Perry Work Report: work&labour news&research, October 10, 2014

October 10, 2014

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Solomon Polachek on the Gender Wage Gap & Sarah Silverman's Equal Payback Project

"In a video interview, IZA Fellow Solomon Polachek (State University of New York at Binghamton) talks about equal pay and the gender wage gap."

"He explains that equal pay policies based on wage outcomes have had little effect on the gender wage gap. Instead, economic policies that promote human capital accumulation and greater lifetime work for women -- e.g. subsidizing day care and abolishing marriage taxes -- can successfully reduce the gender wage gap further."

IZA, October 6, 2014: “Solomon Polachek on equal pay and the gender wage gap”

IZA World of Labor, May 2014: “Equal pay legislation and the gender wage gap,” by Solomon W. Polachek [click to download the PDF version, 10 pages]

The Equal Payback Project

"The [Equal Payback Project] addresses the glaring disparity in pay working women face in the US. According to the US Census Bureau’s September [2014] poverty report, women continue to make 78 cents to every dollar that men make.... [T]he campaign aims to close the wage gap by crowd funding an admittedly ludicrous number: $29,811,746,430,000. That ‘vagina tax’, as Silverman names it, represents the how much women lose when each of the US’s 69 million female workers are paid nearly $500,000 less than men over their working careers.”

"The money raised from the Equal Payback Project will go towards funding the National Women’s Law Center -- a non-profit that works against employment discrimination and focuses on legislative issues to promote gender equality. ‘They fight to help women get the money they deserve,’ Silverman says.... ‘They’re very good at what they do, you know, for a bunch of girls.’"

The Guardian, October 8, 2014: “Sarah Silverman creates provocative new video on women’s salaries and ‘the $500,000 vagina tax,’” by Siri Srinivas [please note: the video at the end of this article contains provocative imagery that may not be appropriate for the workplace]

Equal Payback Project [website]

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Part-Time Precarious Work and the Shrinking Middle Class

"The tilt to unstable work -- temp jobs, shift work or erratic part-time positions -- shows ‘these are not the 1970s jobs any more. There’s no sense of permanence to them. That’s the area that’s really changing -- the lack of commitment by employers to employees in the long term,’ says Wayne Lewchuk, professor at McMaster University’s economics and labour studies departments."

"In prior decades, workers were seen as investments for companies, an asset to be developed over the long term. Now, he says, they’re often viewed as a liability or a cost to be minimized whenever possible."

“‘The reality is, our economy is much more competitive now than it was 40 or 50 years ago. It’s a brutal world out there if you’re a firm, and so they are looking for ways to cut costs. ...So we’ve seen a movement of firms to protect a core [of employees] and surrounding that with a periphery of less permanent employees or tasks that are contracted out,’ Prof. Lewchuk says.”

The Globe and Mail, October 5, 2014: “The 15-hour workweek: Canada’s part-time problem,” by Tavia Grant

The Globe and Mail, October 7, 2014: “As jobs become more precarious, Canadians ought to be worried about the middle class” [video, 8:17 min.]

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Toronto Youth Suffer From 'Poverty of Opportunity'

"The Toronto Foundation’s Vital Signs report, an annual compendium of the city’s vital statistics, tells two opposing stories about youth in ‘the six.’"

"President and CEO of the Toronto Foundation Rahul Bhardwaj, said the report shows that Toronto’s youth, more than other citizens, suffer from a ‘poverty of opportunity.’"

“In a city where, for some youth, opportunities abound, others are unable to access those opportunities because they’re struggling with poverty, few job opportunities, the lack of an affordable place to live or sub-par transportation, he said.”

"In 2013, the youth unemployment rate was 17.6 per cent, lower than it was in 2012 (20.75 per cent), slightly higher than in 2011 (17.2 per cent) and higher than the national average (14 per cent), the report found."

“‘Not only is youth unemployment right now pretty scary, it’s been over 15 per cent for the last 10 years, so it’s no longer what we’re becoming, but what we are,’ said Bhardwaj.”

Metro News, October 7, 2014: “Vital Signs report: Toronto youth suffer from ‘poverty of opportunity,’” by Jessica Smith Cross

The Toronto Foundation, October 2014: “Toronto’s Vital Signs Report”

The Globe and Mail, October 8, 2014: “Why Gen Y’s job struggles are a ‘massive problem’" [video, 1:48 min.]

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Better Work & the Good Jobs Summit

"Among industrialized countries, Canada has the highest proportion of residents with a post-secondary education, yet we also have the highest rate of degree holders working in jobs earning half the median income or less. And a rise in precarious employment and the widening gap between knowledge sector jobs and entry-level jobs is creating income disparity."

“Better Work: The path to good jobs is through employers, by Metcalf Innovation Fellow and labour market policy expert Tom Zizys, examines our under-performing labour market and challenges the popular notion that the threat to good jobs is inevitable.”

"In response to the current catalogue of troubling trends -- from youth unemployment to increased income inequality -- Zizys constructs a multi-dimensional, comprehensive approach for redressing labour market dysfunctions and deficiencies. It outlines an integrated set of strategies to promote workforce development, strengthen the capacity of labour market intermediaries, and cultivate the corresponding norms and values that together can create more equitable labour market outcomes. Stated simply -- it lays the groundwork for creating better jobs for more people."

Metcalf Foundation, October 2, 2014: “Better Work: The path to good jobs is through employers,” by Tom Zizys

Metcalf Foundation, October 2, 2014: “Better Work: The path to good jobs is through employers,” by Tom Zizys (89 pages, PDF)

The Toronto Star, October 2, 2014: “How to fix Canada’s dysfunctional labour market,” by Dana Flavelle

Good Jobs Summit

"The Good Jobs Summit is a national dialogue between workers, students, governments, employers and community organizations, with the goal of finding solutions and new approaches to jobs and the economy.” Check out the summit’s resource pages on:

A report back from the Good Jobs Summit:

Rank and File, October 9, 2014: “Good Jobs or Bad Strategy?,” by Alex Hunsberger

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New Nova Scotia Bill Infringes Workers' Rights

"The legislation being rammed through the provincial legislature by the Nova Scotia Liberal government is unprecedented in the history of labour relations in the province."

"Not only does the proposed legislation, the first introduced by the new provincial Liberal government, freeze bargaining and ban strikes until 2015, it will take away the right of workers to choose which union will represent them."

NUPGE, September 30, 2014: “Nova Scotia government denies workers’ right to choose their union”

Government of Nova Scotia, October 3, 2014: “Bill No. 1 (as passed, with amendments), Health Authorities Act”

"Together, the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU), the Nova Scotia Nurses’ Union (NSNU), the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and Unifor represent 23,837 workers in the health-care system who will be affected when the Health Authorities Act comes into effect. So who leads these unions and what’s at stake?"

CBC News, October 1, 2014: “Nova Scotia health merger bill thrusts union leaders into spotlight,” by Jennifer Henderson

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Report from Ontario's Roundtable on Traumatic Mental Stress

"Ontario has released the findings from a roundtable that provides insights into ways to prevent traumatic mental stress, reduce the stigma associated with mental health disorders and help people who have suffered mental injuries in the workplace."

"The Roundtable on Traumatic Mental Stress was launched by the Ontario government in 2012 to help promote healthier, more productive workplaces. It brought together representatives from police, nursing, fire services, emergency medical services and transit services to discuss how to promote awareness and share best practices across sectors on work-related traumatic mental stress, which includes post-traumatic stress disorder."

"With a focus on prevention, response and support, roundtable members generated a range of proposed follow-up actions, such as:

  • Ensuring traumatic mental stress is a priority for the Ministry of Labour’s Chief Prevention Officer.
  • Working with ministries across government to provide mental health supports in high-risk workplaces.
  • Organizing a workshop to share best practices across multiple sectors relating to traumatic mental stress.”

"To help implement these ideas and continue the work of the roundtable, Ontario will host a conference in 2015 on work-related traumatic mental stress that will bring together representatives from a wide range of impacted sectors to share experiences, concerns and best practices, and learn from innovators in this field."

Ministry of Labour, Newsroom, October 7, 2014: “Ontario Aims to Prevent Traumatic Mental Stress in High-Risk Workplaces”

Ministry of Labour, October 2014: “Roundtable on Traumatic Mental Stress: Ideas Generated” (33 pages, PDF)

"Young people and new recruits should be given all the facts about post-traumatic stress before applying for certain high-risk jobs, and even possibly screened in advance to determine their ‘resilience’ to the illness, a new report from a provincial roundtable suggests."

The Toronto Star, October 7, 2014: “Don’t hide traumatic stress risk of jobs, report says,” by Donovan Vincent

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Mining Safety in Ontario and Enforcing Westray Law

The Mining Health, Safety and Prevention Review was launched in January 2014, and the final report is due early 2015. The following is a progress report and some early deliverables.

Progress Report: Mining Health, Safety and Prevention Review:

Ontario Ministry of Labour, September 10, 2014: “Progress Report: Mining Health, Safety and Prevention Review” (37 pages, PDF)

"About 27,000 people work in Ontario’s mining sector, with another 50,000 jobs in processing. In the past decade, 24 people have died in Ontario’s mining sector and more than 300 have been critically injured."

CBC News, September 11, 2014: “Mines safety interim report recommendations frustrate critics”

And nationally...

“‘The Westray Law was passed unanimously by the House of Commons to hold companies accountable and it’s up to government to follow through on the promises they made to the families who’ve lost loved ones. It’s time for them to enforce the law,’ [said United Steelworkers western Canadian Director Stephen Hunt].”

CNW, September 29, 2014: “UBCM Overwhelmingly Endorses Steelworkers Campaign to Enforce Westray Law”

United Steelworkers (USW) Health & Safety Issues & Campaigns: “Stop the Killing, Enforce the Law”

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The Colour Coded Labour Market By The Numbers

"Changes in the census methodology from the mandatory long-form Census to the new voluntary survey were subject to widespread concern and condemnation. A major concern was that marginalized populations, like low-income earners and racialized people, are less likely to respond to voluntary surveys. This paper explores, in the context of racialized data, whether or not those concerns were borne out."

Wellesley Institute, September 16, 2014: “The Colour Coded Labour Market By The Numbers,” by Sheila Block

Download the PDF version (18 pages) here.

Policy Options, November 2010: “From compulsory to voluntary long-form census: What we stand to lose,” by Michael Adams

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Canadian Government Continues to Drop the Ball on Data

"By largely avoiding collecting race-based statistics, Canada is failing to take into account how racial discrimination affects important social and economic outcomes -- in the process starving researchers and policy makers of the information necessary to assess and address the issue."

"The long-form census, the only mandatory Canadian household survey that collected information on race, became a voluntary survey in 2011. As expected, the change resulted in a significantly less reliable 2011 National Household Survey (NHS). [Recent research from the Wellesley Institute] found the voluntary 2011 NHS and SLID surveys showed different results for racial minority labour market outcomes. It’s impossible to tell if either result is meaningful."

The Globe and Mail, October 8, 2014: “Why Canada avoids asking about race, and why that’s a problem,” by Sam Boshra

Statistics on urban poverty have also been compromised by the government’s decision to discontinue the mandatory, long-form census.

"It took David Hulchanski five years to create the most sophisticated tool to track urban poverty ever devised. The work was painstaking. The result was startling and worrisome."

"It took Tony Clement five minutes -- if that -- to destroy Hulchanski’s mapping device."

“‘My research has been turned into a historical project,’ the pioneering urban planner said disconsolately.”

"This is just one example of the harm done by the cancellation of the census. There are others -- in fields ranging from public health to direct marketing -- but most of them are backed by anecdotal evidence. Hulchanski can quantify exactly what he has lost and demonstrate the impact on the quality of urban life."

The Toronto Star, October 8, 2014: “Eye-opening research stopped in its tracks: Goar,” by Carol Goar

University of Toronto, December 2007: “The Three Cities Within Toronto: Income Polarization Among Toronto’s Neighbourhoods, 1970-2005,” by J. David Hulchanski (32 pages, PDF)

Neighborhood Change [website]

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Can Scientists Speak?

"Canadian government scientists face far more restrictions on talking to the media than their U.S. counterparts, a new analysis has found."

"The study of media policies from 16 federal departments was released today by Evidence for Democracy, a non-profit group that advocates for evidence-based public policy."

"The analysis, led by Karen Magnuson-Ford, a researcher at Simon Fraser University who has a master’s degree in biology, found that all but one department performed worse than the average for U.S. government departments in similar analyses in 2008 and 2013."

“‘Overwhelmingly, current media policies do not effectively support open communication between federal scientists and the media,’ the report said. ‘Scientists are the best spokespeople for their own work and, barring rare instances where information is highly sensitive, it is essential that they be able to communicate their expertise to the media and the public.’”

"The National Research Council was the only department that allows its scientists to express their personal views, provided he or she states that the opinions are his or her own."

CBC News, October 8, 2014: “Federal scientists muzzled by media policies, report suggests,” by Emily Chung

Evidence for Democracy and Simon Fraser University, October 2014: “Can Scientists Speak?,” by Karen Magnuson-Ford and Katie Gibbs (24 pages, PDF)

Evidence for Democracy -- Can Scientists Speak? [website]

unmuzzledscience --“Musings of a former Canadian government scientist from behind the muzzle” [blog]

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Canada Is the Third-Most Attractive Country to International Job Seekers

"Almost two in every three job seekers globally say they would be willing to move abroad for work, a startlingly high proportion that says a lot about the evolving marketplace for talent, according to a new study by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG)...."

"The U.S. is the top foreign work destination, seen as appealing by 42 percent of job seekers in the study. Next most appealing are two other English-speaking countries: the UK and Canada, cited by 37 percent and 35 percent of survey takers, respectively."

The Boston Consulting Group, October 6, 2014: “Nearly Two-Thirds of Workers Globally Say They Would Take Job Abroad, Study Finds”

The Boston Consulting Group, October 6, 2014: “Decoding Global Talent: 200,000 Survey Responses on Global Mobility and Employment Preferences,” by Rainer Strack, Carsten von der Linden, Mike Booker, and Andrea Strohmayr

"[Attributes] respondents cited for eyeing Canada specifically: safety and security; the great outdoors and a varied climate; a high-quality health-care system and ‘opportunity to build a stable existence for future generations.’"

"Canada is already reliant on immigrants as the key source of its labour force growth and that importance will only increase as the population ages, people retire and birth rates stay low."

BNN, October 6, 2014: “Canada one of the world’s most popular destinations for job seekers: study,” by Tavia Grant

CBC News, October 6, 2014: “Canada ranked in top 3 destinations for global job-seekers”

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Who Earns What in Canada?

"In a world where people share every little detail of their lives, it’s the last, dirty secret: How big (or small) is your paycheque? In Maclean’s first-ever national guide to what Canadians earn, we take a figurative peek inside people’s wallets to answer that question.”

MacLean’s “Who Earns What” feature includes stories such as:

MacLean’s -- Who Earns What

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Google: 1, Facebook: 0

"Google has decided to have security guards on its payroll, rather than have them placed by a contractor, amidst concerns about income disparities in Silicon Valley."

"In August, labor organization Working Partnerships USA in San Jose, California, pointed out in a report that Silicon Valley technology companies use underpaid black, Latino and immigrant workers, hired through contractors, as landscaping workers, janitors, cooks and security guards. ‘These ‘invisible’ workers do not share in the success of the industry which they daily labor to keep running,’ the report said.”

"Google is now hiring both full and part-time guards, who will have all the benefits given to Google employees."

PCWorld, October 5, 2014: “Google to put guards on payroll, amid concerns about inequality,” by John Ribeiro

Working Partnerships USA, August 2014: “Tech’s Diversity Problem: More Than Meets the Eye” (4 pages, PDF)

Meanwhile, across the valley at Facebook...

"Drivers who whisk Facebook employees off to the company’s Silicon Valley headquarters each morning in Wi-Fi-equipped buses are looking to unionize, complaining of long hours, split shifts and wages so low they can’t buy homes near their jobs."

"[Rome Aloise, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 853] says Facebook and other tech companies are partially to blame for the working conditions with third-party contractors and should encourage them to change their ways."

“‘These dot-com companies throw money around like water, but the people who are bringing these people to work have to suffer,’ Aloise told The Times Monday [October 6, 2014]. ‘They’re the key to making sure these workers have a decent job.’”

"Facebook declined to comment."

The Los Angeles Times, October 6, 2014: “Facebook bus drivers looking to unionize,” by Christine Mai-Duc

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Are There Unexpected Benefits of Having an Aging Population?

"In this paper, we (a) briefly describe key trends and projections of the magnitude and speed of population aging; (b) discuss the economic, social, and environmental consequences of population aging; and (c) investigate some of the opportunities that aging societies create."

"We argue that there may be positive unintended side effects of population aging that can be leveraged to address pressing environmental problems and issues of gender inequality and intergenerational ties."

PLOS ONE, September 24, 2014: “The Advantages of Demographic Change after the Wave: Fewer and Older, but Healthier, Greener, and More Productive?” by Fanny Kluge, Emilio Zagheni, Elke Loichinger, and Tobias Vogt

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Book of the Week

Voice and Involvement at Work: Experience with Non-Union Representation, edited by Paul J. Gollan, Bruce E. Kaufman, Daphne Taras, and Adrian Wilkinson. New York : Routledge, 2014. 405 p. ISBN 9780415537216 (hardcover)

From the publisher: "In the last decade, nonunion employee representation (NER) has become a much discussed topic in the fields of human resource management, employment relations, and employment/labor law. This book examines the purpose, structure, and performance of various types of employee representation bodies created by companies in non-union settings to promote collective forums for voice and involvement at the workplace. This unique volume presents the first longitudinal evidence on the performance, success, and failure of NER plans over an extended time period. Consisting of twelve detailed, in-depth case studies of actual NER plans in operation across four countries, this volume provides unparalleled evidence on such matters as: the motives behind the initial establishment of NER, different organizational forms of NER in industry, key success and failure factors over the long-term, pro and con evaluations for employers and employees, and more. Voice and Involvement at Work captures an unequalled international and comparative perspective through a wide cross-section of different NER forms."

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