U.S. workforce endures economy, awaits change

Laborers in the United States are pessimistic but patient toward the state of the economy, according to a study by the University’s John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development.
The survey is based on a scientifically random national sample of 700 people in the labor force, which is defined as those working a full or part time job or unemployed and actively looking for work, said Research Project Manager Allison Kopicki. Respondents were contacted by telephone.
Of the participants, 53 percent believed the problems in the economy are permanent while 42 percent believed the downturn is only temporary.
“The survey had results that suggest a pessimistic attitude but it is likely to be a patient one due to their belief that these are lasting changes,” said Director of the Heldrich Center Professor Carl Van Horn. “Patient because it suggests they are more accepting of the situation and so would allow for more time for the situation to improve.”
This pessimistic patience is reflected since 59 percent have lost money in the stock market or their retirement savings, 30 percent believe their money is gone for good and 46 percent said it will take five or more years to get it back.
“We do labor force surveys every 2-3 months,” Van Horn said. “This one dealt with how laborers perceived state of the economy and their attitude toward job market.”
The workers’ lay off concerns have doubled across the board with 15 percent being laid off in the past 12 months, which is 7 percent more than 2007-2008 and 29 percent expect to be laid off in the next 12 months — double last year’s amount of 15 percent, according to the study.
While economists are calling this a recession, 32 percent of American workers would call this a depression and 57 percent define the state of the economy as a recession, according to the study.
“Their expectations [that this is a permanent status of the economy are] reasonable; this is the worst economy in 60 years,” Van Horn said. “This isn’t going to go away any time soon.”
Despite the pessimism, 38 percent see their financial situation improving in the next year, 34 percent think it will stay status quo and 25 percent think it will get worse.
“[The government] has to address the problem of banks but that won’t be enough. We also have to address the issue of the stimulus and restore confidence in the economy,” Van Horn said. “Confidence can be restored by more jobs being created and less people laid off.”
Only 11 percent have confidence in the U.S. banking system while 46 percent have no confidence at all, but 75 percent think their money in the bank is safe.
This study was held from March 19-29, 2009, the sampling error for the study is 3.8 percent at a 95 percent confidence interval. Fifty-three percent of the participants were male and 83 percent were employed while 17 percent were unemployed but looking.
“We do this study twice a year and we track similar issues,” Van Horn said. “We’ve been doing this for 10 years since the creation of the center.”