Accountant

What is this job like? Back to Top Back to Top

Accountants and auditors keep track of a company's money. The company's managers and people outside the company read their reports. Managers look at the accountants' reports to see how well their companies are doing. Governments use the reports to tell how much tax a company should pay. Some people read them to decide if they want to do business with the company. Others use them to decide if they want to lend money to the company or not.

There are four kinds of accountants.

* Public accountants work for public accounting companies. They do accounting, auditing, tax, and consulting work. Some have their own businesses. They do many different kinds of accounting for people outside the company.
* Management accountants keep track of the money spent and made by the companies for which they work.
* Internal auditors make sure that a company's accounting records are right. They check the records to see that no one in the company is stealing. They also check to see that no one in the company is wasting the company's money.
* Government accountants and auditors make sure that government accounting records are right. They also check the records of people doing business with the government.

Accountants and auditors work in offices. They generally work a standard 40-hour week, but some work 50 hours a week or more. Tax accountants often work long hours during the tax season, from January to April. Accountants working for the government and public companies travel to audit other companies or branches of their own company.
How do you get ready? Back to Top Back to Top

Most accountants have a college degree in accounting. Public accountants have to take a special test as well, resulting in a certification. Public accountants also must have a special license from the State in which they live. Some employers want accountants who have a master's degree in business or accounting. Most employers want accountants who know quite a bit about computers. Previous experience in a summer or part-time internship is also a plus.

People who want to be accountants should be good at math, and have good analytical skills. They also should be able to write well, so that they can tell others about their findings.
How much does this job pay? Back to Top Back to Top

The middle half of all accountants earned between $42,520 and $71,960 a year in 2006. The lowest-paid 10 percent earned less than $34,470. The highest-paid 10 percent earned more than $94,050 a year. Earnings of accountants depend on how long they have been working.
How many jobs are there? Back to Top Back to Top

There were 1.3 million accountants and auditors in 2006. Most of them worked in cities, because that is where the large companies tend to be.
What about the future? Back to Top Back to Top

Employment of accountants and auditors is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through the year 2016.

Accountants have good job opportunities. This is because there will be new and changing laws that will increase the need for accountants; also, there will be more private companies that will need accountants. Accountants who have a lot of special skills, such as certified public accountants (CPAs) and certified management accountants, should have the easiest time finding a job.

Balloon boy incident raises more questions, officials say

(CNN) -- Authorities plan to ask new questions of the family at the center of the balloon drama that captured the world's attention Thursday, as a comment in a CNN interview and other concerns raised speculation that the incident may have been staged.
Parents Mayumi and Richard Heene discuss the upheaval in their lives Friday on CNN's "American Morning."

Parents Mayumi and Richard Heene discuss the upheaval in their lives Friday on CNN's "American Morning."
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"We feel it's incumbent on us as an agency to attempt to re-interview them and establish whether this is in fact a hoax or actual event," Larimer County Sheriff James Alderden said at a news conference Friday. "We believe at this time that it's a real event."

Investigators with expertise in spotting deceptive behavior interviewed the family Thursday and believe they were not lying, Alderden said.

His office is being flooded with calls and messages from people insisting it must be, and putting "a lot of pressure" on authorities to charge Richard and Mayumi Heene, he said.

The sheriff's office said it was conducting background checks on the Heenes.

A giant Mylar balloon took off from the backyard of the Heenes' northern Colorado home Thursday. The couple said they were terrified their 6-year-old son Falcon may have been on it. They couldn't find him.

In audio from 911 calls released Friday, the parents sounded emotional and desperate.

When the balloon finally landed, Falcon was not on board. Later, he came out from hiding in an attic over the home's garage.

"I'm feeling very, very grateful that Falcon is among us," Richard Heene told CNN's "American Morning" on Friday. "We went through so many emotions yesterday."

On CNN's "Larry King Live" Thursday night, the Heene parents asked Falcon why he had not come out from hiding when they were calling for him. "You guys said we did this for the show," he said. Video Watch the boy's remarks »

The family chases storms and takes videos of some. The Heenes also were featured in March on the ABC program "Wife Swap."

After the Hollywood gossip Web site TMZ.com reported that the Heenes had been "pitching a reality show about the wacky family," one of the networks mentioned, TLC, which produces "Jon and Kate plus 8," said "they approached us months ago, and we passed."

Two other production companies, Reality Real and RDF, which produces "Wife Swap," did not immediately respond to CNN's queries.

They family had a video camera recording as the balloon took off Thursday. Alderden said that was because the family planned an experiment in which the balloon was to rise 20 feet off the ground.

DA: Hofstra student lied about rape; 4 released

The Hofstra University student who told police that she had been tied up in a college dormitory stall Sunday and gang raped by five men - one of them a student - told prosecutors late Wednesday that she lied about the incident, Nassau District Attorney Kathleen Rice said in a statement.

After hearing the news, prosecutors convened a late night court hearing at First District Court in Hempstead, where Judge Robert Bruno signed an order dismissing the charges against the four men in the case, Rice said. They were released a short time later from Nassau County Correctional Canter in East Meadow and were greeted by family members who embraced them, laughing and weeping with joy.

"I'm happy," said Kevin Taveras, 20, of Brentwood, as he walked from the jail. "I just want to go home now."

Asked what the past few days have been like, Taveras answered, "It was terrible. It was terrible."

The 18-year-old woman made a "full recantation" in an interview with two prosecutors Wednesday evening, and admitted that the encounter had been consensual.

The four men had told police that the sex had been consensual when they were arrested, one law enforcement source said.

Rice said her office has opened an "immediate criminal investigation into the statements and reports given by the woman in connection with this incident." That investigation will determine whether the woman is charged with a crime, Phillips said.

Phillips said prosecutors are not releasing the woman's name at this time, both because she has not been charged with a crime, and because they fear for her safety.

After hearing the woman had recanted her story, Hofstra Vice President of University Relations Melissa Connolly said Wednesday night, "This week has been a very difficult one for our entire community, and we will need time to heal and understand the events of the last few days."
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The men arrested on the rape charges were Hofstra student Rondell Bedward, 21, Stalin Felipe, 19, and Jesus L. Ortiz, 19, all of the Bronx; and Taveras. All had been charged with five counts of first-degree rape.

Outside the jail just before 11 p.m. Wednesday night, Felipe said he wants to move on.

"I don't even have any hard feelings," he said. "I am happy to be alive. To be a caged animal when you are not guilty is the worst."

Taveras' father, however, was not feeling so magnanimous.

"No one from the system had the courtesy to call my house and let me know my son is released," said Ramiro Taveras, 43. "There's no words to describe what me and my family went through for these three days."

The woman had originally told police that she had been dancing with Ortiz at an on-campus party just before 3 a.m. when he grabbed her cell phone from her belt and went outside. The woman told police she followed Ortiz to a dormitory hallway, where she was confronted by Felipe. The woman said the two men forced her into a men's room toilet stall, tied her up and raped her, police said. She said later the three other men entered the bathroom and raped her, too, police said.

Officials said the woman had immediately reported the incident to campus police. Hofstra then notified Nassau police. Within hours, the four men were arrested, officials said.

Baucus aims for center, but some call plan off-target

WASHINGTON — A proposal to change the nation's $2.6 trillion health care system that was unveiled Wednesday has no Republican support, but interest groups on both sides of the debate said that doesn't mean it isn't full of Republican ideas.

From ditching a proposed government-run insurance program to driving down the overall cost of the bill, the proposal unveiled by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., is significantly different than other health care bills in Congress — the result of a more bipartisan process, the groups said.

"Sen. Baucus is trying to put together a centrist piece of legislation that can appeal to moderate Blue Dog Democrats and attract a few Republicans," said Drew Altman, president of the Kaiser Family Foundation. "They are fighting over the details."

Three Republicans who took part in behind-the-scenes negotiations with Baucus said they believed the bipartisan talks made some progress, but they said there are outstanding issues that require more time to resolve. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said he is still willing to work with Democrats.

"Whenever Baucus calls us," he said, "I'll be there."

Among the key differences from other versions:

• The proposal, which Baucus says will cost $856 billion in the first 10 years, has a lower price tag than the other bills. The Congressional Budget Office puts the Baucus bill at $774 billion in its preliminary analysis.

• The Senate Finance proposal avoids one of the most controversial sticking points between Democrats and Republicans by not including a government-run insurance plan to compete with private insurance companies. Instead, the measure calls for $6 billion in seed money that would be used to create membership-run cooperatives.

• The Senate bill includes a 35% excise tax on high-priced health insurance plans, a major change from a House version of the bill that would pay for changes by imposing an income tax on high-earning individuals and families.

"Sen. Baucus has had the patience of Job in trying to work with his Republican colleagues," said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, which has lobbied in support of changing the current system. "He has every reason to be disappointed that despite his inclusion of their proposals, they have left him standing at the altar."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, said the bill is still too costly and would give the government too much power over health decisions. Echoing concerns raised by several Republicans, McConnell said the bill "puts massive new tax burdens on families and small businesses."

"The proposal released today still spends too much, and it does too little to cut health care costs for those with health insurance," Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., a participant in the negotiations, said in a statement.

The Senate Finance bill would be paid for with about $500 billion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid and roughly $350 billion in new taxes and fees.

Despite the effort at bipartisanship, the bill drew criticism from across the political spectrum. Karen Ignagni, CEO of America's Health Insurance Plans, said co-ops could "disrupt the quality coverage on which millions of Americans rely today."

On the other side of the debate, Richard Kirsch of Health Care For America Now said that without a public option, there is nothing to drive down costs in the long run. "There's almost nothing we like," he said.

Karzai secures over 50 percents of Afghan Vote

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai secured over 54 percent of the vote in last month's election, according to the final uncertified results announced Wednesday.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has been accused of rigging the August 20 election by his chief rival.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has been accused of rigging the August 20 election by his chief rival.

The results won't be certified until investigations of election irregularities are completed by the Electoral Complaints Commission, which has received many complaints.

Karzai has 3,093,256 votes compared with 1,571,581 -- nearly 28 percent of the vote -- for his nearest challenger, former foreign minister, Abdullah Abdullah, according to Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission.

A candidate needs 50 percent of the votes to avoid a runoff.

There were 5,662,758 valid votes, and voter turnout was over 38 percent, according to the commission. That is a low turnout, especially when compared to the 70 percent in the previous presidential election, in 2004.

Taliban insurgents had warned Afghans not to vote, threatening them with violence, in an effort to discredit the entire electoral process.

The August 20 election has been rife with charges of fraud. More than 200,000 votes have already been thrown out, including 29,000 in a swath of Afghanistan where Karzai has much support -- Paktika, Ghazni and Kandahar provinces.
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Hours before the final results were announced, European Union election observers said they found that more than 1.5 million votes cast in the election were suspicious -- 1.1 million of them for Karzai. Another 300,000 of them were cast for Abdullah and 92,000 for another candidate, Ramazan Bashardost, according to the observers.

Karzai blasted the European Union observer team for announcing their findings, saying that it was "irresponsible and in contradiction with Afghanistan's constitution."

"According to the constitution of Afghanistan, addressing the electoral complaints is the responsibility of the Election Complaints Commission," a statement from Karzai's campaign team said.

CityAmerica

A City Directory is an exciting home-based business unlike any other. The potential is truly amazing. If you are serious about managing your own home business and making money, a City Directory website may be the opportunity for you.

CityAmerica Directories create several money-making avenues for its clients. Advertising options for local businesses via your new local city directory are numerous. For instance: Display local business descriptions, logos, company name, contact information, location mapping, link to their website, banner display, printable coupons, real estate listings, classified listings, premium listings, bold listings, highlighted listings, attention grabbers, and prime advertising spots on your city directory are just a few. Additionally, many businesses do not have a website and will need you to provide them an internet presence within your directory website.

Spending $50 per month for excellent advertising is nothing to most businesses. That is less than they would spend for a one time print ad, or a few seconds on the radio. This amount is just a suggestion. You can charge businesses more for this great service.

Another money making feature with the city directory is to place prime advertising space on the website's homepage that link to other sites. You could charge $100-$250 for an ad spot on the homepage. The amount of traffic that a city directory could receive is enormous.

You will have complete Administration access to your City Directory. Zero web design or programming knowledge is needed! If you can use MS Word you can easily manage this business using our online WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor software.

The greatest part of this is that the website doesn't require any programming knowledge to operate.

EU : Sanctions againts Zimbabwe to remain

The European Union will not lift sanctions on Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and his allies until the country improves its human rights record and moves ahead on a power-sharing plan, an EU official said Sunday.
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe met with a delegation from the European Union over the weekend.

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe met with a delegation from the European Union over the weekend.
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European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid Karel de Gucht spoke to reporters at the conclusion of a two-day visit about Mugabe's calls for an end to the sanctions.

Under a power-sharing agreement last year aimed at ending months of turmoil and violence that followed the March 2008 presidential elections, Mugabe retained his office, and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai became prime minister.

Called the Global Political Agreement, the accord spelled out a number of fundamental democratic reforms. But so far there has been no progress toward them, EU officials have said.

The EU delegation met with Mugabe and Tsvangirai separately on Saturday.

De Gucht also disputed Mugabe's characterization of the restrictive sanctions placed on Zimbabwe as economic sanctions.

The EU continues to send humanitarian aid to the impoverished country, de Gucht said.
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The sanctions, imposed for alleged human rights violations, electoral fraud and suppression of political opposition, include travel bans and the freezing of assets for Mugabe and his allies.

The EU delegation's visit was the first to Zimbabwe since the first sanctions were imposed in 2002.

Another EU delegate, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation Gunilla Carlsson, criticized recent efforts by Mugabe to get Tsvangirai to lobby the EU to lift the sanctions.

The EU imposed the sanctions, and only they will decide whether to take them away, Carlsson told reporters Sunday.

"We cannot fully engage if we [do] not see the full implementation of the Global Political Agreement," Carlsson said

Redundancy protection insurance cover from Best Insurance

We’re here to answer your insurance questions

* What will it cover?
o Monthly Income
o Mortgage Commitments
o Your Rent
o Loan Payments
o Credit Card Bills
o Household Expenses
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* Why should I Buy?
o Extremely Low Rate
o Fantastic Cover
o Few Exclusions
o Excess Free period
o Tax Efficient
o Interest Free Payments
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* What does it do?
o Pays upto £1500
o Tax Free Payment
o Covers Unemployment
o Covers Accident & Sickness
o Covers Redundancy
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Redundancy protection insurance cover from Best Insurance

Having a job is no longer something that can be taken for granted, which is why if you are in full-time employment it is worth considering some form of redundancy protection in case you have to face the unfortunate circumstance of involuntary redundancy. Redundancy protection can safeguard you against unforeseen occurrences which affect our ability to bring in a monthly wage. Particularly during times of economic crisis we become more aware of how vulnerable we are to sudden changes in our employment status. Redundancy protection is even more important since we are no longer in the golden age of settling with a company for your working life with a guaranteed job. Unemployment protection is a simple way to protect yourself against the financial hardship that might otherwise follow from losing your job.
Simple Protection Against Involuntary Redundancy

By having a suitable form of redundancy protection you can receive a monthly tax-free income to help you cope with the financial aspects of being made involuntarily redundant. Redundancy protection is an insurance product that falls into the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) range of products that can ease your financial burdens should you suddenly find yourself out of employment. If you are made involuntarily redundant and find yourself without an income, you will still have bills to pay, such as monthly expenses, mortgage, rent, credit card and loan debt. Without knowing where you’re next monthly income is coming from this can be very stressful to deal with. By simply having a suitable form of redundancy protection you can take a huge weight off your shoulders.
How does redundancy protection it work?

Once you have a policy for payment protection insurance such as redundancy protection, in the event that you find yourself involuntarily unemployed , you will begin to receive a monthly income after a set period of time from the date of unemployment. The length of time you have to wait before receiving payment under your unemployment protection will vary between policies but it is typically between 30 and 90 days. Most people usually want as short a period as possible to ensure peace of mind and this should be considered when you are deciding which unemployment insurance policy would suit you the most.

Once your policy begins to pay out, you will receive a regular tax-free sum to help you manage with your bills and financial responsibilities. The majority of policies will continue to pay you an income as part of your unemployment cover for up to 12 months, though it may be sooner if you find employment before this time. If you think you would like additional security and peace of mind whilst looking for new employment, you can pay a higher premium for your redundancy protection and some insurers will offer a paying out period of up to 24 months.

How Much Will your monthly Income Be?

This will depend on your policy, but typically with unemployment protection insurance you can expect to receive 50% of your gross monthly income or up to £1,500 whichever is the least. This can provide a huge amount for comfort to those who might otherwise have had to rely on State benefits. Financial support from the government can be inflexible and unable to provide as high a level of financial assistance than an unemployment insurance policy. With stringent criteria for eligibility, government assistance might not even be available to you depending on your circumstances and without private redundancy protection, even if you received government benefits, you could find it far below the level you would require to not struggle financially.

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The different types of redundancy protection insurance cover

Redundancy protection insurance, unemployment cover, unemployment protection and unemployment insurance are terms to describe policies which provide you with an income in the event of you suddenly being made involuntarily redundant from your work place. These types of insurance products fall within the Payment Protection Insurance range of products. Within these products you can choose more specific levels of cover which fall into three main categories, depending on what you want to use your insurance income for.

The three main types of coverage available are mortgage payment protection insurance, loan payment protection insurance, and more general income payment protection insurance.
Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance (MPPI)

A large monthly expense is often the mortgage repayments and it can be worrisome to work out how to secure the finances needed to make the payments if you have become recently unemployed. Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance addresses the specific need of meeting your mortgage payments so that you can continue to make regular payments and do not need to worry about defaulting or putting your home at risk by not being able to make the payments. As you receive your monthly sum it will contribute towards making the mortgage payments. Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance can also help with associated costs such as home insurance and life cover payments.
Loan Payment Protection Insurance

This particular type of policy is a great benefit to those who might have regular loan or credit card repayments that would still need to be made in the event of unemployment. Trying to manage repayments as well as regular monthly expenses without an income can be stressful and Loan Payment Protection Insurance is designed to tackle your regular credit obligations to help prevent the situation spiralling out of control.
Income Payment Protection Insurance and Income Protection Insurance

If you need more control over how you spend your income payments then you can opt for unemployment cover which is not specific to any particular type of debt. This puts you in charge of your financial situation and allows you to decide whether you use it for loan repayments, monthly expenses, food costs or even things like transport costs and new interview clothes to help you return to employment. Income Payment Protection Insurance is intended as a short term insurance, which covers you if you are suddenly out of work due to events beyond your control. It shouldn’t be confused with Income Protection Insurance (though they have similar titles) which is a more long term policy which can cover the policy holder up to retirement but usually only covers them in the event of incapacity. The type of insurance which falls under the redundancy protection bracket is the shorter term Income Payment Protection Insurance.

Additional Protection

As well as the above types of policies, you can also add on extra coverage to your unemployment cover so that in the event of being unable to work due to an accident or illness, you would still be able to receive financial assistance. Though no-one expects an accident or sickness to befall them, if it does happen it can be an incredible comfort to know that you still have an income coming in through your redundancy protection so that you can focus on getting better rather than worrying about your financial obligations.
What are the benefits of redundancy protection?

Taking our redundancy protection puts you in control and ensures you don’t have to rely on the government for financial assistance which can be a difficult to obtain and limited in its ability to cover your financial requirements. For example, should you find yourself eligible for mortgage assistance from the State, you would only be entitled to make the interest repayments which could be far less than if you had specific mortgage payment protection insurance.

If you found yourself ineligible for government benefits you may find yourself relying on savings and it can be worrying to watch these dwindle as you try to make your financial obligations whilst also concentrating on finding new employment.

Taking a few moments to choose a unemployment insurance policy that’s right for you means that in the event of sudden unemployment you can focus on getting back to work without having to experience the stress that mounting debts without income can cause.

Choosing the best deal for you

Best Insurance works to find an affordable solution for your redundancy protection and we work hard to provide you with a comprehensive range of competitively priced insurance products. Based on your needs you can select an appropriate payment protection insurance policy which will give you peace of mind should you find yourself in the unfortunate circumstance of sudden involuntary redundancy or unemployment. From just a few pounds a month for every £100 worth of protection, you can purchase the satisfaction and control of financial assistance in uncertain times.