Job Market Monitor
Michel Cournoyer
US/ Minimum Wage / Available research finds “no evidence of a meaningful adverse employment effect” – Council of Economic Advisers
A meta-analysis by Doucouliagos and Stanley (2009) of 64 studies on the minimum wage published between 1972 and 2007, encompassing over 1,000 estimates, finds that most estimates are concentrated around zero, indicating no detectable effect (see figure). The authors conclude that the available research finds “no evidence of a meaningful adverse employment effect” of the … Continue reading
US States / Relying on Tax Breaks, Work-Share to Create Jobs
States this year awarded tax breaks to businesses, touted worker-training programs and even poached jobs from each other to boost their economies and create work for the nearly 12 million Americans still unemployed. Oregon, for example, inked a 30-year tax deal to keep Nike from relocating. Wisconsin created a new “work-share” program that allows employers … Continue reading
Immigration, ‘not a problem’ writes OECD
A 2011 study in five European countries and the United States found that at least 40% of respondents in each country regarded immigration as “more of a problem than an opportunity”. More than half the respondents in each country also agreed with the proposition that immigrants were a burden on social services. This sense that … Continue reading
Singapore / Unemployment rate rose to 2.9 per cent in March
Singapore’s seasonally adjusted overall unemployment rate stayed low at 1.9 per cent in March, compared to the 1.8 per cent registered in December 2012. The unemployment rate for Singapore residents rose to 2.9 per cent from 2.7 per cent while the citizen unemployment rate remained unchanged at 2.9 per cent. Long-term unemployment also improved slightly … Continue reading
Saudi Arabia / 3M Expatriates Facing Redundancy
Saudi Arabian private companies who have not legalized the work status of their expatriate employees are planning to lay them off due to fears of expected raids by labor authorities. Some 3 million expatriate workers are threatened with redundancy. Many of these companies do not have the financial capability of transferring workers onto their sponsorships. … Continue reading
An Aging Workforce is NOT Less Productive
As the population grows older an increasing percentage of the workforce will be past age 60. Older workers are ordinarily thought to be less productive than younger ones, raising the question of whether an aging workforce will also be a less productive one. In new research funded by the Social Security Administration, I consider whether … Continue reading
Europe / Sharing Jobs by Early Retirement to Help the Young
In the search for solutions to Europe’s youth unemployment crisis, governments are blowing the cobwebs off a decades-old idea that many economists had hoped would remain in the attic for good. Governments are considering using money from the European Union budget to fund early retirement for older workers. The idea is to free up positions … Continue reading
Turkey / The worst employment numbers among all OECD countries
The worst employment numbers are in Turkey among all OECD countries, according to a new survey of the organization. Employment levels are lowest in Turkey (48 percent), Greece (56 percent) and Hungary (56 percent) while are highest in Iceland (79 percent), Switzerland (79 percent) and Norway (75 percent). Nearly 66 percent of the working-age population aged 15 … Continue reading
Thailand / Number of vocational students needs to be increased by 50%
The Ministry of Education is looking to boost the capacity of teachers at vocational schools in order to allow the yielding of quality vocational students to feed the labor market. According to Deputy Education Minister Pongthep Thepkanchana, the number of vocational students needs to be increased by 50% from the present due to the overwhelming … Continue reading
UK / Grads job search starting earlier than ever
Forty-one per cent of finalists said they made at least one job application to a graduate employer almost a year before graduation, according to a poll of more than 18,000 students at 30 UK universities by High Fliers Research, published on 13 June. That compares to the 37 per cent who applied early – in … Continue reading
China / Manufacturing offshoring creates win-win situation
Chinese manufacturers that set up factories in the United States could help create local jobs and win-win situation for the world’s two largest economies, two US mayors said on Wednesday. The genuine dialogue of doing business between the United States and China “has to happen on the local level,” Sheldon Day, mayor of Thomasville City, … Continue reading
US / Chinese imports and technological change destroying American manufacturing jobs finds NBER
Foreign competition and technological change might seem like twin juggernauts, destroying American manufacturing jobs in much the same way. In fact, they’re quite different. Foreign competition from China can be like a tornado, devastating US manufacturing in concentrated fashion but in limited areas around the country, according to a new study from the National Bureau … Continue reading
UK / Employment rate among migrant men higher than for Brits
FOREIGN workers have done better out of the recession than British men, a study has found. Despite a drop in overall employment, male migrants in the UK have enjoyed higher levels of work than “native-born men” since 2007, according to a leading thinktank. The trend has reversed a pre-crisis shortfall in employment and migrants are … Continue reading
Australia / Unexpected Job Gains as Unemployment Rate Falls
The number employed persons in Australia unexpectedly increased in May, owing to an increase in part-time employment, the latest report from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed Thursday. The report also revealed a marginal dip in the unemployment rate. The number of employed persons rose 1,100 from a month earlier to 11.66 million in May. … Continue reading
UK / Student interns three times more likely to get at least one definite job offer
Research shows that some 36 per cent of students completing a work experience placement had received at least one definite job offer by the Easter of their final year compared with just 11 per cent of other undergraduates. Experts warned that work experience was “no longer an option extra” for universities and had increasingly become … Continue reading
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