As we approach this Labor Day, the Pennsylvania economy is growing steadily. Working families are sharing in prosperity in a more sustained way than at any point since 1980--although many families still struggle to make ends meet and, in our polarized nation, a big partisan divide exists in perceptions of whether the economy is better than four…

The already limited vocational prospects of low-income African Americans in New Orleans were further devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill added to the devastation, highlighting the continued vulnerability of New Orleanians seeking employment. As a result, opportunities persist for vocational practitioners…

This document reports on a congressional hearing on increasing the minimum wage. It presents both the administration's and the House of Representatives' positions on this issue. Testimony includes statements and prepared statements of the Secretary of Labor and a representative of the Coalition of Automotive Associations. Committee member comments…

The impact of minimum wage policy on the hiring of teenagers in relation to adult laborers in retail trade has been assessed through analysis of a study sample of 353 male and 391 female retail trade employees who were part of the 1967 Survey of Economic Opportunity. (LH)

Assesses the impact of increases in the minimum wage on salary schedules, provides guidelines for creating a philosophy to deal with the impact, and outlines options and presents recommendations. (IRT)

This Congressional report contains the testimony given at a hearing pertaining to passage of the Youth Employment Opportunity Wage Act of 1985. (The act, which would terminate in September 1987, would authorize an employer to pay a subminimum, "youth employment opportunity wage" to a person under 20 years of age.) Included among those…

Efforts to shift women from welfare into the labor market will not necessarily move women out of poverty because the wages they are likely to earn are so low. According to research tracking Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) recipients over a 2-year period, 43% of AFDC recipients combine welfare with a substantial amount of paid…

With welfare reform now a reality, policy makers and employers must grapple with the employment impediments that keep much of the welfare population out of the work force. The foremost problem is illiteracy. One-third of welfare recipients are functionally illiterate; another third possesses only marginally better reading skills, still unable to…

Article suggests that the Child Labor Laws should be changed because the present system handicaps both the employer and the child. (ML)

Based on report prepared for the Conference on Transition from School to Work (Princeton University, May 9-10, 1968), sponsored by the National Manpower Policy Task Force.

A seminar was held to examine the merits and feasibility of a subminimum wage for youth. Throughout the seminar panelists expressed general agreement on the fact that most youth want to work as well as on the value or potential value of employment and training programs, including the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) programs. In…

Examines the comparative labor market experience of youth in the United States and eight other developed countries from 1960-1979, focusing upon unemployment levels and rates. Finds that the situation worsened in industrialized nations after the 1974-75 recession and that Japanese and German youth continue to have the most favorable job prospects.…

The consequences of indexing the minimum wage to average wages in the U.S. economy were analyzed. The study data were drawn from the 1974-1978 May Current Population Survey (CPS) and the 180 monthly CPS Outgoing Rotation Group files for 1979-1993 (approximate annual sample sizes of 40,000 and 180,000, respectively). The effects of indexing on the…

The authors examine youth unemployment in a changing economy and suggest that vocational education will play a key role in helping students gain purposeful employment in the future. They discuss various causes of youth unemployment and the impact that technological changes will have on young workers. (CT)

Two key issues thrown up by the 1999 introduction of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) in the United Kingdom are its likely impact on employers' training practices in low paying sectors of the economy and the implications for skills. Based on a study of the hospitality industry, this article assesses the limited significance of the differential,…