Saint Louis Job News & Opportunities St. Louis Front Page is a weekly news publication, with daily updates, spotlighting attractions, events, business and hospitality in St. Louis, Missouri and Southwest Illinois. St. Louis News Community Info St. Louis Job News St. Louis CitySide Business News St. Charles News Southwest, IL News Fairview Heights,IL Art Gallery News Hotel News Restaurant News Style St. Louis Not Just For Kids   Downtown Map America's Center Busch Stadium Gateway Arch Scottrade Center Laclede's Landing Old Courthouse Union Station Washington Avenue   Metropolitan Map Casinos Clayton, MO Grand Center Grant's Farm Forest Park Kimmswick, MO MO Botanical Garden Soulard St. Charles, MO West Port Plaza Transportation Lambert Airport How To Reach Us: St. Louis Front Page P.O. Box 1354 St. Louis, MO 63188 Voice: 314-771-0200 Fax: 314-771-0300 To submit news, contact: editor@slfp.com To advertise, contact: advertising@slfp.com Job-hunting Teens: Is This Summer Job Right for You? ST. LOUIS (PRNewswire), May 25, 2008 - Responding to accounts of scams and crimes committed against consumers by traveling sales crews -- and risks faced by crew members themselves -- the National Consumers League and Direct Selling Education Foundation have teamed up to create educational materials to help consumers and teen workers distinguish reputable door-to-door sales and charitable sales from unethical companies. Opportunities with legitimate companies that follow a code of ethics, such as those provided by Direct Selling Association member companies, are a great way for many young workers to earn income. As a sluggish economy strains the wallets of consumers, however, advocates caution teenagers in search of a summer job against accepting offers of employment by traveling sales crews. "NCL's long history of fighting for the rights of workers and consumers finds us fittingly warning both workers and consumers about traveling sales crews. Consumers certainly don't want to buy products from exploited and often physically abused young workers, and those who do are unlikely to receive the very magazines they paid for from these disreputable outfits," said Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director. In two separate recent incidents, a 25-year-old magazine salesman was charged with raping a teenager in Durham, SC, and a 28-year-old magazine salesman pleaded guilty to kidnapping a 14-year-old boy on his way home from school with intent to sexually abuse him in Vista, CA. Many dishonest companies capitalize on the positive reputations of established door-to-door sales companies and the generous response of consumers in supporting charities. Salespeople may seem charming and friendly, offering a compelling sales pitch, or requesting support for a program to help keep kids off drugs or to teach them about entrepreneurship. They may press residents to help them win a trip or prizes. These traveling sales crews quickly sweep in and out of neighborhoods. The companies recruit children, teenagers and young adults to sell products such as magazine subscriptions, cleaning supplies, and candy. They often falsely claim to support programs to help kids or raise money for charity, a religious institution, hospital, or local school. NCL advises consumers to check that the company or charity is legitimate before responding to its sales pitch. A legitimate, ethical salesperson will: -- have a solicitor's permit, if one is required in the city. Most non-reputable companies do not possess a local permit to sell. -- provide literature, which displays the company or charity's street address and other contact information. -- present identification that shows he or she is affiliated with or a representative of the company, charity, or school. -- be happy to set an appointment for another time to discuss their product, which will give the consumer time to research the company or charity by contacting his/her Better Business Bureau or Attorney General's office to see if there are complaints against the company/charity. New Protections Proposed for U.S. and Foreign Workers ST. LOUIS (PRNewswire), May 25, 2008 - The U.S. Department of Labor has proposed rules to modernize the application process and enhance worker protections under the H-2B temporary labor certification program. The changes respond to the administration's Aug. 10, 2007, promise to review and update foreign worker program regulations. "These proposed improvements will give the department additional tools to protect workers and remove duplicative bureaucracy," said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. When a shortage of U.S. workers is demonstrated, the H-2B program makes it possible for employers to apply for temporary, non-agricultural foreign workers to fill their temporary or seasonal needs. The proposed rule would reform the application process so that employers would attest, under threat of fines and other penalties, that they have complied with all the program's requirements. These proposals would alter the current certification process, following a model similar to that adopted in the successful re-engineering of the permanent labor certification program in 2005. The proposed rule also would eliminate duplication of effort by state workforce agencies (SWAs) and the Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration (ETA). Instead of applying first with their SWAs, employers would file their H-2B applications directly with ETA under the proposed process. Furthermore, employers would obtain from the Labor Department instead of SWAs the applicable prevailing wage determinations for their specific job opportunities. In addition, the department seeks to enhance protections for U.S. and foreign workers. For instance, employers would be prohibited from passing along application and other costs to foreign workers participating in the H-2B program. The Department of Labor also proposes to debar for up to three years employers, attorneys and agents found to have committed fraud or willful misrepresentation concerning the H-2B employment-based immigration program, or failed to cooperate in Labor Department audits or investigations. Finally, the proposal contains a new Department of Labor enforcement program for H-2B in the event the Department of Homeland Security delegates its statutory authority for enforcing the H-2B program to the Department of Labor. Congress vested the Department of Homeland Security with H-2B enforcement authority in 2005. Archived Stories: Hiring Outlook for MBAs Remains Healthy Despite Downturn in Economy CPA Financial Executives Foresee Continuing Decline In the U.S. Economy More Women Than Men Lack Confidence in Preparing for Retirement Foreign Workers Continue to Move into the US Job Market U.S. Unemployment Having Dramatic Impact on Kids' Health Care Coverage $1.7 Million Grant to Assist Missouri Workers Affected by Automotive Industry Layoffs How to Effectively Rebound from Being Let Go AT&T Launches $100 Million Philanthropic Education Program, Job Shadowing for 100,000 Students Obesity Costs U.S. Companies as Much as $45 Billion a Year Workers Show Record Drop in Retirement Confidence, Health Care and Economy Are Major Concerns Demand for Occupational Therapy Services Is On the Rise U.S. High-Tech Industry Adds Jobs for Third Year in a Row Cell Phones May Play a Much Bigger Role in Helping Americans Get Work Job Opportunities You Can Count on Right Now Include Accounting State and Local Public Health Departments Facing Serious Shortage of Skilled Professionals Most Baby Boomers Underestimate Disability Risk 10 Steps to Keeping the Workplace Healthy in the Height of Flu Season Global Survey Shows U.S. Employees Give Highest Marks to Their Managers     The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 1996 - 2009 Moore Design Group.