Not Working for a Living

As stated and predicted earlier on this blog of ours, beware the upcoming mergers in both the tobacco and banking industries.

In Macon, Georgia, some 2,100 people's jobs face getting smoked by the merger of Brown & Williamson and R.J. Reynolds. Average wage of these workers is $26 an hour amounting to between incomes of $50,000 to $70,000. However, it would be shortsighted to look only at these 2,100 people losing those hefty incomes.

"The community would lose an important economic engine. Fork lift drivers, machine operators, and tobacco sorters and choppers put money into the Middle Georgia economy at a ferocious rate."

We're talking about family-owned businesses that depend on these 2,100 people to continue buying good and services from the area. The impact results in laying off workers at those businesses, or worse, closing their doors for good. Keep in mind the local supply companies that keep the factory operational are now also out of luck, money and business.

So while the blue-collar segment deals with another crippling blow in Middle Georgia, white-collar tea-sippers in Boston try to hang their hopes on the empty promises from Bank of America who just took over FleetBoston.

"Bank of America and Fleet officials tried to calm fears by saying they expect the number of jobs in New England will remain about the same after the mega-deal is done."

"But analysts said they don't see how large-scale job cuts can be avoided, particularly in top management and back-office slots in Boston. Estimates ranged in the hundreds to the thousands of local jobs now at risk."

At risk? At the chopping blocks in more like it. As stated here last week, if the banking industry isn't merging, it's streamlining, and neither one of those practices equal more jobs.

The key to survival for the American worker is latching on with the largest company in your industry and hanging on. The larger companies may cut your professional resources to the bare minimum, but hey, at least you still have some resources.

The name of the game is survival, just ask the millions of unemployed people begging to take anything at some point just to get back to where they were ... even five years ago. They'll take lower salaries, reduced benefits, and longer commutes, whatever it takes. Just as long as there is a steady paycheck not being cut by the state government.

And even those checks can be as unreliable as your so-called cheapskate employer.

Yes, Arnold wanted to solve all the problems in California and now he's going to have his chance whether he wants it now or not. California's unemployment fund is about bankrupt and the Governator must now make some pretty tough economic choices while still finding funds to put out all those fires.

"Schwarzenegger arrives today in Washington for a round of meetings with federal authorities, and the looming failure of the state's unemployment insurance fund presents a major problem for the incoming Republican governor. He must decide within two weeks of being sworn in to seek the federal bailout, ask the Legislature to cut unemployment benefits immediately or raise taxes on business to cover the losses."

Just what the unemployed don't need, two choices that involve damage to their survival skills. My guess is Arnold goes for the federal bailout since he has a receptive Republican ear in Bush, the other two options are part of what got Gray Davis bounced in the first place.

Welcome to Sacramento and the rest of the world of unemployment, Arnold, the views don't get any better from here.

Let's hear it for VH1's "I Love the 80s: Strikes Back" because today's gnarly economy news does a little Men Without Hats as "Pop Goes the World."

We're back to spending like it's 1984 as the nation's GDP jumps up 7.2 percent in the third quarter.

"The burst of GDP growth was led by a 6.6 percent growth rate in consumer spending, the fastest pace since 1988. Consumer spending grew at a 3.8 percent pace in the second quarter."

"Child tax credit checks and lower rates of income tax withholding helped fuel the third-quarter spending surge, enabling the Bush administration -- which pushed for tax cuts earlier this year -- to take a victory lap Thursday morning."

Just please spare me the video of Bush running in his mini-jogging shorts, as we were all subjected to during the Clinton presidency.

What we didn't see during the third quarter was a similar jump in employment starts as the unemployment rate still hovered barely above 6 percent. And since we are running into the teeth of the fourth quarter, outside of the retail industry, one shouldn't expect companies to suddenly start taking on payroll expenses before the end of the year.

"In a separate report, the Labor Department said new weekly claims for unemployment benefits were still relatively high in the week ending Oct. 25, pointing to the Achilles' heel of the strengthening economy: a sluggish job market."

"In fact, during a quarter with the strongest growth rate since 1984, non-farm payrolls shed a total of 41,000 jobs, according to Labor Department statistics, in part because of strong productivity growth, which enables companies to get more work out of fewer workers."

What's needed is continued good economic growth as was reported today. But it needs to be sustained over a period of 12 months and we are just six months into this current growth period.

Keep in mind the economy of the 21st Century has proven to be a fickle thing. Later today I will share other stories showing the continued distress that still exists. But for now, there's a sign of hope as those who are employed are willing to spend their money like it's 1999.

Ouch! Sorry for the cheap Prince reference, but I had to see this 80s theme through to the end.

From today's BLS Metropolitan Unemployment and Employment Report for September 2003:

"In September, 166 metropolitan areas recorded higher unemployment rates than a year earlier, 143 areas had lower rates, and 22 areas had rates that were unchanged, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Fourteen areas posted unemployment rates below 3.0 percent, with nine of these located in the Midwest and four in the South. Seven metropolitan areas had jobless rates of at least 10.0 percent; four of these were located in California's Central Valley and the other three were along the Mexican border in other states."

"The lowest unemployment rates were posted in Columbia, Mo., and Fargo-Moorhead, N.D.-Minn., 2.0 percent each. The highest rate again was in Yuma, Ariz., 29.5 percent, where summer jobless rates are roughly double those of the winter. The next highest rates were reported in McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas, and Visalia-Tulare-Porterville, Calif., 13.1 and 12.4 percent, respectively."

"Of the 51 metropolitan areas with a 1990 Census population of 1 million or more, Portland-Vancouver, Ore.-Wash., continued to report the highest unemployment rate, 8.0 percent, followed by New York, N.Y., 7.9 percent. Four other areas had rates of 7.0 percent or more. The lowest jobless rates among the large areas again were recorded in Washington, D.C.-Md.-Va.-W.Va., 3.2 percent, and Orange County, Calif., 3.6 percent. These were the only two large areas that had unemployment rates below 4.0 percent in September."

I've included only portions of the report on the blog here today, but you can go to the BLS site to read the full report. An Acrobat Adobe Reader is required.

If Sesame Street were to take place in our times, would Mr. Hooper find Bob and Maria walking home carrying Wal-Mart bags full of groceries? How many new words would our kids be exposed to in that episode?

The Count could then go on to teach the children how two (yes, two! ah, ha-ha) former loyal customers abandoning Mr. Hooper for "Always Low Prices, Always" equals one empty storefront contributing to the neighborhood's urban blight.

The grocery industry is going through some really tough times and the people who have depended their livelihoods on the industry are feeling squeezed by large-scale competition, rising benefit costs and technology.

Grocers are either on strike in some places or on the verge of striking in others. Grocery companies are looking for all kinds of ways to survive and either stripping benefits or eliminating positions continue to figure into the equation of keeping the aisles stocked and the doors open.

"But it will take more than labor concessions for grocers to thrive in the increasingly competitive environment under intense pressure from Wal-Mart and other discounters. They need a much stronger strategy to step up service and efficiency, including more automation, more prepared foods and a better effort to sustain staff loyalty."

One new trend is for self-checkout lines in the grocery stores that cuts costs and is supposed to speed up the process of checking out of the store. This is another attempt for the grocery industry to try and get a step ahead of the Wal-Marts and their 20-minute checkout experiences.

However, leave it to the big dog to yank the chains of all the pups.

Wal-Mart is in the process of implementing an incredible technological system by which many of the manual processes existing within its stores will be handled electronically.

"Imagine strolling into Wal-Mart to buy the new DVD of The Matrix. As you take it off the shelf, a radio signal alerts an employee to restock, telling him where in the backroom to find The Matrix and giving a warning ping if he mistakenly slides it onto the Legally Blonde shelf. Meanwhile, forget going through the checkout line: An electronic reader scans the items in your cart and automatically charges your debit card."

"Sound far-fetched? The future is closer than you think. Wal-Mart, the company that almost singlehandedly made the bar code ubiquitous by demanding 20 years ago that suppliers use it, is promoting a new tracking and identification system. Called radio frequency identification (RFID), the geeky-sounding technology--already used by Exxon Mobil Speedpass and E-ZPass--will revolutionize both the way stores sell and the way consumers buy."

In summary, the company that already does so little for its employees is finding new ways to move forward without them.

"Retail analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein estimate that Wal-Mart could save $8.35 billion annually by using RFID--mostly in labor costs from not having to manually scan the bar codes of incoming goods."

So that's $8.35 billion that is not available to consumers to spend to hold up our economy. I somehow doubt Wal-Mart or any other retail chain would pass on $8.35 billion in cost savings to consumers.

So where are these checkouts and grocers supposed to turn to in the future? What jobs or industries await their talents and skills? Should we just recycle them through the unemployment benefits lifespan until they no longer show up in the statistics, as is currently the case for thousands of other people?

Where can these people turn to invest their futures? I know, how about China? No need to stowaway aboard an ocean liner, Chinese industry could soon be coming to you!

Meet the 200 or so employees of Haier, a Chinese refrigerator company that has opened a manufacturing plant in Camden, South Carolina.

"The decision to build in South Carolina was a step toward the company's goal of making Haier a household name in America, like Whirlpool or Maytag. Haier argues that the plant saves transportation costs."

"To the company, which had $8.5 billion in revenue last year, the plant is at the core of its vision to expand in the United States. The factory, completed in 2000 at a cost of $40 million, is designed to respond nimbly to American retailers, who stock little inventory but want to replenish supplies quickly when products run out, said David Parks, a senior vice president of Haier's American unit. Shipping refrigerators from Asia can take up to six weeks."

This story leads to a larger discussion about the impact of the global economy and how the American worker may be saved by of all things ... foreign companies.

The U.S. is the spending champion of all civilization throughout all of history. Being so, foreign companies looking to expand their reach and profits may begin opening factories such as the one in South Carolina in order to compete with American companies on their own soil. One shouldn't expect an American landscape saturated by factories with funny looking flags on the poles, but as China, India and the Middle East begin to experience their own economical revolutions, opportunities may come for companies similar to Haier to begin opening up plants in the U.S.

"The factory is about far more than saving money on refrigerators. It is an expression of nationalist pride and of the Chinese government's determination to expand overseas in markets that it considers prestigious."

"The government's objective is to catapult at least 50 Chinese companies onto the Fortune Global 500 list, according to its official media, up from the current 11. Haier is not on the Fortune list, which ranks the world's largest companies, but has been picked by the government to make the leap."

That sets up today's other story about how NAFTA really does make "a sucking sound" heard only by the American worker.

"When the trade accord passed Congress in 1993, and when the economy not only didn’t falter but began to hum like never before, the criticism of NAFTA largely disappeared from the political landscape. In fact, Congress later went on to approve permanent normal trade relations with China and gave President Bush fast-track trade authority. Free trade had prevailed."

"But with an unemployment rate now hovering at 6 percent and with an economy still struggling to produce more jobs, people say they’re once again hearing that giant sucking sound."

"According to Robert E. Scott, an economist at the liberal Economic Policy Institute, NAFTA resulted in the loss of nearly 800,000 U.S. jobs from 1993 to 2000."

Here's the deal on NAFTA, it is truly a great idea in the times of a global economy. The problem is the rest of the world wasn't ready for the global economy. American companies were ready, foreign countries and American workers were not. In order for NAFTA to work best, we need more foreign companies like Haier that can come over to the U.S., open plants, hire our workers and compete on an even playing field with everyone else.

The problem is China, India and the Middle East are still far, far, far behind the West when it comes to functioning as a modern society with everything that it entails. Their citizens still do not consume goods and services at a pace even remotely similar to ours. Until those regions of the world can begin to keep pace with the American corporate machine, we're all left with few to zero options, waiting, hoping, and fighting to survive.

I realize the economy continues to show some signs of improving, but it's still not growing fast enough and it still doesn't include enough of the unemployed.

Hot headlines from this weekend:

Finally, a wave of new jobs approaching Finally, a chance to pass along a weekend story that has some positive news in it for the unemployed. The CSM isn't projecting a tidal wave of jobs, but a start.

Escape the pitfalls Not a news story, it is instead one of those articles that give "no kidding" advice on how to act during the interview process. If any of what is here actually a breakthrough for you, I would recommend an etiquette class.

Having hired people myself, let me pass along three other tips on how to conduct yourself for an interview that you won't find in this article.

1. Don't fall asleep waiting for the person to meet you in the lobby.
2. Try to wear clothes that won't snap on you while sitting in the interview.
3. Don't tell the person you're being interviewed by that you're gay, hetero or bi.

All three things have happened while I was interviewing people for jobs. I did hire one of the three though.

Wichita's laid off workers struggle daily to make ends meet I'm thrilled to lead off the weekend headlines with some positive news, but I'll never forget those who are still struggling with the impact of long-term unemployment. I do this blog for people such as those profiled in this story.

Out of Balance A Newsweek polls shows Americans are overwhelmingly more concerned about the economy than Iraq and thank goodness for that. However, this is also why Howard Dean doesn't beat Bush in '04. Dean is all about the anti-war, anti-Bush campaign. People want to know how someone, anyone is going to turn around the economy. Mr. Dean, whenever you want to fill in the blanks on the economy, I'll be more than happy to pass it along. And Dean, that means more than just bashing Bush.

Kroger employees hope for unemployment Oh, if I could only have message boards attached to my blog! Here's a great question: If you strike, should you still qualify for unemployment benefits? Is that not the government supplementing your decision to not work?

If anyone wants to email me their opinions on this, feel free. I'll have to give this some more thought, but my first reaction is to say no, you should not receive unemployment benefits.

I didn't set out to make this "Pick on Wal-Mart Day," but the company is just making it too damn easy.

Wal-Mart sites across the U.S. were the staging ground for around 300 arrests today for immigration violations among cleaning crews working in the stores.

Recently, I had lunch with a major higher-end retail chain executive who was ready to drop into his soup when it came to talking about his business. As one might expect, business has not been good, but it's the threat from Wal-Mart that has him most worried ... and not just for himself.

Wal-Mart is a business killer in any industry it chooses to enter. From retail, to grocery, to pumping gas, Wal-Mart clears the field of competition. Wal-Mart does not have even a decent reputation when it comes to caring for its rank and file employees. Low wages and scant benefits in the pursuit of undercutting the market on prices is the name of the game for the Arkansas mammoth.

What worries him most is how Wal-Mart is now looking beyond the consumer goods field and into another highly lucrative industry that doesn't have a clue on how to deal with Wal-Mart's success.

Banking.

This retail executive says Wal-Mart has plans to enter the banking industry and dominate it within 5 to 10 years. The impact of Wal-Mart in banking will lead to greater consolidations resulting in massive layoffs throughout the banking industry, so says my gracious lunch guest.

Wal-Mart would make shreds of the layers upon layers of management in the banking industry offering a streamlined, no-frills version of a banking institution that will run lean and mean over the entire industry. Once Wal-Mart enters banking, the rest of the industry will have to adjust to the new kid on the block. Better do it fast or Wal-Mart will blow past them faster than it did its retail rivals. The banking industry is filled with old dinosaurs and their world is about to get blasted by the asteroid that is Wal-Mart.

The gentlemen I shared a blue plate special with says he thinks it's only a matter of time before some legendary retail businesses join the Woolworth's and Montgomery Wards into the retail scrap heap. Fortunately for him, he's retiring soon but not soon enough to see the writing on the wall for his industry and other unsuspecting industries.

Retail, grocery, gas, banking, what's next?

Again, I base this information on the words of one man at one lunch. But, I have always believed that the best way to find out about a company is to talk to its competition. However, when it comes to Wal-Mart, you have to use the term "competition" loosely.

As mentioned here yesterday, benefits are the biggest concern facing several unemployed people seeking work from large companies. However, as cited in a recent survey, 32 percent of uninsured workers in the U.S. work for companies with more than 500 employees. This survey was a snapshot of the job market as of 2001. That's probably before 9-11 and certainly before the deepening of the unemployment crisis.

Mix in the rising health care costs of the last two years and one could safely assume 32 percent is no longer a high enough figure.

"The study also noted that seven out of 10 uninsured workers at large companies were not offered health insurance, and 15 percent were ineligible."

So, faced with finally having a job, but one that doesn't offer benefits such as health insurance, do you take it? Well, it all comes down to economics doesn't it? Not the U.S. economy, but yours.

This is yet another big issue that continues to be ignored on Capitol Hill and on the campaign trail as companies struggle with the rising costs of health insurance in the U.S. Even for companies that do offer health insurance, the costs of it are shifting more and more towards the employees. Provided you make enough money you can always revise your budget, however, if you don't make enough, what other cuts can you afford in your life?

Speaking of career-altering decisions, rising costs of another kind are taking away another popular option for the unemployed ... going back to school.

Tuition costs continue to soar leaving many unemployed people who may have chosen to go back and finish that degree and shoot for their master's out of luck or plunging deeper into debt. A College Board study shows that tuition and school fees have gone up more than 40 percent in the last ten years.

"Using inflation-adjusted dollars, the average cost of tuition and fees at state-supported four-years schools is now 47 percent higher than it was a decade ago, the study said. The average cost of tuition and fees at private colleges and universities, also adjusted for inflation, has grown by 42 percent over the same period."

OK, so let's say going to a four-year school just jumped out of your price range, one can always pick up some necessary skills at a two-year school, right?

"The study found that the average tuition and fees assessed by public two-year colleges went up by 13.8 percent to $1,905."

Thank you sir, may I have another?

Why does this country tease us so? What's next, handing out flaming unemployment checks?

Oops, sorry, I've found where that idea is already on the table.

We have all heard the expression, "never sell yourself short." However, in today's unemployment crisis, I saw firsthand this weekend how so many people are doing that very thing.

An unnamed company is in the process of hiring a management team for a new "center" it is opening before the end of the year. This company has received hundreds of resumes and interviews are being set up as we speak. I'm close to the one person busy setting up all the interviews and she revealed a startling fact to me about everyone applying there to be a manager.

Each person interviewing for the jobs have submitted salary expectations at least $10,000 below the pay scale set by the company. No, that is not a typo, $10,000 below! Now, this person is only in charge of screening the candidates and moving them on to the interview stage, but she showed me the documentation that did indeed show that each and every person was asking for salaries that were far below the pay scale.

Astonishing!

Not knowing much about the industry this company is in I asked if it paid more than other companies in its field? I was told it pays well, but not $10,000 more than anyone else.

I'm not about to advise people searching for work to shoot for the moon, but during my stint of unemployment, I did stick to my salary expectation and eventually got it. I don't know whether it kept me from other jobs or not, but it was a tremendous relief to get back what I had lost nine months earlier.

What this company plans to do with its applicants, I couldn't tell you. However, if I were in their position, well, let's just say lowballing would not be an issue. At $10,000 below budget, how could it be?

The other interesting tidbit I found out was that a majority of the people indicated they were more interested in the benefits than they were the salary. Benefits were such a huge issue that those same people far below the pay scale were saying they were "flexible" when it came to the salary.

These people clearly aren't flexible; they're desperate.

Two stories you shouldn't overlook this Monday are the final tally for the budget year from the White House and the untold story from his Asia trip. The results from the closing of the federal fiscal year shows the federal deficit hit a record $374 billion for 2003. That by the way is more than double last year's deficit.

"In dollar terms, the 2003 figure easily surpassed the old record of $290.4 billion set in 1992 when President Bush’s father was president."

I wonder if anyone has had the chance to ask the old man how he feels about his son breaking his record set just 11 years ago? I'm sure George I feels just like Mark McGwire after Barry Bonds snapped his home run record.

"Joshua Bolten, head of the president’s Office of Management and Budget, said that the deficit for the current 2004 budget year will rise even higher, topping $500 billion, before stronger economic growth will start the red ink on a downward path. The administration is forecasting that the deficit be cut in half over the next five years."

Oh yeah, we should all put our faith in the administration that built this record deficit to reduce it too. But the Bush administration would tell you that if you don't reelect Bush in '04, then the "in half" forecast is in serious jeopardy since they are the only ones to trust when it comes to manipulating the economy.

The Bushies go as far as to list the three reasons for the record deficit. Let's review:

War in Iraq - Bush decision

Tax Cuts - Bush decision

Sour economy - Bush decisions hit the trifecta!

And now the administration wants you to buy into their "half off" forecasting for the next five years. Where in the world of Nexus/Lexus did Bush forecast a record deficit when he was running for president in 2000? What? He didn't? Well, how can that be? Because here are his minions running around today assuring us that he'll turn it around by 2008.

In closing, Bush is floating the globe in Asia where the media has focused on his fight against terrorism and North Korea. Meanwhile, what's going overlooked is Bush's failure to get China and Japan to make economic concessions to the U.S. regarding currency rates and trade.

"Leaders of both countries responded to the president's entreaties with a polite, implicit "no," insisting they had their own problems and that the regime of freely floating exchange rates the White House has pushed for months could undermine economic stability across Asia and the world."

OK, let me guess, give Bush five years and we can forecast better trade deals with Asia. How many more jobs do you think the U.S. can afford to lose in those five years?

Hot Headlines from this weekend:

Overcapacity Stalls New Jobs in U.S. Here's the case that the unemployment crisis is as much about the soaring economy of yesterday as it is today's downer of an economy. How anyone accepts the fact that we went from a record surplus to a record deficit in two years is simply beyond me.

Little jobs growth seen This is the first of two predictions for the future on the unemployment crisis. This story says a group of analysts predict the unemployment rate will only decrease to 5.9 percent by the end of 2004 ... and this story is the positive one.

Jobs will return ... someday You know how on the news they will warn you before showing graphic video, well, WARNING, the following story summary is depressingly graphic. One of the top job analysts in the U.S. predicts a jobs growth boom ... in 2008! UGH! Hey, I warned you! What's worse, he says maybe 2008.

When factories cut jobs now, they're gone for good Proof that news really does move slowly up to Montana. If you haven't got the message by now about the state of manufacturing in the U.S., your head is stuck in places it doesn't belong.

Wal-Mart, Driving Workers and Supermarkets Crazy I've saved the best for last as this story says so much about the state of business and employment in America. A story about the one company that can best afford to do better by its employees but makes the choice not to do so.

At the top of the blog I've never promised all quality, all the time. My most recent failure would be the last weekly Not Working for a Living poll that got less attention than I did for the high school prom.

Yes, the emotional scars still haven't gone away!

An overwhelming majority replied that emailing one's resume provided the best results for either landing an interview or finding a job. Email has always been the thing that got me a job as well, but I have never believed HR professionals are as willing to pass along an emailed resume than other forms of delivery. This may be dated thinking or completely wrong, but whenever I would follow up with people to make sure they received my resume, I usually found myself having to walk the person through the process of using their email.

I have a former HR VP who promised me he would respond to some questions I had about HR professionals and this is the very topic I was most interested in. Do HR types prefer email for receiving resumes?

I'll follow up with him. In the meantime, I hope you will find this week's poll more relevant to your unemployment survival.

One other note about today, last week's first time unemployment filings report came back today and showed an unexpected decrease.

"Labor also reported Thursday that new applications for unemployment benefits dipped a seasonally adjusted 4,000 to 384,000 the work week ended Oct. 11, lowest level since early February and a better performance than analysts were predicting. The week before claims fell 17,000."

"Economists consider the 400,000 level a sign of a weak jobs market."

Being just 16,000 claims away from a "weak jobs market" should not leave anyone tooting their horns over an economic recovery. Why can't people stop focusing on unemployment on a week-by-week basis? We've had this unemployment crisis for more than two years now and idiots still continue to judge the economy based on single weekly reports.

String together three months of reports showing consistent recovery and I'll join the parade. Until then, I'm tired of being one of the few willing to keep pointing out of the horse droppings along the route. Wake up!

One of the things I really enjoyed about the California recall was that it made it OK for people to be angry again. When millions of people lose their jobs over two years time, they have the right to be angry. Unfortunately, it somehow became not only impolite to be angry, but unpatriotic.

I'm always on edge even during the best of times. Someone telling me to calm down, relax and fit in really has a tendency to tick me off.

Well, behold the glory as thousands of Americans have decided its times to stand up and declare I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!

USA Today, CNN and Gallup conducted a poll focusing on the attitude Americans had towards how things are going in the U.S.

"Asked about the way things were going in the country, 59 percent said they were "angry about something" and 39 percent said they were generally content."

Witnessing thousands of jobs and billions of dollars going overseas can have that effect on people. Millions of people out of work, losing benefits, homes and hope should burn our collective souls. But what really sets us off is the feeling that nothing is being done about it. Sure we had tax cuts, but where is the promised kickback from that?

"Support for unspecified changes in the political system was strong: 17 percent in favor of a "complete overhaul" and another 33 percent backing major reforms. Just one in 10 said no reform was necessary."

I don't believe we need an overhaul of government (be honest, it's worked well for more than 200 years now), I just want people to use their anger over losing their jobs and anger over constantly fearing losing their jobs to take action come election time.

Throwing the rascals out on their collective ass isn't impolite; it's down right patriotic.

There's nothing wrong with being part of the global community, just as long as many of the inhabitants of the globe don't invade your space.

Free trade agreements have long been the thumb in the eye for manufacturing. The issue went largely ignored until the white collar types began losing their jobs and then all hell broke loose. So what is the great American solution to the outsourcing of jobs? The Yale Center for the Study of Globalization says there isn't an answer readily available and there may not be one for some time.

The report paints a gloomy picture for manufacturing.

"Manufacturing is going the way of agriculture, where technology increased crop output but shrank the number of farmers needed for the job. About one in nine workers is in manufacturing now, half of the 1980 ratio, and this will likely continue to fall."

Focusing on white collar jobs:

"One estimate, by Forrester Research, is that US employers might move 3 million jobs worth $136 billion in wages over the next 15 years. Analysts estimated the savings through outsourcing was $4 billion in 2000, although a more recent estimate puts the figure at almost $16 billion."

The silver lining in this report is that once baby boomers begin retiring, the job market can expect a recovery. However, that's two to three years away and it creates another large problem ... social security funding.

I just wanted to jump on quickly this morning to alert everyone to a job opening.

I don't know the position, but surely there's a job opening in Chicago after what happened last night at Wrigley Field to the Cubs.

When "that fan" reached for that eighth inning foul ball and deflected it away from the glove of Moises Alou, I immediately said to my wife, "call 911, because in five minutes, that guy's house is going to be on fire."

Having lived oh so close to Wrigley Field, I know the pain Cubs fans feel this morning. Don't bother applying for any jobs in Chi-Town this week if the Cubs lose tonight. Nothing, and I mean nothing, is going to get done in Chicago until either the Cubs win tonight, or the week starts anew next Monday.

I'm just thankful the man isn't renting an apartment in the building my wife's family owns on the North Side.

Hot Headlines from this weekend:

Breakdown stalls checks to jobless: You know when you're late with your bills how you get charged a late fee? Well, how about a bill proposing states pay a late fee penalty to the unemployed when their checks do not arrive on time?

California will elect anyone to retain jobs: Here is the first of many Op/Ed pieces and stories this weekend linking the California recall to the nation's unemployment problem. It's not that people expect Arnold to bring jobs, but that sitting office holders are in real jeopardy of being defeated come election time unless we see some change.

N.C. jobs tops voter concerns in race for governor: As I was saying ... What happened in California may have only been the spark that ignites the inferno.

Politicians promising jobs that might be gone forever: Should a Democrat unseat Bush, this person will have an incredible task when it comes to job creation. What industries are going to create these jobs and for who? Manufacturing or the tech sector?

Businesses forge alliance to save jobs: This is how you start a recovery. You get businesses seeking to keep jobs in the U.S. with lawmakers willing to risk their political capital to get things done.

Final results from the latest Not Working for a Living weekly poll were:

"How long have you been, or were you, unemployed?"

More than a year 34%
Three to six months 28%
Zero to three months 18%
Nine to twelve months 14%
Six to nine months 6%

This week's poll focuses on what produces the best results when it comes to sending out resumes to prospective employers; email, mail, fax, applying in person or posting your resume online?

I have an opinion on this as it relates to HR staffs, but I will leave that to next week for the results.

Thanks to all of you who voted on last week's poll. I'm sorry to see the leading votes were for people unemployed for more than a year, but I'm also not surprised.

What does the successful California recall and the loss of 500 jobs in the Alabama courts have in common? Both are the partially the result of the federal government pushing more costs off to state governments.

I would say partially in the case of California because Gray Davis and the California political machine really did need a shake-up. However, the 500 or so court employees in Alabama is a direct result of this ongoing push from the White House to lay the expenses of this country at the feet of its governors.

This is not a Bush-bashing session because it has been going on for some time now. The states have joined the fray by pushing costs to county and city governments. The goal here is to not be the one to raise taxes. Meanwhile, government employees and services continue to get cut benefiting ... well, no one.

"Judge Glenn Thompson said three law clerks will lose their jobs."

"The people have spoken," Thompson said of the statewide defeat of Gov. Bob Riley's $1.2 billion tax plan, which resulted in the Legislature's slashing budgets across the board. "This will severely impair the operations of circuit and district court," he said.

This pattern of passing the buck among branches of government is impairing more than just the operations of state offices, it is impairing the lives of thousands of state, county and city workers.

Times continue to get tougher in Alabama as not only does the football team suck, but the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company is saying "Roll Tide" on out the door to 1,100 of its workers just in time for the holidays.

Goodyear is closing its Huntsville plant in December, but "The company says Huntsville workers will be given priority consideration for any jobs at its plant in Gadsden, Alabama."

Not a chance. These people have a better shot at landing a role in Forrest Gump II. My guess is people in the Gadsden plant have a greater chance of losing their jobs than the people of Huntsville have in working for Goodyear again. Given priority, give me a break.

For any of you who are new to this here blog of ours, I would recommend reading this recent story on cnn.com that perfectly summarizes the case made by the three-month existence of this blog.

I'd swear John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a job placement company, has been reading this blog from day one because he recites the same reasons for the gloomy outlook to the unemployment situation despite the most recent jobs report.

In short, as it has been hashed over in greater detail on this blog, the unemployment and hiring situation in the U.S. is still less than adequate because:

1. Less pay for those fortunate enough to be finding employment.
2. More people dependent upon part-time employment as opposed to full-time.
3. Long-term joblessness. See this week's poll.
4. The not-so-optimistic picture still in place for small businesses.

All my work summed up in one story. Humbling, really. But I will soldier on because the more you know about the unemployment crisis, the better able you are to prepare and survive it.

We've got the hot and cold of it today when it comes to unemployment topics and they're both bad news for the jobless.

First the cold as refrigeration company Carrier has announced it is putting the deep freeze to 1,200 manufacturing jobs and shipping them overseas to expanding markets in Asia.

"These decisions reflect, in part, market requirements. The global container market has become Asian-focused, with more than 80 percent of our container refrigeration products currently being shipped to Asia," Amyuni said. "We must be located nearer to our markets."

"Carrier said its container refrigeration business would be handled by its existing manufacturing facility in Singapore."

Expanding overseas markets and cheap labor is a lethal combination here in the U.S. for the unemployed. Indeed, the markets are expanding rapidly overseas as Asia begins joining the rest of the world in 21st Century when it comes to education and technology.

Birth control is another matter entirely.

The heat in today's entry consists of bad news for the unemployed heading into the winter months. Home heating bills look as if they may rise by five percent this coming winter for those using natural gas. Heating oil properties are predicted to see a decrease in their bills, by 8 percent, but heating oil runs higher than natural gas so it's really a wash.

The best bet to beat heating costs, propane, with a cost drop of three percent.

Better yet, burn stuff. It's free.

Speaking of trying to light a fire, John Edwards is taking a stab at trying to garner attention to his slumping campaign. Edwards has a new $100 million plan to overhaul the job-training programs throughout the U.S.

"We need to not only create jobs, but we need these job training and retraining programs to work. This means they need to be integrated in the community where they exist," Edwards said during a round-table discussion with staff and students at New Hampshire Community Technical College's Nashua campus.

Edwards is focusing on the traditional two-year schools, or junior colleges, for these programs. Programs such as this usually work best for people that are currently employed and seeking something else to do with their lives. When you're unemployed and flat broke, a student loan is never enough to get by on. And, that's provided you can qualify for one based on your previous income.

The additional meat to Edwards job plan is tax credits to companies keeping jobs in the U.S.; venture capital funds for economically stripped areas and opportunities for the disabled to find work.

The hole in Edwards plan is that companies are finding greater long term savings in moving jobs overseas than they can find in savings based on tax credits.

Sorry, John, I had to point that out.

Since Edwards has brought up venture capital, I thought I would pass along this story on how those exciting hunks of love, that right ladies, engineers, are stuck between a rock and a hard place when it comes to finding work with vc-funded start-ups.

"EEs, who are counted among the 24,000 workers estimated to have lost their jobs in Austin's high-tech sector during the downturn, are leery and risk-averse. The startups, for their part, are seeking specific skill sets and, as one veteran entrepreneur noted, few companies have been dismissing people with those specialized talents."

I have zero the brain power to analyze the global engineering field, but the line about specific skill sets applies to most everyone.

Jobs today are suffering from a requirements overdose. How often do you see a job ad where the requirements for a job far exceed the description of the job? Education and experience are a given, but the overwhelming number of other requirements for jobs seldom using such skills is amazing.

A large part of the problem is due to companies no longer having an idea of what exactly its employees are doing at a particular position. Companies continue to allow employees to describe the skill set needed for their jobs instead of the company defining it.

Use a particular piece of software once; then the person following you in that same position must be highly proficient at it in order to succeed.

Once someone speaking Spanish rings your extension on accident; then the person following you must be bilingual.

Someone asks you to book a conference room for a meeting they're planning; then the person following you must have experience planning and overseeing large corporate gatherings.

Mind you, these are silly examples I'm pulling from the air, but think back to your present or past job. Imagine all the different things you could have pulled out of the air to describe all the skills and talents necessary to succeed in your position.

If only hiring managers would ever remember that there is still something to be said for just getting the job done right.

Hot Headlines from this weekend:

Jobs growth with a cautious hurrah: Give the St. Pete Times credit for being one of the very few publications willing to acknowledge that one good report does not a job recovery make.

A Missing Statistic: U.S. Jobs That Went Overseas Let's be fair here. Jobs have been going overseas for some time now. It wasn't until it was high paying jobs that many people began to really care. Yes, we still judge people in this country by income levels.

Jobs have crossed point of no return In short, Midwest manufacturing jobs are going away and never coming back. But, so did family farming and no one cared to do much about that either. I would include President Clinton in that mix too.

Ex-Iraqi Soldiers Confront GIs Over Jobs It's nice to hear that the Iraqis are getting their news from more independent sources than ever before. But, if anyone would ever give them some free copies of our newspapers, they would see there's little use in asking anyone from the U.S. for a job.

My week couldn't end any better than knowing that President Bush took credit for today's improved employment figures showing an increase of 57,000 jobs in the last month.

Bush didn't even wait for the ink to dry on the report before he stood out in front a mass of people to take credit and say how this one report, just one, shows how he is now leading the economy back to a recovery.

"Things are getting better," Bush said in an economic speech to a friendly audience of 1,000 small-business leaders. He gave a lengthy defense of his efforts to spur the economy through tax cutting, insisting: "The tax relief we passed was necessary for economic vitality."

But get this, after first taking credit for the numbers, Bush lays down this line.

"My concern is about the people who are looking for work," Bush said. "See, I'm not worried about the numbers; what I am worried about is the lives affected by recession."

Translation: "The numbers are good today, but don't hold me to any tomorrow."

If Bush wants to take credit for this, than it is more than fair game for him to take the blame for the past and any future downturns in the economy. The president doesn't want to play it that way, but it is up to the voters to hold him to that standard.

Will they?

That huge sigh of relief you may have overheard this morning did indeed come from the White House on news that for the first time in eight months, employers added new jobs to the payroll.

This came as a suprise to many and many others would still caution that one successful month does not make for a full economic recovery. In fact, there are still some daunting numbers regarding unemployment from this last month.

"People seeking work are not out of the woods yet, the latest report indicates. The number of jobless people looking for work for 27 weeks or more rose to 2.1 million last month. Also, people working part time because they can't find full-time work increased to nearly 5 million, said the Bureau of Labor Statistics."

Yet another segment of the population I had yet to consider are the nearly 5 million people latching on to part-time work for a lack of full-time opportunities. The tough part often times is part time work in some states has a screwy way of messing up your unemployment benefits.

But for now, congratulations to all the people who did find work in the last month although I do know such news can be frustrating for the millions more still unable to find work.

Statement of Kathleen P. Utgoff, Commissioner Bureau of Labor Statistics

Friday, October 3, 2003

The unemployment rate held at 6.1 percent in September. Nonfarm payroll employment was little changed (+57,000) over the month at 129.9 million.

The pace of job loss in manufacturing eased somewhat. In September, factory employment was down by 29,000 compared with an average monthly drop of 54,000 for the prior 12
months. The manufacturing workweek (40.4 hours) and factory overtime (4.2 hours) each increased by two-tenths of an hour over the month.

Employment in temporary help services rose (+33,000 in September) for the fifth consecutive month. Since April, the industry has added 147,000 jobs. Elsewhere in professional and business service industries, architectural and engineering services employment increased over the month.

In retail trade, employment rose at both motor vehicle and parts dealers and in building material and garden supplystores. Thus far this year, the monthly pace of job growth
in the latter industry has accelerated relative to 2001 and 2002, likely reflecting home building and improvement activities. Construction employment continued to trend up
over the month and, since February, has increased by 137,000.

Employment in the health care industry, typically one of the strongest areas of growth, was essentially unchanged over the month. With few exceptions, employment in most other industries was little changed in September.

Many labor market measures from the household survey showed little movement over the month. The unemployment rate remained at 6.1 percent, and the civilian labor force
and employment were flat. However, the number of unemployed who had been searching for work for 27 weeks or more rose to 2.1 million. In addition, the number of persons working part time because of business and economic conditions increased to nearly 5 million. The total count of persons at work part time, however, was essentially unchanged at 24.0 million. In September, the employment-population ratio was 62.0 percent, down a percentage point from a year earlier.

There can be a danger in only reading the headlines of news stories online or in print as seen in today's story about the sharp rise in unemployment claims last week.

If you were to go by the headlines alone, some would think that there was yet another round of layoffs throughout the country. Truth is Hurricane Isabel kept many unemployment offices in the East closed preventing thousands of people from making their unemployment claims until the following week.

"We probably need to average last week and this week together. And if you do that, it still shows a lower level of claims than what we had seen over the summer and last spring so it shows some modest improvement in the labor market, but still not significant improvement," said Gary Thayer, chief economist at A.G. Edwards & Sons.

As much as I love being critical of how the Bush administration has handled the unemployment crisis, it's just so easy; Bush gets a pass on this report, but no pass on the continuing unemployment crisis.

So remember, unlike our president who admits to only reading headlines, it pays to read beyond the headline and the lead in order to be informed.

Quick job lead for all of you. I hear there is a really sweet sports broadcasting job available. Send your resumes today!

Some of the companies I've featured in the past are back again today making headlines with the thousands of people each company is targeting to swing the axe at in the near future.

Leading today's list is Verizon, where the "can you hear me now" folks are offering severance packages to 74,000 members of management in its attempt to slash costs.

"Company spokeswoman Sharon Cohen-Hagar said Verizon expects "several thousand" managers to accept the package, which includes two weeks of pay for each year of employment up to 35 weeks, plus a bonus ranging from $15,000 to $30,000. A typical manager may earn $75,000 a year in salary, or about $1,400 per week."

"A separate buyout offer will be made to at least 12,000 retirement-eligible union technicians and call center operators upon ratification of their new contract, possibly next month. That accord brought concessions on employee health care expenses that the company estimates will save $500 million, but the deal preserved long-standing protections against layoffs and nonconsensual transfers to different cities or regions, provisions Verizon had been determined to eliminate."

Unemployment is the worst, but in these people's case, take the package and run. I was just reading an article yesterday, which I naturally can't find today, stating that some investors see the cell phone industry going in the same direction as the airline industry. Slight profit margins existing in an incredibly volatile marketplace. Such conditions are a scary proposition for investors, and more importantly, employees of those same companies.

I don't know what the rewards are for working for a Verizon, Sprint or Cingular, but the risks are as high as those cell towers killing neighborhood property values all over the U.S.

Not to be outdone in the unemployment headlines, Ford Motor Company and Chrysler are expecting to slash thousands of jobs from its worldwide workforce over the next couple of years.

"Fresh off the negotiating table, new labor agreements with the United Auto Workers will allow Detroit's Big Three automakers to eliminate as many as 50,000 jobs through a combination of buyouts and normal attrition during the next few years, industry analysts have said."

Buyouts still equals unemployed Americans and normal attrition spells out fewer available jobs in the U.S. as well. It all goes back to the theory that more and more jobs are never coming back and still fewer jobs are being created by the present economy.

Don't just take my word for it, follow along the words used today in a story by the New York Times on how a lack of new jobs is stalling the economy.

"Even as unemployment continued to mount last year, the number of jobs being eliminated fell below the level in the late 1990's, according to a new government report. But the number of jobs that businesses created in 2002 dropped to its lowest level since 1995. Compared with the size of the economy, the rate of hiring was even slower than during the weak recovery of the early 1990's."

Now before anyone goes thinking this is more fatal news for the Bush administration, I would remind you again on what I see as the Bush strategy for reelection in 2004. It's not the lack of jobs in America, Bush says, it's the amazing productivity of the American worker that allows companies to operate with greater profitability on fewer resources.

To be blunt, for a business, what could be better? Greater profits with less investment, everyone wants that! For Bush, it's the answer to his critics and not a bad answer at that.

The total number of unemployed Americans stands at 8.9 million as of Aug. 2003. The number of employed Americans stands at 137.6 million. Gee, if you're Bush, whose chain are you going to keep yanking?

Those facts and numbers alone show why Bush continues to sidestep the unemployment issue in the U.S. while grandstanding about the incredible productivity that stood at plus 6.8 percent in the second quarter of 2003 in comparison to the first quarter.

In closing today, and what a fruitful day it has been regarding unemployment issues, comes this little lighthearted suggestion from someone wanting to help you with your struggles with unemployment.

"After 10 hours of research preparation, five interviews, a small sample project and a battery of tests, you have just been turned down for the job of your dreams. What next? Send a thank you to everyone involved in your interview process, preferably within a 24- to 48-hour period."

I'd write a witty little comeback for that, but just knowing you joined me in rolling your eyes over such BS is enough for me, thanks.

Results are final on the first Not Working for a Living blog poll.

Of those who chose to participate, 54.1 percent do not expect to land a job before the end of the year and 45.9 percent are optimistic enough to believe they will find a job before the end of the year.

I would have expected a larger disparity, but clearly there are people with brighter outlooks on the economy and the unemployment crisis than I have. I've clicked on a number of polls the last few months and have been surprised by how often the results are basically 50-50. Forget my little poll, we're talking MSNBC and CNN polls with their thousands of users on national issues where the respondents routinely split right down the middle.

I firmly believe the 2004 election will be very close. I'm not predicting Bush-Gore 2000 close, but somewhere in the ballpark. An awful lot can happen between now and November 2004. Look how much the president’s popularity has swung since the end of the war in Iraq. Bush could ratchet up his numbers again depending upon events over then next 11 months, but I believe it is his opponent that will have a greater impact on Bush's margin of victory.

Found in my email box today from the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Metropolitan Area Unemployment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

"Sixty-three metropolitan areas had unemployment rates below 4.0 percent in
August, about the same number as a year ago (66), while 57 areas recorded rates
of at least 7.0 percent, up from 44 areas a year ago. Sioux Falls, S.D., re-
ported the lowest unemployment rate, 2.3 percent, followed by Columbia, Mo.,
and Fort Walton Beach, Fla., 2.4 percent each, and Fargo-Moorhead, N.D.-Minn.,
Gainesville, Fla., and Portland, Maine, 2.5 percent each. The highest unem-
ployment rate again was reported in Yuma, Ariz., 34.0 percent, where jobless
rates in the summer months are typically double those of the winter months.
The next highest unemployment rates were in McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas,
13.6 percent, and in four California areas--Visalia-Tulare-Porterville, 13.1
percent, Merced, 11.5 percent, Fresno, 11.1 percent, and Yuba City, 11.0 per-
cent. (See table 1 and the map.)"

"In August, Saginaw-Bay City-Midland, Mich., and Steubenville-Weirton,
Ohio-W. Va., had the largest over-the-year unemployment rate increases
(+2.2 percentage points each), followed by Jackson, Mich. (+2.0 points).
Twenty-six additional areas reported jobless rate increases of a full per-
centage point or more, with six of these located in Louisiana and six in
Michigan. Another 50 areas posted increases from August 2002 of at least
one-half percentage point. Florence, Ala., continued to register the
largest over-the-year unemployment rate decrease (-2.2 percentage points).
Five additional areas had jobless rate declines of at least 1.0 percentage
point, while 31 other areas had decreases of at least one-half point."

"Of the 51 metropolitan areas with a 1990 census population of 1 million
or more, Portland-Vancouver, Ore.-Wash., and San Jose, Calif., continued to
report the highest unemployment rates, 8.1 and 7.9 percent, respectively.
Miami, Fla., and New York, N.Y., had the next highest rates, 7.4 percent
each. Among these large areas, Washington, D.C.-Md.-Va.-W.Va., continued
to have the lowest unemployment rate, 3.3 percent, as it has since the be-
ginning of 2002. The next lowest rate was in Orange County, Calif., 3.8 per-
cent. Over the year, jobless rates were down in 23 of these areas, up in 22
areas, and unchanged in 6 areas. The largest over-the-year unemployment
rate decrease among these high population areas was in Salt Lake City, Utah
(-0.9 percentage point), followed by Atlanta, Ga., and San Jose, Calif.
(-0.7 point each) and Orange County, Calif., and San Francisco, Calif.
(-0.5 point each). Detroit, Mich., continued to record the largest over-
the-year rate increase (+1.3 percentage points), followed by New Orleans, La.
(+1.1 points). Six additional areas registered rate increases of one-half
percentage point or more."

Today I'll be thinking of a new poll to post on the blog. To my surprise, the results to this week's poll on whether or not you think you're going to get a job before Jan. 1, 2004 is pretty much 50-50. Good to see some optimism out there.