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Get Great Benefits by Taking on One of These 11 Part-Time Jobs

LearnVest — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:15:46 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart LearnVest story here on Savvy!

“Underemployment” is a term that, compared to “unemployment,” more fully captures the lack of job opportunities.

The underemployed includes the unemployed as well as those employed part-time but wanting full-time work.

According to a recent poll, underemployment is currently at 18.1 percent. That’s down from 18.3 percent the month prior, and 19 percent a year ago. While these numbers are still high, there are opportunities to work part-time. You won’t make as much money as you would with a full-time job, but with many part-time positions, you’ll not only earn a salary but also score some great perks.

Related: the 10 Fastest-Growing Jobs

We’ve put together a list of 11 big-name companies that provide big benefits to its part-time workers. Whether they're offering free merchandise, health insurance benefits, or tuition aid, these employers certainly make it worth your while to work, even if you’re only putting in 20 hours a week.

Whole Foods

After part-timers have worked 400 hours, they get health, dental, and vision plans, as well as 401(k) retirement plans, paid time off, and a 20 percent employee discount. After working 6,000 hours, employees are offered stock options.

Target

Work at Target as few as two and a half days a week for six months, and you can become eligible for Target’s health care coverage. Employees also get access to other health benefits like free flu vaccinations, a 24-hour nurse hotline, and discounts for Weight Watchers.

Read on for more.

How to Adjust Your Tax Withholding

Kiplinger — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 16:14:10 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart Kiplinger story here on Savvy!

Political theater over whether or not to extend the 2% payroll tax holiday has overshadowed the fact that most workers can do more to reduce the amount of tax withheld from their paychecks than anything cooked up in Washington.

The power-to-the-people ploy? Using a W-4 form to put an end to overwithholding from your paychecks. First, let's set the stage. Even as anti-Washington sentiment rises to a fever pitch, most middle-class Americans continue to allow the government to claim more than its share every single payday. The proof: In 2011, 109 million of the 145 million individual tax returns filed called for refunds. That's 75%. The average refund last year: $2,913. That's significantly more than even the highest-paid worker gets from a 2% payroll tax holiday.

Yes, we love our tax refunds. But we ask this simple question of those of you who get refunds year after year: Doesn't it make more sense to get your money when you earn it?

If you agree with us that the answer is a resounding "yes," we have good news. Unlike stubbornly high unemployment, it's easy to fix overwithholding. All you have to do is file a revised Form W-4 with your employer. The information on that little form determines how much federal income tax is withheld from your checks. The more "allowances" you claim on the W-4, the less income tax will be withheld.

Read on for more.

Box Office: The Vow Courts First Place

Shannon Vestal — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:05:52 PST

Audiences fell for Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams this weekend, as The Vow won first place at the box office with $41.7 million. The romance just narrowly beat Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington's thriller Safe House, which earned $39.3 million. They were followed by another new release, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, with $27.6 million. The 3D rerelease of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace came in fourth place with $23 million, and last week's box office winner Chronicle rounded out the top five with $12.3 million.

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

Don't Forget Uncle Sam When You're Counting Your Tips

Emily Co — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 00:15:22 PST

If you're in the service industry, a big chunk of your income may come from tips. But don't think you can get away with not filing taxes for them. Here are a couple of tips from the IRS:

Tips are taxed. Your tips will face federal income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes. You will also be taxed on nonmonetary tips like tickets, and gifts will be counted as income.
Include them on your tax return. Include your cash tips, tips added to credit card bills, and tips you split with co-workers when reporting gross income on your tax return. "Report your tips with your wages on Form 1040, line 7; Form 1040A, line 7; Form 1040EZ, line 1; Form 1040NR, line 8; or Form 1040NR-EZ, line 3."
Report to your employer. If you earn more than $20 in tips, you need to report this income to your boss. Your employer is required to withhold federal income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes. You don't have to report nonmonetary tips to your boss. If you don't report these tips to your employer, you will face a penalty.
Record your tips. Be organized and record your tip income. You can use Form 4070A, Employee's Daily Record of Tips, to record your tip income. To get the form, ask your employer or the IRS for Publication 1244, Employee's Daily Record of Tips and Report to Employer. Publication 1244 includes a year's supply of Form 4070A. Record nonmonetary tips separately and include that on your tax return. You can even keep a tip diary electronically by requesting access to an electronic system provided by your employer.
Watch the deadline. Turn in your monthly tip records with your employer by the 10th of the next month.
Don't include mandatory service charges: don't note down mandatory service charges in your tip diary as these are considered part of your wages, not tips.

The Men of the BAFTAs: Do, Dump, or Marry?

Annie Scudder — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:00:17 PST

Cute couples enjoyed themselves at the BAFTA Awards, but some fine men also walked the red carpet solo. Brad Pitt and George Clooney walked sans Angelina Jolie and Stacy Keibler, respectively, while rising heartthrobs like Eddie Redmayne and Michael Fassbender earned that status. The English may be known for being proper, but let's not let that stop us from a little fun. Check out the men, single or taken, who came out for the BAFTAs tonight, and vote: do, dump, or marry?

5 Ideas to Increase Your Income This Year

Emily Co — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 03:05:39 PST

You're doing everything right - saving and skimping - but somehow that's not enough. If you're not making enough to put aside a good chunk of savings for your retirement account and to pay off your debt, bills, and day-to-day expenses, you probably need to make more income. Here are a couple of ideas to raise your cash flow:

Ask for a raise: If you don't ask, you don't get, so resolve to ask for the pay that you deserve this year. First of all, you need proof of why you deserve the raise, so start keeping track of all your accomplishments in a document. Or you can even email them to yourself and automatically squirrel away these accomplishment emails in an inbox folder. Make sure you can clearly show how you helped the company's bottom line and cite numbers and use examples. Do some market research on sites like glassdoor.com and salary.com so you can bring this data to the negotiating table. Start working on other efforts such as being more visible in your company and spearheading events. Also, ask for a raise at the right time - try to time it when it's review season or when operating budgets are being created and approved.
Get a new job: The job market seems to be picking up, so you might actually find better opportunities. Start by freshening up your LinkedIn and looking up companies you'd like to work for. Once you have a few in mind, reach out to people in your network to see if they know anyone who can pass your résumé to the right people. Remember to negotiate the salary for your new job since it's the starting point for future raises.

Read on for more ideas.

Prince Harry Visits With Vets and Preps For a Return to Afghanistan

Allie Merriam — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 05:41:25 PST

Prince Harry visited with fellow servicemen and women this morning while at the Royal Air Force's Honington base. Dressed in fatigues, Harry checked out equipment, like rifles and night vision systems, and said hello to veterans. The Prince has seen combat action himself, and is poised for a second tour of duty. Prince Harry will return to the front line in Afghanistan later this year with the Army Air Corps. He'll serve as an Apache helicopter pilot, having been trained to fly the choppers during a program in the United States last year. He must first, though, complete a predeployment training course. Harry has received high marks in his work so far, earning the distinction of "best copilot gunner" in his class. Harry's brother, Prince William, is now also serving his country. He's one week into a month-and-a-half-long stay in the Falkland Islands, where he's manning search and rescue helicopters.

Daily Tech: Google Offers Survey Incentive

GeekSugar — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:05:59 PST

Let Google track you, earn $25 - Geek.com
Want to fulfill your game show dreams? Follow these tips - Cracked
Online dating causes bad decisions - Newser
Federal judge rules in favor of customer's right to resell MP3s - Tecca
Gorgeous and geeky tattoos - GeekTyrant
How a meticulous Lord of the Rings family tree came into existence - CNN Geek Out!

Earn More Money By Changing Up Your Office Space

LearnVest — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:15:07 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart LearnVest story here on Savvy!

Most of us spend about 40 hours per week at work - in other words, the majority of our waking hours.

And nearly all of those hours are spent sitting at our desks. It’s a definite problem - and not just because we’re missing happy hour or quality couch time at home.

There’s no shortage of discouraging research pointing out the evils of a sedentary lifestyle and claiming that sitting will actually shorten our lives.

But, conversely, making a few tweaks to the way you sit - and the space you sit in - all day has been proven to make you a happier, healthier worker, busy earning your killer salary.

And, scientists say, the happier you are, the more you tend to earn.

In an effort to make the time spent at our desks as productive (and as profitable) as possible, we’ve combed the research for the easiest, most effective tips to soothe your mind and body when trapped in a cubicle . . . or corner office.

Just follow these four steps.

1. Make It Comfy

When we say “comfy,” we mean “ergonomic.” It’s an unfriendly word for a friendly concept: basically it means “intended to provide optimum comfort and to avoid stress or injury.” Friendly, right? Besides, an awkward workspace can lead to major health issues, including disorders in your joints or tendons, so a little tweaking of your cubicle can go a long way for your well-being. Line up your body correctly by following these two principles:

Your feet should be flat on the floor and your elbows should be even with your desk. This can be achieved either through adjustable chairs or - if chairs are a hot commodity at your office - a combination of step stools and pillows.

Read on for more tips.

The Muppets' Music Man Bret McKenzie on His Oscar Nod and Taking a Silly Job Seriously

Lindsay Miller — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:50:41 PST

Bret McKenzie is up for an exceedingly rare honor this year, with his ballad "Man or Muppet" earning one of just two nominations in the Oscars' best song category. I caught up with The Muppets' musical supervisor today at Walt Disney Studios in Burbank to chat about the awards attention and the unique experience of penning music for Kermit and company. The New Zealand native talked about fighting the temptation to use the word "motherfrogger" in his songwriting and the roundabout way he came on board The Muppets project in the first place. Bret - who previously was best known as one half of the musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords - also shared his hopes of bringing FOC to the big screen. Check out our conversation below:

PopSugar: It's got to be an honor to be nominated for an Oscar, but also in a year when the Academy only bothered to nominate two songs.
Bret McKenzie: They barely nominated anyone! When I found out, it sounded like there'd been a mistake, and yeah, it's a huge honor. It's great and it's really exciting, and I'm not complaining that there's only two nominees the year I'm nominated. I mean, this is the best chance I'll have of winning an Oscar, ever. It couldn't have been better, unless there was just one nomination, and then it would be a very dull ceremony . . . There's a lot of legendary musicians - tunesmiths - in that list of possible nominations. So it's all very surreal to think that I got in ahead of Elton John.

PS: And Madonna. Those two had a little rivalry going on.
BM: I know. I got nervous about what Elton John's husband was going to say about me. It's crazy, and it's great for The Muppets film, because we're all really proud of the film and it wasn't ever really going to get a best actor. Hey, Jason's good, that's not what I mean, but Kermit, Miss Piggy - they can't win these awards - and comedies don't generally get recognized at these awards ceremonies, so it's kind of cool. It's almost like the film as a whole is being recognized with this category.

For more from our chat with Bret, including what he says about his plans for a Flight of the Conchords film, coaching Jason Segel, and the pressure he felt on the project, just

read more! PS: What was the biggest unexpected challenge for you writing music for the film? I know you talked about one draft of a song where you referred to a Muppet as a piece of felt and were told you couldn't do that. BM: Yeah. Little piece of felt, and you couldn't say things like motherfrogger, even though it's very tempting. There were lots of hard parts to it. The Muppets can't sing certain notes. They can't sing too high or the voice changes and doesn't sound like the right character. There were so many weird things. I spent hours recording penguins and rats, and what's weird is that it's such a silly job, but you have to take it very seriously. So I would be in the studio for days, maybe a whole day recording penguins, and then I'm like, "I'm not happy with how the penguins are sounding! Where's penguin four?" You know, getting demanding. "We lost penguin track four! I can't hear the penguin!" PS: I was watching the movie again last night and watching Jason Segel's performance of "Man or Muppet." Did you coach him on any of his rockstar moves? Because he pretty much nailed it. BM: He nailed it. That's my favorite moment in the film. When he buckles down in the rain, that was one of my favorite shots. I was so proud of what James [Bobin, the director] and those guys achieved, because I wasn't there on set, I just saw them syncing the video, and I was like, "Wow, guys. You nailed it." What we did do in the studio, as Jason and I had a technique where I would sing a line, and he'd watch me through the window, and then he'd sing it back. So we did this thing where, I was really into the drama of it. So, I was like, "Am I a Muppppettt?" [balling his hands into fists] And he'd be like, OK, record. "Am I a Muppppettt!" So we kind of worked together to get that style. PS: Did it shatter some of your childhood illusions to have the guy that does Miss Piggy's voice come work with you [in the recording studio]? BM: Yeah. Well, it wasn't Frank Oz. The guy Eric, who does it now, yeah. That was strange. And the day that we recorded Kermit the Frog doing "Rainbow Connection" - I was sort of pinching myself, because that was probably one of the real moments for me where I realized that my world had really changed. That I'd come from New Zealand, I'd grown up with Kermit the Frog, and now I was in Hollywood in a studio recording Kermit the Frog. It felt like worlds had collided. PS: Was there pressure knowing there was already this great catalog of Muppet songs? To try to add to that or top it in some way? BM: I knew I wouldn't top "Rainbow Connection," but I was very intimidated, but the way I worked on the job was it actually started with me just writing one song, so I didn't feel the pressure of writing the whole movie. I think it would have been different if I'd been hired from the outset to do all the music. So I wrote one, then another, and gradually wrote more and more, so that helped. PS: What song did you write first? BM: The opening song. That's the one they needed, that's the one James asked me to write first. The script was probably on a second draft, and they were in preproduction, so I came in quite late. And the way they were doing it was, they got 100s of demos submitted from all sorts of songwriters, and surprisingly - even though they got some really great people to do demos - people weren't quite hitting the right tone. The Muppet tone. I'd just come off the Conchords tour and I had some time, and James asked if I was interested in doing that opening song, because he had a kind of specific thing he needed from that song. He needed it to be really Muppet-y, that song, and he had a great idea for the whole town joining in, it starting off small and becoming a big musical number, and that came together really well. PS: Is this experience maybe something you want to bring to a Flight of the Conchords movie? BM: Yeah, exactly. Having done this movie now, we're in a much better place to do a Conchords film, because James is more experienced - well, we're all more experienced. Not specifically, but James Bobin - well, we're all very keen to do another studio musical, because I really enjoyed being able to do comedy musical numbers on such a grand scale, and I think next time, I really think it will just get better and better. Because it's such a fun genre, and we've done like 50 songs for TV now, and now The Muppets movie, and I feel like we've accidentally sort of become musical comedy experts. PS: What do you imagine Bret and Jemaine from Flight of the Conchords are up to these days, in their universe? BM: In the Lower East Side? That's a good question. I reckon they probably got a regular gig now. Like, at a Chinese restaurant. Photo courtesy Disney