As a manager, you want your employees to be happy, healthy, loyal, and productive. But could all that be as easy as implementing a wellness program at work? It certainly might play a big part.

In fact, a recent survey by Principal Financial Group of 1,121 employees at small and mid-size businesses reported that employers who offer wellness programs enjoy increased retention, attendance, and productivity. Here’s a look at the numbers:

• More than half of the respondents said they are more productive as a result of wellness programs.
• 40% agreed that wellness programs encourage them to stay with their company.
• More than a third said they missed fewer days of work as a result of a wellness program.

Furthermore, for every $1 employers spent on a wellness program, they saw absenteeism costs cut by an average of $2.73 and medical costs cut by an average of $3.27.

As one of the top staffing agencies in Sacramento, California, we certainly understand that implementing a wellness program for a smaller organization can be more challenging – but it can also clearly provide a return on investment. So it may be well worth the effort. To help you get started, here are some tips:

Reach out to your insurance company. 

Some insurance companies promote wellness programs by giving employees discounts on premiums and other wellness related activities. They may also offer additional services, like free health screenings or flu shots, which you can include as part of your wellness program.

Reach out to local fitness centers. 

If you don’t have the space to add an office gym, then contact your local fitness center and ask if they offer group discounts for your employees.

Make the program voluntary. 

When it comes to health and fitness…and more specifically, weight…no one likes to feel like they are being singled out. So don’t mandate that workers get involved. Make it casual and fun and let your employees decide whether to participate.

Offer incentives. 

While you don’t want to punish those who aren’t involved, you do want to incentivize those who are trying to make healthy changes in their lives. One way to do that is by offering rewards. For instance, you can have a campaign to help staff smokers quit and offer a gift card to those who are successfully able to do so.

As one of the top staffing agencies in Sacramento, California, we know that wellness programs can be a win-win for employers and employees. As an employer, they enable you to reduce rising health care costs and improve employee retention and loyalty, while also helping your employees live a healthier, more productive life at home…and at work.

Whether you work in a doctor’s office, hospital, or at a health insurance company, disaster is inevitable. It happens even at the most well-run organizations. The real challenge comes when you’re the one in charge – and expected to lead your team out of the crisis.

As one of the top medical staffing agencies in Woodland, we know that staying calm is your first critical step. You have a lot at stake…but getting angry or pointing fingers will only make matters worse. So it’s important to stop, assess the situation, and determine a proper course of action.

Here are some other ideas to consider when dealing with disaster at work:

Be objective.

Even if you’re feeling angry, stressed, and uncertain, don’t let those emotions get in the way of doing your job. Be objective and approach the crisis like it’s simply a problem that needs a solution. Turn it over in your head and look at it from all sides. Later, once the issue has been resolved, you can figure out what you and your team need to do in the future to avoid similar scenarios.

Be healthy.

If you’re facing a crisis, and you have high blood pressure and are running on four hours of sleep, you already have a strike against you. But when you feel good – eat well, get enough sleep, and take care of yourself – you’ll be a better leader as a result and you’ll get less stressed when crisis strikes.

So make it a habit to be healthy. That doesn’t mean exercising two hours a day and only eating veggies, it just means living a balanced life and making wise decisions regarding your health and nutrition.

Be positive. 

In this world, being positive is becoming harder and harder. But those with a positive attitude tend to be able to resolve conflict easier and more effectively. Not only that, but your positive attitude will impact employees – in a good way. They’re much more likely to respect an optimistic and confident leader than they are a negative, angry, and uncertain one.

So look on the bright side. A workplace disaster is an opportunity to prove yourself. Should you overcome it successfully, not only will you gain more confidence in your leadership ability, but your boss will surely take notice too.

And if a recent disaster has anything to do with HR and staffing problems, then let us know. As one of the top medical staffing agencies in Woodland, we can ensure your facility is staffed with the medical professionals you need – including NPs, RNs, PAs, and LPNs – when you need them. Contact us today to learn more.

Asking good questions during a job interview not only allows you to evaluate whether the Rancho Cordova job is right for you, but it also helps you stand out in the interviewer’s mind. Asking bad job interview questions can also help you stand out – just not in a good way.

To help you avoid the latter, here are 5 interview questions you should avoid asking at all costs:

1. Does this position allow job sharing or telecommuting? 

Already you’re expressing a lack of interest in working full-time or working in the office with potential co-workers. Not a good signal for hiring managers. So unless job sharing or telecommuting were specifically mentioned in the job description, don’t bring it up.

2. Is travel a necessary part of the job? 

If the job posting stated that travel is required, then you already have your answer. So asking this question will make you sound less-than committed.

If the posting didn’t state anything about travel, wait for the interviewer to bring it up. Asking right away makes it sound like you’re automatically opposed to the idea of some travel, which equates to “inflexible” in the mind of an interviewer.

If you really need to know and the interviewer isn’t bringing it up, then rephrase the question in a different way, such as “How much travel does this position entail?”

3. How many breaks would I get each day? Does your company have a break room? 

“Breaks” shouldn’t even be on your mind when you’re interviewing for Rancho Cordova jobs. You should be asking questions that help you determine whether the job and the company are a good fit for your skills and personality. In addition, asking these kinds of questions in an interview simply makes you sound like a lazy clock-watcher.

4. How long does it take to get promoted? 

You haven’t even landed the job yet and you’re already asking about promotions?! Steer clear of this kind of question in your first interview. Instead, if you’re asked back for a second interview or offered the job, then ask about “opportunities for advancement.” If you use the word “promotions,” the interviewer may question your intentions.

5. Are we almost done? I have to be somewhere. 

Ask this question and kiss that job offer good-bye. Not only is it completely rude, but you’ll also be seen as indifferent about the Rancho Cordova job and flaky to boot. Also, don’t glance at your watch, or take out your cell phone and look at the time. Keep in mind, the longer your interview, the better. So whatever you have scheduled afterward can wait.

At the end of the day, you want to ensure that the questions you ask an interviewer are smart and appropriate. Otherwise, you could raise barriers and cause the interviewer to doubt your professionalism.

And if you need some help preparing for interviews and finding out about jobs in Rancho Cordova and Northern California, let us know. As one of the leading employment agencies in the area, we work with many top employers and can give you access to a range of exciting opportunities.

Search jobs in Rancho Cordova and Northern California now.

Downtown Sacramento Professional Organization has an immediate opening for a Legal Administrative Assistant/Paralegal to work in a fast paced, diverse environment. Candidates must have at least 5 years experience as a Legal Assistant with demonstrated increasing responsibility. The position is responsible for working with General Counsel researching legal articles, documented case decisions and statutes. Preparing legal documents, contracts and reports. Scheduling appointments, conferences and calendaring as well as handling all outgoing correspondence from the Legal Department.

Required Skills:

• Ability to develop and maintain databases
• Expert level experience with MS Office Suite
• Able to handle pressing matters efficiently and tactfully
• Highly organized , editing and proofreading skills required
• 5-7 years experience as a Paralegal / Legal Assistant
• Paralegal Certification preferred

Click to apply

When you think of speed dating, what comes to mind? Likely, it’s something along the lines of: Meeting with multiple potential suitors and asking a series of questions over the course of just a few minutes, all so you can get a sense of whether that person is right for you.

So can the concept of speed dating be applied to the recruiting process?

Perhaps. As one of the top medical staffing agencies in Northern California, we know that many medical schools are now using this type of approach in order to interview students and better assess their communication skills. While they don’t call it “speed dating,” they do call it MMI, or multiple mini interviews.

Why this new approach? 

One of the biggest patient complaints in the health care field isn’t necessarily related to the medical skills of a physician, nurse, or therapist. It’s more about the communication skills – or lack thereof. This is critically important because lack of communication has been identified as one of the top causes of medical errors.

And through MMIs, the idea is that you can get a better sense of a candidate’s communications skills. Obviously, these shouldn’t be the be-all, end-all of your hiring process. But done right, MMIs may be able to help you to better assess “soft skills” so you can make a good hiring decision for your health care organization.

That said, MMIs aren’t right for every health care organization.  

For instance, if you don’t have enough trained staff in place – who know the right questions to ask and how to interview effectively – then the process likely won’t run smoothly for you.

In addition, candidates may not be as comfortable with this process. They may also not feel comfortable interviewing in a room with other candidates out of fear that their job search could be exposed. If that’s the case, you can modify the process and interview each candidate privately, rather than interviewing candidates simultaneously. Again, though, this would take a good amount of staff resources to get it done this way.

The bottom line is that you need to hire qualified medical professionals with strong communication skills. How you get there depends on your unique needs and the resources of your organization. Integrating MMIs into your recruiting process may or may not work for you. But it’s certainly something worth considering.

And if you need additional help with your hiring process, please give us a call. As one of the top medical staffing agencies in Northern California, we can help ensure your facility is staffed with the medical professionals you need, when you need them. Contact us today to learn more.

Getting a new job in healthcare is probably on the top of many professional’s New Year’s resolutions lists. But for some, it’s more complicated than simply applying for openings and scheduling interviews – especially if you’re uncertain as to what your next step should be career-wise.

As one of the top medical employment agencies in Sacramento, we know that one way to deal with that uncertainty is through a temporary position. Whether you’re a nurse, physical therapist, occupational therapist, or some other kind of healthcare professional, there are variety of temporary jobs in Sacramento, California you can take advantage of, without making a full-time commitment. As a result, you can “test out” jobs or a Sacramento employer before working for them full-time.

Sacramento temporary jobs in healthcare also offer a host of other attractive benefits, including:

• Flexible scheduling. If you’re going back to school to earn, for instance, a Nurse Practitioner degree, you can take on temporary assignments that are a fit for your school schedule.
• Opportunity to use new skills. Temporary jobs in Sacramento, California are a great way to apply skills you’ve learned through a newly earned certification or program. As a result, you can gain experience in an area you might currently be lacking.
• Opportunity to network. Temporary jobs are a good way to meet new people and grow your job search network when you’re ready to find full-time work.
• A change of scenery. With temporary jobs, you can take on different assignments in different settings as often as you want.
• Comprehensive benefits. Many medical employment agencies in Sacramento – and beyond – that offer temporary work also offer competitive pay and benefits, as well.

So if you’re a healthcare professional – and you’d like help finding temporary jobs – give us a call. As one of the top medical employment agencies in Sacramento, we have plenty of client companies looking for talent just like you. Get started now.

As a Sacramento legal staffing agency, we know that more and more attorneys are tempted to rely on software programs and other office technology – rather than hire staff – in order to save money. This may be valid in certain areas, where law firms no longer need as much support. But when it comes to paralegals, rather than costing you money, hiring one can actually boost your bottom line.

Here’s why:

Paralegals can perform many of the same tasks that attorneys perform – just at reduced salaries and rates.  

Many times, attorneys are surprised at the legal knowledge and skills that paralegals have. In fact, paralegals can handle many important tasks (expect those proscribed by law) as long as an attorney supervises their work. For instance, paralegals can do:

• Legal research
• Legal writing, including legal memoranda, appellate briefs, and motions
• Document preparation and writing, including in pleadings
• Interviewing clients and witnesses
• Organizing client files and trial documentation

Not only does this save you money, but it also frees you up to focus on other priorities.  

There are certainly tasks that a trained lawyer must perform. And when you have a paralegal on staff, you can focus your efforts on that critical work, including developing case strategies and handling courtroom proceedings.

Hiring a paralegal is typically more cost-efficient than hiring a new attorney full time.  

In fact, in Sacramento, the median salary for a paralegal is approximately $50,000, while the median salary for an attorney is over $95,000, according to Salary.com.

You can also pass your cost-savings along to your clients, enabling you to attract a larger clientele in the process. 

Besides saving your clients money, a paralegal can improve communication. They can help you respond to requests faster and increase points of contact, leading to more satisfied clients in the long run.

If you’d like some help with the hiring process, let us know. As a Sacramento legal staffing agency, Pacific Staffing is your source for legal staff. Give us a call to learn more!

For some people, an office holiday party is an obligation to be fulfilled. For others, it’s an invitation to go a little crazy. And if you think the latter is in the minority, think again. As one of Woodland’s top employment agencies, we know that embarrassing office party blunders are relatively common. In fact, according to a survey about office holiday parties by research marketing firm Harris Interactive:

• 49% observed flirtations with co-workers and supervisors.
• 47% heard a co-worker using excessive profanity.
• 44% saw co-workers sharing inappropriate personal details about themselves or other colleagues.

So if you’re someone who’s committed one of the egregious errors above – or something worse, what can you do to make amends?

Say you’re sorry. 

You might have thoughts of quitting or of how you can avoid seeing that co-worker you vomited on after doing shots at the party. But, as one of Woodland’s top employment agencies, we know that the easiest and most effective way to handle the situation is to apologize. Everyone makes mistakes and if you own up to yours, your boss and co-workers will be much more forgiving.

However, if you ignore it, or hope no one remembers, it will always be at the back of your mind and the back of theirs, particularly when you’re working on a project together or when you’re asking for a promotion.

So don’t beat around the bush, but don’t grovel either. Just say, “I’m sorry” and move on. And at future parties, avoid the alcohol altogether. Alcohol impairs the senses – including common sense – leading to embarrassing blunders you wished never happened. When you don’t drink at all, you don’t have to worry about losing control and doing or saying something you live to regret.

Job demand & hiring trends for local companies in the 1st Quarter of 2012

New Year Cheer in Rising Trends?
Hiring in Sacramento will begin the New Year on an upward trend, as Pacific Staffing has discovered fifty-eight percent (58%) of top companies motivated to hire in Q1 2012. This trend toward local economic recovery maintains a slow rise that began with forty-six percent (46%) hiring at this time in 2010, fifty-one percent (51%) in Q1 2011.

In recession-driven Q1 2009 more than half of Sacramento’s regional employers surveyed weren’t hiring anyone while another twenty percent (20%) planned staff cutbacks and three local companies closed laying off their entire workforces.

In polling the top companies directly by phone between November 21^st and December 14^th, Pacific Staffing learned that just two companies planned layoffs; one for seasonal reasons with another citing slow business in the First Quarter of the new year.

A positive trend was also evident in demand for new workers in January, February and March. Thirty percent (30%) of employers are motivated to hire for growth in the first months of 2012, maintaining demand levels from the previous quarter, Q4 2011. Another thirty-five percent (35%) reported hiring in Q1 of the new year due to attrition in their existing workforces.

Workforce Challenge?
While benefit cost and management is still a major concern, a new challenge was noted, as companies report finding qualified applicants is becoming an issue. Specific skills in high demand in Q1 include sales and customer service workers, technical, warehouse and manufacturing experience.

Special Report: Got Retirement?
When asked if their company has a retirement plan, thirty-one percent (31%) of companies polled say No.  In addition, twenty-seven percent (27%) also say they have no plan to offer any retirement option in the future.  While many companies did have some retirement plans, most were oriented to employee 401K account options, with just a few offering a contribution match. While some companies couldn’t or wouldn’t answer, Service firms were most likely to offer retirement while Retail industry companies were least likely.

100 Sacramento Regional Top Companies By Industry:

• 40% are Service
• 30% are Manufacturers
• 20% are Construction
• 10% are Retail

================ Next Quarterly Projections: April 2012 =================

Media contact: Rick Reed 916-704-0080

These results were also shared in the Sacramento Bee.

With a New Year, come new challenges and opportunities. And, as one of Rancho Cordova’s top staffing firms, we know it’s a good time to start asking whether you have the right team members in place to hit the ground running – and make 2012 great. If you’re not sure, here are some signs that it’s time to hire:

Sign #1. Employees are constantly complaining about working conditions.

You can’t please everyone all the time. But if employees are constantly complaining about working conditions, you’ve got a problem. They could be dissatisfied due to inadequate staff and feel overworked. Your employees are your most important asset, so make sure you know if they’re experiencing more stress than usual on the job.

Sign #2. Health insurance claims are increasing. 

Not all employees will vocalize unhappiness with working conditions; some, instead, will internalize their stress, leading to illness and an increase in health insurance claims – which can be costly for your company both in terms of the actual claims and paid time off.

Sign #3. You’re always pushing deadlines back.

Missing a deadline is one thing; but regularly missing deadlines is a clear indication that you’re either understaffed or you don’t have the right people in the right positions. If products aren’t getting delivering to customers on time, or if project deadlines or regularly extended, then it may be time to hire.

Sign #4. Overtime costs are drastically increasing.

If your overtime costs are on the rise, compared to your baseline, and employees are coming in early, staying late, and skipping lunch, you’re probably understaffed. If it’s due to a big project, then temporary staffing or contract workers could be an easy solution. However, if the increase in overtime has become a regular occurrence, then you likely need to bring in more full-time staff.

Sign #5. Performance problems are also on the rise. 

Deficiencies in performance can have a big impact on your bottom line. And if your staff is experiencing a jump in performance problems, it could be due to feeling overworked and stressed out. Or it could be because you’re asking employees to take on tasks for which they’re not really qualified. Either way, it may be time to hire.

If the 5 signs above sound familiar, and you’re ready to hire, give us a call. As one of Rancho Cordova’s top staffing firms, Pacific Staffing can provide the workforce solutions you need – when you need them, from temporary staffing to sourcing, screening, and recruiting for full-time positions. Contact us today to learn more.