Percentage of job applicants who gave false reasons for leaving a prior job, according to a survey of applicants, hiring managers, HR professionals and recruiters by Checkster: 46
Percentage who used a director title when their actual title was manager: 41
Percentage who claimed to have a degree from a prestigious university instead of their actual institution: 39
According to hiring managers, rank of faking references on the list of the worst things a job applicant could do in the hiring process: 1
Source: Checkster.
Even before COVID-19 hit the United States, percentage of Americans who were extremely or quite concerned about catching the flu, compared to just 32% who felt that way four years ago, according to the Bradley Corp.'s Healthy Hand-Washing Survey: 60
Percentage of Americans who said news coverage of cold and flu outbreaks has an impact on their hand-washing behavior: 50
Source: Bradley Corp.
Percentage of dating Americans who have borrowed money for a date, according to a LendingTree study: 19
Percentage of those surveyed who think it's more expensive to be in a couple than it is to be single: 75
Percentage who currently have dating-related debt: 10
Source: LendingTree.
Ranks of paying off credit card debt, buying a car, paying off other debt, buying a house, getting a raise or promotion at work, and increasing retirement savings on the list of respondents' biggest financial accomplishment from the last decade, according to a survey from DepositAccounts.com: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Source: DepositAccounts.com.
Percentage of mortgage holders who do not know the interest rate on their current residence, according to a Bankrate.com study: 27
Percentage of homeowners who never plan to move from their current home: 56
Percentage who say they are at least somewhat likely to renovate or remodel their current home during that time: 63
Of those likely to upgrade their current home, percentage who plan to turn to credit cards: 10
Source: Bankrate.com.
Value of a single lost tooth last year, according to Delta Dental's annual Tooth Fairy Poll: $3.70
Value shown in this year's survey, an increase of nearly 9%: $4.03
Source: Delta Dental.
Ranks of friendly competitions, themed breaks or potlucks, and wearing team apparel on the list of the most impactful activities among workers who reported a boost in spirits, according to research by research by Robert Half: 1, 2, 3
In a separate survey of professionals, average number of minutes per day that respondents said they spend discussing nonwork topics with colleagues: 34.25
Source: Robert Half.
Percentage of Americans who received a tax refund last year (median amount being $2,154), according to a survey from Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine and Barclays U.S. Consumer Bank: 74
Percentage who saved some or all of it: 67
Percentage who paid credit card bills: 25
Source: Commonwealth Public Affairs.
Percentage of Americans who say they were concerned about the cost of running their heater or air conditioner, according to a survey by Vivint Solar: 32
Percentage who reported that they were worried about the environmental impact of the energy used to heat and cool their homes: 14
Source: Vivint Solar.
Percentage of individuals who have sex with their partner weekly who are happy, according to a report commissioned by eharmony: 86
Percentage of couples who have sex monthly who say the same: 78
Percentage who have sex a few times per year who say the same: 66
Source: eharmony.
Idle Thought
"You can be young without money, but you can't be old without it." -- Tennessee Williams
(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)