"Younger Job Applicants Want More Paid Time Off" is the title of an article in today's e-newsletter from ERC (which I think stands for Employer's Resource Council, but I'm not sure!). From their website: "ERC is Northeast Ohio's largest organization dedicated to HR and workplace programs, practices, training and consulting."

According to the article, a survey of 70 NEO employers found that job seekers in their 20s are requesting, on average, 2.5 weeks of paid vacation per year. Older, more experienced workers in their 30s and 40s request, on average, 3 weeks of paid vacation per year. Those same employers, on average, offer their least experienced applicants only one week of paid vacation annually. The statistic that I'd like to see is: What percentage of the companies offering one week of vacation are having a hard time attracting and retaining talent? I'd imagine that percentage is pretty high. Is a shortage of vacation time (or paid time off) a dealbreaker? I have to think that for most YPs, it is.

The article closes with a quote from Tom Tomasula, Senior HR Consultant at ERC, “Paid time off is a great way for companies to differentiate themselves, especially for a new generation of employees that are demonstrating a commitment to working hard as well as enjoying their free time.” Are you listening, employers? Next generation employees work hard AND play hard. Want to attract and retain more young talent? Might be time to revise your company's paid time off policies.

This week, I am excited to debut a new feature here in the YP Loop - a weekly guest blog by my fantastic intern from KSU, Chad Lutz. Check out Chad's guest blog here every Tuesday for the rest of the semester!

GUEST BLOGGER - Chad W. Lutz, Senior English Major, Kent State University

As a college student, trying and experiencing new things is all part of the daily life. It seems that new opportunities present themselves each and everyday with the necessary resources to obtain my goals in life, moving ever closer to that dream job with the sweet salary. Through my internship experience, I’ve been shown just how much work life takes to get to what you want. I think that when we are kids, we all have this romantic notion of getting older, and that, one day, it magically happens and you wake up with a career, house, and family, never really thinking of what it takes to reach these goals. But the reality of this, stark as it may be in contrast with the inner child, is that work entails, well, work. Life has a price and it is your time. But time spent working, like the ant, busy and determined, is what makes it so gratifying and worthwhile when those goals are finally reached.

This internship has me fired up to see what’s next in life, and I believe it’s the environment in which I was placed. The Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce has been nothing but accommodating and has challenged me, on several occasions, to think on my feet and react under pressure; situations not found in the wishy washy college world of deadlines. (At least not for an English major, we tend to have weeks at a time to write papers). There have been several instances that I have had to work on something and finish in the few hours I am at the Chamber on any given day, which have all pushed me, moving me closer to that career and house, seeing now, another piece of the puzzle that is my desired life.

As for so many other NE Ohioans, the past few weeks have been an emotional roller coaster for me. I know this isn't a sports blog, but hey - I'm from Denver, and I lived in Boston for five years. Now that the World Series has gotten underway, I've started getting phone calls and e-mails from my friends and family wondering who I'm rooting for - Rockies or Red Sox?

I used to be a Red Sox fan. When you live in Boston, a true baseball town, the Red Sox get into you. You don't get into them. They get into you. At least, the old Red Sox did. The Red Sox teams of 2000-2004 got into me. Those were great teams. The "idiots" of 2004 were a lovable group of guys whose antics, both on the field and off, were funny and endearing. In the 2004 World Series, I doubt there were too many people outside of St. Louis who were not pulling for the Red Sox. Those guys played with guts, and they played with heart, and their love of the game showed. (Actually, the 2004 Red Sox were not too different from the 2007 Indians.) And sure, they played for money, but not nearly as much as this year's players are making.

Since winning the World Series in 2004, however, the Red Sox have changed. The players have changed. Their attitudes have changed. Even their fans have changed. I agree fully with this article from FoxSports.com columnist Mark Kreigel - the Red Sox feel too much like the Yankees to me.

Due to my three years living in NEO, my husband's influence, and the general like-ability of the team, my baseball loyalties turned to the Indians this year. Like so many other NEO YPs, I was pretty sad Monday morning. Was I utterly and completely devastated, like my husband? No. But I was sad and disappointed. I'm looking forward to next year…what other choice do I have? Since I can't cheer for Pronk, Victor, Grady "be-still-my-beating-heart" Sizemore, and the rest of the 2007 Cleveland Indians, all I can say to answer that burning question - Rockies or Red Sox? - is GO ROCKIES!!!

Looking for something fun to do this Saturday afternoon? Why not volunteer at 91.3 The Summit's Open House?

Volunteers will be greeting open house visitors, answering questions about the station as necessary, and taking pledges via phone.

I need 5 people to commit to volunteering as follows:

noon – 2:00 p.m. (one slot)
2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. (four slots)

The Summit is a great supporter of the YP movement and has helped us out in the past by providing free entertainment for many of our joint networking events. I’d really love to give back to them, and I’d appreciate some help from our YP community. Anyone who’s interested in helping out should contact me as soon as possible at (330) 237-1244 or e-mail to baxter@greaterakronchamber.org.

If you're not able to help out, feel free to stop by and enjoy the Open House! The Open House begins at 11:00 a.m. and features station tours, a demo of HD Radio, catered lunch from the Mustard Seed Market and Café, free chair massage, and special membership incentives. You can also meet your favorite Summit on-air personalities and hear great live acoustic music from some of the area's best local musicians. Directions to The Summit studios are here.

What a great day we had on Saturday for the Road Runner Akron Marathon! The sun was shining, the people were happy…all in all, it was a great day. I spent my Saturday handing out tickets in the beer tent with my friends from the Akron Jaycees. I'm neither a beer drinker nor a runner, so I can't really imagine the two going together well, but let me tell you that the runners who I encountered on Saturday were all pretty happy to see me and the rest of the Jaycees volunteering at the beer tent.

The finish line at Canal Park was set up so that the runners would cross the finish line, receive their metals and silver blankets, and get their pictures taken on the field before heading up the stairs to the concourse. I was stationed right at the top of those stairs, greeting the exhausted runners with a smile, and asking, "Ready for a beer?" Most often, "You bet!" was the response. One guy even hugged me as he related his excitement at having a time that qualifies him to run in the Boston Marathon. I've never seen anyone who's just finished running 26.2 miles be so happy to know that he'll be running that same distance again in just 6 short months, but I guess that's how it is for marathoners…