Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.trends From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: trends Fri, Jun 19 1992 Date: Fri, 19 Jun 92 05:24:16 EDT Message-ID: 06-19 0000 DECISIONLINE: Trends & Marketing USA TODAY Update June 19-21, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network MANAGERS DITCH WHITE COLLARS: To break down barriers between white-collar and blue-collar workers, managers increasingly are shedding their white collars. "It's a ... growing trend," says Brian Turner, an AFL-CIO administrator. For instance, everyone wears identical blue-striped shirts at the Bridgestone-Firestone Plant in Warren County, Tenn. Such moves are considered a key step in quality programs. (For more, see special Collar package below.) MORE DADS RAISE FAMILIES: A single father raising his children was unusual just a decade ago. But new Census figures show that between 1985 and 1989 alone, the number of homes headed by single fathers increased from 1.3 million to 1.8 million. Dads head 21% of single-parent households. Experts say that judges' willingness to award custody to men is fueling the trend. So is moms' choosing careers over custody. TREND IS DISASTER, SAYS CHESLER: Feminist psychologist Phyllis Chesler says the new trend toward awarding custody to fathers is a disaster for women and children. "Judges are giving kids to sex abusers now. They even give the men breast-feeding infants ... it's got to be a backlash," she says. But parenting expert Michael Lamb says, "The gender of the parent is less important than the qualities of a particular parent." MOVIE WOMEN FEND FOR THEMSELVES: Women in movies this summer aren't just providing aid and comfort to macho men. They're joining the male-dominated action:adventure club in droves. Michelle Pfeiffer in "Batman Returns" wields a 12-foot bullwhip. Rene Russo in "Lethal Weapon 3" demonstrates an ability to go hand-to-hand with thugs. And those are just two examples. "It's empowerment," purrs Pfeiffer. STORES TOUTING VALUE DO WELL: Shoppers who flooded the halls of tony department stores in the 1980s have left that decade behind. The popular description these days of shoppers is that they're downscaling, looking for value in basics. Example: J.C. Penney's in its first quarter saw net income jump 70%. Penney's reported gains In March and April. Industry leaders Wal-Mart and Gap each had gains in one of those months. MORE FLOCK TO TIME-SHARES: While many sectors of the real-estate industry suffered badly through the recession, time-share condominiums held their own, says a study from an industry trade group. An American Resort Development Association-sponsored study out this week shows that the number of time-share condominium units worldwide has grown 30% since 1990 to about 157,000 today. GOLD FEVER RETURNS: The fever is back in Downieville, Calif. Some people go so far as to say there's a Gold Rush. It's not even close to the 1849 Gold Rush. But by all accounts gold-hunting is heating up again. "Normally people just go camping," says one store owner. "Now they're coming in and ... asking where the gold is." Most people come in pursuit of a little recreational fun. TRADE DEFICIT INCREASES: The nation's trade deficit grew to $7 billion in April, the largest gap between exports and imports since November 1990 and up 25% from March, according to a Commerce Department report out Thursday. Slow growth abroad will continue to dampen demand for U.S. exports and help hold down the U.S. economy's recovery. Japan, Western Europe and Canada are slimming intake of U.S. exports. AIDS PATIENTS LIVE LONGER: Both men and women with AIDS are living longer. But women still don't live as long as men after an AIDS diagnosis, says a study from San Francisco. Women diagnosed since 1988 have survived a median of 13 months vs. 17 months for men. Women may get less effective treatment and be diagnosed later in the course of disease, says Dr. George Lemp, city Department of Public Health. MORE LAG ON LOAN PAYMENTS: The percentage of U.S. consumers behind on consumer-loan payments jumped the first three months of this year to the highest level in 2 1:2 years. A survey of 800 banks showed that a seasonally adjusted 2.75% of consumer loans were at least 30 days past due at the end of March, vs. 2.58% the previous quarter. Consumer loans include such things as credit cards and car loans. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON COLLAR: HARD HATS SHOW EQUALITY: As part of a way to help break down barriers between management and workers - a key step in quality programs - increasing numbers of managers are shedding the white collars in favor of more sartorial equality. All hard hats at Duke Power of North Carolina will be white beginning this summer. Previously the company used about 15 colors, including white for supervisors. `LOOK LIKE A UNIFIED TEAM': A committee of employees recommended the change in hard-hat colors at Duke Power. "If we're going to be a unified team, why don't we look like a unified team?" says company spokesman Randy Wheeless. At G.E. Medical Systems' magnet factory in Florence, S.C., ties are considered bad form. "A lot of people use their dress as status," says plant manager Maurice Dake. DRESS CHANGE VITAL TO QUALITY: Altering dress codes is one way to establish an atmosphere of openness and democracy essential in quality programs, experts say. Other important steps include basing rewards on team performance rather than individual employment, and training employees to work in teams, says Marion Steeples. Steeples is the author of "The Corporate Guide to the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award." (End of package.) Trends & Marketing Editor: Beth Mann. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM