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The changing workforce
Importance of the service industry to an economy
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Studying our past human history in the workforce, you can see which trends will be the most powerful. One of those most powerful trends is that the fact that more people are working in service industries rather than the manual labor jobs. According to Volti, “In a relatively short space of time, we have gone from an economy where most adults (and many children as well) worked as farmers, miners, and factory operatives to one in which the majority of the workforce is employed in healthcare, education, government, sales, and other service industries” (274). Wherever the money goes is where the support will go and, in this case, service industry employees have more support than the manual labor workers. The economy is pushing these non-manual
In today’s society you either have to work hard to live a good life, or just inherit a lump sum of cash, which is probably never going to happen. So instead a person has to work a usual nine to five just to put food on the table for their families, and in many cases that is not even enough. In the article, “Why We Work” by Andrew Curry, Curry examines the complexities of work and touches on the reasons why many workers feel unsatisfied with their jobs. Barbara Ehrenreich writes an essay called, “Serving in Florida” which is about the overlooked life of being a server and the struggles of working off low minimum wages. Curry’s standpoint on jobs is that workers are not satisfied, the job takes control of their whole life, and workers spend
This article stated that, according to a study conducted by the United Way and Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), approximately 40% of young workers in Ontario are in jobs classified as part-time, temporary or self-employed. The same study also found that less than half of part-time/temporary workers were able to transition into full-time higher-wage work and, perhaps most importantly, the percentage of those able to transition will likely decline over the next decade. Clearly, the growth of part-time and temporary jobs has been growing on an upward trend over the past decade and appears to have become part of business as usual. A study conducted in 2015 by the United Way and the Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) states that approximately 22% of part-time/temporary work in the past year can be characterized as precarious work, i.e. work with poor or no benefits and job security. The growth in precarious employment is due to many factors including Globalization, improved technology, changes to business models, and the economic shift from manufacturing to the service sector. These shifts have essentially formed a new economy that has a high demand for fluidity and flexibility in the common workplace, and has low a demand for the old fashioned “Standard” model of the workplace (largely full-time employees with a full suite of
There are several issues that were both discussed in the book End This Depression Now by Paul Krugman and Changing Contours of Work: Jobs and opportunities in the New Economy by Stephen Sweet and Peter Meiksins. The textbook offered a sociological analysis of the nature of work in the new economy, such as the new opportunities in this economy as well and the challenges many workers now face and ultimately how this change the family lives of many. The book also discussed about the new face of the workplace and work in general, which includes issues on inequality and discrimination. The book discussed job security, policies and why workers work more now than they did before or work in 24/7 economy. Lastly, the book talks about the ways on how to face all the challenges in this new economy and work environment.
This disruption gives those who have lost their jobs to improve themselves by furthering their education. The psychological effects on displaced workers only last until they find a replacement job. Today, the national unemployment rate is at five percent according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Databases). Economic experts believe that technological advances are expanding at a faster rate than humans can learn to manage and adapt to the new skills necessary to survive in the evolving labor
The world is growing increasingly competitive, with newer technologies making the earth seem to shrink in size. Now this isn't literally of course but figuratively. Information can be shared faster, and at a fraction of the cost that it used to. Therefore this newer technology has flattened out the world, Thomas L. Friedman stated that “ Every young American today would be wise to think of himself or herself as competing against every young Chinese, Indian, and Brazilian.”. Globalization makes it easier for people to connect and share their ideas. It also makes it easier for people to travel to work and connect with their co workers who may be hundred of miles away. Globalization is bringing the world closer. When competing for a job one may be competing with an Indian or Brazilian and whoever has the most education will get the job. Moreover it isn't local competition anymore it’s now on the global level, whether its offshoring the job or having the employee move. Friedman stated that “…data entry to securities analyst to certain forms of accounting and radiology that were once deemed non tradable are now tradable.”. More and more jobs can easily be off shored to a Chinese, Indian, or Brazilian who is more qualified than an American. Furthermore the likely hood of offshoring is increasing and so is the level of education one needs to have the job they want.
High workloads, high stress and low wages are the norm, (Greenhouse, 2008) which translates into a lack of work/life balance. Consequently, the largest job growth sector in America is the low wage retail and food service sector. (Draut, 2005) Chain stores are everywhere, making jobs at places like Starbucks and Best Buy plentiful. Unfortunately, these types of jobs pay little above minimum wage. This puts the debt-strapped college grad in the impossible situation of having an income, but not earning enough to cover the basics. Further still, working in food service and retail guarantees an unpredictable schedule. Some retailers will post work schedules only a few days to a week in advance, (Draut, 2005) while others will call their employees at the last minute to fill shifts, thus making it difficult to plan or have a social life. And considering that many college grads work in these industries, it is understandable how this kind of work-stress coupled with financial stress is a recipe for disaster. In addition, employees often risk losing their jobs when they need to miss work to care for sick children. (Greenhouse,
Outsourcing creates a loss in secure work and leaves people with retail and restaurants jobs, where there is little to no employee benefits and are essentially dead end jobs. Barbara Ehrenreich, “Nickel-and-dimed on (Not) Getting By in America”, talks about her undercover experience working a low wage job and the difficulties living with those financial constraints (1998). She concludes that her wage needs to be increased by about two more dollars an hour to really be a livable wage. That was in 1998 and almost 20 years later we are still facing the same issue. The lack of a livable wage cause some workers to take on two, three, or even four jobs to make ends meet. Ehrenreich continues on by saying that welfare recipients use the funds given to them in conjunction with their job(s) in order to live (1998). When marginalized groups are constantly working with low wage jobs, they have no time to trying to pursue a technical trade or higher education to get a better job in the future. This problem is what creates the continuous rut, that never allows the disadvantaged a chance in achieving
The gap in wealth between the rich and the poor continues to grow larger, as productivity increases but wages remain the same. There were changes in the tax structure that gave the wealthy tax breaks, such as only taxing for social security within the first $113,700 of income in a year. For CEOs this tax was paid off almost immediately. Free trade treaties broke barriers to trade and resulted in outsourcing and lower wages for workers. In “Job on the Line” by William Adler, a worker named Mollie James lost her job when the factory moved to Mexico. “The job in which Mollie James once took great pride, the job that both fostered and repaid her loyalty by enabling her to rise above humble beginnings and provide for her family – that job does not now pay Balbina Duque a wage sufficient to live on” (489). When Balbina started working she was only making 65 cents an hour. Another huge issue lies in the minimum wage. In 2007, the minimum wage was only 51% of the living wage in America. How can a person live 51% of a life? Especially when cuts were being made in anti-poverty and welfare programs that were intended to get people on their feet. Now, it seems that the system keeps people down, as they try to earn more but their benefits are taken away faster than they can earn. Even when workers tried to get together to help themselves they were thrown
The main themes addressed in this article are the generational changes within the workforce, the advancements in the economy that are affecting the workplaces and the changes in the work ethic of employees.
The excessive work load we’ve become accustomed to here in America, coupled with an ever increasing amount of social change, has left the American middle class workforc...
I went to work right out of High School, making an hourly rate of $11.00 with full medical benefits, 401 K, and bonuses. Unfortunately, a good percentage of these companies have now relocated out of the country where the labor is cheaper or have gone bankrupt altogether. A variety of these jobs have now been replaced by robots or machines. For instance, at restaurants you order on a computer screen and a device is left on the table so you can run your credit card to pay the bill. Kevin Kelly’s essay, Better than Human, makes a rather shocking claim that, “before the end of this century, 70 percent of today’s occupations will likewise be replaced by automation,” (They say / I say: the moves that matter in academic writing, 2014, pp. 299-312). Receiving an Associate or Bachelor’s degree that specializes in a particular field seems to be the only way to ensure ones financial future in this economy. Occupation’s that can easily be replaced by robots or machines, will be, especially if it is more cost effective and efficient. Companies that can pay a lower wage in another country will move to save money and workers will be unemployed. Occupations such as teachers, police man, nurses, lawyers and doctors to name a few require degrees, but these are not going to be outsourced or ran by machines. People have all their
A long list of causes for these increased demands is easily found (Daly 2000; Niles, Herr, and Hartung 2001): technological advances; the changing nature of work, workplaces, and working relationships; international economic competition; the changing demographics of workers, families, and communities; and longer life spans, among others. Adults have always had roles and responsibilities as workers, family members, citizens, consumers, and community members. However, role expectations have changed. For example, workers now have increased responsibility for decision making, teamwork, and their own career development. Family responsibilities are complicated by single parenthood, blended families, longer-lived elders, and more women in the work force. Citizens must be informed not only about local and national issues but global ones as well. As consumers of health care, individuals are urged to inform themselves about treatment options and participate in decisions about their care...
The fact that United States is a Capitalist country, positions its people to social stratification. In recent history, the effect of this stratification has noticeably increased as income inequality is at its highest level in 50 years (Macionis 29). Technology may have had an impact on income inequalities as computers and machines have decreased the necessary number of workers for many jobs. Many large corporations have also outsourced jobs to other countries, possibly further compounding the issues of income inequality due to a lack of jobs for the lower and middle classes. This has caused a decrease in producers and an increase in consumers, forming an uneven distribution in society that again lends to the development and m...
A 2014 Oxford study found that the number of U.S. workers shifting into new industries has been strikingly small: In 2010, only 0.5 percent of the labor force was employed in industries that did not exist in 2000. The discussion about humans, machines and work tends to be a discussion about some undetermined point in the far future. But it is time to face reality. The future is now. (UPI Top
demand of the more outgoing jobs are decreasing, leaving more people having to settle working