Ah, Labor Day. The holiday that honors unions and the American worker. And what an ironically mediagenic Monday it was in 2002. From corporate abuses to stagnant unemployment, this just isn't what the AFL-CIO had in mind.
"With dockworkers, janitors, and Boeing employees threatening major strikes and employees reeling from corporate scandals and rising unemployment, the mood among American workers has turned anxious and even angry this Labor Day," said the New York Times. A slew of studies and surveys popped up everywhere to attach numbers to the misery. One institute found that the income gap between the rich and the poor was growing again. The Boston Globe reported 500,000 jobseekers will run out of employment benefits in the next two months. The U.S. Census Bureau said Americans spend an average of 1,900 hours per year at work. "That's 20 more days each year than a quarter century ago," said the Denver Post, "and more than any other advanced nation, including Japan -- which embodies industrialism."
What can Americans expect in return for their workaholism? How about ... a pat on the head? "Not only are the aggressive employee recruitment tactics of the late 1990s long gone, more basic employee perks such as raises and bonuses are also under pressure," said CNN. An outplacement expert told the Mercury News that employees shouldn't even take all their meager vacation time this year, because they should be trying to save their jobs by any means necessary. Merc columnist Mike Cassidy rubbed it in by announcing that he'd had Labor Day as a paid holiday.
Speaking of rubbing it in, employed people like economists and beat reporters matter-of-factly told us not to expect miracles this fall. Layoffs often worsen the last four months of the year, and jobseekers who got discouraged and "took the summer off" will be back in action this week. The Boston Globe said economists "agree there will be no real improvement in the job market until next year." The Baltimore Sun shocked no one by reporting, "This Labor Day, job seekers are more likely to find that it takes longer to find work, the pay may not be as much, and the competition is greater." Sounds suspiciously like last Labor Day. The Seattle Times was more graphic. "Flaws that were once tolerated -- limited experience, perhaps, or a history of job hopping -- are now causes for rejection," said the Times. "Even people with seemingly perfect credentials are vulnerable."
While employees hyperventilated, union organizers got one small victory. A survey showed that for the first time since 1984, half of non-union workers polled would join a union. Heck, if it got us job security, paid holidays, and a 40-hour work week, we'd join the circus. - Jen Muehlbauer
Unease marks Labor Day '02 (New York Times)
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/nation/3987298.htm
With Many Chasing Few Jobs, Misstep Can Blow Offer (Seattle Times)
http://makeashorterlink.com/?G64823DA1
Lucky Enough to Have a Job? If You Do, Labor to Keep It
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/3990332.htm
Americans Laboring 1,900 Hours a Year (Denver Post)
http://makeashorterlink.com/?G25852DA1
Jobless on Labor Day
http://money.cnn.com/2002/08/30/news/labor/index.htm
Corporate Mess Sparks Union Interest (CBS Marketwatch)
http://makeashorterlink.com/?T57812DA1
Bush Courts Labor on Labor Day
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A25538-2002Sep2.html
Jobs Jitters On Labor Day Weekend (AP)
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/08/30/national/main520414.shtml
Job Seekers Face Tougher Market, Analysts Say
http://www.sunspot.net/business/bal-bz.work02sep02.story
A Deadline Looms for the Jobless (Boston Globe)
http://makeashorterlink.com/?U28812DA1
