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<p align="center"><img border="0" src="hronthejob.jpg" width="504" height="54"></p>
<h2 align="center" style="text-align:center"><font face="Verdana"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">CHECKING
REFERENCES IS SERIOUS BUSINESS</font></b></font></h2>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b>
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Whether
justified or not, employers, these days, are reluctant to give negative references
for ex-employees. </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">They
fear being sued if the ex-employee is turned down for a job as a result of that
reference. Although this has certainly scared many of us to withhold references
altogether, Lawyers report that they have never had a case of an </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">ex-employee
successfully suing when a critical but legitimate reference was issued. </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">However,
the federal government has put controls on employers who check criminal and
credit records of potential employees. Often these two checks are done
automatically. That can be risky for you as an employer unless you establish
the necessity of knowing this information for your specific job. </font></p>
<h3><u><font face="Verdana"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Criminal
Records Check</font></b></font></u></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">First,
you cannot check for <b><i>arrests</i></b><i>.</i> Although that information
may be available to you, you may only request information on <b><i>convictions</i></b>.
Second, if the job does not realistically require a clean criminal record, you
should not dig it up. For example, such jobs as a manual labor, office
clerk or truck mechanic, might still be able to perform their jobs even if they
had a criminal record. But a security guard, a petty cash clerk or someone
in charge of inventory should probably have a criminal record check. One
way to handle this on your employment application form would be to create a
separate sheet or section on the form to be completed only for applicants for
those specific jobs. You don�t want to be charged with refusing to hire
a candidate who was arrested for drug charge that was later dropped or covered
under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). If the information you
seek does not impact this job, then you don�t need to know it. If you
don�t need to know it, you don�t want to know it!</font></p>
<h3><u><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Credit Checking</font></u></h3>
<p class="MsoBodyText"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">The
Fair Credit reporting Act (FCRA) controls credit checking. In short, if
you contact a credit-reporting agency such as TRW, Equifax or a local credit
bureau seeking information regarding a candidate for employment, you must follow
the same mandated procedures as a lending institution or a collection agency:</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: -.5in; margin-left: .75in"> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">1<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span>You must issue a written statement to the job candidate informing her
that you are going to be checking her credit. This must be a stand-alone
document that contains no other information on it.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span>You must obtain the job candidates written authorization allowing you
to check his credit.</font><br>
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">3<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span>The consumer-reporting agency will check you out, as the employer, to
determine if you are in compliance with the FCRA and may contact you.</font><br>
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">4<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span>As the employer, if you are going to refuse employment to the candidate
based on that credit report, you must provide the candidate with:</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: -.25in; margin-left: 1.0in"> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">A.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span>A copy of the credit report</font><br>
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">B.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span>A Summary of the candidates rights under the FCRA</font><br>
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">C.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span>An adverse action notice.</font><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"> </font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyTextIndent"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">The
notice must state that the decision was made as a result of the credit report
from the credit agency named. (You must identify the agency). The
individual has the right to dispute that information. </font></p>
<hr color="#000000" width="40%">
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana"><b><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Question:</font></b><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
My company must cut back at least 10 employees due to the loss of a major contract.
We�re terminating the employees who work on that contract. One of them
is on FMLA leave (Family And Medical Leave Act). Can I terminate that
employee?</font></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>Answer:</b>
Yes, but be sure of your motives! Don�t try to group an employee on FMLA
leave into a termination category that does not actually apply to her.
You want to be sure that you are not terminating her <b><i>because</i></b> she
is on FMLA leave. Courts have already ruled on this. </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">If
an employee is to be legitimately terminated, then being on FMLA leave or even
if she has just filed a sexual harassment case etc, does not prevent you from
terminating her. You should, however, be prepared to prove your motives.
</font></p>
<hr>
<hr>
<table border="0" width="91%" height="376">
<tr>
<td width="100%" height="370">
<h2 align="left"><b><u><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Hitchhiking on the Information
Highway</font></u></b></h2>
<p align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b><font
size="4" color="#FF0000">Dateline: December 2003</font></b></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Note. Although we attempt to provide the HRU update on the first
of each month, we are normally delayed awaiting the release of several
monthly government statistical reports. We will hereafter update the information
as each report becomes available without waiting for all of them to be
released.</font></i></p>
<h3><u><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">ABSENTEEISM</font></u></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">While
many employers, particularly federal and municipal governments, are experiencing
abuses of sick leave, the overall rate of unscheduled absenteeism is in
decline.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">In
city governments, reports that unscheduled absenteeism is out of control,
is causing remedial action by city officials. In Buffalo, New York,
the city�s union employees call in sick 3 times the national average for
private sector employees. On one particular day, 7% of the city�s
entire payroll called in sick. It was the day after a big football
game, which always shoots the sick rate way up. Mondays and Fridays
are also big sick days. The lowest day for sick calls is Thursday,
which is payday. </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">The
city also has a $13.2 million overtime bill, in addition to $2.4 million
paid out for attendance incentives. Buffalo�s city employees average
11 days off per year just for sick calls. </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">The
city is now clamping down by bringing charges and issuing suspensions
and even dismissals for proven abuse. Union officials deny any abuse.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">However,
at the same time, the national rate of unscheduled absence is declining.
As of the end of October, the rate fell to an all time low of 1.9%.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Analysts
credit 2 factors for the improvement.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: -.25in; margin-left: .5in"> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">1.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span> In a bad job market, employees are more conscientious because
of cutbacks. </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: -.25in; margin-left: .5in"> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span> The rates are best in companies that reported high morale among
employees.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">If
you can create a morale-boosting environment in your company, the benefits
may be worth it.</font></p>
<h3><font face="Verdana"><b><span style="text-decoration: underline"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">How�s
Your PowerPoint Presentation Skills?</font></span></b></font></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Consultant
Dave Parodi conducted a survey entitled �The Annoying PowerPoint Survey�.
In the survey he asked:</font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">�What
are the most annoying things about the bad PowerPoint presentations you
have seen?�</font></p>
<table border="0" cellspacing="4" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="57%" id="AutoNumber8">
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">60.4%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">The
speaker reads the slides to us.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">50.9%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Text
so small I couldn�t read it.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">47.8%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Full
sentences instead of bullet points</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">37.1%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Poor
color selection made slides hard to see.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">24.5%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Moving
/ flying text or graphics.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">22.0%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Annoying
use of sounds</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">22.0%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Overly
complex diagrams or charts.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">18.9%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Jumping
around too much, no flow of ideas.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">18.2%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">No
clear purpose of the presentation.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">12.6%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Too
many fonts used.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">6.3%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Graphics
that did not fit the slide topic.</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="10%" align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">5.0%</font></td>
<td width="90%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Poor
quality video or audio segment. </font></td>
</tr>
</table>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><i> (Total
exceeds 100% because people were asked to identify 3 items)</i></font></p>
<h3><font face="Verdana"><u><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Older
Workers On The Way</font></u></font></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">A
recent Human Resources poll asked HR professionals:</font></p>
<h4><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><i>�Is the average
age of your workforce older or younger than it was 10 years ago?�</i></font></h4>
<table border="0" cellspacing="4" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="57%" id="AutoNumber9">
<tr>
<td width="18%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Older:</font></td>
<td width="82%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">58%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="18%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Younger:</font></td>
<td width="82%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">18%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="18%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">The
Same:</font></td>
<td width="82%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">19%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="18%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Don�t
Know:</font></td>
<td width="82%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">3%</font></td>
</tr>
</table>
<h1> </h1>
<h3><font face="Verdana"><u><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Hire
Inside /Hire Outside?</font></u></font></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">A
recent Mellon study found that someone hired from outside the company
will take twice as long to reach full productivity as someone hired from
within. The study also revealed that about 1/2 of those hired from
within will reach a high level of productivity while only about 1/5 of
those hired from outside will ever be considered highly productive. </font></p>
<h2 class="MsoNormal"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="text-decoration: none"><b><u>QUOTES
OF THE MONTH</u></b></span></font></h2>
<span style="text-decoration: none"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">
<p class="MsoNormal">�Never kick a man when he�s up�</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<i>James Carvelle</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">�Its leadership they want, strength. Find that
within yourself and you will earn their respect�</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<i>Master and Commander</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">�There are three principles of thermodynamics:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: -.5in; margin-left: 1.0in"> 1.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span> You can�t win</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: -.5in; margin-left: 1.0in"> 2.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span> You can�t get even</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: -.5in; margin-left: 1.0in"> 3.<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-family: Verdana">
</span> You can�t get out of the game</p>
<i>
Scientist DR. Dennis Overly</i>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">�I was sweating like Mike Tyson at a spelling bee�</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<i> Bill Geist</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">�Today we may say aloud to an awe-struck world: We
are still the master of our fate. We are still the captains of our
souls�</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<i> Winston Churchill</i></p>
<hr width="75%">
<table border="0" width="33%">
<tr>
<td width="64%" valign="top">
<div style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1; padding-left: 4; padding-right: 4; padding-top: 1; padding-bottom: 1">
<p align="left"><font size="-1"
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b>Minimum Wage:</b></font></p>
</div>
</td>
<center>
<td width="100%" valign="top"><font size="-1"
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">$5.15/hr.</font></td>
</center>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="99%">
<tr>
<td width="13%" valign="middle" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1; border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1; border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>Average
Hourly Income:</b></font></td>
<td width="67%" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1">
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="100%" id="AutoNumber4" height="76">
<tr>
<td width="100%" height="76">
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="100%" id="AutoNumber5">
<tr>
<td width="50%" align="center"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Hourly</font></b></td>
<td width="50%" align="center"><b><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Weekly</font></b></td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="100%" id="AutoNumber6" height="50">
<tr>
<td width="25%" height="50">
<p align="center"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><u>
November 2002</u><br>
$15.16</font>
</td>
<td width="25%" height="50">
<p align="center"><u>
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">
November</font></u><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><u>
2003<br>
</u>$15.51</font></td>
<td width="25%" height="50">
<p align="center"><u>
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">
November</font></u><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><u>
2002</u><br>
$510.89</font>
</td>
<td width="25%" height="50">
<p align="center"><u>
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">
November</font></u><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><u>
2003</u><br>
$527.34</font>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
<td width="20%">
<table border="0" width="99%" height="78">
<tr>
<td width="100%" height="40">
<p align="center"><font size="-1"
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b><u>Family of<br>
Four</u></b></font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="100%" height="30">
<p align="center"><font size="-1"
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">$64,000 (annual)</font>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="13%" bgcolor="#C0C0C0" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1; border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>Federal<br>
Poverty Level:</b></font></td>
<td width="67%" bgcolor="#C0C0C0" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1"> </td>
<td width="20%" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p align="center"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">$17,650 (annual)</font>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<table border="0" width="99%">
<tr>
<td width="100%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1">
<h3><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b><u>Benefits <br>
</u></b><i>as a Percentage of Payroll</i></font></h3>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="100%" height="275" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" cellpadding="2">
<tr>
<td width="9%" height="45" valign="top" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1997</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="10%" height="45" valign="top" align="center" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>24.8%</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="49%" height="45" valign="top"> <b><i> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">In
2002, employee benefits represented 30% of the total compensation
an employee received.</font></i></b>
<p><b><i> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Those
benefits ranked are:</font></i></b>
</td>
<td width="15%" height="45" valign="top"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="9%" height="46" valign="top" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font size="-1"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
1998</font></b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="10%" height="46" valign="top" align="center" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>23.4%</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="49%" height="46" valign="top"><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
Health Care Benefits</font></td>
<td width="15%" height="46" valign="top"><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
11.5%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="9%" height="46" valign="top" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font size="-1"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
1999</font></b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="10%" height="46" valign="top" align="center" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>22.8%</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="49%" height="46" valign="top"><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
Paid Time Off</font></td>
<td width="15%" height="46" valign="top"><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
10.4%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="9%" height="46" valign="top" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font size="-1"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
2000</font></b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="10%" height="46" valign="top" align="center" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>26.1%</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="49%" height="46" valign="top"><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
Retirement Savings Plan</font></td>
<td width="15%" height="46" valign="top"><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
8.1%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="9%" height="46" valign="top" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font size="-1"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
2001</font></b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="10%" height="46" valign="top" align="center" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>27.1%</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="49%" height="46" valign="top"> <font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b>Total
Benefits (As a percentage of total compensation)</b></font></td>
<td width="15%" height="46" valign="top"> <font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b>
30%</b></font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="9%" height="46" valign="top" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font size="-1"><b><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">
2002</font></b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="10%" height="46" valign="top" align="center" bordercolor="#000080" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>
30.0%</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="49%" height="46" valign="top"> </td>
<td width="15%" height="46" valign="top"> </td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<b>
<table border="0" width="100%">
<tr>
<td width="37%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1">
<p align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>IRS Mileage Allowance :</b></font></p>
</td>
<center>
<td width="63%" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1">
<div align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">36 cents per mile<br>
<i>Increases to 37.5 cents per mile effective January 1, 2004</i></font></div>
</td>
</center>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<tr>
<td width="32%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1">
<p align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>Postage:</b></font></p>
</td>
<center>
<td width="68%" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1"> </td>
</center>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%" style="border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">1 oz.</font></td>
<td width="68%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">.37</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Each additional ounce</font></td>
<td width="68%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">.23</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><i>Postcards</i></font></td>
<td width="68%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">.23</font></td>
</tr>
</table>
</b>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<b>
<p>
<table border="0" width="99%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td width="100%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>Where Uncle Sam got his money in 2001:</b></font></td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="99%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td width="61%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Individual income tax</font></td>
<td width="39%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">49%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="61%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Payroll taxes</font></td>
<td width="39%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">33%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="61%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Corporate taxes</font></td>
<td width="39%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">10%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="61%"><font size="-1">Excise Taxes</font></td>
<td width="39%">
<p align="right"><font size="-1">3</font><span style="text-decoration: none"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">%</font></span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="61%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Other</font></td>
<td width="39%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">4%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="61%"> </td>
<td width="39%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b> </b>(rounded)<b> 100%</b></font>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<table border="0" width="38%" bgcolor="#C0C0C0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td width="100%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>Where your federal tax dollar went in 2001:</b></font></td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="99%" bgcolor="#C0C0C0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Social Security</font></td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">23%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Discretionary</font></td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">19%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Defense</font></td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">16%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Medicare (over 65 years of age)</font></td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">12%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Interest on National Debt</font></td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">10%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Medicaid</font></td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">7%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font size="-1">Other Mandatory</font></td>
<td width="33%"> <span style="text-decoration: none"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">
<p align="right">7%<b> </b>
</font></span> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Other Entitlements</font></td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">6%</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="67%"> </td>
<td width="33%">
<p align="right"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>100%</b></font>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<table border="0" width="98%">
<tr>
<td width="34%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1">
<p align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b><u>Population:</u></b></font></p>
</td>
<center>
<td width="82%" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1"> </td>
</center>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="34%" style="border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>World</b></font></td>
<td width="82%">
<p align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">6.3 billion</font>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="34%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>U.S.</b></font></td>
<td width="82%">
<p align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">291 million</font>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</b>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<table border="1" width="99%" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<tr> <b>
<td width="48%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1">
<p align="left"><b> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">U.S.
Workforce</font></b></p>
</td>
</b>
<center>
<b>
<td width="12%" align="center"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><u><b>
November 2002</b></u></font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><u><b>
November 2003</b></u></font></td>
</b>
</center>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="48%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">U.S. Civilian Workforce</font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">144,854,000</font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center"><font size="-1">146,969,000</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="48%"><font size="-1">Number Employed</font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center"> <font size="-1">136,684,000</font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center"> <font size="-1">138,700,000</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="48%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Number Unemployed</font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center"> <font size="-1">8,170,000</font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center"> <font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">
8,</font><font size="-1">269,000</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="48%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1">Unemployment Rate</font></td>
<td width="12%" align="center">
<p><font size="-1">5.6</font><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">%</font></p>
</td>
<td width="12%" align="center">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">5.9%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<p><b>COMPARITIVE WORLD UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR MAY 2003:</b></p>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="100%" id="AutoNumber7">
<tr>
<td width="40%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">France</font></td>
<td width="60%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">9.2%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="40%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Germany</font></td>
<td width="60%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">9.2%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="40%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Canada</font></td>
<td width="60%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">7.0%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="40%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Sweden</font></td>
<td width="60%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">6.1%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="40%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">United
States</font></td>
<td width="60%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">6.1%</font></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="40%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Japan</font></td>
<td width="60%"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">5.5%</font></td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<table border="0" width="98%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" height="96">
<tr>
<td width="25%" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1" height="48">
<p align="left"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size="-1"><b>Absentee Rates (annualized)</b></font></p>
</td>
<center>
<td width="10%" align="center" valign="top" style="border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b><u>1997</u></b></font></td>
<td width="10%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b><u>1998</u></b></font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b><u>1999</u></b></font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b><u>2000</u></b></font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b><u>2001</u></b></font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b><u>2002</u></b></font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b><u>3rd
Quarter<br>
2003</u></b></font></td>
</center>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="25%" style="border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1" height="48">
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">Men equal
approximately 1/3 of all absenteeism<br>
Women approximately 2/3</font></td>
<td width="10%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.0%</font></td>
<td width="10%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.6%</font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.4%</font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48"><font
face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.9%</font></td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.1%</font></p>
</td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48">
<p><font size="-1">3.6</font><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">%</font></p>
</td>
<td width="11%" align="center" valign="top" height="48">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">1.9%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr noshade color="#000000">
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="100%" id="AutoNumber3" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<tr>
<td width="100%">
<h4><b><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">PRODUCTIVITY
OF THE AMERICAN WORKFORCE</font></b><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><br>
(The amount of goods produced, divided by the number of work hours
it took to produce it)</font></h4>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" width="100%" id="AutoNumber2" bgcolor="#C0C0C0">
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1992</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">3.7%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1993</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">0.5%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1994</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">1.3%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1995</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">0.9%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1996</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.5%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1997</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.0%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1998</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.6%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>1999</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.4%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>2000</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">2.9%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>2001</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">1.1%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><b>2002</b></font></p>
</td>
<td width="68%">
<p><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">4.7%</font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="32%"> </td>
<td width="68%"> </td>
</tr>
</table>
</font></span>
<h3 align="center"><span style="text-decoration: none">
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2"><b>UP
8.1% IN THE 3<sup>rd</sup> QUARTER OF 2003</b></font></span></h3>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>� 2003 William J. Cook</p>
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