Posted on: Sunday, March 9, 2008
You just won $1 million: now pay off debts
Compiled by John MacIntyre
Percentage of Americans who would pay off debt if they won a million dollars, according to a nationwide survey of consumers conducted by Compass Bank: 48
Percentage who said they would continue to work until they reached retirement age: 41
Percentage who would call in sick the next day and never return to work: 20
NO JOKING
Percentage of women employees in the U.S. who say they heard at least one sexually inappropriate comment in their workplace last year, nearly double from 2006, according to a survey conducted by Novations Group: 38
Percentage of male U.S. employees who said they heard at least one sexually inappropriate comment in their workplace in 2007: 45
STRESSED OUT BOSSES
Percentage of U.S. employers who say stress, caused by "working long hours/doing more with less," is affecting business performance, according to Watson Wyatt's 2007/2008 Staying@Work Report: 48
Percentage of employers who believe stress caused by work/life balance issues adversely affects business performance: 32
Percentage of employers who believe stress caused by widespread use of technologies that expand availability, such as cell phones and personal digital assistants, are greatly affecting business performance: 29
THANKS FOR THE RIDE
Percentage of respondents who admit they've thanked their vehicle, according to national survey commissioned by Jiffy Lube International: 46
Percentage who have complimented their cars on their dependability: 33.5
Percentage who admit they have given a nice rub to the dashboard or some other sweet spot: 17
Percentage who have tried to bribe their vehicle into behaving by offering such things as a car wash or premium gasoline: 17
WORK AND WEATHER
Percentage of full-time commuting U.S. workers who say their commute to or from work has been affected by "severe weather" in the past three months, according to a survey conducted by Kronos, The Workforce Institute and Harris Interactive: 33
Percentage who arrived late to work as a result: 23
Percentage who left early: 16
Percentage who lost pay because of their affected commute: 20
MANAGEMENT MATTERS
Percentage of U.S. employees who say they are open to a new career opportunity in 2008, according to a survey conducted by Yahoo! HotJobs: 72
Percentage who say they would be willing to leave their current job because they either dislike their boss's management style or feel there is a lack of mentorship at their company: 43
Percentage of U.S. employees who agree with the statement, "People don't leave companies; they leave managers": 55
ONLINE AD REVENUE
Estimated total value of all online advertising revenue in 2007, according to a study conducted by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers: $21.1 billion
Approximate total value of all online advertising revenue in 2005: $12.6 billion
READY FOR RETIREMENT?
Percentage of single women who contribute regularly to retirement, according to the MetLife Mature Market Institute's Family Matters study: 21
Percentage of traditional families that consistently contribute to their retirement accounts: 41
Percentage of blended families that do the same: 29
NOT SO SIMPLE MATH
Percentage of Americans who were able to correctly estimate how interest compounds over time, according to a survey conducted by TNS in partnership with professors at Harvard Business School and Dartmouth College: 35
Percentage of respondents who did not understand how minimum payments are calculated and applied to a principal balance: 50
FLORIDA VS. HAWAI'I
Ranks of Fort De Soto Park's North Beach (Tierra Verde, Fla.), St. Andrew's State Park (Panama City, Fla.) and Kailua Beach Park among the top 10 beaches in the U.S., according to TripAdvisor's Popularity Index and TripAdvisor editors: 1, 2, 3
Number of top 10 beaches that are in Florida: 4
Number that are in Hawai'i: 3
IDLE THOUGHT
"Natural ability without education has more often attained to glory and virtue than education without natural ability."
— Cicero (106-43 B.C.)
Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.
