Washington: Many models have claimed that the fashion industry is a minefield of sexual harassment for young models, with the supposed best friend, photographer, being the worst of offenders.

Lisa Alexander, who was a teenager from Nazareth, Pa., when she won a contract with Elite Model Management, said she had to fend off lewd advances as a young model, and that her acting coach said she should put out to get ahead.

She modelled for a summer, but after she received a scholarship to Lehigh College, Elite cancelled her contract.

"They didn't want models with brains," Fox News quoted her as saying.

Alexander said she gave modelling another shot in Los Angeles after she graduated.

"I did a lot of swimsuit and lingerie modelling and I had guys that would try to grab a feel and guys who asked for [sexual favours]," she said.

"I was on a casting call for a film and I was pretty much attacked and thrown down on a couch.

"My acting coach actually told me ''if you don't learn to give the best b------ in town, you're never going to make it as a model''," she stated.

Celebrity fashion photographer Terry Richardson, who has shot stars including Britney Spears, Jessica Alba, and Lindsay Lohan, and who counts as friends the editors of several of the world's top fashion magazines, is purported to be one of them.

Richardson, 45, was accused earlier this month of making improper sexual overtures during some of his shoots with young models.

He addressed the allegations with a statement on his blog over the weekend and removed several explicit nude photographs from his professional web site.

"I just want to take a moment to say I'm really hurt by the recent and false allegations of insensitivity and misconduct," his statement read.

"I feel fortunate to work with so many extraordinary people each and every day.

"I've always been considerate and respectful of the people I photograph and I view what I do as a real collaboration between myself and the people in front of the camera," he stated.

But a model, who says Richardson made inappropriate sexual advances to her during a nude photo shoot, has said that she remains unimpressed.

"If he was totally confident in the morality of what he''s doing, would he have removed certain images from his site?" asked Jamie Peck, a model-turned-writer who once posed for Richardson.

"It's a calculated attempt at damage control," she added.

Peck was 19 years old and not...

New Delhi: India Inc may give salary hikes in the range of 9-12 per cent in the coming financial year to retain talent amid revival in the job market, according to consultancy Ernst and Young said.

Most companies are expecting higher attrition levels over the next few months on jobs coming back into the economy resulting in salary hikes being used as a tool to retain talent.

"At an overall level, extraordinary jump in increments do not seem probable and the average salary increase is likely to be in the range of 9-12 per cent," Ernst & Young partner and national head (People & Organisation) N S Rajan said.

However, Rajan cautioned that along with the pay hikes, companies are likely to follow a cautious approach of keeping tight monitoring and controlling of any additional salary costs.

In spite of excitement around economic recovery, average pay hikes across sectors would be slightly conservative.

"While on one hand pharma and FMCG companies will lead the space with increments in the range of 10-13 per cent, the IT and technology companies will give reasonable increments close to eight per cent," Rajan added.

Moreover, the telecom sector is expected to give above average salary hikes in the range of 12-15 per cent.

Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI) sector is likely to have maximum disparity in terms of future increment levels compared with current ones, with projected salary hikes of 10-12 per cent against nil during the downturn, Ernst and Young believes.

Meanwhile, it said it would be a while before the economy returns to the boom phase of 2007, despite the sentiment being optimistic across sectors.

Rajan further stated that a lot of innovation in designing compensation packages may be seen, as there would be a stronger linkage to pay for performance.

"Individual performance, coupled with company performance will be the most commonly used criterion for determining performance bonus. Across levels, variable pay component of compensation packages is likely to go up," he said.

At the senior management level compensation packages may be linked to the company's performance and there would be a renewed focus towards balancing out executive compensation through a focus on retention and reward.

Recently, global HR consultancy Hewitt had forecast the Indian companies may provide an average of 10.6 per cent salary hikes --the highest in the Asia-Pacific region in 2010.

The job market isn't about to right itself, but aggressive job-searchers can improve their lot by using two potent resources: their friends and their computers. Last year, FastCompany.com told you about the growth sectors for the next decade. No changes there, unfortunately. In 2010, you'll need to innovate if you want to participate. We can help with our shovel-ready job search toolkit.

Get Ready

If you're looking for a job, there's a good chance you just lost one. But don't move on too quickly. "Know what you're entitled to if you get laid-off," says Alison Doyle, About.com's guide to job searching. "Review your contract and know your rights: severance, health insurance coverage, pension vesting," and so on. That will help you clarify your financials and make contingency plans.

Once you start looking, remember a few ground rules, says Doyle: customize your resume for every job you want, and do the same with your cover letters. "Many job seekers still think it's enough to send out resumes and wait for a phone call for an interview, but it rarely happens that easily anymore."

Hone Your Resume

Resume sites like Emurse and ResumeBucket allow you to create and share an online resume that can also be PDF'd or printed out. Keep things brief and concise--you can expound in your cover letter and interview--and please, oh please, say the experts: avoid jargon.

These days, many companies are eeking by on lean staff. "Be broad on your cover letter," says Andy Speer, VP of technology solutions for Technisource, a nationwide outplacement firm. "Today, for example, our customers are looking for hardcore coders who can put on analytical hats, talk to customers, serve on committees, develop a business process--do something more creative," he says. In your resume and cover letter, layer your different experiences on whatever foundation you've created. Broaden your potential.

Do Your Homework

Read, read, read. If the last year has been any indication, the state of American industries will be changing literally by the week in 2010, so you may not be as up to date as you think. Browse industry blogs, trade journals, and niche sites to keep abreast of the latest dirt in your sector so that you can emphasize the right assets in your resume and interview.

If you don't know the sources, that's no excuse. Creatives have sites like Core77 and Variety; for legal professionals, there's AboveTheLaw and the ABA Journal.

If you think you know your industry beat already, search more creatively; there may be sources you overlooked in the past. If you're a logistics professional, for example, you may have spent some time reading BreakBulk and American Shipper. But you may not have perused Fairplay.co.uk, another trade site across the pond.

Lastly, look for mailing lists specific to what you want; they often get the freshest job listings and host real-life meetups. Ed2010, for example, dishes to people in publishing, while Headsets & Highballs caters to workers in the film and television industries.

Search Smarter

It's not enough to slap a resume on Monster.com and saunter off to watch American Idol. On today's Web, there are dozens of avenues to spot jobs and get noticed, and you should be paying attention--outplacement firms and HR departments certainly are.

General job search sites have evolved. There's nothing wrong with CareerBuilder and Monster, but these days, LinkUp, Indeed, and SimplyHired lead the pack. But don't stop there; look for niche listing sites that fit. TheLadders.com, for example, specializes in managerial positions that pay over 100K.