Even during a period of rapid employment growth, over four million people were displaced from their jobs in the 1980s. Workers displaced during the latter half of the decade had a much easier time finding new jobs. (Author)

Despite decades of management fads, U.S. businesses have practiced chain-of-command management. Only through changes in leadership can corporate America repair the damage to employee morale that stems as much from the way companies execute layoffs as from the layoffs themselves. (Author/JOW)

Canadian displaced worker data show that predisplacement wages rise at about the same rate, but women lose more from displacement than men and loss increases with tenure. Results do not support the hypothesis that women accumulate less job-specific human capital; gender differences in job search may be a cause. (SK)

Regression analysis of data from 94 Canadian managers whose jobs had been eliminated explored the correlation between career resilience and five job facets (duties, skills, field, occupation, and function). Career resilience was positively related to intended and active changes in duties, skills, and functions. (SK)

Raises the following questions: who participates in workplace literacy; how do literacy programs change workers' participation in workplace culture; how does the culture change; how do literacy programs affect industrial relations; what is the role of unions; and how will power relations of literacy programs be affected by changes in modes of…

A study of 371 involuntarily laid-off workers found that openness to experience and neuroticism were important predictors of their psychological state in career transition. Low neuroticism, high extraversion, and high openness were related to higher self-efficacy in transition. The importance of the role of personality traits in the transition…

An evaluation of Hong Kong's Employee Retraining Board programs used interviews, case studies of training agencies, surveys of trainers and graduates, and employer focus groups. Recommendations were made regarding measurement of the size and characteristics of the displaced worker population, targeting of services, and alignment of incentives with…

As economic growth continued in 1997 and 1998, job losses declined and the displacement rate was the lowest of the 1990s. Many displaced workers were able to find new jobs with little or no change in weekly earnings. (Author/JOW)

Outsourcing can involve the forced transfer of employees to another organisation. During or after the transfer they may find their jobs have changed or go through a process of downsizing. They also often have to maintain a relationship with their previous employer as they continue to work on joint projects. In this paper we review relevant…

Implementation of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act was studied to determine the number of plant closures and layoffs subject to the provisions of the act, whether employers are providing advance notice as required, the difficulties involved in implementing and enforcing WARN, and the views of employers and employees on…

Three papers consider various aspects of the labor market in the telecommunications field in the United States. The first, "Employment and Worker Dislocation in Telecommunications Equipment" (Julie Gorte, Office of Technology Assessment), notes that the increasing importance of international trade in the American economy has meant both a…

In the midst of the economic recession of the early 1980's, two major facilities in Galesburg, Illinois, were closed down: a large private company and a state mental health facility which employed 15% of the local residents. The economic and social impact of these closures created a crisis for the town, its inhabitants, and service workers. In…

Joliet Junior College's Dislocated Worker Assistance Center in Illinois was selected in 1987 by the U.S. General Accounting Office as one of eight exemplary dislocated worker projects nationwide. This article describes the program and the contributors to its success. (Author)

The author suggests that technical colleges expand their efforts to provide support, motivation, and retraining for dislocated workers. In addition to technical skills, he suggests that dislocated workers should study the social sciences to strengthen intellectual skills that will be useful in goal setting and decision making. (CH)

Describes a model program for dislocated workers undertaken by a Job Training Partnership Act contractor, the College of the Mainland, which is a community college. (CH)