New Jobs Created Are Nearly All Low-Wage
So, even as there are still 4.7 workers for every one job, the jobs that are being created are primarily low-wage—and the wages in those jobs have fallen disproportionately, according to a new report by the National Employment Law Project (NELP).
From the first quarter of 2010 through the first quarter of 2011, the most recent data available, lower-wage occupations grew by 3.2 percent, with retail salespersons, office clerks, cashiers, food preparation workers and stock clerks topping the list. Mid-wage occupations, including paralegals, customer service representatives and machinists, grew by only 1.2 percent, while higher-wage occupations declined by 1.2 percent, which includes occupations like engineers, registered nurses and finance workers.
While overall, wages have fallen 0.6 percent since the start of the recession, lower-wage jobs Read the rest of this entry »
New H-2B Wage Rules an Improvement, But Delay Hurts Workers
The Obama administration today announced a new rule on how the wage rates employers must pay to H-2B temporary foreign workers will be calculated. But the new rule does not take effect until 2012.
The H-2B visa program allows employers to hire temporary workers from foreign countries for jobs they say they can find no qualified or willing American workers to do. Employers bring in tens of thousands of such workers each year.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka says in a statement that the new rule is an improvement on the current process and it:
means that in the future, U.S. workers will be first in line for jobs that currently go to temporary foreign workers. But the administration’s decision to delay implementation means the change won’t come soon enough for unemployed workers who need jobs now. Read the rest of this entry »
Restaurant Industry Serves Up too Many ‘Low Road Jobs’
With 13 million workers, the U.S. restaurant industry is the nation’s largest private employer. But far too many restaurants provide “low road” jobs with low wages, hazardous working conditions, long hours and few benefits.
A new report by Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC), an advocate group for restaurant workers, reveals that up to 90 percent of restaurant staff is not offered health insurance or sick days and, as a result, many report to work sick.
A substantial number are forced to work “off the clock” and the national median hourly wage for food preparation and service workers is only $8.59, including tips, which means that half of all restaurant workers nationwide actually earn less.
The report surveyed more than 2,500 workers and 150 employers in five cities: Chicago, Detroit, New Orleans, New York and Portland, Maine.
Recession Bad for All, Really Bad for Black Men
This info just out today from the Center for American Progress:
The recession is taking a toll on most Americans and has resulted in job losses not seen in almost 25 years, but black men have felt its effects particularly hard.
Black men have long faced limited employment prospects and disproportionately low rates of unemployment. Even as the economy thrived and the participation of low-skilled women in the labor force increased over the last two decades, many black men remained largely disconnected from the labor market. While the unemployment rate among black men has declined dramatically over the last few decades, the level of workforce participation among African-American men has not increased and remains stagnant. The current degree of job loss among black men is particularly alarming. These losses will likely only increase as the economic crisis deepens.
