Percentage of full-time employees in the U.S. who do not receive benefits -- such as health insurance, retirement savings plan or paid vacation -- from their employers, according to a survey by Clutch: 25

Ranks of health insurance (55 percent), paid vacation time (18 percent), overtime pay (11 percent) and retirement funding (10 percent) on the list of the most valuable benefits to employees: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: Clutch.

Percentage of students who believe they will graduate with the skills and knowledge to be successful in the job market, according to a survey by Gallup and Strada Education Network: 34

Percentage who believe their major will lead to a good job: 53

Percentage of students pursuing science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) degrees who believe their major will lead to a good job: 62

Percentage of business majors who feel the same: 51

Percentage of liberal arts majors feel the same: 40

Source: Gallup Organization.

Percentage of professionals who plan to look for a new position in the next 12 months, according to a survey from Accountemps: 29

Of the 27 markets surveyed -- ranks of Los Angeles (40 percent), Austin, Texas (38 percent), and Dallas (37 percent) on the list of U.S. cities with the most workers planning to find new opportunities: 1, 2, 3

Percentage of senior managers who prefer a one-page resume for staff-level candidates: 46

Percentage who believe two pages is an ideal length: 47

Source: Accountemps.

Percentage of U.S. adults currently living in a romantic relationship who have a credit card, checking account or savings account that their partner or spouse doesn't know about, according to a report from CreditCards.com: 21

Number of U.S. adults this represents: 15 million

Percentage of those in a relationship who think that keeping a credit card, checking account or savings account secret from a partner is worse than cheating physically: 31

Source: CreditCards.com.

Percentage of Americans who say they have enough savings to cover a $1,000 emergency room visit or car repair, according to a Bankrate.com report: 39

For Americans who are not able to pay that expense, percentage who would need to borrow the money in some fashion: 36

Percentage who would use a credit card: 19

Percentage who would borrow from family or friends: 12

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of workers who experience sexual harassment at work who do not report it, according to a CareerBuilder Survey: 72

Percentage of those who have felt sexually harassed at work who said they were sexually harassed by their boss: 28

Percentage of people sexually harassed who said they did not confront the person responsible for harassment: 54

Ranks of "they didn't want to be labeled a troublemaker," "said it was their word against the other person" and "were afraid of losing their job" on the list of reasons for failing to report the harassment: 1, 2, 3

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage increase in holiday sales during November and December (excluding restaurants, automobile dealers and gasoline stations) over the same period in 2016 (to $691.9 billion), according to research by the National Retail Federation: 5.5

Percentage increase in online and other non-store sales ($138.4 billion) over the year before: 11.5

Source: National Retail Federation.

Percentage of women who believe that beauty can be empowering, according to a study conducted on behalf of manufacturer Sally Hansen: 84

Percentage who agree that there is something great about taking care of their beauty routine by themselves: 81

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of American adults age 18 and older (13 percent of the women and 24 percent of the men) who feel that same-sex marriage should not be legal, according to an Adam & Eve survey: 18

Percentage (62 percent of the women and 47 percent of the men) who say they are glad it is now legal in the United States: 55

Source: Adam & Eve.

Ranks of "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle," "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," "Beauty and the Beast" and "Wonder Woman" on the list of recent movies where fans ate the most popcorn, according to Atom Tickets: 1, 2, 3, 4

Ranks of white cheddar, nacho cheese and kettle corn on the list of the most popular popcorn seasonings: 1, 2, 3

Source: Atom Tickets.

Idle Thought

"Moral authority comes from following universal and timeless principles like honesty, integrity, treating people with respect." -- Stephen Covey, author

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

When it comes to following up after an interview, ranks of emails and a handwritten note as the most appropriate methods, according to an Accountemps survey of HR managers: 1, 2

Percentage of HR managers who report receiving a thank-you note from a job seeker following an interview: 24

Percentage of those thank-you notes received by email: 65

Percentage received via mail: 21

Source: Accountemps.

Percentage of professionals who say that being bored and needing a challenge would be the top reason for seeking a new job in 2018, according to a survey by Korn Ferry: 33

When asked what their typical first step is when looking for a new job, percentage who cited networking: 44

Percentage of respondents who said networking at every point in their career is key, not just when they are in job search mode: 89

Percentage of respondents who said updating their resume is their first step to landing a new role: 23

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Percentage of employees who say they lack the time or motivation to persist with their New Year's resolutions, according to a survey released from ComPsych: 64

Percentage who said "finding time to go to the gym/prep healthy meals, etc." is the hardest part about sticking to New Year's health resolutions: 35

Percentage who cited "lack of motivation in general": 29

Source: ComPsych Corp.

Percentage of millennials who are making money on the side in addition to their "regular job," and lead all generational groups, according to a survey of millennials, Gen Xers and baby boomers by finder.com: 33

Ranks of Gen Xers and baby boomers on the list of those with a side job: 2, 3

Average annual amount of money made by Gen Xers on the side, just beating the younger generation by $37: $5,307

Rank of baby-sitting on the list of the most popular jobs for millennials (while baby boomers and Gen Xers both preferred creative freelancing): 1

Source: finder.com.

Percentage of family caregivers (defined as someone who takes care of a family member or friend, but is unpaid for their services) who spend $5,000 or more per year on caregiving expenses, according to a new Caring.com report: 44

Percentage of caregivers who work who report their caregiving has had a negative impact on their job: 68

Percentage who have missed one or more weeks of work: 55

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of global auto executives who say they believe battery electric vehicles (BEVs) will fail commercially due to infrastructure challenges, according to the 2018 KPMG Global Automotive Executive Survey: 54

Percentage who say excessive recharging times will do them in: 60

When asked where they would invest beyond the internal combustion engine over the next five years, percentage of execs who most frequently said hybrids and plug-in hybrids: 72

Source: KPMG LLP.

Percentage of convenience store workers who said that they would recommend working in a convenience store to others, particularly as a first job, according to a survey conducted by the National Association of Convenience Stores: 77

Percentage of these workers who said they learned a lot about how to work with different people: 89

Percentage who said they learned how businesses are run and what the challenges are: 80

Source: National Association of Convenience Stores.

Ranks of relaxing or finding peace of mind, discovering new cultures or enjoying a change of scenery, becoming closer as a family, and reading or learning new things on the list of reasons for vacation travel, according to findings from Generali Global Assistance: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: M Group Strategic Communications (for Generali Global Assistance North America).

Percentage of Americans who believe there will be a major terrorist attack carried out within the United States, according to an Ipsos Global Advisor survey: 51

Percentage who believe there will be a war between North Korea and the United States in 2018: 47

Source: Ipsos Global.

Idle Thought

"Not all those who wander are lost." -- J.R.R. Tolkien, novelist and philologist

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of Americans who said they overspent this past holiday season, according to WalletHub's post-holiday shopping season survey, as well as its Credit Card Return Protection Report: 29

Percentage who say they plan to spend less in 2018 than they did in 2017: 62

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage rise in consumer credit card balances in November 2016 -- to a new all-time high of $1.0227 trillion -- according to an announcement by The Federal Reserve: 13

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of HR managers who said they take thank-you notes into account when deciding whom to hire, according to an Accountemps survey: 80

Percentage of candidates who send thank-you notes: 24

Source: Accountemps.

Percentage of current owners of Amazon Echo and Google Home smart speakers who are planning to buy another smart speaker within the next six months, according to research from Strategy Analytics: 69

Percentage of all smart speakers in use that are either Amazon or Google: 94

Source: Strategy Analytics.

Percentage of Americans who will be prioritizing healthy or socially conscious food purchases in 2018, according to a survey for Label Insight: 67

Percentage of consumers who are planning to eat less sugar or buy more "no sugar added" products this year: 47

Percentage who will emphasize natural ingredient purchases, such as those with no artificial colors or flavors: 37

Source: Wakefield Research.

Percentage of all U.S. respondents who said they would prioritize spending spare change on experiences rather than products, according to the results of a multigenerational travel study exploring consumer behavior and travel preferences of American adults from Generation Z (ages 18 to 22) to baby boomers (ages 55 to 65):74

Percentage of millennials who disclosed that they are currently saving money to spend specifically on travel: 65

Percentage of Generation Z respondents who said they have stayed at a specific hotel or destination in order to score a positive response from followers of posts on their own social media channels: 20

Source: Expedia.

Percentage of workers who said winter weather negatively impacts their mood and happiness at work, according to a survey from staffing firm Accountemps: 38

Percentage who cited January as the least-happy month at work for them: 26

Rank of "Blue Monday" (Jan. 15th) on the official list of the gloomiest days of the year: 1

Ranks of Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago and Boston on the list of cities where workers give winter a thumbs-down: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Ranks of Phoenix, San Diego and Miami, Austin, and Houston, Los Angeles and Dallas on the list of cities where workers give winter a thumbs-up: 1, 2 (tie) 4, 5 (3-way tie)

Source: Accountemps.

When professionals were asked what would aggravate them most during the recruiting process, percentage who cited not hearing back from the recruiter or hiring manager, according to a survey conducted by Korn Ferry: 53

Percentage who do not believe recruiters paint a clear, accurate picture of the company and of the role for which they are being considered: 47

Percentage who do not believe that the recruiters give them the tools and tips they need to land a job: 36

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Ranks of DASH Diet, Mediterranean Diet and Flexitarian Diet on the list of the best overall diets, according to research by U.S. News & World Report: 1, 2 (tie)

Ranks of Mediterranean Diet, Flexitarian Diet and Weight Watchers on the list of the easiest diets to follow: 1, 2 (tie)

Source: US News & World Report.

Percentage of U.S. broadband households who use voice controls on internet-connected devices, according to research by Parks Associates: 44

Percentage who want the ability to monitor and adjust their thermostat remotely: 49

Percentage who are very interested in having voice control in their vehicles: 40

Source: Parks Associates.

Idle Thought

"When all's said and done, all roads lead to the same end. So it's not so much which road you take, as how you take it." -- Charles de Lint, writer

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)