Although welfare state institutions play a central role in protecting social rights and promoting social inclusion, they have come under sharp attack in the last few decades within the United States. Policy reforms have sharply curtailed some forms of welfare assistance and have devolved administration of others from the federal to the state government and from the public to the private sector. Meanwhile, transfers through the tax system have soared. Has the welfare reform movement weakened public assistance generally or merely shifted the funding sources?
Edwin Melendez of the New School University, Joshua Hawley of Ohio State University, and Lynn McCormick of Hunter College/CUNY are conducting a survey regarding the role of employers associations in the labor market. Whereas in Europe, business associations have had a long history of involvement in workforce development, American employers associations are often labeled as self-serving, uncooperative, and passive with regard to workers. But recent studies are showing that this has not always been the case, and more and more frequently U.S.
Skill requirements for jobs are growing and changing significantly. Many analysts believe this is due to advances in computer technology and organizational changes that increase employee involvement in workplace decision-making. To provide better tests of these hypotheses, we need to learn more about what tasks people actually perform at work, and what kind and level of skill these job tasks require.
Call centers have emerged as the primary vehicle for firms to interact with consumers, transforming consumer service jobs - once characterized by variety and personal relationships - into routinized, high speed operations with continuous monitoring and minimal skill requirements. International competition and increased specialization of call centers has depressed the wages of employees and limited their prospects for upward mobility.
Proponents of living wage laws argue that a just society cannot in good conscience pay its workers less than is required to escape poverty. However, some economic theorists contend that establishing high wage floors will force firms to cut jobs in order to hold down their production costs. This debate prompts an empirical question: to what extent are the social benefits of living wage laws offset by adverse economic side effects?
In November 2003, San Francisco voters passed "Proposition L," which established a citywide minimum wage increase from $6.75 to $8.50 per hour that would be adjusted annually for inflation. While some critics assert that the new minimum wage law will lead to job layoffs and higher prices, others champion the law as providing a much needed wage floor for thousands of the city's low-wage workers.