Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Wednesday focus: The workplace

A fear is permeating the American work force that the current recession will create profound, permanent changes in their jobs and economic situations.

That’s a conclusion from this year’s national Work Trends survey, released by the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development.

How downbeat is the U.S. work force? There’s a clue in the survey titles chosen by the Rutgers University researchers.

Last year, the survey painted a portrait of “The Anxious American Worker.”

This year, it’s called “The Distressed American Worker.”

It raises challenges for managers who want to lead progressive workplaces that are able to attract and keep good workers. The job’s a lot harder when people are glum.

Why are we so unhappy? Heldrich puts job security at the top of the worry list. Half of all workers are concerned about the job security of people who are working. Two-thirds are worried about the unemployment rate.

Four in 10 workers fear they won’t have enough money to retire as planned.

Six in 10 have lost retirement savings. One-third fear that money is gone for good, while nearly half think it will take five or more years to recover.

Three-fourths of the surveyed workers said their water-cooler conversations were dominated by economic fears.

In March, when the survey was taken, half of all workers said that in the previous work week they had talked about salary freezes, pay cuts and loss of bonuses. Four in 10 said they had talked about layoffs.

Low pay around the world: More than half the world’s workers, especially women in poor countries, are in informal jobs with low pay and no protections – and the global economic downturn threatens to push the number even higher, according to a new report.

Instead of cracking down on employers who hire under-the-table workers, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is urging governments and donor countries to reach out to them with “unconventional” aid.

The Paris-based organization estimates that 1.8 billion people are working without a formal labor agreement worldwide, compared to 1.2 billion who are officially employed.

From wire reports