June 2002
The economy continued its nationwide decline in 2001, and many more communities fell further off the pace. Unemployment rose across the country in dozens of counties and cities with unemployment rates from 9% to more than 20%. As the economy continues to struggle toward recovery, jobs are more difficult to come by, and the areas that are already the worst off will have little chance…
June 2002
The economy continued its nationwide decline in 2001, and many more communities fell further off the pace. Unemployment rose across the country in dozens of counties and cities with unemployment rates from 9% to more than 20%. As the economy continues to struggle toward recovery, jobs are more difficult to come by, and the areas that are already the worst off will have little chance…
June 2002
“Living wage” laws, which require employers to pay high, entry-level wages, regardless of skill or productivity, are spreading rapidly among local governments across the country. The philosophy behind the living wage laws is that the government should require employers to pay workers according to their need, not according to their productivity. However, these laws require that an employer pay all of its employees a minimum…
June 2002
With financial support from trade unions, liberal foundations and social activist groups, the self-styled “living wage movement” has been pressing state and local governments to require employers to pay high entry-level wages regardless of skill or ability. The philosophy behind the living wage laws is that the government should require employers to pay workers according to their need, not according to their productivity. This is…
April 2002
Who is poor in America? Beginning in the late 1960s, the federal government has tried to answer that question with an annual poverty count. Politicians and pundits alike await the government’s numbers, now published each September. The shape of the September numbers and the interpretive stories accompanying their release frequently affect the election debate in November.
Although most people recognize that poverty measurement is subjective…
March 2002
Who is poor in America? Beginning in the late 1960s, the federal government has tried to answer that question with an annual poverty count. Politicians and pundits alike await the government’s numbers, now published each September. The shape of the September numbers and the interpretive stories accompanying their release frequently affect the election debate in November.
Although most people recognize that poverty measurement is…