BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market

Subject: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: Mickey191
Date: 22 Jan 04 - 11:43 PM

Found this interesting piece in today's paper. Read it and weep. This is only the beginning.

Lower-paying jobs grow in state & U.S.

Poughkeepsie Journal
By Craig Wolf-1/22/04

The feeling that American jobs are shifting
from higher-paying sectors to lower- paying ones isn't just a feeling, a think tank report said Wednesday.
It's a fact, concluded the Economic Policy Institute.
''Jobs are shifting from higher-paying to lower-paying industries,'' said Michael Ettlinger, an economist at the Washington institute, in a conference call with reporters. ''What I found most surprising is that the job shift to low-paying industries has happened in 48 of the 50 states.''
New York is one. The group's analysis of federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data on jobs since the end of the recession in November 2001 shows sectors losing jobs in New York paid an average wage of $54,537. But the ones gaining jobs averaged only $34,081, a difference of 38 percent.
''New York has a big loss in manufacturing jobs, almost 70,000,'' said Jeff Chapman, also an economist at the institute. ''There were increases in education and health services and leisure and hospitality.''

JOB OPENINGS COMING

However, the state Department of Labor predicts that in the Hudson Valley, the top 10 areas for job openings will be for retail salespersons; cashiers; registered nurses; office clerks; child-care workers; teacher assistants; waiters and waitresses; home health aides; maids and cleaners; and stock clerks and order filers. All but the nurses are typically lower-wage jobs.

Asked to what extent the wage shift relates to companies shipping work overseas in search of cheaper workers, the Economic Policy Institute's research director, Lee Price, said most ''offshoring" lies in the future.

''Offshoring has clearly already taken place,'' Price said, ''but I think the clear weight of the evidence is that there's a lot more being planned." Its current effect is to limit wage growth for those white-collar jobs.

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: wysiwyg
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 10:53 PM

Till the whole world is union, there will still be some SOB who is willing to work for peanuts in a country far, far away from the consumer who buys his product, because the disparity between economies is so great that someone can get away with paying him mere peanuts. I hope to live to see it. I think it will be as cataclysmic as the shifting of magnetic poles-- but necessary.

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: Bobert
Date: 24 Jan 04 - 09:47 AM

You are absolutely on target, Susan, and should we ever wrestle power away from the current regime, it will be time for some major morality adjustments.

I find it intersting that about the time when the massive movement of Hispanic labor was rushing into the US, the leaders were busy building more and more prisons and today these prisons are filled with black men? Hmmmmmm? Something very fishy...

I am also struck by the number of our elderly who are having to work at very menial jobs with low pay. There is the old man who works at the Foof Lion in Charlestown who collects the shopping carts in the parking lot and sometimes is pushing as many as 20 of them back into thestore. This is hard work fir a young man. My son worked there doing the same thing and was making $6.00 an hour.

And there's this lady who works in the Home Depot in Winchester who must be in her mid 70's as a checker and is on her feet for 4 hours at a time.

I have a feeling that these folks aren't there for any other reason but to make the money needed to survive in this times of high property taxes and health care..,

In a country as wealthy as the US, it is criminal and immoral for it's ruling class to treat its working class so shabby.

Bobert

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: wysiwyg
Date: 24 Jan 04 - 10:46 AM

How it works is that without a carefully-maintained and appropriately-publicized impoverished class, you could never frighten people into agreeing to be the working poor. Without the working poor, you could never convince someone to accept the dangerous working conditions and poor pay of most blue collar jobs. "Better keep your place or you could end up worse off, like THEMMMMM!"

So we are taught to fear, disrespect, pity those poorer than ourselves, cuz that way we can keep producing for someone higher up, by agreeing to take advantage of someone we think deserves to "live like a refugee." (Now it's a music thread.)

If we really love our state of life in the world, we should consider these poorer folk as quite precious-- for without them we might all live as equals, and THAT is WAY scary.

Excuse me, I'm being so un-PC. Gotta run!

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: DougR
Date: 24 Jan 04 - 02:35 PM

Hey, Bobert, go easy on us mid-seventy folks! That lady may be doing that job because she likes it! Lots of folks don't find retirement to their liking. I don't happen to be one of them myself, but to each his own.

DougR

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: Bo Vandenberg
Date: 25 Jan 04 - 12:13 PM

Welcome to the affects of trade laws without social contracts.

Nafta as an example looks at Non-US health care and high standards of living as barriers to growth rather than protections for American Workers.

If you want to help your job market realise that you have to help job markets in general. Higher wages iin Sri Lanka & Bangalore make American Cities look better.

S

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: GUEST,Martin Gibson
Date: 25 Jan 04 - 12:45 PM

Thank God I was able to get a great education in America and had the opportunity to get the skills to go to work and have a long career for a fine American corporation thats pays me well and gives me the benefits to enjoy life including the ability to play and perform music.

It is extremely unfortunate jobs are lost overseas. Maybe mine could also one day, but it seems unlikely as this point. I count my blessings in America. Believe it or not, there are still millions who are.

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: Don Firth
Date: 25 Jan 04 - 02:33 PM

The point, Doug, is that working well past what is for most people retirement age should be a matter of choice, not necessity.

Don Firth

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: Walking Eagle
Date: 25 Jan 04 - 03:06 PM

Sigurds' point hits the bullseye. Something has to give. Either we in the developed countries help those less well off, or we will have to adjust to lower job and pay standards. Some happy middle ground for all of us might be best. If this happens, then governments must step up to the plate and provide help. Like the social contract that Sigurd states. It would have to work that way. Remember the wage freeze that we had under Nixon? Wages froze, prices didn't. What a mess that led to.

I think that we, as Americans, must understand that we can not continue to live as we do, in comparative comfort, while others live in fear and poverty. With planning and help,I think that we could adjust down and help others adjust up.

By the way, the MFA expires this coming December. There must be other 'catters that can explain the Multiple Fibres Agreement better than I can.

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: Rapparee
Date: 26 Jan 04 - 12:00 PM

I've been wondering why it is that we are told "there are plenty of jobs" for "those who want to work" and yet the government is negotiating so that there will be a bunch of people coming in who are "willing to take the jobs Americans won't do".

Moreover, I see highly trained and very experienced people "laid off"; they aren't able to get a job at their skill level and so take lower paying, lower skilled jobs just to support their families. Some have been out of work for two and three years. (And don't tell me I'm quoting the "liberal" viewpoint -- I've BEEN THERE far too recently, talked with and worked with them, and yes, I'm one of the lucky ones. My brother currently is not so fortunate....)

Sorry, but I don't see the Unions doing a whole lot for the worker, blue OR white collar.

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: GUEST,Martin Gibson
Date: 26 Jan 04 - 01:00 PM

Walking Eagle

What would you give up first to adjust down? The heat in your home? A store full of groceries? The ability to buy new clothing?

And just who is going to dictate this?

Subject: RE: BS: Narrowing U.S. Job Market
From: Greg F.
Date: 26 Jan 04 - 08:57 PM

The U.S. unemployed- and many of those employed in marginal jobs (which make up an ever increasing per centage of the job market) have neither homes nor heat nor groceries nor new clothing. Nor do the Sri Lankan slave laborers.