The White House is making good on its word to bring IT work back in-house. That means a decade of ever-growing contract work is coming to an end. Fiscal 2011 will see a 5 percent drop in contract spending. [Government Executive]

In Clarksville, Tenn., Hemlock Semiconductor plans to hire 500 full-time workers before its $1.2 billion facility begins manufacturing polysilicon in late 2012. [Clarksville Online]

In Colorado, Afni is opening a call center that is expected to employ 500. Hiring will begin immediately and include 250 new jobs by early December. [Greely Tribune]

In a sign that layoffs are declining, applications for unemployment benefits fell last week for the fourth time in five weeks. Some companies are hiring despite the weak economy. Siemens, for example, has 1,200 job openings. About 40 percent require an engineering or information technology background. [Reuters via Google]

Finally, if you're reading this at your in desk during lunch in between bites, count yourself among the majority of Americans who don't leave their workspace to take a meal. Most simply work though lunch. [Las Vegas Review Journal]

-- Dino Londis