Job Growth and the Quality of Jobs in the U.S. Economy

Job Growth and the Quality of Jobs in the U.S. Economy PDF Author: Susan N. Houseman
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Employee fringe benefits
Languages : en
Pages : 106

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Jobs, Earnings, and Employment Growth Policies in the United States

Jobs, Earnings, and Employment Growth Policies in the United States PDF Author: John D. Kasarda
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9400922019
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 137

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Book Description
John D. Kasarda By all accounts, the United States has led the world in job creation. During the past 20 years, its economy added nearly 40 million jobs while the combined European Economic Community added none. Since 1983 alone, the U. S. gener ated more than 15 million jobs and its unemployment rate dropped from 7. 5 percent to approximately 5 percent while the unemployment rate in much of western Europe climbed to double digits. Even Japan's job creation record pales in comparison to the United States'. with its annual employment growth rate less than half that of the United States over the past 15 years (0. 8 percent vs. 2 percent. ) Yet, as the U. S. economy has been churning out millions of jobs annually, con flicting views and heated debates have emerged regarding the quality of these new jobs and its implications for standards of living and U. S. economic competi tiveness. Many argue that the "great American job machine" is a "mirage" or "grand illusion. " Rather than adding productive, secure, well-paying jobs, most new employment, critics contend, consists of poverty level, dead-end, service sector jobs that contribute little or nothing to the nation's productivity and inter national competitiveness. Much of the blame is placed on Reagan-Bush policies that critics say undermine labor unions, encourage wasteful corporate restructur ing, foster exploitative labor practices, and reduce fiscal support for education and needed social services.

Labor Markets, Employment Policy, And Job Creation

Labor Markets, Employment Policy, And Job Creation PDF Author: Lewis C. Solmon
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429723601
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 370

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Book Description
This clear, accessible volume provides a comprehensive overview of the ongoing debate over the determining factors of and key influences on employment growth and labor market training, education, and related policies in the United States. Drawing on the work of distinguished labor economists, the chapters tackle questions posed by job and skill demands in the "new high-tech economy" and explore sources of employment growth; productivity growth and its implications for future employment; government mandates, labor costs, and employment; and labor force demographics, income inequality, and returns to human capital. These topics are central concerns for government, which must judge every prospective policy proposal by its effects on employment growth. Washington keeps at least one eye firmly on the jobs picture, and public officials at every level are constantly aware of the issues surrounding American job security. The jobs issue reaches beyond this focus on the unemployment rate and on total employment, including the rate at which employment is seen as growing, the growth of real wages, the security of employment, returns to human capital, uncertainty about the education and training best suited for a world of rapidly changing economic conditions, and the distribution of the gains from growth across economic classes and population groups.

Jobs for Growth

Jobs for Growth PDF Author: Veronica Alaimo
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781597822411
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Good Jobs America

Good Jobs America PDF Author: Paul Osterman
Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation
ISBN: 1610447565
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
America confronts a jobs crisis that has two faces. The first is obvious when we read the newspapers or talk with our friends and neighbors: there are simply not enough jobs to go around. The second jobs crisis is more subtle but no less serious: far too many jobs fall below the standard that most Americans would consider decent work. A quarter of working adults are trapped in jobs that do not provide living wages, health insurance, or much hope of upward mobility. The problem spans all races and ethnic groups and includes both native-born Americans and immigrants. But Good Jobs America provides examples from industries ranging from food services and retail to manufacturing and hospitals to demonstrate that bad jobs can be made into good ones. Paul Osterman and Beth Shulman make a rigorous argument that by enacting policies to help employers improve job quality we can create better jobs, and futures, for all workers. Good Jobs America dispels several myths about low-wage work and job quality. The book demonstrates that mobility out of the low-wage market is a chimera—far too many adults remain trapped in poor-quality jobs. Osterman and Shulman show that while education and training are important, policies aimed at improving earnings equality are essential to lifting workers out of poverty. The book also demolishes the myth that such policies would slow economic growth. The experiences of countries such as France, Germany, and the Netherlands, show that it is possible to mandate higher job standards while remaining competitive in international markets. Good Jobs America shows that both government and the firms that hire low-wage workers have important roles to play in improving the quality of low-wage jobs. Enforcement agencies might bolster the effectiveness of existing regulations by exerting pressure on parent companies, enabling effects to trickle down to the subsidiaries and sub-contractors where low-wage jobs are located. States like New York have already demonstrated that involving community and advocacy groups—such as immigrant rights organizations, social services agencies, and unions—in the enforcement process helps decrease workplace violations. And since better jobs reduce turnover and improve performance, career ladder programs within firms help create positions employees can aspire to. But in order for ladder programs to work, firms must also provide higher rungs—the career advancement opportunities workers need to get ahead. Low-wage employment occupies a significant share of the American labor market, but most of these jobs offer little and lead nowhere. Good Jobs America reappraises what we know about job quality and low-wage employment and makes a powerful argument for our obligation to help the most vulnerable workers. A core principle of U.S. society is that good jobs be made accessible to all. This book proposes that such a goal is possible if we are committed to realizing it.

A Future of Good Jobs?

A Future of Good Jobs? PDF Author: Timothy J. Bartik
Publisher: W.E. Upjohn Institute
ISBN: 0880993324
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 336

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Book Description
In this book, which was the outgrowth of a conference sponsored by the Upjohn Institute in Washington,D.C., in June 2007, leading policy analysts frame the major challenges facing U.S. labor policy: Improving the skills of American workers so that they can better compete in a global economy; Addressing the crisis in our system of employer-sponsored health insurance; Minimizing the effects of dislocation due to immigration and trade; Removing barriers to employment for older workers; Improving the quality of jobs for low-wage workers without harming the competitiveness of American companies; Addressing the serious employment barriers of the disadvantaged. Each chapter in this volume tackles one of these policy challenges, identifying the key problems,evaluating the effectiveness of current policy approaches, and offering innovative, forward-thinking, but pragmatic alternative policies. Collectively, the chapters in this volume offer a clear road map for future labor market policy.

Employment Outlook

Employment Outlook PDF Author: Neal H. Rosenthal
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780160485121
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 88

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Book Description
Provides an overview of industry and occupational employment projections for the 1994-2005 period. The discussion focuses on industries and occupations that will generate the largest portion of the projected job growth. This report also discusses the implications of employment growth on the quality of jobs in terms of earnings and on education and training requirements of jobs that will be generated over the 1994-2005 period. The projections have 4 primary components: labor force, economic growth, industry employment, and occupational employment.

Demanding Work

Demanding Work PDF Author: Francis Green
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691134413
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
Since the early 1980s, a vast number of jobs have been created in the affluent economies of the industrialized world. Many workers are doing more skilled and fulfilling jobs, and getting paid more for their trouble. Yet it is often alleged that the quality of work life has deteriorated, with a substantial and rising proportion of jobs providing low wages and little security, or requiring unusually hard and stressful effort. In this unique and authoritative formal account of changing job quality, economist Francis Green highlights contrasting trends, using quantitative indicators drawn from public opinion surveys and administrative data. In most affluent countries average pay levels have risen along with economic growth, a major exception being the United States. Skill requirements have increased, potentially meaning a more fulfilling time at work. Set against these beneficial trends, however, are increases in inequality, a strong intensification of work effort, diminished job satisfaction, and less employee influence over daily work tasks. Using an interdisciplinary approach, Demanding Work shows how aspects of job quality are related, and how changes in the quality of work life stem from technological change and transformations in the politico-economic environment. The book concludes by discussing what individuals, firms, unions, and governments can do to counter declining job quality.

The New Geography of Jobs

The New Geography of Jobs PDF Author: Enrico Moretti
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN: 0547750110
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 309

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Book Description
Makes correlations between success and geography, explaining how such rising centers of innovation as San Francisco and Austin are likely to offer influential opportunities and shape the national and global economies in positive or detrimental ways.

Job Creation and Employment Opportunities

Job Creation and Employment Opportunities PDF Author: Council of Economic Advisers (U.S.)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Displaced workers
Languages : en
Pages : 34

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