Nyhus1 Evan Nyhus Cindy Rogers English 12 October 20, 2013 Unemployment Crisis in America In life, one needs

a job to support themselves and their family, and, unfortunately, over the past few years, finding a job has become extremely difficult. Numerous countries have been plagued with high unemployment and America has not been immune. Many Americans of all ages and race have been hit hard by joblessness. There are so many elements influencing the work field, or lack thereof, and researchers say the future is not looking any better. Life is becoming so much harder and as the unemployment rate increases, we could see some dramatic changes in the world. The poor state of unemployment in America has been caused by various factors, impacting many Americans particularly older and younger age groups, and is taking a psychological and physical toll on society. Americans have been struggling with high unemployment over the last five years, with unemployment rates staying over seven percent. In October of 2009, the rate reached as high as ten percent. Currently, the rate of unemployment is at 7.2%, but job creation is stagnant (Bureau of Labor and Statistics). According to a survey conducted by Hope Yen from The Huffington Post, four out of five U.S. adults struggle with joblessness, near poverty or reliance on welfare for at least parts of their lives (Yen). Joblessness has many faces but the older and younger Americans, those with little education, African Americans and Latinos comprise most jobless numbers (Baker and Hassett). And, as times change, the number of unemployed, white

Nyhus2 Americans is growing narrowing the gap with other races. What is the consequence of those numbers? This means 46.2 million people are living below the poverty line in the United States (Yen). Unemployment numbers only tell part of the story. Because of the poor economy and slow job creation, many Americans have simply given up looking for jobs, and these people are not accounted for in the numbers (Hard Times). Therefore, it is very difficult to truly evaluate how dire this situation actually is as many have simply given up. In addition, there are many, many Americans who are underemployed. This is the college graduate working at Starbucks or the executive working at The Home Depot, individuals working jobs that do not require a college degree just trying to make a living. As Americans lose their jobs, they file for unemployment benefits. Because jobless rates have remained so high for so long, many people have exhausted their benefits. The strain on the entire economic system becomes evident. Unemployment benefits end and in some cases welfare begins, it is a vicious circle. One may wonder why the unemployment rate is so high in the first place. How did America get in this mess? Most of our troubles began in December of 2007, the beginning of the Great Recession (Job Loss). As the housing market bubble burst, the stock market began to fall and people started spending less. As businesses began to take the hit, employers began to cut back, and the economy has not been the same since. History has shown that there is a direct correlation between recessions and unemployment (Washington Post). No jobs mean people do not have money to spend, a domino effect one could say. Add to this that energy prices have increased and construction of new homes and buildings has decreased drastically, and one can really begin to see the compounding effect this recession has taken (Washington Post).

Nyhus3 Although the economy has been a very important factor affecting an increase in unemployment, there are other factors as well. The globalization of our economy has changed the way the world does business. As once good-paying manufacturing jobs are now moved to cheaper facilities overseas, more jobs are lost. The outsourcing of white collar jobs overseas has also dramatically changed the economy and, therefore, unemployment (AFL-CIO). Fast changes in technology also impact the work force, as machines replace workers effectively dehumanizing jobs (Van Horn). As this happens, we are moving away from an industrial economy towards a more service or knowledge based economy. So many things have changed very rapidly in the world today, and keeping up with those changes has posed many challenges to both the economy and to workers. Perhaps some of the most interesting theories around high unemployment in the United States have to do with the effects of capitalism and government regulation. Author Jack Stone in his book, Unemployment: The Shocking Truth of Its Causes, argues that in capitalism, unemployment is a way that businesses can keep their workers in order (Stone). The idea is that keeping workers in fear of losing their jobs because of high unemployment, allows a greedy upper class to keep wages low. These are the dull, tedious jobs that would drive anyone crazy and one way to keep workers in line is to use fear. Stone further points out that people are not lazy; they want to be useful, productive human beings. Why else would thousands of people show up to a job fair offering so few jobs? On the other hand, author Dan Sinas in his book, Job Killers: How Government Regulation Increases Unemployment and the Solution To Get Americans Back to Work Now, argues that too much government regulation has put a financial burden on employers ultimately taking away funding from generating new jobs because businesses have to fund lawyers instead (Sinas). Although history has shown that regulation has

Nyhus4 been a necessity, too much of it could actually be damaging unemployment rates. These days, laws support the employee so if a business has a bad egg it is much tougher to get rid of that worker. Sinas explains that some regulations actually encourages employees to sue employers (Sinas). Now businesses, stuck in a vicious cycle, have to pay for lawyers instead of creating new jobs. It is clear that the current unemployment crisis is the result of numerous issues going on in America today. An interesting group struggling with unemployment is the experienced, older Americans. As a result of the recession, many older or retired people took heavy losses in their savings because of the fall in the stock market. This forced many to continue working, get back to work or take early retirement as employers had to cut back. Naturally, they are having tough times finding jobs because of their age. One would think that having time in the field or many years of experience would help an older worker in finding a new line of work, but in todays saturated job market, they are up against many other people for the same job. Unfortunately, the reemployment rates for this segment of the population are very low (Van Horn). Many times, business owners are not willing to take the risks attached to hiring an older worker. Older workers can be seen as liabilities and might end up costing them more in the long run. Older workers will most likely have higher insurance related costs and needs, and their potential of having an accident on the job is higher. Our economy is already in rough shape and workers not being able to find jobs are increasing the burden but certainly not by choice. As older Americans struggle to find jobs, some have been forced into early retirement. This can further burden our economy because they may begin to collect their social security earlier than expected causing more strain on that system. The fear is that as more retired workers continue to collect their social security, the funds for that

Nyhus5 program may potentially run out faster than there is money going in, leaving nothing for younger workers funding that system now when they retire. Also, when retired workers run out of their social security, they may then qualify for welfare which puts even more of a burden on the economy as the government has to pay for their needs to survive. This is an uncertain cycle for both the older American and the economy that could have some very serious consequences to both parties. On the other end of the spectrum, according to Sarah Ayres with The Center for American Progress, at 16.2 %, the unemployment rate among Americans ages 16 to 24 is more than twice the unemployment rate for people of all ages (Ayres). Numbers do not lie, and it is evident that America simply does not have enough jobs available. Sadly, there are 8.2 million young adults between the ages of 20 and 24 who are struggling to find full-time jobs. This number also includes 3.6 million youth who have part-time jobs but really want full-time jobs and another 4.1 million young Americans who do not work or go to school (Ayres). This segment of the work force is obviously sadly discouraged by what life has in front of them right now. Regrettably, research has shown that teens that do not work or go to school are at a higher risk of turning to a life of crime or a life relying on government assistance (Ayres). In todays society, college graduates get better jobs right? Wrong! More than ever, according to Ayres, recent graduates are having a hard time finding good jobs, encounter lower wages, high jobless rate and few opportunities for advancement (Ayres). In addition, student debt has increased to an alarming rate and many student-loan borrowers are having trouble making repayments as they struggle to find a job or work a job that does not even require a degree. Graduates are not reaching their full potential in the work field because there are no jobs for them. Even in the high school aged group, there are 2.5 million teens that are

Nyhus6 underemployed (Ayres). Young Americans go to college so they can find good paying jobs when they graduate, that has been part of the American dream. Now, young adults are rethinking the value of college and fear being consumed by student loans that cannot even be paid off when they finish. When a graduate cannot find a valuable position because there are none available and has to get a low paying job which cannot help them pay for their debt, this can be such a heavy burden and can seriously affect an individual and the choices they make for their future. Life in general can be stressful, and not being able to find or keep a job can add even more anxiety. Important new research suggests that joblessness can have both serious psychological and physical effects on an individual. According to author Jack Stone, people want to feel useful and joblessness brings down self-esteem (Stone). As self-esteem goes down the drain, this can trickle down to the rest of the family. Children often feel the impact as parents struggle. The HBO documentary, Hard Times, examines this very issue showing the emotional loss that people are experiencing along with their financial beatings. The documentary explores the toll unemployment takes on relationships. Divorce is not uncommon, and social circles and friendships often change or downright disappear with joblessness (Hard Times). Even more alarming, is with all the added stress of unemployment, there are very real physical effects taking a heavy toll on people. Recent studies have shown that there is a link between joblessness and increased cancer and heart disease (Baker and Hassett). Think about this as individuals have no health insurance during this period. Paying for care when there is no income to treat a disease only compounds the problem. Perhaps the saddest outcome of longterm unemployment is a link to an increased risk of suicide. This particular link really shows how dire many Americans must be feeling as they struggle with this issue. As children witness

Nyhus7 the negative blow that unemployment takes on their family, a report in the New York Times finds that these kids might very well endure reduced earnings when they are adults (Baker and Hassett). The psychological and physical effects of unemployment are very real and very scary. Our nation has to do something to help with unemployment and fast! Allowing the situation to continue, as people become desperate to find solutions to feed their families and survive, we could potentially see an increase in crime in major cities and towns such as: identity theft, money scamming, drug increase, and burglary. The current state of unemployment needs to be improved and the growing number of people who have given up looking for a job is an alarming indication that a change is necessary. To continue burdening a system that is not working will not lead to positive transformation. Focusing on the economy might be one of the best ways to help create change. Just looking back briefly, the government has been focusing on a lot of other issues other than the economy, i.e. Obama Care, global issues, so making job creation a priority might really get things going. By building unemployment back up, the economy will completely benefit and begin to rebound too. Until our government can rethink

how jobs that have been transferred overseas can be returned to America, Washington Post writer, Brad Plummer, suggests looking to history for help. Infrastructure spending and stimulus programs can provide many government jobs for the long-term unemployed (Plummer). It has helped before, and it might certainly help again. No matter what the age or race of a worker, new systems have to be put in place to tackle chronic unemployment (Get to Work). Again, this is the opportunity to see that the old way of doing things is simply not working and make real, long-term changes. Education appears to be a good place to start. Perhaps better and more specialized training starting in high school and earlier, would better prepare workers for jobs. Offering training in trades or specialized classes

Nyhus8 to help students explore the possibilities of jobs could be very beneficial and develop an interest at an early age, especially understanding that not everyone will go to college. Very real, handson types of classes get students excited about the future. And, because in life things change over time, it would be important to offer employees training as changes occur within their industry. Even offering older Americans new training could help revitalize an important part of the work force. This keeps things fresh for the employee and helps employers keep their businesses on the cutting edge. Finally, America has to revisit the tough regulations placed on employers. According to employment expert Professor Van Horn of Rutgers University another vital task is to create better relationships between employers and employees which will help fight off unemployment (Van Horn). On the job training might help with this, helping workers not be bored by creating a learning environment. Also, creating a job environment that stimulates creativity could also be helpful for both the employee and employer. Any changes would ultimately mean workers are generating an income that goes back into the economy. The economy then rebounds creating more jobs. Fortunately, the United States is a resilient country and Americans are resilient people. We have known darker days than this. Although there are many factors contributing to unemployment that are particularly impacting older and younger Americans, and taking a psychological and physical toll on people, life goes on. Things may seem dire, but with slow and steady changes and a lot of hope, we can prevail.

Nyhus9 Works Cited "A brief history of U.S. unemployment - The Washington Post." The Washington Post: National, World & D.C. Area News and Headlines - The Washington Post. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/business/usunemployment-rate-history/>. Ayres, Sarah. "Americas 10 Million Unemployed Youth Spell Danger for Future Economic Growth | Center for American Progress." Center for American Progress. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2013. <http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/report/2013/06/05/65373/americas10-million-unemployed-youth-spell-danger-for-future-economic-growth/> Baker, Dean, and Kevin Hassett. "The Human Disaster of Unemployment - NYTimes.com." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/13/opinion/sunday/the-human-disaster-ofunemployment.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0>. "Databases, Tables & Calculators by Subject." Bureau of Labor Statistics Data. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. <http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000>. Get To Work. Dir. Strive and Second Chance. Perf. NA. Sundance, 2012. Film. Hard times. Dir. Marc Levin. Perf. NA. HBO documentary films, 2012. Film. Van Horn, Carl E.. Working scared (or not at all): the lost decade, great recession, and restoring the shattered American dream. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield, 2013. Print. "Job loss." State of Working America. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. <http://stateofworkingamerica.org/great-recession/job-loss/>.

Nyhus10 Plummer, Brad. "Four Ideas for Fixing the Long-Term Unemployment Crisis." Wonkblog. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/04/25/four-ideas-for-fixingthe-long-term-unemployment-crisis/>. Sinas, Dan. Job killers: how government regulation increases unemployment and the solution to get Americans back to work now. Bloomington, IN: IUniverse, 2010. Print. Stone, Jack. Unemployment The Shocking Truth of Its Causes. Victoria, B.C.: Trafford, 2010. Print. "Unemployment: A National Crisis." AFL-CIO. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. <https://www.aflcio.org/Issues/Jobs-and-Economy/Unemployment-A-National-Crisis>. Yen, Hope. "80 Percent Of U.S. Adults Face Near-Poverty, Unemployment: Survey." Breaking News and Opinion on The Huffington Post. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/28/poverty-unemploymentrates_n_3666594.html>.