HIALEAH, Fla., Aug. 1, 2008
The Growing Class Of "Underemployed"
As Unemployment Rises, Sometimes Part-Time Work Doesn't Cut It
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Carlos Campo, a construction worker, is one of the growing class of "underemployed" Americans. (CBS)
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"Have you gotten any nibbles?" she asked him.
"Here and there I get an offer, but it only lasts like two weeks, and then I lose my job again," Campo said. "I gotta reapply for unemployment."
As a result, Campo's income dropped from $45,000 last year to $19,000 this year, while the cost of food and utilities rose.
Does he worry about paying those bills?
"Every day," he said. "Bill collectors calls me every day."
The number of people like Campo - working part time - grew by 308,000 this month.
Year-to-year, the number of part time workers is up 1.4 million. That includes people who need the extra income - and those who want to work full-time but can't find a full-time job.
"Businesses are cautious about hiring, and they're trying to cut their labor costs any way they can. That's going across the board and it's reducing the number of full-time workers, it's reducing overtime, it's just reducing the average work week," said economist William Cheney.
And, it's increasing the number of workers looking for a second paycheck just to make ends meet. That means even more competition for fewer jobs.
Kevin Lloyd is a fiber optics engineer. Looking for work, any work since September.
"Even if it's not in the field I'm in, it's still, you know, if someone is laid off from working in a fast food place, they might try and get a job I'm going for," Lloyd said.
A job that for Carlos Campo could save the family home. He can't afford the mortgage, and can't find a buyer.
"I look for a job every day, but I can't … find a job," Campo said. "I just hope it gets better."
That is, before his finances get worse.
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See all 265 CommentsThe first layoffs are those who should never have been hired.
The last layoffs are the ones who are the best and it kills you to let go.
We are in the wave of "first" layoffs......... in many cases, they were "over" employed.
I don''t know where you get your information, but my experience is that they lay off the highest paid employees who deal with reality as it really is (usually known as facts) and don''t live in their employers egotistical fantasy land. In other words, they don''t lie or embellish the truth to fit pre-conceived outcomes for a paycheck. People who''s integrity is more important to them than the size of their bank statements... much like our government today.
It''s hard to imagine you are any type of intelligence.
This Great Depression will be an act of Government Corruption at its best.
Why do you think the rich, through Bush, have been actively growing the economies of China, India, and the rest of the world (gotta invest those tax cuts somewhere), while aiding the devaluation of the dollar? They have every intention of leaving this country when the Bushh*t REALLY hits the fan (and we aint seen nothin'' yet!).
Why do you think the rich, through Bush, have been actively growing the economies of China, India, and the rest of the world (gotta invest those tax cuts somewhere), while aiding the devaluation of the dollar? They have every intention of leaving this country when the Bushh*t REALLY hits the fan (and we aint seen nothin'''' yet!).
Posted by ubrew12
Dubai is the perfect escape.
Posted by WogerWabbit at 09:40 PM : Aug 01, 2008
I guess you''re not aware of the record spending and record deficits under Bush. Bush''s borrowing in our name means he''s raising future taxes to pay for present day spending. To use his recent analogy, it''s like the White House has been drunk for the past eight years and is about to suffer a hangover, now that an adult is about to take over.
Own a company, put in a 90 hour week.
Then you''ll have the pool.
If I put in a 90 hour week, I''d use the pool to drown myself.
your work had BETTER be your ''pool''.
Otherwise, you''re pathetic and I pity you.
I told you this economy has been contracting not growing since Bill Clinton left office.
The Federal Reserve System hid all of this economic malaise by excluding food and energy from inflation, and by assuming that a number of self employment would happen by including "freelance" "consultants" and "temporary work".
Then they hid bad economic data by putting in some phony term called "eudonics" where you artificially hype up the value of items or services consumed and considered them discounts which are counted as income supplements.
It''s really ridiculous. All so that the Fed can make the President look good for re-election.
But you didn''t fool me and millions of other people who have suffered under the worse economy since Herbert Hoover.
Stress out and have heart attacks!
Some dunce working for Ford, expects $27 an hours to do what a monkey or robot can.
Then they get angry and wonder why they don''t have a job.
According to George Bush if you work more then 40 hrs a week then you''re considered a "supervisor".
It doesn''t matter if you have to "temp jobs" you''re still a so called "supervisor" that way the Federal Reserve System can call your overtime pay as "salary" and "real wage increase".
It''s a stupid Republican idea, I know but what do you expect from Republicans?
The most I''ve done is 12.5''s for 7 days a week. Not voluntary. Most executives love the executive suite, the perks, the secretaries, etc. More power to em. For them, its definitely NOT about the pool. Unfortunately, one of the best ways for them to ''earn their keep'' by their masters (the owners), is to scr*w their laborers by overworking them. Welcome to America.
Oil, at it''s current price...
We can drill here in Americia and create new jobs!
She still works 90 a week, god bless her. But I divorced the b*tch for scr*wing our marriage.
It''''s a stupid Republican idea, I know but what do you expect from Republicans?
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Posted by whitemale08 at 12:37 AM : Aug 02, 2008--
And if you "flip burgers" for 2 different fast food joints then George Bush considers you "manufacturing" and a "supervisor" if both jobs add up to more then 40 hrs a week.
That''s what he declared as of 2001.
I know it sounds stupid but what do you expect from Republicans?
You are jealous, because you don''t get ticket to take your couson to the wrestling math...
You must be as drunk as I am. ''Wrestling math''! Thats something I could do...
Posted by republic1776
Yeah maybe 1,000 new drillers will get jobs, the money from the sale of our oil will go to the pockets of the CEOs of the oil companies, the price won''t go down, so I guess if you are one of the oil riggers working the "new jobs" you think will be created, then you are one of the lucky few that will benefit from drilling, perhaps a few more toxic cleanup workers will get work also, but otherwise your assertion is just more of the fake neocon "trickle down" BS that has failed so spectacularly.
Nancy goes on vacation, shuts down the house.
The Republicans stayed to address the crisis
And by the way, the poor guy in "Carlos" the pictures featured, is twice my weight and I am 6 foot four.
He''s owns a house, with a pool, I lived in an apartment. I don''t want Big brother to do $hit for me!
Bunch of crying liberals.
I never heard my dad cry and complain in bad times.
He bucked up and brought home the beacon!
Stress out and have heart attacks!
Some dunce working for Ford, expects $27 an hours to do what a monkey or robot can.
Then they get angry and wonder why they don''''t have a job.
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Posted by republic1776 at 12:35 AM : Aug 02, 2008
What US auto co executive is worth even 5% of what they are paid just to make stupid decisions on what products to build and how poorly to build them. their pay should be entirely dependent on what shareholders make. Quality has always been dead last in importance to US auto executives as they buy under tested parts from the Chinese.
The guys that work on the assembly line only build what they are told to build. They should have been building what Toyota executives had their companies building instead of the pickups, Expeditions and Hummers that GM and Ford build.
If you are one of the 80% of the people not at the top of the wage scale, then you have just what you want, the government hasn''t done anything for you.
They have, however taken your taxes and given the money to the 20% at the top, and have basically told you to take a hike.
"I never heard my dad cry and complain in bad times.
He bucked up and brought home the beacon!" Posted by republic1776
Because you never heard it doesn''t mean he never did it, what part of this are you missing, "Year-to-year, the number of part time workers is up 1.4 million. That includes people who need the extra income - and those who want to work full-time but can''t find a full-time job"
You try to "buck up and bring home bacon" that is no longer out there to get.
Then they get angry and wonder why they don''t have a job." Posted by republic1776
Two points, one Ford workers do not make $27 per, your figure includes dollar values for extra benefits that we all know are scammed by the corporations to the point that they do not actually exist, the real dollar value is closer to $14 dollars, which is the inflation adjusted equivalent of $4 dollars in 1972.
Two, the formation of unions who created, galvanized and used labor market forces to maximize profit for its'' shareholders (the members) is no different from the companies who use the same forces against them.
Your complaint implies a rather communistic notion that one side should not be allowed to "work the system" against the other.
I hope they made him put it back.
People can get lost without a beacon for navigation.
No sh*t. If McCain wins this fall (and he very well might), I really am looking for ways to leave the country. I''m not a ***. It''ll be 15 years before this country gets itself back together. Those are NOT going to be pretty years. Something I learned from thermodynamics:
Your environment is bigger than you... it always bats last.
Most are already living well below their means, and make just barely enough to meet even those reduced needs. Belt tightening? Belts have already been tightened to one fifth of the 1972 levels, any tighter and there will be anarchy in the streets.
What future can one save for, when those who started saving back in 72 have already seen the cost of living wipe out those savings, and the future only promises more devaluation. Banks, or stocks? Corrupt CEOs of both will simply steal it, and leave you broke. Rainy days? Look around, it is raining monsoon levels now.
What you are seeing is the failure of deregulated capitalism, and no amount of saving of wage earners will postpone it.
It wasn''t just Bush, this began as a result of the bankruptcy of the US treasury that resulted from the war profiteers of Vietnam forcing Nixon to devalue the US dollar, sell the treasury gold on the open market, exacerbated by the advent of Reagan''s "trickle down" BS, and continued through another failure to learn, and thus a repetition of Vietnam by Bush Sr, and Jr.
The Democrat puppets in between these Republican perverts also did nothing to reverse the trend.
Gee what an idiot, just get your number changed to unlisted, presto, no more annoying collection calls.
To blame politicians for your indebtedness is not just foolish but a sign of denial. Denial that YOU consumer, have a problem. This is not a new problem but one that has been growing increasingly common over the years. More than 20 years ago a financial counseler expressed great glee when he reviewed our finances because we did not have any outstanding credit card debt. Evidently even then he had far more clients that did not or could not pay off their monthly credit card purchases each month.
So those who want to slam the president or any politician for their financial problems, think again. More likely than not the blame belongs on the person you see in the mirror every morning.
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