I get trying to stop your employees from surfing the Web for hours each day, checking Facebook updates or tweeting. I even get when a manager gets perturbed that a worker keeps text messaging a spouse or child when they should be finishing a project.

But a chit-chat ban?

I just got an email yesterday from a long-time reader HikingStick that’s got me scratching my head. He wrote…

“A senior executive where I work sent the following message after most people went home yesterday:”

To all employees - This is to inform each one of you that the company is beginning to more closely monitor personal web and cell phone/text usage as well as unnecessary chit chat during work hours whether or not a supervisor is in the immediate area!

Effective immediately, please refrain from spending work time on personal activities during the work day.

Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

HikingStick was pretty upset with the email and for good reason. “Now, everyone is on edge and worried that any non-work talk will be considered ‘unnecessary chit chat’,” he wrote.

Alas, I emailed New York labor lawyer Hanan Kolko to ask if a chit-chat restriction was legal and he said, “as a general matter, yes.” But what is “unnecessary chit chat” anyway? Is it unnecessary chit chat if you ask you coworker where you should go for lunch, or if you want to find out if your cubicle mate’s sick kid is ok? (more…)

The only real good worker news recently has come out of Google. The company announced it was giving its entire global workforce of 23,000 a 10 percent pay raise starting in January.

Even though the search engine giant has had some layoffs during the recession, they are nothing like other large companies, and Google’s been hiring consistently through the bad times.

Clearly, lots of folks want to work for Google and companies like them. But how do you get on the Google job track?

With so many college kids graduating and finding no work, it makes sense for high school students and their parents, who are now scouting colleges, to wonder whether the school they pick will lead to a solid job for a solid employer.

But how do you find out whether the school you’re in is more likely to be a recruiting favorite of companies like Google? Social networking sites! There’s a wealth of information on these sites, particularly LinkedIn, that can shed light on this and I’m going to show you how to find it. (more…)

There’s an endless amount of advice out there about networking for a job in this digital age, and I think that’s a good thing.

But so many job seekers are so focused on figuring out how to use Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, that they’re forgetting some networking basics like being thoughtful.

Social media and the Internet at large allows us to find people we believe can help us further our careers, but when you reach out do it with some sense. A tweet saying “hi” is nice but hitting someone up for networking help that way is a dicey undertaking. (more…)

OK, I know all the parents out there are worried their kids are tweeting and texting about sex, drugs and rock n roll. But are any of you worried about what they’re saying about you?

You tell kids stuff about your crummy job, or they overhear you bitching, and there’s a good chance they may end up telling their friends. But they don’t just tell their friends on the muddy playground anymore folks, they tell their friends on the social media playground — Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter.

Yes, if you’re mad and complaining about your boss or job, there’s a chance your kids are listening. And if your kids are upset enough at what you’re upset about they may actually Facebook or tweet something about it.

One daughter of a pissed off dad did just that. (more…)

Next week we’ll be into September, and I know a lot of you have been waiting for the fall to arrive so you can really crank up your job search.

For some reason, no matter how old we get, we all seem to be on a school time clock. We sort of go into lazy mode in the summer, whether we have been in the work force for years or just graduated.

You shouldn’t kick yourself over this. The summer is typically a slow hiring season, and this summer was particularly crummy.

Since I won’t be blogging as much as usual this week, I didn’t want to leave you all in a lurch.

So, I figured I’d include a host of job-hunting article links here for you guys to look over in the meantime. Some stories are written by me and others are written by career folks I respect: (more…)

You might not be interested in reading any obits today on a really old senator who probably should have retired from Congress long ago.

But in this era of Twitter, Facebook and extreme self promotion, all of us, including every so-called social media and personal branding guru out there, might want to spend some time today reading about how Robert Byrd, the longest-serving member of Congress who died today at age 92, went from Ku Klux Klan member to liberal hero.

Byrd also voted against the Civil Rights Act, but he went on to become a champion of the rights of all Americans.

So many of you have asked me how to explain being fired from a job, or getting a hiring manager to see beyond a past public transgression, or criminal record. And parents are often wondering if something their kids say on Facebook will come back to haunt them when they go out in the real world.

All these things can make your career life harder, no question about it.

A newly released survey by OfficeTeam found that one in five job candidates gets dropped after references are checked.

But how did someone like Byrd overcome such a checkered past? Was he a shrewd image revamper or did he just not let his past keep him down? (more…)

That uptight, serious looking guy on the unemployment line this week may be General Stanley McChrystal.

Word is, the President may have to can him because he did the one thing you’re not supposed to do — he and his underlings dogged the big bosses.

It’s never a good idea to say anything negative about the boss unless it’s to the boss’ face; and even then you’re taking your chances. (more…)

There’s that moment at the end of a job interview when the hiring manager asks: “Do you have any questions?”

Alas, many job seekers go blank at this point. I’ve done that too. You’re nervous, or just exhausted from a day of interviews, and suddenly you can’t think of one question.

What do you do? Do you really need to come up with something?

I’ve been getting this question a lot lately from readers and from friends. That’s a good sign because that means more of you are getting interviews. So don’t sweat this too much, but definitely, definitely give it some thought before you go on that interview.

Some of you might think it’s ok to just say, “You answered all my questions,” or, “I don’t have any questions.” But is this a wise move? (more…)

Hiring managers can smell the fear of unemployment.

There’s been a lot of anger over the help wanted ad for a job in Florida that stated: “No unemployed candidates will be considered at all.”

The ad in question was for a marketing gig with Sony Ericsson in Buckhead, FL, that pays between $90,000 and $130,000.

Clearly, many unemployed individuals around Buckhead would want to be considered for this job. But the company wants only those candidates who are presently employed.

Unfortunately, this is not something new. What’s new is that a company would be so blatant about it.

It happens all the time. Recruiters and hiring managers typically want people who are employed. No matter how you slice it, the natural tendency is for people to think something’s wrong with you if you’re unemployed, even if it’s not your fault, and the economy is bad, and your company laid off everyone.

This is just a fact of life. So, you have to pretend not to be jobless. (more…)

We all need a reality check. And this coming for a gal who admits she needs one as well.

All you hear lately is Twitter this, Facebook that. Social networking sites are popping up everyday and the media, so-called social media gurus, and marketing folks want you to believe that if you’re not tweeting, blogging, or developing your cyber brand you’ll be doomed to die alone, unemployed, and uninformed.

Well, that’s bull. In fact, only 1 percentage of hires made in this country right now have anything to do with cyber social networking. And that’s from the horse’s mouth — hiring managers.

I know Ashton Kutcher uses Twitter all the time, but you’re not Ashton Kutcher. (more…)