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Interior designers drawn to top metro areas
Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & FixturesFor the second year in a row, during a 12-month period from May 2018 to May 2019, the numbers of employed interior designers shifted dramatically toward the nation's top metro areas. Demand for designers, as indicated by a substantial rise in hiring, seems to have made it possible for some designers to relocate to more desirable positions and/or locations. Even though interior design employment has grown every year since 2015, some states have experienced notable declines in employed designers.
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Be careful issuing bonuses to nonexempt workers who keep working during…
D. Albert Brannen Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementEmployers who are working hard to stay open during the COVID-19 pandemic are looking for innovative ways to reward and recognize employees who are going "the extra mile" and continuing to work despite the invisible threat of the virus to their safety. Employers who choose to use special bonuses or other lump sum payments need to be aware that bonus payments should be included in the calculations for determining how much overtime is due to nonexempt employees.
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Sellers pull back as housing market tumbles
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsIn spite of rising home values, sellers began pulling their homes off the market during the last two weeks of March as the health emergency created by the COVID-19 pandemic began shutting down the economy. Consequently, sales for the month plummeted, and already tight inventories declined even further. Homebuying activity has not stopped altogether but is expected to slow substantially throughout the spring.
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Is a new New Deal possible?
Seth Sandronsky Civil & GovernmentWith COVID-19 closing businesses across the U.S., the buying power of jobless workers is plunging. A parallel is the Great Depression of the 1930s. Then, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his wife, Eleanor, spearheaded the New Deal. A series of programs, it expanded the federal government's role in the economy to boost weak demand and revive commerce. Is a new New Deal a possibility, and if so, what would it look like?
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Airports are using the COVID-19 lockdown to undertake essential works
Matt Falcus Transportation Technology & AutomotiveOne of the most difficult projects for busy airports to manage is refurbishing or rehabilitating infrastructure such as a runway when it is still required for aircraft use. Yet, with the global lockdown, airports are finding an opportunity to undertake these works with little disruption to operations. Press releases and local news reports from across the world tell of the work airports are undertaking to improve and repair runways and taxiways. In many cases, planned works have been brought forward to take advantage of the current situation and lack of traffic.
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3 ways to manage the impact of COVID-19 in the construction industry
Rachel Porter Construction & Building MaterialsOne of the industries most severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic is the construction sector. All over the world, even some of the biggest-ticket public infrastructure projects have been put on hold. The future remains uncertain, as the construction sector is now in a situation where there are lingering questions in the air as to the effectivity and validity of contractors insurance policies in the time of coronavirus. However, there are still ways to manage the impact of COVID-19 in the construction industry.
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Design’s role in the coming recovery
Lloyd Princeton Interior Design, Furnishings & FixturesNobel laureate in physics Nils Bohr wisely observed, "Prediction is very difficult, especially if it's about the future." With so many things in flux at the moment, it is pointless to try to predict what will happen in the coming months or years as countries around the world seek to recuperate from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. I do think, however, it is useful as a means of preparation to consider what recovery may look like and how interior design can help to facilitate the transition to whatever the new normal will be.
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Making up for lost time
Linda Popky Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementAs the lockdown for COVID-19 enters its second month in most locations, it's becoming apparent there are businesses that are thriving, but many more businesses are suffering. Some of these businesses will recover once the economy begins to breathe again. But some time-based purchases will never be made up. For example, we are not going to go get two haircuts because we missed one. Nor are we going to get two dental checkups at once or attend two meetings of the same association at once to make up for one that was canceled. So, what are we to do? Here are a few ideas.
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What happens when the hospitality sector reopens?
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsJust before the COVID-19 pandemic brought the industry nearly to a halt, U.S. hotel construction hit an all-time high in March. Other projects were queueing up in the pipeline. Now, as with so many industries at present, the future of those projects as well as of hospitality in general remains in doubt. Once travel restrictions begin to loosen up, will guests come back, which ones, and how soon are questions both travel and hospitality analysts are trying to answer.
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Does workers’ compensation cover coronavirus?
Grace Ferguson Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementThough we still have much to learn about the novel coronavirus, symptoms range from mild to severe and can lead to death. In response, lawmakers and industry leaders have been implementing relief for impacted individuals — such as paid leave, additional unemployment benefits, and free COVID-19 testing. A common question among employees is whether relief extends to workers' compensation, also known as workers' comp. Long story short, if you're exposed to COVID-19 on the job, you might have a hard time getting workers' compensation — unless you’re a healthcare provider or first responder.
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