The Best Employers in America

It's possible to love your job and get a good salary too: You just have to work for the right company.
The first annual list of the best employers in America by PayScale and Business Insider evaluates companies by both pay and happiness.

The winner is a company you've probably never heard of: a New Jersey biopharmaceutical company called Celgene Corporation. Many of the best companies were also in the health care industry.

The famously indulgent tech industry also did well on this list, including Google (#2), Yahoo (#8), and Microsoft (#14).

Companies in the 2012 Fortune 500 were ranked using PayScale's salary and survey database. Happiness represented 57 percent of the final score and was measured through questions about satisfaction, feelings of meaningfulness, stress, and schedule flexibility. Pay represented 43 percent of the final score and was measured by looking at median pay after five years and pay compared to industry peers.

20. Dow Chemical Company

humdrumboy / FlickrHeadquartered in Midland, Mich., this chemicals company has about 50,000 employees.

Employees report very high rates of flexibility (85%); high rates of satisfaction (78%) and meaningfulness (66%); and average rates of relaxation (35%).

Median pay is very high at $90,000 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.



19. Booz, Allen and Hamilton

Glassdoor.comHeadquartered in Tysons Corner, Va., this management consulting company has 26,000 employees.

Employees report very high rates of relaxation (48%); and high rates of flexibility (83%), satisfaction (72%), and meaningfulness (61%).

Median pay is very high at $93,100 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.



18. Johnson & Johnson

REUTERS/Rick WilkingHeadquartered in New Brunswick, N.J., this pharmaceutical company has 117,900 employees.

Employees report very high rates of meaningfulness (73%); and high rates of relaxation (39%), flexibility (83%), and satisfaction (72%).

Median pay is very high at $92,000 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.


17. 3M Company

AP Photo/Matt RourkeHeadquartered in Two Harbors, Minn., this conglomerate company has 84,198 employees.

Employees report high rates of relaxation (44%), flexibility (79%), satisfaction (77%), and meaningfulness (59%).

Median pay is high at $82,400 after five years, and very high compared to industry peers.



16. The Boeing Company

REUTERS/Luke MacGregorHeadquartered in Chicago, Ill., this aerospace and defense company has 171,700 employees.

Employees report high rates of relaxation (45%), flexibility (80%), satisfaction (76%), and meaningfulness (68%).

Median pay is high at $85,900 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.



15. Amgen Corporation

7 Unusual Things Great Bosses Do

Where employees are concerned, great leaders don't take. Great leaders give--especially these seven things:

They give a glimpse of vulnerability.

To employees, you're often not a person. You're a boss. (Kind of like when you were in school and you saw a teacher at the grocery store; it was jarring and uncomfortable because teachers weren't people. They were teachers.)

That's why showing vulnerability is a humanizing way to break down the artificial barrier that typically separates bosses from employees. One easy way to break down that barrier is to ask for help.

But don't ask the wrong way. Don't puff out your chest, assume the power-position, and in your deepest voice intone, "Listen, John, I need your help." John knows you don't really need his help. You want him to do something.

Instead ask the right way. Imagine you've traveled to an unfamiliar place, you only know a few words of the language, and you're both lost and a little scared.

How would you ask for help? You would be humble. You would be real. You'd cringe a little and dip your head slightly and say, "Can you help me?" Asked that way, John would know you truly needed help. You've lowered your guard. You're vulnerable. And you're not afraid to show it.

By showing vulnerability, you lift the other person. You implicitly recognize her skills while extending trust.

And you set a great example: Asking for help isn't a sign of weakness.

It's a sign of strength.

They give a nudge.

From the employee's point of view the best ideas are never your ideas. The best ideas are their

Theater Architecture: 10 Modern Music Hall Masterpieces

If it is a building’s job to host and contain performing art, the structure itself must reflect this in its design.  While most of the world’s theaters are standard, columnic and republican, some architects have stepped forward to create truly wonderful, unique works of architectural art.  To celebrate their structural ingenuity, here are 10 of the world’s most amazing modern theaters, concert halls and civic centers.  Some may remain only ideas on paper, while others are a living part of the world’s cultural heritage.

JS Bach Chamber Music Hall by Zaha Hadid Architects

Much like the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, the JS Bach Chamber Music Hall by Zaha Hadid is a twisting, mathematic display of carefully calculated rhythms.  Designed to host the Baroque composer’s music, this installation at the Manchester Art Gallery was the pearl of the Manchester International Festival, a celebration of one of history’s most important musical forces.  The theater was composed of a translucent, acrylic membrane folded over a steel frame that encircles the perimeter of the stage and its audience.  The result leaves nothing but black, white… and musical magic.  [link]

Singapore Civic and Cultural Center

The Singapore Civic and Cultural Center will span a staggering 24,000 sq.m. of space in Singapore’s One-North precinct.  At its heart is a 5,000 seat concert hall that will house some of this tiny coastal nation’s greatest touring acts.  Beyond it’s concert hall, the Singapore Civic and Cultural Center will also include retail and cultural features that add to the experience of the country’s soon-to-be largest auditorium.  [link]

The Sydney Opera House

Easily the world’s most recognizable concert hall, the Sydney Opera House could also be the world’s most beautiful.  Completed in 1973, this design by architect Jørn Utzon is timeless, the jewel of Sydney’s landscape.  Between its six individual theaters, the Sydney Opera House can host up to 5,737 guests at once, 2,678 in its main Concert Hall alone.  But the real value of the Sydney Opera House may not be the music and guests

22 Of The Most Shoplifted Items In America

And they're not necessarily what you'd expect. These are based on a recently released survey by the National Retail Federation. (via abcnews.go.com).

1. Cigarettes

2. Energy Drinks

3. High-End Liquor

4. Baby Formula

5. Allergy Medicine

6. Diabetic Testing Strips

7. Pain Relievers

World’s 10 Coolest Subway Systems

In urban life, the subway is synonymous with the spirit of the city.  It frees the city dweller from the automobile, it moves from point to point with speed while capturing the curiosity of its passenger.  From Moscow to Montreal, Paris to Pyongyang, these 10 transit systems house truly stunning subway stations across all aspects of design.  So grab your transit card and head underground– get ready to explore the 10 coolest subway systems in the modern world.

The Washington Metro

We contend that the Washington Metro is the most iconic and visually progressive subway system in the United States.  First built in 1976, this 100-mile network of tunnels includes 28 stations, most of which are the work of architect Harry Weese.  These massive, concrete caverns feature an egg carton texture that stretches from one side to the other in a split cylinder design.  The walls are out of reach, there are no thick pillars breaking up the view and the whole expanse is awash in indirect light.  These features are as much as aspect of design as they are safety, as the Washington Metro subway stations provide few if any dark crannies in which crime can hide.  First time riders will also be amazed at the sheer depth of these Metro stations.  Some stations reach down 200 feet below the surface, providing for one heck of a long, slow ride into the caverns below.

The Moscow Metro Subway System

The world’s second most used subway system is also amongst its most beautiful.  Nearly 7,000,000 people ride the Moscow Metro Subway each day, zipping through 190 miles of tunnels that stretch as low as 276-feet below the surface.  While some of its stations are nondescript, others are magnificent, ornate works of classically-influenced design.  Take for example the Komsomolskaya Metro Station in Moscow, shown above.  This gem of underground architecture was built in the 1930s and remains one of the world’s most lasting, most beautiful subway stations.

The Taipei Metro Subway System

Nearly 2,000,000 passengers ride the Taipei Metro subway system every day, cruising at speeds of up to 56mph across Taiwan’s