Penn State announced today that their new online master’s degree in human resources and employment relations (HRER) is accepting applications for the summer 2008 semester. The online master’s degree program is centered on the growing challenges of hiring and retaining talented employees, managing complex benefit plans, and staying up-to-date with labor laws and employment relations trends. The HRER degree allows busy human resources professionals to stay employed while earning an education that can advance their careers. Students can choose a concentration that best meets their professional goals: benefits and compensation; employment and labor law; labor and collective bargaining; or staffing, training and development.

University Park, PA (PRWEB) November 16, 2007 — Penn State is now accepting applications for their new online master of professional studies degree in human resources and employment relations (HRER) that begins in summer 2008.

This online program allows students to earn a master’s degree that hits at the heart of our profession–working with people and maximizing employee potential.

The 33-credit master’s degree program is available online and allows busy human resources professionals to stay employed while earning a degree that can advance their careers. The course work is designed to help working human resources professionals improve their understanding of key issues in the field and improve organizational performance in today’s business environment.

“Even though there are plenty of ways for HRER professionals to get online professional development, we’ve had significant interest in our program,” said Paul Clark, lead faculty member for the program and head of the department of labor studies and employment relations. “This online program allows students to earn a master’s degree that hits at the heart of our profession–working with people and maximizing employee potential.”

The growing complexity of benefit plans, the changing nature of labor laws, and the increasing emphasis on hiring and retaining talented employees are among the major challenges for professionals in the field. In light of these challenges, a master’s degree is becoming an increasingly important credential for HRER professionals. Penn State aims to help more people attain this goal without having to leave the workforce.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts almost all human resources-related occupations to grow more than 20 percent, and more than 1 million professionals are expected to be employed in the field by 2014. Penn State’s new program will prepare students to meet a wide range of duties in the private, public and non-profit sectors alike.

Penn State’s master’s degree program highlights the changing nature of the HRER field, including the impact of the globalization of private and public organizations and the growing importance of diversity in the workforce. Students will be required to choose a concentration in one of four areas: benefits and compensation; employment and labor law; labor and collective bargaining; or staffing, training and development.

Penn State has a long history of excellence in HRER.

“Our online master’s degree program is a great addition to our long tradition of HRER education programs which date back to the 1940s,” said Clark.

“(Penn State College of the Liberal Arts) has graduated thousands of students who have gone on to successful careers in the human resources, employment relations, and labor fields. Some of our alumni include the director of global human resources for Corning, Inc, the manager of employee relations for Honda North America, and the executive director of the Screen Actors Guild.”

Information about the online Master of Professional Studies in Human Resources and Employment Relations is available on the online program website.

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The Penn State College of the Liberal Arts educates more than 5,000 undergraduates in 43 majors and over 800 graduate students in 16 programs, in addition to being the largest provider of courses for Penn State World Campus. In all of these areas, the College builds on the classical foundations of the liberal arts to engage in the pressing issues of today.

Penn State World Campus specializes in adult online education, delivering more than 60 of Penn State’s most highly regarded graduate, undergraduate and professional education programs through convenient online formats. Founded in 1998, Penn State World Campus is the University’s 25th campus serving more than 7,000 students in all 50 states, 43 countries, and on 7 continents

I’ve tried this little Gmail Login Switcher tool this morning and I must confess that it really made me happy. It allows you to instantly switch among all your Gmail login accounts without having to log out from the account you’re logged in and then re-log in to the other account (very annoying if, for any reason, you have to check your email frequently).

Actually what this script does is replacing the “Sign Out” link located in the upper-right corner of the Google login services with a drop-down menu. From that menu you can select one of your alternate Google login accounts, and it will immediately logout and login to the other without any other user intervention.

Even if, once installed and configured, using the tool doesn’t require any particular ability, the installation process can put in little troubles the average internet user. Then, let’s show it in details.

Gmail Login Switcher Requirements

First of all, you must have all the following things in place:

Firefox. Sorry, the tool only works on Firefox. If you are still following the Explorer, listen to me… leave it alone, join the Fox crew and don’t look back: it’s free, smarter …and you won’t regret it!

The new version of Gmail. If you are still using the old version, you will have to switch to the new one. It’s easy: login to Gmail and click on the “Newer version” link on the upper-right corner of the page. Then logout and repeat this operation for each of your Gmail accounts.

Greasemonkey extension installed. This will probably sounds a little exotic for most of you. Don’t worry: Greasemonkey is a Firefox add-on that “allows you to customize the way a webpage displays using small bits of JavaScript” - just to use their own words. Well, install it and forget it! Go to the Greasemonkey homepage , click on the ‘install’ button, confirm that you want to install the add-on and restart Firefox.

At this point you will see a little monkey face on the status bar (lower-right corner of your Firefox window) If the monkey looks sad and grey , click once on the icon to activate.

Installing the Gmail Account Multi-Login script

Now that everything is in place, you can install and configure the script itself. Go to the script homepage and click on the black button on the right. Once again, Firefox will warn you, but go on. Done!

Configuring the Gmail Login etc.

Now that you have the script installed, login to one of your Gmail accounts and manually add all the Gmail accounts among which you want to be able to switch. To help you to do that, I’ve uploaded a short instructional video on YouTube. Hope this help…

Once finished with adding all your accounts to this Gmail login tool, you will be able to switch from an account to another simply selecting them from the drop menu.

Enjoy!

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Justices said they will rule on lawsuit that accuses Wal-Mart of discrimination against a disabled employee.

WASHINGTON (AP) — An Arkansas woman who claims Wal-Mart Stores Inc. discriminated against her after she became disabled has successfully appealed her case to the Supreme Court.

The justices said Friday they would rule on a lawsuit by the employee, Pam Huber, which centers on how far employers must go under the Americans with Disabilities Act to accommodate disabled employees.

Specifically, the dispute is over whether Wal-Mart (Charts, Fortune 500), the world’s biggest retailer, was required to provide Huber with an equivalent position after she could no longer perform her job due to disability, or whether the company simply had to allow her to compete for an equivalent job.

Huber’s lawyers argued in court filings that the federal appeals courts have split on the issue and asked the justices to resolve the split.

Huber worked as an order filler in a Wal-Mart distribution center in Clarksville, Ark., earning $13 per hour, when she was hurt in an on-the-job accident.

The company agreed she was disabled and no longer able to perform her current job. Huber applied for a new job as a router, which paid $12.50, but the position was given to another employee Wal-Mart considered more qualified.

Huber was offered a janitorial position that paid $6.20 an hour, her lawyers said in court papers. Huber sued in 2004, arguing that under ADA rules, she only had to be qualified for the equivalent position, not the most qualified, and should have been reassigned to the router job.

Wal-Mart said in court papers that the job went to the most-qualified candidate under a “standardized, legitimate, and non-discriminatory” process that is allowed under ADA rules.

A federal court in Arkansas sided with Huber, but the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in St. Louis, reversed and ruled in favor of Wal-Mart.

The ADA “only requires Wal-Mart to allow Huber to compete for the job, but the statute does not require Wal-Mart to turn away a superior applicant,” the appeals court said.

The case will be argued before the court next year and decided by July. The case is Pam Huber v. Wal-Mart, 07-480.