Job Requirements

Huddled around a conference table in a fancy Seattle hotel, America's most reform-minded teachers union bosses sounded more like crusading politicians than advocates for the rank and file. Why not tie teachers' raises to their ability to pass demanding tests? Even better, fire slackers who can't cut it. Or, most radical of all, pay teachers based on how much their students learn. Until recently, union leaders had been loath to even whisper such ideas.

Something always goes wrong: The stuffed mushrooms are soggy. The senator's name is misspelled on the program. The celebrity guest gets the flu and won't be there. Such are the crises of the fund-raising world, and Toni Roberts has survived them all--and more. For 11 years, Roberts has made her living by making money for politicians. Today's clients include 25 state legislators--all Democrats--and officials in local government.

Those looking for work in the hot field of software engineering need more than a degree and aptitude to find the best jobs. "There's incredible demand, but employers are still very picky," said John Arany, an assistant director of career services at Cal State Northridge who specializes in computer science jobs. "They want very specific languages and systems and software. The hot languages now include C, C++, Java and HTML," Arany explained. "The Unix operating system is very popular.

USC looked terribly unprepared in its Sun Bowl loss to Texas Christian, but give Coach Paul Hackett credit for knowing what not to say. Larry Smith famously said "names and logos don't mean anything" anymore after USC lost to Fresno State in the 1992 Freedom Bowl, and was fired soon after. Hackett entered a makeshift interview room after the game Thursday in El Paso, eyeing the chair where he was to sit. "Is this the electric chair?" he asked.

That shopping-mall Santa may look like he came from the North Pole, but more likely than not, he came from one of the very few companies responsible for placing Santas in almost every shopping center in the nation. "Santa is a very big business," said Diana Leone, marketing manager at the Lakeside shopping center in Sterling Heights, Mich. "Just look at all the kids lined up all day to see him."

Technology is your friend in the struggle to work well at work and be well when you're not at work. It is also your enemy, if bosses and employees aren't careful to tame it.

British stores are desperately seeking fat, elderly men to play Santa in their Christmas grottoes. Salads and workouts at the gym have taken their toll on the cast of seasonal actors who usually don white beards and red robes to bring Father Christmas alive for millions of children. "We just cannot find any suitable actors who are still, shall we say, on the porky side.

Call it California dreaming. Faced with miles of Atlantic beaches and empty chairs, New York City is trying to lure lifeguards from the West Coast. So severe is the shortage here that only 400 of 1,200 positions have been filled so far--forcing portions of some beaches to close. And unless additional lifeguards are found, the situation is likely to get worse when 55 municipal outdoor swimming pools open this summer.

When Heidi Brooks decided to try teaching, she was a burned-out Hollywood agent looking for a temporary job--as a substitute--to tide her over. She quickly found that becoming a teacher in California is nearly as easy as getting a job at McDonald's. No experience? No problem. An hour on the phone snagged the 28-year-old three interviews--and three offers of permanent jobs.

High school students in the Los Alamitos Unified School District can start getting two report cards--one with classroom grades for their parents and another to rate their job skills for potential employers. The Vital Link program is geared toward showing employers that students are learning the skills they need to enter the work force after high school.