Edward Glaeser notes that New York City has experienced a relatively small increases in unemployment compared to the rest of the country and provides various hypotheses to explain the circumstance in "Why Is New York’s Unemployment Rate (Relatively) Low?," for the New York Times. The hypotheses are interesting and should be read, but I linked to the article because Glaeser highlights the role of education as insurance against unemployment. I hope his observation inspires and motivates students to extend their educations beyond high school.
Despite the abundance of front-page stories with headlines like “Ivy League financier is now unemployed and homeless,” unemployment is remarkably concentrated among the least-educated Americans. Today, the seasonally unadjusted numbers show that 15.1 percent of high school dropouts are unemployed; the comparable number for college graduates is 4.2 percent.
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In my opinion, there are many jobs out there. I may not be correct but I think we are suffering from frictional unemployment. Times are hard and people are being let go from jobs, but yet there are many lower class jobs available that they don't want to take and in the end would rather result to living out of their cars or asking the government for money. Sometimes we need to put down our pride and pick up that spatula to flip that burger if that's what it takes to keep a roof on your head and food on our tables.
ReplyDeleteL.G.
I think the reason New York City does not have a higher unemployment rate could be that it has more service based jobs. I feel Calfornia has a higher unemployment rate because most jobs were related to the housing industry and real estate which has taken a real hit with the economic down turn. In my opinion the reason that Michigan has a higher unemployment rate is because most jobs in the state has ties to the auto industry and it barely surviving even with the government bailout help.
ReplyDeleteI think that New York, as a whole, has a lower education level and that is detrimental to the employment rate, but during this recession, people with a higher degree of education are less likely to get the undesirable jobs, whereas the uneducated are willing to work harder, dirtier jobs.
ReplyDeleteI have always believed that a person that has more education is better equipped to deal with changes. In an economic downturn, such as the one we are experiencing in the United States right now,those who are less educated are less prepared to deal with the changes that are coming about in the economy.
ReplyDeleteWhen I graduated from TSTC, there was another market crash here in Texas. This caused my new Electronics Degree to be worthless at the time as there were no job openings for my specialty to be found. With the current economic downturn I again was affected because the company I worked for could not afford to keep so many technitians on staff.
In preparing for this type of situation, I decided to change my specialty to Business Management, with this type of degree I stand to have a job in good and bad times.
I think that the problem with the unemployment rates around the country has a great deal with what kind of jobs are in the areas which people are looking for jobs in. For instance, if you live in New York, you can most find a minimum wage job at some sort of service industry. However, in Los Angeles, the job market there is strongly skewed toward the real estate industry and so much service industry.
ReplyDelete-Hunter Hezmall (microeconomics)
hh0300006@students.mclennan.edu
I think that a major reason more high school drop outs are unemployed than that of college graduates is the type of people in each group. In the beginning of high school most of the students are about the same. (disregarding differences in family life). They have a free education now and an open path, however hard, to a higher education later no matter thier situation in life. What distinguishes the college graduates from the high school drop outs is thir work ethic. For anyone who works hard is going to eventually succeed. So when a high school drop out gets laid off and recieves unemployment insurance they are less likely to initiate the job search or are going to do so half heartedly and be added to frictional unemployment. This is because to the people with no work ethic getting a check for nothing is better than getting money for working. College graduates on the other hand show thier work ethic through their persistence that will not take unemployment as an answer. The distribution of unemployment is there for not a coinsidence but a result of work ethic.
ReplyDeleteMadie Harper
There is a directly proportional relationship between job retention and high levels of education. Basically, the more education you have, the more likely you are to get a job and keep that job in times of economic hardship. Education helps in all occupations and gives an individual a larger possibility to find and keep a job.
ReplyDelete-Jessica Grisham
I agree with the hypothesis that education is insurance against unemployment. The competition for jobs is becomming more competative with the involvement of outsourcing. This is resulting in employers looking for more qualified and educated personel for their open positions. The bottom line is that the more education that you have gives you a greater advantage in obtaining employment.
ReplyDelete-Pratik Patel, MHS
I also agree that education directly correlates with job security/employment. I believe people who have obtained a higher education (doctors, lawyers, teachers) will for the most part always be in demand. Although there are a few cases in which lower-paying jobs or jobs that don't require as much of an education will also be in steady demand. The restaurant business, for example, is one I believe will always be in demand for employees. Beyond job security, I also know a higher education will put people in a position to receive benefits and retirement.
ReplyDelete-Meredith Dibrell, MHS
Education is insurance against unemployment. The more you have, then in general you make more money and have much more job security and opportunity. Not getting an education limits a person extremely these days, though it might not have done the same fifty years ago. Jobs are becoming way more competitive and a good education is the only way to come out on top.
ReplyDeleteGarrett Jaynes
I think that an education definitely makes it easier to get a job and hold a job. At the same time, today, some people are getting fired who have an education due to our economic situation. I believe that hard work and motivation is what the unemployed needs to find. There are small jobs that they could pick up instead of remaining "unemployed" until they are homeless. Yes, education will help those who are unemployed to get jobs, but instead of focusing on getting "the best job," sometimes, in times like these, the unemployed must put their pride aside (no matter the level of education) and work at a job that pays the rent.
ReplyDeleteLew
I also agree that education is an insurance against unemployment. There will always be a high demand for highly educated people. It is becoming very important for people to have a high education than it used to be a long time ago. The higher the education level the easier it is to avoid unemployment.
ReplyDelete-Cara H.
I believe that people are picky. There are so many jobs available. Who cares if it's not exactly what you want to be doing? It's not like you will have to work there forever. I think we are now facing frictional unemployment. High school/college graduates are looking for jobs that best suit them. However, those jobs may not be available at the moment.
ReplyDeleteIt may be very difficult finding a job if you are uneducated. The amount of money and time put into training those workers is too large of an opportunity cost, so many employers turn them down. This in turn could lead to discouraged workers. If searching for a job seems to be going nowhere, you give up.
I am glad to know that the unemployment rate for college graduates is low. The percentage is low compared to high school dropouts.
ReplyDeleteOne of the reasons that some college graduates could beunemployed is because of structural unemployment. There may not be enough jobs available in a certain area, but there are many job opportunities in New York.
I think its sad that the percentage of high school dropouts is 15.1. It is my opinion that all high school students can go to college. I can understand that people that graduate from college look for a job, but that it could take awhile for the right one to come along.
ReplyDelete-Bernice Vessells from Chilton
Personally I think people are constantly trying to find jobs that fit their skill, their own schedule, and that pay high which is causing frictional, structural, and cylical employment. Some people might not think about college because it could be a great big change for them and some don't like change. I know alot of people that graduate from high school with a diploma, GED, or even kids and just can't find a way or job and end up becoming discouraged workers. People just need to change for the better not for worse!
ReplyDeleteJameela Thomas from Chilton
I also belive education is insurance against unemployment. The more you have the more advantage you have of getting a job. By not getting an education limits a person because jobs are becoming more competitive and sometimes a good college education is the only way to secure a job.
ReplyDeleteI think that many people now a days who are jobless and on the search are trying to find a job that suits them and that they want to work for, which would be frictional unemployment. This being said people in today's society should not be so worried about the job title they have and just need to get employed in some type of business, since finding employment is very hard to come by because of how our economy is as of right now. New York might have this problem because the "education is insurance against unemployment" is not enforced there, since there are a great deal of less-well-educated workers trying to find a way to earn money.
ReplyDeleteEducation is a big deal now because they need people with an educational background. In other words, if you don't have a good education then finding a job might be tough for you.
I really enjoyed the message that this article was sending. It is very important that young people know that education is the key to success. Without a high school diploma, life can be much more tough than if you have a diploma. With the declining times surrounding us each day, it is crucial to get the best education granted to you.
ReplyDeleteRaven Lewis
Connally High School
I believe good education is essential for a lower unemployment rate. Having a high school diploma is barely enough to get anyone a job these days, and getting a degree is crucial during these trying economic times. In my opinion, the high unemployment rates New York was previously facing could have been directly linked to the low percentage of graduates, and ironically, I believe that New York's improved unemployment rates are also due to the low percentage of graduates. My hypothesis is that since high school dropouts were desperately looking for jobs and not getting hired, they eventually gave up the search. With them giving up, they would have simply became discourage workers and would not have been calculated in unemployment statistics, therefore lowering the unemployment rate. But of course, it's just a guess.
ReplyDelete-Lorena Vargas
It is obvious that education is the key to a successful economy. One look at statistics easily proves that cities with people with higher education are better off than those with no education. In times like these, many lower-skill jobs are no longer necessary or affordable, but high-skill jobs will always be needed. New York must have realized this and the fact that they would be jobless without an education.
ReplyDelete-Monica Pantea, CHS
This article sent out a really good message to young people about the importance of education. When high school kids hear things like “Ivy League financier is now unemployed and homeless,” they start to wonder why they should go through all of the trouble and hard work in college if educated people are homeless too. But if you take a look at the statistics it is obvious, and I would think, common sense that higher education brings higher paying jobs.
ReplyDeletekatie chs
Hello Mr. Brooks, I have spent most of my morning reading most of the responses to your blog. What I have found is that most everyone that I read seems to believe that education is the savior to job security. Whats gonna happen to that security when there are no more openings for the educated and doing a job for minium wage is our only other choice? I don't believe that most students want to go be a roofer or a construction worker in mid July. I have seen job openings in that area but I havent seen any long lines for people applying for those jobs. My response is that education is great and a great resource to have when things are good in the economy, but when things hit rock bottom as we have seen the job market do and unemployment is at an all time high. The educated to often use that as an excuse to remain unemployed any other job other than what they did before is simply beneath the educated. This results in even more unemployment issues. Theres only so many jobs available for anyone to take educated or not if things remain the same jobs will runout and the educated will have to rollup their sleeves and go to work in the heat.
ReplyDeleteA college education not only prepares an individual for a particualar job, but also provides them with a broad set of skills. Therefore, those with college degrees can easily transfer to different job sector that require the same skills. However, those who lack versatility (less educated) can not as easily adapt to a reccession and are more than likely to be jobless. Thus, the message is clear, a college education is worth its oppurtinity cost!!!
ReplyDeleteDavid Vargas CHS
When a person drops out, they are unable to take stuff seriously and realize what is important. If you cant realize whats important, how are you able to realize whats important for your kids life? The drop-out will increase the likely hood of them not stepping up to the plate and not taking care of them. The child will grow up with a drop-out as a role model and will most likely take after them. Most families have more children, and that will increase bad habits and possiby more unemployment. I think with time unemployment will increase, unless people start caring for what's right.
ReplyDeleteMichael Glatter, CHS
Dr. Wilson
ReplyDeleteFrom reading the chapter in our textbook there are jobs out there but many people pass up one job waiting for the next better offer to come their way. I would do the same....
This blog explains frictional employment, which is when people pass up jobs to find a job that's convenient just for them. Once people drop out of school, start looking for jobs and don't get hired they often stop searching and become unemplyoed or discouraged workers. This blog gave me a better understanding on education and unemployment.
ReplyDeleteJameela Thomas from Chilton
Dr. Wilson,
ReplyDeleteBecause of the all time high unemployment rates and the low economic status, many companies are having to cut jobs and lay off some people, as my dad's previous employer did to him. Of course, my dad did have an Bachelor's degree in electrical engineer, but matter of fact he was unemployed. Many students before entering college, like me, has been instructed to go to college and be successful. However, the economy right now is saying that your piece of paper that tells you have a bachelor's degree in fill in the blank science is worthless and gives students a second thought of whether the trade-off of 4 years in college is worth not working and moving up in an industry or even starting his or her own business. Many people still seek their degree because it does give a higher pay and security job, in a healthy economy. Some are beginning to find businesses to have for theirselves part-time while working or going to school because the corporal world and the retirement funding in Social Security may not be there in 40 years.
Your Student,
Abel Galliguez
I agree that education is key to becoming successful. It is proven that the more education and the level of your education are directly related to your how good of a job you have. Especially in times like we are in right now, education is crucial because it separates you from the next person.
ReplyDelete