Economics Notes

CHAPTER 9 NOTES

Civilian Labor Force- total number of people 16 and older who are employed or actively looking for work (not including the retired, disabled, prisoners, mental hospital, soldiers, full time students)

American Labor Force The American Labor Force consists of blue-collar, white collar, Service Workers and Farm Workers

DIVISIONS IN THE LABOR FORCE:

Blue collar- manual labor manufacturing-non farm

White Collar- Professionals- office workers, sales person, teachers, and doctors

Service Worker- those that provide services directly to individuals, cooks, piano tuners, and barbers

Farm workers-people who work on a farm                                                                                                                          

WHAT KIND OF WORKERS ARE IN THE WORKFORCE?

Unskilled- no special training required (fast food or a janitor)

Semi skilled- some training (Carpenter, electrician, plumber)

Skilled worker- usually means college degree, apprenticeship required.

There are many exceptions to these categories.

3 MAJOR FACTORS THAT AFFECT WAGES

1.                    SKILL/ TRAINING REQUIRED

                                                        i.     Skill ability of applicant, experience, education (training) Higher wages because of demand for qualified and right attitude.

2.                    TYPE OF JOB (unpleasant or dangerous)

                                                        i.      Some low paying jobs are good because of prestige (president’s aid)

3.                    LOCATION OF JOB

                                                        i.     Are potential are employees plentiful or scarce?

Example: There was a woman making $50,000 year for painting numbers on pipeline. Why was she paid so much?  She was working in the tundra where it is really cold and depression was rampant.  The only way they could find someone willing to do it was to pay really well.

·       The more skills required the fewer qualified the higher the wages.

MINIMUM WAGE HISTORY

·       1^st wage law: 1930’s ($.25)

·       Current Minimum Wage ($7.25) the lowest amount you can get paid

Labor Union-an association of workers dedicated to improving working conditions, increasing wages, and getting better fringe benefits.

·       MEA (Memphis Education Association) is the union for teachers.

·       Working conditions are monitored by OASHA

UNION CONTRACT ISSUES

Fringe benefits- things other than a paycheck that a business provides (BENEFITS)

EXAMPLES:

TEACHING BENEFITS: insurance/health care, off when the kids are off, paid holiday, paid vacation, personal days, retirement, and pension plan.

OTHER COMPANY BENEFITS: company car, scholarships, discounts, free day care, making contacts

STUDENT WORKS AT THE MOVIES: Can get herself and a friend free movies, free drinks & Popcorn 

COLA- Cost of living adjustment. Makes your pay increase with inflation.

Job Security- How stable is your job? The Union says, “last hired, first fired”

EARLY UNION DEVELOPMENTS

Post Civil War during the Industrialization of the United States:

·       Jobs had poor safety, cramped, poor ventilation, no air, dangerous machines not covered, no unemployment, no job security, no health care, no holidays or vacation, lots of child labor (7 & 8)

·       In the 1780s 14 hours a day, 6 days a week, 84 hours a week.

1780’s unions form. If a person tries to start a labor union someone snitches he is fired and blacklisted.

Blacklist-when someone snitches on a person and tells the boss that person is starting a union. The boss fires him and calls all of the other factories and tells all of the other bosses not to hire them.

TYPES OF UNIONS THAT DEVELOPED

Craft Union:

EXAMPLE: MEA, AFL American Federation of Labor

Industrial Union: Union of everyone inside the industries

EXAMPLE: CIO Congress of Industrial Organization

POWERS OF UNIONS

Closed Shop: Only hire members of the union. No one can work in the shop unless they are in the union

Union Shop: Can hire a non-union member, but after three months they must join the union or they will be fired

Agency Shop: You do not have to join the union, but you do have to pay union dues (costs) because he is benefiting

LABOR UNION TIME LINE

1886: Haymarket Riot in Chicago

1892: Management gets 1^st official work sheet (70 hours)

1929: Depression begins

1932: Yellow dog contracts outlawed

1947: Taft-Hartley Act

1955: AFL/CIO merge

1981: UAW gives back gains

             PATCO is busted by Ronald Reagan involving the Taft Hartley Act