More Job Losses
Ouch, that smarts.
Wisconsin employers cut 129,600 jobs since October 2008, the steepest year-to-year plunge in 70 years of data.
The state Department of Workforce Development is scheduled report on job losses and unemployment midday Thursday. But preliminary estimates from a state database and historical figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics suggest Wisconsin’s employment picture continues to get bleaker.
The 4.5% decline in payroll jobs in the last 12 months is the state’s biggest since 1958.
I though Obama told all of us good little Americans that things were getting better?
It must be corporate greed… Couldn’t be the result of the onerous tax environment in this state.
Hmm… Did I hear that we rank dead last in small business creation in the country? At least we have Scott Walker to look forward to.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1838 hrs
Smarts for who?
***Nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased at a 9.5 % annual rate during the third quarter of 2009, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This was the largest gain in productivity since the third quarter of 2003, when it rose 9.7 %.
***Unit labor costs declined 3.6 percent over the last
four quarters—the largest decrease since the series began in 1948.
***Productivity increased 9.8 percent in the business sector in the third quarter of 2009.
***Manufacturing sector productivity grew 13.6 percent in the third quarter of 2009, as output increased 7.7 percent despite a 5.2 percent decrease in hours worked.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/prod2.nr0.htmPosted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1938 hrs
Productivity increased because fewer people did more work. The consequence being lower labor costs.
Geez…even I know that.
Posted by Steve on November 19, 2009 at 2208 hrs
I figured you did.
Perhaps this “down” economy should not be so negatively critiqued. Productivity is up; costs are down. The U.S. manufacturing sector is becoming leaner, meaner, more competitive.
Granted when a company terminates a worker and give that worker’s responsibilities to the remaining worker, a job is lost; however, in another light, the company is more competitive. A capable worker is in the market, increasing human resources, lowering labor costs.
Some of those 129,600 lost jobs can argued to have been fat that needed to be trimmed.
Coincidently, a quote by Marx applies here:
“While the miser is merely a capitalist gone mad, the capitalist is a rational miser”Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 2233 hrs
When it gets this deep, good productive employees are getting cut but executive bonuses appear unchanged.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 20, 2009 at 0625 hrs
Penterman
That same logic should also work for the school district. If half of administration is cut the remaining would become more productive. The district becomes lean and mean and the remaining employees pick up the slack.Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 20, 2009 at 0704 hrs
I find it sad that a member of the school system would use quotations when referring to the ‘down’ economy.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 20, 2009 at 1255 hrs
Smeety, it’s a down economy for most, not all. I am not impressed by the efficiency numbers when a colleague’s wife is telling me she is handling the duties of four former colleagues: Burnout in this case is inevitable; what is the company going to then? Replace her position with 2-3 inexperienced kids out of college?
Crusher, the admin. job descriptions are available. It may be explored later on this blog; I will submit facts/stats.
Note the district’s librarian cuts cause the K-5 librarian’s efficiency to go up 500%, if one solely considers the media purchase aspects of the job, for a savings of $350,000 (using a $70,000 FTE average), though the actual savings were higher. The teaching / works-with-teachers aspects of the job went another way.
West Bend Daily News November 21, 2009
School Board looking at reductions to ease $2M deficit
three forefront reduction scenarios:
1. combine the two West Bend High Schools into one
2. Middle schools’ schedule changed to that of a junior high: Cut 10 teachers.
3. Increase HS teacher sections from 5 to 6; student load: 100-150 to 120-180 (#s exclude PE); Cut 12 teachers.
$300+$700+$840=$1,840,000 < $2MPosted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 21, 2009 at 1746 hrs
J,
In the real world this has been going on for quite a while.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 22, 2009 at 1701 hrs
Sadly.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 22, 2009 at 1955 hrs
Frankly, I can’t believe what JPenterman is saying? The economy is down for nearly everyone not associated with a government job!
The lady you descibe who may experience “burnout” because she is doing the work of 4 people….what will she quit? In this economy would you really quit a job? If she is going through burnout I am sure there is some fresh body just waiting to take her place…they burnout another fresh body waiting in line for a job. There are plenty of experienced people waiting for jobs.
I spoke to a manager at a Batteries Plus and he said in one month they had 60 people apply for one position that paid very little. Many of whom were adults.
As a small business owner we went from 30 employees in January 2009 to 18 currently. Everyone knows if they screw up there are plenty of others salivating to get in so they can have a pay check to provide for their families.
Hope and Change…how’s that workin’ for ya?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 0921 hrs
The data in comment 2 are painful, but also the only good economic data I’ve seen in over a year. Ultimately increased productiviity without a corresponding increase in wages is what will bring employment back.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1012 hrs
You can’t have productivity w/o a product to produce. In order to make products people have to buy products. In order for people to buy products people need money. In order to get money people need a job. Less jobs, less people with money, less people with money, less spending, less spending, less buying, less buying, less products, less products, less jobs and so on.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1021 hrs
Increased productivity and lower labor costs lower real prices and encourage capital spending. That capital spending is what will eventually return employment.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1209 hrs
How does one increase productivity if there is no product to produce?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1224 hrs
There are products to produce, read the links in comment 2. Labor productivity has increased.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1417 hrs
The link in comment #2 tells me is that productivity is up and hours worked is down. That can translate as there is not an abundance of work and the workers are able to keep up with production.
The bottom line is more people are out of work than every before and that is not a good thing.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1437 hrs
People out of work is indeed not a good thing, but an increase in productivity without a corresponding increase in wages is a prerequisite for any increase in employment. We may have a ways to go, but we are at least making some progress towards a situation that will make increasing one’s labor force attractive again.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1455 hrs
I think the increase in productivity means that there is less work to do, so it is easier for those left working to get it done. In essence it’s a easier work load, less pressure.
At our business productivity is up too, but the work load is small so it should be easier for the employees to get their work done in an effiecent manner.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 24, 2009 at 0742 hrs
Now think in terms of adding people. Are you more likely or less likely to hire someone if the anticipated ratio of productivity to wage is relatively high?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 24, 2009 at 1320 hrs
If our employees can keep with the work that is provided to them we will not hire anyone new. If they can’t keep up we still won’t hire new, but extend the work day. Paying over time is still cheaper than hiring anyone new. Furthermore in this economy there will be no bonuses or pay increase for any employees including the owners.
With extended unemployment we will most certainly not hire anyone new unless we had to. Pay raises would not happen until we reach a level of comfort in the business climate and political climate. I don’t see that happening with in the next 3 1/2 years.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 24, 2009 at 1503 hrs
kelly.
if your employees are getting more units of production done in a shorter amount of time, that is not a sign of less work to be done, it is a sigm of either more skilled workforce or better work flow or more automation.
If productivity is up and you haven’t added any automation or changed the work flow, that means youe employees are getting better at their job. I understand not wanting to add new hires in this climate, but if you have workers who are getting better at their job, you may want to rethink you stance on pay raises in the next 3 1/2 years, or you may have no choice about the new hires.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 24, 2009 at 1619 hrs
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