by Race in the Workplace special correspondent Erica Mauter

How to Land Your First Job - DiversityInc
“You really don’t want to be the barrier breaker, especially for an entry-level job.” Emphasis on finding mentors and considering how your minority status might fit in with a company’s culture and policies.

Black firefighter settles bias suit - MSNBC.com
“Pierce sued the city [of Los Angeles] in 2005 after fellow firefighters mixed dog food into his spaghetti dinner. He said he suffered retaliation for reporting the incident as well as verbal slurs, insults and derogatory remarks, including taunting by firefighters ‘barking like dogs (and) asking him how dog food tasted.’ Pierce’s claim was one of several lawsuits alleging a pattern of harassment and discrimination against women or minorities working for the department.”

Putting Money on the Table - New York Times
“For the first time, women in their 20s who work full time in several American cities — New York, Chicago, Boston and Minneapolis — are earning higher wages than men in the same age range.” “[T]he gap is largely driven by a gulf in education: 53 percent of women employed full time in their 20s were college graduates, compared with 38 percent of men. Women are also more likely to have graduate degrees.” Seems to me the problem is partly preconceived notions about gender roles and partly an obvious difference in maturity level between men and women in their 20s.

The new rules of relationships for women: Don’t outearn men, and do all the housework - Boston.com/The Job Blog
In response to the NYTimes article on twentysomething women outearning their male counterparts: “So, what’s the message here? Men don’t like women who outearn them; yet, are happier when married because they get to offload housework. Not sure what to think of that except it’s going to be a rocky road for gender relations until everyone starts to adjust to changing gender roles.”

Negotiating Compensation Options Other Than Base Salary - Career Hub
“Job seekers can more effectively negotiate their total compensation package by knowing what special incentives the employer offers. Two incentives that are becoming more common are sign on bonuses and project milestone awards.”

Five Ways To Make Yourself A Workplace Superstar - Penelope Trunk at InformationWeek
“2. Cut corners at work to make time for the gym: Most people who don’t get regular exercise say that job interferes with their exercise time. This is absurd reasoning, because people who don’t exercise do worse at work than people who do.”

October 1-7 is National Work From Home Week

Recommended Reading is a weekly feature where we link to some of our favorite workplace-related blog posts and articles. If you would like to suggest a link to Erica, please email tips@raceintheworkplace.com