Employment Rockets! In the Unpaid Internship Sector

[marmar]

AlterNet / By Scott Thill

Employment Rockets! In the Unpaid Internship Sector
The United States still counts a depressing 24 million unemployed, while the number of exploited unpaid workers keeps growing.

May 20, 2011 |


Here's a particularly nasty sign that the economy is still weaker than Donald Trump's presidential run was: The United States still counts a depressing 24 million unemployed currently hunting for a full-time job, and the only employment sector really catching fire is unpaid jobs and internships, which have steadily increased to fill the undignified void. Whether you're a new college graduate or an unemployed veteran of the pre-recession employment landscape, you're now either fighting for a shrinking pool of new low-paying positions or plenty of gratis gigs where you won't ever see a dime for your earnest blood, sweat and tears.

Last week, the Department of Labor announced a minuscule drop in unemployment insurance claims to 409,000, barely below the annual average's wheelhouse of 412,000 but well above 2011's low of 375,000. For those who graduated college long ago, peak oil and climate change have continued to initiate obvious yet still destabilizing price increases in commodities like food and oil. Health insurance hikes continue unabated and unjustified, and over half of Americans think the housing market is moribund.

Meanwhile on campus, corporations are still avoiding college job fairs. Escalating tuition costs are said to be inevitable. Perhaps that's just what happens when the University of Chicago decides to host an academic conference on Jersey Shore. Or perhaps Americans who bought into the dream of hard work, ATM housing and paid health care have now devolved to the point that they're indistinguishable from college graduates just entering an anemic job market that shows zero signs of progressing. At this point, the only difference between the two is who eventually moves beyond the increasingly fashionable unpaid job or internship to a paid position.

If the predictable rise in unpaid jobs and internships isn't a sign that the American worker is being undervalued, the Department of Labor's recent decision to hire 250 additional regulators to enforce the Fair Labor Standards Act probably is. Passed in 1938, the FLSA mandated a national minimum wage, overtime for certain jobs and prohibited oppressive child labor. It also formed a cornerstone of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal social safety net, which is why Republicans in Maine and Missouri are predictably trying to repeal it as you read this. According to these greedy bastards, nothing says true American grit like 14-year-olds working overtime in dead-end jobs during school hours. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/economy/151029/employment_rockets!_in_the_unpaid_internship_sector/

[zazen]

1. tush: that's called "service learning," and you're paid in credit hours

[marmar]

2. "you're paid in credit hours"

Which you're paying for as well.

[pinqy]

3. Right off the bat it's clear the author doesn't know what he's talking about.

The United States still counts a depressing 24 million unemployed currently hunting for a full-time job...

The article puts a link in there for the figure of 24 million: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2072381-1,00.html">Time Magazine, A Flight Plan for the American Economy which says

The official unemployment number does not include the millions who have stopped looking for work or are working part time. Add these categories and the actual number of Americans without a real full-time job would be closer to 24 million.

Which is most definitely NOT saying there are 24 million looking for full time work and is specifically mentioning people NOT looking.

The real numbers (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t10.htm">Table A-10): Unemployed full time workers = 11,938,000 Unemployed part time workers = 1,840,000

Part time because cannot find full time (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t08.htm">Table A-8): 2,605,000 (not known if they're currently looking for full time, though we can guess many are).

Additionally from Table A-8, we have 5,547,000 people who normally work 35 hours or more a week but whose hours have been cut to under 35. Now, these people already have a normally full time job. It's unknown how long the cut hours were for or how long until they go back to full time.

So in reality, we have 12 million people looking for full time work, 2.6 million who settled for part time, and 5.5 million who are (temporarily?) working part time in a normally full time job.

Furthermore, unpaid work (except for 15 hours or more a week in a family business/farm) does not count as employed for statistical purposes and those people are either unemployed (if they're looking for a paying job) or not in the labor force (if they're not).

[zalinda]

4. Your figures are not any more real than the ones posted

in the article. No one knows what the real figure is, as the way unemployment has been counted has changed over the years. When hundreds of people stand in line for hours for just the opportunity to put in an application for a few jobs that are available, something is not right. And many people have been denied unemployment for various reasons, because the employer has cooked up some sort of excuse that they aren't eligible. Why? Because it increases their unemployment insurance premiums for each person that gets benefits.

Tent cities are popping up because it's the 'in' thing to do, it's because there are no jobs. Big business has put a lot of small businesses out of business, and then took those jobs out of the country. Big businesses have raped this country, and then ask for a reward of tax breaks, and our politicians give it to them.

zalinda

[pinqy]

5. Wow.

When the article cites a source that does not say what he claims it says, then his figures are obviously, clearly, and indisputeably wrong.

the way unemployment has been counted has changed over the years

Two changes in definition since the 40's (Major changes in 1967, minor change in 1994). No changes in calculation. All the other changes have been changes in sampling based on advancements in statistics and technology. Unemployed are those who did not work during the reference week and actively looked for work in the four weeks ending in the reference week.

And many people have been denied unemployment for various reasons, because the employer has cooked up some sort of excuse that they aren't eligible

You do realize that the Unemployment level and rate have nothing to do with benefits? The last reference period for Unemployment figures was the week of April 10-16 and the household survey showed (seasonally adjusted) 13,747,000 considered unemployed. For the same week, total UI benefits (including Fed and extended etc) was 8,014,919 (http://www.ows.doleta.gov/press/2011/051211.asp">DOL).

Are tent cities (none in my area, btw) popping up because of no jobs or because of record foreclosures? You can lose your house and still have a job.

[zalinda]

6. Congratulations on your lack of tent cities. n/t