Workplace Buzz: Today’s Headlines

Biggest Companies in America
This is our 10th year of selecting the 400 Best Big Companies in America. Our methodology for choosing the winners is so stringent that 165 companies from last year's 400 did not make the cut for 2008. Not only must companies pass our benchmarks for financial growth rates and returns, they must also meet our approval for their corporate governance, accounting standards and background checks. Forbes.com

Seeking a Steady Paycheck
With the subprime mess working its way into every back alley of the stock, bond, and money markets, this is a tricky time to be searching for income. Anyone looking for a steady paycheck from an investment portfolio in 2008 will have to negotiate a maze of falling interest rates, shrinking dividends, and potential bond downgrades. Yahoo.com

Additional Paid Holiday
Happy holidays. Take another day off work. If you're one of the lucky ones, your boss is providing at least one additional paid holiday besides Christmas and New Year's Day thanks to a calendar quirk: Dec. 24 and Dec. 31 fall on Mondays this year. Employers typically struggle with productivity issues during this time of year because so many workers take vacation between Christmas Eve and New Year's Day. Baltimore Sun