It appears that some of those pesky oil speculators have decided to cash out of the big oil futures crap game, according to MSNBC.
Oil continues its rapid fall, down more than $20 over the past several days – despite some of the traditional factors that have triggered mass hysteria and big price run-ups on the trading floor like hurricanes, threats against pipeline security and the like.
While at the same time, what appeared to be bi-partisan action in Congress to crack down on speculators has been bogged down in a procedural squabble.
Employers, perhaps mine in particular, may wonder about productivity when they see e-mails in inboxes like “Take this quiz to find out what kind of sports car you are!” Or, “Celebrities caught without makeup!” Those are just two that made it into mine today.
Not exactly work related, of course. But they’re certainly fun little breaks that make a deadline-filled afternoon a little less stressful.
In case you’re wondering, I’m apparently a Lamborghini Murcieglago. And the quiz says that in a world full of sheep, I’m a raging bull. A few of my interview subjects surely would agree.
A market analysis by PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute frustratingly predicts that health care costs will continue to outpace the rate of inflation next year.
Its report, called “Behind the numbers: Medical cost trends for 2009,” notes that employers will rely on prevention and disease management programs to temper costs in 2009 rather than shifting higher levels of cost-sharing onto workers.
Among their reasons:
Only 38 percent of employers surveyed said they expected to increase cost-sharing through plan design changes.
Wellness programs have become commonplace — two-thirds of employers are using them, and nearly half say they are somewhat effective at reducing costs.
Wellness programs aren’t merely a cost-reduction tactic. Employers said these initiatives were nearly equally effective at boosting productivity, improving employee loyalty and demonstrating corporate loyalty.
Many Wichita employers are embracing wellness programs. Where does your company stand on this? Is it worth the effort?
JWink, a blog reader who likes commenting on our posts, wonders why other people aren’t commenting more. And one of my colleagues, who shall remain nameless, whined about this very thing just yesterday.
I know there are lots of you out there reading Business Casual because you comment on it to me personally (thanks for all the support over my cable woes, by the way), so I would encourage you to start commenting here, too. We’d like this to be an interactive forum. Tell us what you like and what you could do without. Unless, of course, it’s something I’ve written, in which case keep it to yourself!