Like we mentioned a few weeks ago, communication is tough. Whether you just can’t seem to find the right words to express yourself, or you’re in a different country and forget the translation for “where’s the bathroom?” life gets complicated when you can’t communicate clearly.  

To only add to the nuances of everyday communication, it appears that the ability to clearly express ourselves plays an important role in our perceived credibility — at least when it comes to our accents.

A recent study done by the University of Chicago found that native English speakers view those with a foreign accent as being less trustworthy.  The study found that the dialect distrust was not due to prejudice, but because those with accents were harder to understand. Participants in the study reported a small, yet definitive difference, between the believability of trivia statements when read by native and non-native English speakers.

On a believability scale of 1 to 10, the statements read by native English speakers were rated at a 7.5, while those read by speakers with a slight accent were rated at a 6.95, and speakers with a heavy accent were given a truthfulness rating of 6.84. It seems that the harder it is for us to understand someone, the less likely we are to trust what they’re saying.

The results of the study may prove alarming for workers and job-seekers with accents.

According to a University of Chicago press release on the study, “Accent might reduce the credibility of non-native job seekers.” Which in turn may make it more difficult for job-seekers with accents to land a job.

Though blatant accent discrimination is part of Title VII (the title of The Civil Rights Act that addresses equal opportunity employment) and is addressed in the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission compliance manual, it is also specified that there are legitimate, business-related reasons for companies to require workers to speak clear English. Meaning that while it is illegal for employers to discriminate against workers with accents, they can legally choose not to hire a worker with an accent if it will interfere with the person’s ability to effectively do the job.

According to the compliance manual “Because linguistic characteristics are a component of national origin, employers should carefully scrutinize employment decisions that are based on accent to ensure that they do not violate Title VII.”

Though the article does go on to clarify that “An employment decision based on foreign accent does not violate Title VII if an individual’s accent materially interferes with the ability to perform job duties.”

But what about the regional accents here in the U.S.?  We have dozens of regional dialects, from the Southern drawl, to the Texas twang, to the “Joisey” accent, to MinneSOOHta and Boston’s “pahk the cah in Hahvahd yahd.” Aren’t these regional dialects just as difficult to understand? (As somone who went to college in Boston, let me say I had just as hard a time deciphering my professors’ Boston accents as I did high school math teacher’s Russian one.)

How do you feel about accents (of all kinds) in the workplace? Have you ever been misunderstood at work because of your accent? Let us know in the comments section, below.

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Courtesy: The Work Buzz

A story that the Today show ran this week left me scratching my head. Not because of their reporting, which was a very good read, but because of the stories relayed by the interviewees. See, the article looks at the often discussed but still unsolved dour job situation for Millennials. The title says it all: “Gen Y: No jobs, lots of loans, grim future.”

Well, that’s cheery.

Young job seekers who have graduated from college or graduate school are struggling to find work. Some of these new job seekers are struggling not only to find the perfect jobs in their fields, but also to find any jobs that will cover their living expenses. It goes on to talk about the competition between these job seekers and baby boomers who are deferring their retirements.

“A quarter of workers postponed their retirement in the past year, with 33 percent of workers now expecting to retire after 65, according to a retirement survey by The Employment Benefit Research Institute.

“If they do manage to get hired, younger employees are often the first to be fired in layoffs. And when Millennials do land a job, it probably won’t be as lucrative due to intense competition for jobs. That means that this generation’s potential earning power is likely to lag over the course of their careers.”

Millennials are overqualified, from an education perspective. Yet, many of them lack the work experience needed for many positions so they’re not experienced enough. They can’t seem to win.

If you’ll recall, we recently asked you to weigh in on the overqualified debate. And you weighed in with passionate responses. Judging by your comments on that post, it seems that employers are turning away candidates who have too much education or too many years of leadership or just too many years in the workforce. They’re afraid you’ll jump ship the second the economy bounces back. By their logic, a 40-something year-old job seeker with 20 years of experience is a flight risk. Yet, as you readers have also told us, many baby boomers with decades of experience are being edged out by companies who want younger workers who are in tune with technology. But aren’t these younger Gen Y workers considered too inexperienced, as the Today article explains?

Judging by the comments you leave on the Work Buzz, Facebook, and Twitter, you’re frustrated with what you’re hearing from employers. (Or, in some cases, not hearing.) We want to know what feedback you’re getting and whether it’s helpful to you in your job search or if it only confuses you further.

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Courtesy: The Work Buzz

In her new book “What Your Body Says,” Sharon Saylor writes, “The most influential part of communication is your nonverbal. Your nonverbal can actually destroy or produce the results you want, such as inspiring employees to do better work, calming angry customers, creating fans in the marketplace and closing sales.”

And according to a new CareerBuilder survey, your body language can also hurt your chances of landing a job … especially a lack of eye contact.

In the survey of more than 2,500 hiring managers, 67 percent said that failure to make eye contact would make them less likely to hire a job candidate. Other nonverbals that hiring managers cited as negative included these seven things:

• Lack of smile – 38 percent
• Fidgeting too much – 33 percent
• Bad posture – 33 percent
• Handshake that is too weak – 26 percent
• Crossing arms over their chest – 21 percent
• Playing with their hair or touching their face – 21 percent
• Using too many hand gestures – 9 percent  

“In a highly competitive job market, job seekers need to set themselves apart in the interview stage,” said Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources for CareerBuilder. “All that pressure, though, may have some job seekers making body language mistakes that don’t convey a confident message. To avoid these faux pas, and ensure you’re remembered for the right reasons, try practicing ahead of time in front of a mirror or family and friends.”

Haefner offers the following tips to avoid body language missteps during an interview:

• Keep calm. To make the best impression and avoid nervous body language, take measures to stay as calm as possible before the interview. Leave the house with plenty of time to get to the interview, avoid caffeine if possible and take deep, calming breaths.
• Practice makes perfect. The old adage proves true in this case, as you’ll feel more comfortable the more you prepare for the interview, and in turn, it will help decrease your anxiety. Rehearse ahead of time with friends or family, do your homework on the company and be prepared for common interview questions.
• See for yourself. Viewing yourself while speaking can help you notice what body language mistakes you might be making without realizing. Look in a mirror while practicing interview responses or videotape yourself to figure out your typical physical movements, and whether or not you need to change them.

Saylor, who is a certified group dynamics and behavioral coach, says it is possible to change your behavior and be conscious of what messages you’re sending with your own body. Her book gives the reader tips on overcoming many communication roadblocks including how to project confidence, how to look intelligent, how to eliminate verbal pauses, and how to use your posture to show confidence.

For additional blog posts on what makes a hiring manager say “yay” or “nay,” check out the following:

• What makes them want to hire you?
• What can a handshake say about you?
• Interview mistakes you wish you could take back

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Another week and even more companies hiring!

We’re trying to simplify your job search and point you in the right direction. This week we focus on companies  hiring in the Southern region of the U.S. From D.C. to Texas, we’ve got you covered.

Don’t forget you can click on the job title, company name and states to get more information about the positions or to view more jobs. Happy  hunting! (Next week we wrap things up with a list of Western companies.)

Oklahoma
Ardelle Associates – Accounting clerk
AT&T – Part-time retail sales consultant

Texas
Shell Oil Company – Control systems engineer (CSE)
Tire Kingdom – Store manager

Arkansas
Hewlett-Packard – Infrastructure solutions architect
Tyson Foods Incorporated – Nurse LPN

Louisiana
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney – Financial advisor
Walmart – eCommerce technical expert (ATG)

Kentucky
GSI Commerce – Digital graphics operator 3
Daymar College – Computer instructors

Tennessee
Arby’s Restaurant Group –General manager
Republic Services, Inc. – Operations dispatcher

Mississippi
Noranda – Productivity engineer
Terminix – Branch inspector

Alabama
CDC Publishing – Public reporter
Eye-Mart Express, Inc. – Lab manager

West Virginia
West Virginia University Hospitals – Speech pathologist
Fifth Third Bank – Customer Service representative

Virginia
Belk Retail – Cosmetic / Beauty advisors
Lockheed Martin Corporation – J2EE software developer / SOA architect

North Carolina
US Healthworks – Regional marketing engineer
FPC of Raleigh – Scientist – Process development/cell culture

South Carolina
Piggly Wiggly – Refrigeration technician
American General Financial Services – Management trainee

Georgia
Nextgen Information Systems – Mechanical systems engineer
PricewaterhouseCoopers – SAP CRM manager

Florida
The Nielsen Company – Java developer
Tires Plus – Tire / Maintenance technician

Delaware
HSBC – Senior compliance officer
Ruby Tuesday, Inc – Restaurant management

Maryland
Value City Furniture – Decorator / visual merchandiser
Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream – Industrial performance manager

Washington, D.C.
RadioShack District Managers – District manager
Fannie Mae – Internal controls technology analyst

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Courtesy: The Work Buzz