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) was also an original co-sponsor. This legislation would streamline the Federal hiring process to conform to private sector best practices.

The bill should also improve jobs in Boston as well.

In the coming decade, close to 50 percent of the federal workforce will be eligible to retire, making the development of the next generation of federal workers even more vital. Some federal agencies still take as long as 200 days from the date of a vacancy to hire — delays that compromise federal recruitment, jeopardize government operations, and waste taxpayer dollars. The federal government needs to adapt, just as the private sector has, in order to recruit the next generation of federal workers.

“This legislation is a common sense approach that will streamline and improve the hiring process for federal jobs so we can ensure that the most qualified, talented people are hired,” said Senator Cardin, a member of the Budget and Finance committees. “Recruitment is the backbone of every well-run organization, and it’s time that the federal government modernize and upgrade its recruitment process to make it more efficient and effective.” Read the rest of this entry »

Hyrell Partners, a web-based hiring solution, announced this week the launch of a distribution and content partnership with Criteria Corp, a move that will improve onboarding for Pennsylvania jobs.

Criteria Corp is a provider of pre-employment testing services.

The move is expected to not only affect Pennsylvania jobs, but also jobs nationwide, including Atlanta jobs.
Read the rest of this entry »

Town Sports International said this week it is recruiting hundreds for fitness jobs in Washington, D.C.

The company is looking to fill more than 1,000 jobs in the northeast and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.

TSI is looking for new employees that have a passion for fitness and serving others. The company is currently hiring personal trainers, club managers, membership consultants, laundry and cleaning associates, facilities technicians and specialized instructors for tennis, swimming and squash.
Read the rest of this entry »

The rebound of carmakers is having a ripple affect that is creating manufacturing jobs in Washington, D.C. and other areas.

The AIADA newsletter reported that Honda Motor Co. is making $355 million of upgrades at plants in Ohio where it opened its first After a massive restructuring and several high-profile bankruptcies, a leaner, more aggressive auto industry is making a comeback, hiring workers and ramping up manufacturing plants, according to the Los Angeles Times.

And it’s not just the Detroit manufacturers that are thriving. Nissan, VW, and other internationally-based firms are expanding in the United States, putting billions of dollars into building and refurbishing plants. Read the rest of this entry »