Fred Harteis News Articles

Fred Harteis News Articles - Eight High-Stress Jobs

Fred Harteis News Articles - If you want to find a job that is free of stress, you're out of luck. Only characters in movies and on TV have jobs that don't cause occasional hair-pulling or high blood pressure. These are the same people who have huge apartments overlooking skylines and plenty of time to hang out with friends. Their jobs have unbelievably flexible hours.

 

In real life, however, every job you take, no matter how big or small, finds you stressed out once in a while. Whether you're dealing with an endless line of customers, a demanding executive or an uncertain economy, anxiety will find you. It's just part of life.

 

According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, occupational stress originates from a variety of issues, including:

 

Long hours with few or no breaks

Employees unable to participate in the decision-making process.

Job insecurity and large amounts of impending change

Physical danger

 

Some jobs have more stress than others. That's not to say they're bad jobs, they just require people who are strong enough to handle the increased stress that comes their way. Here are eight of them:

 

1. Retail Salespersons

Why: Jobs in sales require you to convince customers to spend money. Customers don't necessarily want to spend money and even if they do, they have a variety of places to shop. Salespeople have to prove their merchandise is the best option. If that weren't stressful enough, retail compensation is often commission-based, which means your paycheck is tied to how much you sell. What they earn: $24,530

 

2. Doctors and nurses

Why: Doctors and nurses deal with life and death on a regular basis, a pressure found in few occupations. They have to handle patients while accessing an encyclopedia of medical knowledge. Doctors and nurses who work in hospitals or clinics that don't keep regular business hours often work on little sleep and are on call even on days off. In recent years doctors have also been forced to deal with an increase in malpractice lawsuits.

What they earn: Internal medicine physician: $166,420; Registered nurse: $62,480

 

3. Accountants

Why: Crunching numbers requires attention to detail that can make your eyes cross. Not only are you dealing with a client's finances, but you also have to take into account volumes of rules and regulations that change each year. Plus, you're expected to know about minute loopholes and read tiny print that nobody else does.

What they earn: $44,632

 

4. Teachers

Why: Elementary and high school teachers put up with a lot. Students aren't always easy to control or motivate. Parents who can't understand why their children aren't doing better often place the blame with teachers. And pressure to prepare students for standardized tests mean they can't always stick to the lesson plans they'd prefer to teach.

What they earn: Elementary teacher: $43,421; High school teacher: $46,531

 

5. Firefighters

Why: When firefighters are on call, they've got to be ready to respond to emergencies that range from minor car accidents to huge explosions. They might go an entire shift with no emergency or they might get a call that keeps them out for hours. Perhaps most importantly, they're playing with fire literally. That's stressful enough.

 

6. Farmers

Why: Agriculture requires constant attention, from waking up early to strenuous physical activity. That alone isn't stressful, but having no control over nature is. Droughts, floods, fires or other natural disasters can ruin months of hard work, and you can't do much about it.

What they earn: $23,508

 

7. Automotive assembly workers

Why: The automotive industry has always been volatile as manufacturers respond to the whims of consumers who want coupes one moment and SUVs the next. Add the pressure of assembling vehicles so that people who spend thousands of dollars can travel safely, and you've got a stressful job.

What they earn: $42,480

 

8. Stock brokers

Why: You can feel a bit helpless working at a job that's at the mercy of the stock market and economy. When things are going great, you reap the rewards, but when the financial climate isn't so great or the future is uncertain, you have no choice but to ride it out. Plus, competition is high for these jobs.

What they earn: $61,151

 

Source: Aol.com

 

About Fred Harteis: Fred Harteis leads Harteis International.      Fred Harteis has a background in agriculture and has created many successful business ventures.

 

 

Fred Harteis News Articles- IRS Softens Rules in Hard Times

Fred Harteis News Articles-  You know it's tough economic times when the Internal Revenue Service says it will waive late penalties and negotiate payment plans for struggling taxpayers. But with 10 million people out of work as tax-filing season approaches, the IRS is changing its rules to show that the tax man does indeed feel your pain. It announced new steps it's taking to help financially-stressed taxpayers who make good-faith efforts to pay up.

 

They include:

* Collection suspensions: IRS employees now have greater authority to suspend collection actions in cases where taxpayers simply can't pay.

 

* Flexibility for missed payments: Taxpayers can skip a payment or get a reduced monthly payment without automatically suspending their existing installment agreement for back taxes. Previously, the full amount would be due if a payment was missed or late.

 

* Home equity adjustments: Because of the cratering housing market, the IRS is setting up a special unit to handle cases where a home's value has hindered efforts to reach an "offer in compromise." An OIC agreement lets a taxpayer who can' meet the periodic payment terms settle a tax debt for less than what's owed. Now in cases when home equity is a roadblock, the IRS will give a second look and can offer options to avoid default.

 

* Speeding up "levy releases": For those whose wages or bank accounts are garnished for delinquent back taxes, the IRS is loosening its requirements for "levy releases" of those amounts.

 

* Expanding its free e-filing program: It will now include virtually all taxpayers, regardless of income level, to speed up payments and refunds.

 

IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman announced he's giving his tax agents more leeway to work with taxpayers through their problems. "I've instructed all personnel to be sensitive to taxpayers, especially taxpayers who have previously been compliant....If they pick up the phone or write to us, our people have been instructed to work with taxpayers through these tough economic times." But he emphasizes that the IRS will offer help to Americans who seek out help and show why they're unable to pay. Those who fail to file returns or ignore collection notices will get the cold shoulder. "The most important thing for people to do is to get on the phone or walk into an IRS office."

To help you figure out how to file taxes during an economic downturn, check out the IRS' "What Ifs?" page, which explains the tax situation for different scenarios like unemployment, IRA withdrawals, hits to your 401k and home equity woes. If you're having problems and want to get a jumpstart, you can call the IRS toll-free at 800-829-1040.

 

Source: Aol.com

 

About Fred Harteis: Fred Harteis leads Harteis International.      Fred Harteis has a background in agriculture and has created many successful business ventures.

 

 

Fred Harteis News Articles - Life after a six-figure salary

Fred Harteis News Articles - Happy new year and welcome to your new job. One that pays 30%, 50%, 70% less than your old one.

 

That's right: With more than three job seekers for every opening, more workers are having to take significant pay cuts to find employment.

 

"For people who have been laid off, this is obviously a buyer's market," said Ravin Jesuthasan, a managing principal at Towers Perrin. "We're seeing pay levels in new positions coming down."

 

In fact, 63% of unemployed workers said they would be willing to accept a job offer that pays less than their previous job, according to a recent survey conducted by the National Employment Law Project. Still, only 37% of respondents expressed high confidence in finding a job in the next four months despite being willing to make such a sacrifice.

 

Nearly 2 million jobs were lost in 2008 and economists say the unemployment rate, which stands at 6.7%, will continue to rise into 2010.

 

"People realize that this is a different environment, said Jeff Joerres, chairman and CEO of employment services firm Manpower. "People are more anxious and are willing to secure something even if it is less."

 

Shaun Chedister, 30, is one of those people. Chedister was laid off from his job at Washington Mutual at the end of last year. After eight months of actively looking for work to help support his wife and four children, he accepted an offer from Ernst & Young even though the new position as an executive administrator paid less than half of what he was making before.

 

"My unemployment had run out, and I had to get something," he explained.

 

But the adjustment to making $66,000 a year from $125,000 has been hard. "For the last four to five years I'd been making six figures," Chedister said. "My lifestyle had been at a certain level."

 

Now Chedister said he's looking for a more affordable home. Last week one of the family's cars was repossessed after he got behind on the payments.

 

"It could be worse," he said, I could still be unemployed."

 

Often the hardest part of accepting a pay cut is the change in lifestyle that goes along with it, says Manpower's Joerres. "When you recalibrate your earnings expectations that means you have to recalibrate your lifestyle as well."

 

And for those living paycheck to paycheck, that can mean having to move, sell possessions or give up everyday extravagances such as cable TV or phone service.

 

Source: Cnn.com

 

About Fred Harteis: Fred Harteis leads Harteis International.      Fred Harteis has a background in agriculture and has created many successful business ventures.

 

 

 

 

Fred Harteis News Articles - Kick the debt habit

Fred Harteis News Articles-  The year of 2008 was marked by massive 401(k) losses, more people out of work and more homes in foreclosure. But 2009 can be different for your wallet. Here's how to kick your debt habit.

 

1. Review your habits

Credit Card debt is one of the most costly out there. Our habits - like only paying the minimum amount each month can dig us deeper into debt.

 

For example: If you have a balance of $5,000 dollars and you only make the minimum monthly payment, it will take you 351 months to pay off that debt. And you will have paid over $6,500 in interest.

 

We're assuming the interest rate on this card is 14%. Now if you took that same beginning balance and made fixed payments of $120, you would have that debt wiped out in 58 months. Your interest savings: $4,600.00.

 

2. Don't charge it

Pay in cash when possible. A Report by Dun & Bradstreet indicates that shoppers spend 12% to 18% less when using cash.

 

3. Lower your interest rate

Don't be afraid to ask for a lower rate.

 

Here's when you stand a good chance of winning: Your APR is over 12%; you make timely payments for 6-12 months. Your rate was raised several times and balances are consistently less than 30% of limit.

 

Remember, people who call to negotiate a lower rate succeeded more than half the time.

 

Source: Cnn.com

 

About Fred Harteis: Fred Harteis leads Harteis International.      Fred Harteis has a background in agriculture and has created many successful business ventures.

Fred Harteis Health News - Got the flu? CDC says Tamiflu may not be much help

Fred Harteis Health News - The medical arsenal against the flu just got weaker. Government health officials said Friday that a leading flu medicine, Tamiflu, might not work against all cases of the flu this year. The most common flu bug right now is overwhelmingly resistant to Tamiflu, they said. The alert is "an early heads-up" for doctors. If current trends continue, they may need to change how they treat patients this flu season, said Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

 

Health officials say they aren't too worried, for several reasons. First, it's early in the flu season, and it's not clear this strain will dominate through the next several months. Second, not many people take antiviral medications for the flu.

 

Third, the flu vaccine — the primary weapon against flu — seems well matched against the circulating bugs.

 

But doctors need to take it seriously, said William Schaffner, a Vanderbilt University infectious diseases expert.

 

"Each influenza seasons provides a bit of a surprise and we got our (surprise) a little early this year," he added.

 

The flu causes 200,000 hospitalizations and 36,000 deaths annually, according to official estimates. The elderly, young children and people with chronic illnesses are considered at greatest risk.

 

For the public, the best course of action is vaccination, health officials said. Only about 30 percent of U.S. adults had gotten a flu vaccination this flu season, according to an online survey conducted by the RAND Corporation in November. A flu shot is recommended for those 50 and older, children from 6 months to 18 years, pregnant women, nursing home patients and those with certain medical conditions or who care for people with those conditions.

 

For people who get the flu, the two most commonly used antivirals are Tamiflu, a pill also known as oseltamivir, and Relenza, an inhaled drug also called zanamivir. The drugs are most effective if taken within two days of getting sick but most people don't see a doctor that quickly.

 

Early tests indicate that 49 of 50 samples of the main flu virus circulating this year — H1N1 — were resistant to Tamiflu. The samples came mainly from Hawaii, Texas and ten other states. Widespread flu has not yet been reported in most of the country.

 

"It could fizzle out," or H1N1 could become the dominant strain, Gerberding said.

 

To read this complete Fred Harteis Health News visit our news partner at:

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081219/ap_on_he_me/med_flu_drug_resistance

 

Source: Yahoo.com

 

About Fred Harteis: Fred Harteis leads Harteis International. Fred Harteis has a background in agriculture and has created many successful business ventures.