Career Planning and Work Laws Overview

Service and Professionals

Two major occupational groups.

Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT), Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH), Monthly Labor Review

Three government sources that provide job descriptions.

Job analysis

The study of positive and negative attributes of a job.

Salary

Pay received for labor, usually expressed as annual or monthly income.

Employee benefits

Supplements to salary such as sick pay, vacation time, insurance.

Employee expenses

Costs workers pay themselves and are not reimbursed by the employer (e.g., gasoline).

Entrepreneurship

Organizing, managing, and owning a new business.

Lifelong learner

Someone who continually seeks new knowledge for personal and professional growth.

Upgrading

Improving existing skills.

Retraining

Learning new skills.

Aptitude

A natural physical or mental ability to do tasks well.

Short-term goal

A goal with a time frame of a few days or weeks.

Job shadowing

Spending time observing a worker in a field of interest.

Cooperative education

Attending classes part-time and working in a supervised field experience.

Networking

Informal groups of people with shared interests offering assistance.

Form W-4

Used to provide employer with information on tax withholding based on marital status and exemptions.

Tax withholding

Now based on income, dependents, and deductions, not allowances, after 2020.

Unemployment insurance

Benefits paid to people who lose their jobs through no fault of their own.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for family or medical reasons.

Punctuality

Being ready to start work at the appointed time.

Teamwork

Working cooperatively with other employees to reach a goal.

Gross pay

Total earnings before deductions.

Net pay

Earnings after all deductions.

Self-employment tax

Tax self-employed people pay (15.3% for Social Security and Medicare), usually quarterly.

Flextime

A flexible work schedule allowing employees to choose working hours within limits.

Compressed workweek

Fitting a 40-hour workweek into fewer than five days.

Collective bargaining

Negotiating work contracts for union members.

Progressive tax

A tax where the rate increases as income increases (e.g., federal income tax).

Regressive tax

A tax where the rate decreases as income increases (e.g., sales tax).

Voluntary compliance

Citizens are expected to file their own taxes without force.

Audit

Examination of a person's tax return by the IRS.

Dependent

A person who lives with you and for whom you pay more than half of their living expenses.

Federal income tax filing deadline

April 15.

Earned income

Money from working.

Unearned income

Comes from passive sources like investments.