Happy Friday! A hodgepodge of headlines in today's In cased you missed it. We continue to see a lot of discussion over increasing use of independent contractors in temporary labor, as well as statistics and advice regarding employee engagement and retention.

How are your organizations doing in terms of managing the workforce? What are you doing to curb the departure of your key talent? Have you begun hiring again, and if so, what categories of workers?

The Facts and Fictions of Employee Engagement and Retention

Harvard Business Review: Retaining a Workforce That Wants to Quit. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in each of the past three months, more employees have quit their jobs than have been laid off. What's more, a survey by AchieveGlobal found that one in four employees plan to leave their jobs within a year. Studies show that the most prominent reasons employees are leaving their jobs are lack of growth opportunities, dissatisfaction with compensation, and lack of recognition. To combat abandonment, the author recommends personalizing the positions and rewards within your company.

Talent Management: Retention Tips for a Less Talked-About Employee Segment. Preventing employees from voluntarily leaving their workplace is especially a challenge in technology departments. In many recessions, technology pros feel the brunt of the pressure, as they're often the first place management turns to drive productivity. The result? According to a Dice Retention Survey, 51 percent of technology professionals said they intend to switch employers in 2010. The reasons for their decision include "the search for better career opportunities, increased competition, and frustration with the lack of recognition for their accomplishments."

TLNT.com: Salary Increases are Down, But That's Not Driving Employee Engagement. The outlook for salary increases in 2011 isn't good: The Hay Group anticipates a 3 percent increase next year, and The Conference Board predicts a median salary increase of only 2.5 percent. However, an employee engagement survey by WorldatWork offers a glimmer of hope. They found "that base pay and benefits had a weaker relationship with the organization's ability to foster high levels of employee engagement and motivation compared to incentives, intangible rewards, and quality of leadership."

So even if your organization is unable to offer large salary increases next year, don't fret. You still have a good chance of engaging your employees, and hopefully convincing them to ride out the recovery with you.

Contingent Labor in the New Economy

1099 Risk Blog: Contingent Labor Brings Significant Savings, Research Finds. In the Spring 2010 issue of Contingent Workforce Strategies, Staffing Industry Analysts reveals that 92 percent of surveyed companies using temporary workers experience cost savings -- more specifically, a median savings of 9 percent. Twenty-seven percent of surveyed companies reported annual labor savings of 11 to 20 percent, and 8 percent of companies saw savings of greater than 20 percent.

The Wall Street Journal: Cities Rent Police, Janitors to Save Cash. Faced with multi-million dollar budget deficits, several U.S. cities are now outsourcing some of the basic functions of government, such as cleaning, trash collection, and even policing. Contracting these services out will save municipalities cash by eliminating the costs associated with employee benefits such as health insurance and retirement. But opponents of the trend say that cities will lose control and personalized services as a result.