As Inflation Grows, Middle Classes Miss Out on New Prosperity

Using the U.S. Department of Labor’s latest monthly cost of living data, the Washington Post reported that the middle and working classes continue to lose ground economically.

“Cost of living was up 2.9 percent from July 2017 to July 2018, the Labor Department reported Friday, an inflation rate that outstripped a 2.7 percent increase in wages over the same period. The average U.S. ‘real wage,’ a federal measure of pay that takes inflation into account, fell to $10.76 an hour last month, 2 cents down from where it was a year ago,” the Post stated.

The continued stagnation of wages comes at a time when unemployment is at its lowest in decades while job openings are at record highs, a dynamic that has “befuddled economists and policy makers,” the Post stated.

Philly Grade School and Helicopter Firm Partner to Offer High-Tech Camp

Students from Senator Tartaglione’s grade school alma mater, St. Martin of Tours benefitted from some high-tech training as they enjoyed summer camp at Northeast Philadelphia’s Leonardo Helicopters plant, where they learned how to build, maintain and fly the company’s AW139.

Philly.com reported that 10 top-achieving eighth-grade students were chosen for the annual week-long program, which provides them an early glimpse into future STEM career opportunities.

Do Manufacturing Jobs Really Pay Better? A Closer Look at the Data

Manufacturers routinely claim that their jobs pay better than opportunities available in other employment sectors, but a lot depends on how you look at the available data, according to this report published by the Post-Gazette.

U.S. Department of Labor Statistics show that “the average private sector worker made $27.05 per hour versus $27.01 for the average manufacturing worker. The numbers don’t tell the whole story. When you include health insurance and other benefits, manufacturing workers enjoy a significant — but shrinking — edge over their private sector counterparts.”

“A recent Economic Policy Institute analysis concludes that manufacturing workers receive 13 percent more in total compensation than comparable workers in the rest of the private sector. EPI, a left-leaning Washington, D.C. research group, says the premium has shrunk from 16.9 percent in the 1980s.”

Thousands of ex-Chipotle Workers Ousted from Wage Theft Class Action

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Epic Systems ruling on forced arbitration agreements has directly impacted nearly 3,000 low-wage Chipotle workers who were rejected from a wage theft-related class action lawsuit by a federal judge on Aug. 3.

“Of the roughly 10,000 plaintiffs who claimed Chipotle didn’t pay them their full wages, 2,814 had signed a class- and collective-action waiver the company first implemented in 2014 to reduce its legal liabilities,” the Huffington Post reported.

Senior U.S. District Judge John Kane cited the Epic Systems ruling as he ousted the bloc of workers from the plaintiff class. The 7,000 workers who had not signed Chipotle’s collective action waiver may continue to pursue their claim that the restaurant chain’s managers forced them to work “off the clock” without compensation.

July 2018 PA Jobs Update

Pennsylvania’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 4.2% in July 2018, down 0.1% from the previous month, marking the lowest it has been since May 2007. Over the month, unemployment rolls decreased by 8,200 individuals, with total unemployment falling to 267,000. State unemployment statistics for the month are as follows:

• Total Unemployment – 267,019
• Change Over Month –   DOWN   8,233
• Change Over Year –  DOWN    40,210
• Change Over Gov. Wolf Term –   DOWN   78,622
• Rate Change Over Month –   DOWN   0.1%
• Rate Change Over Year –   DOWN   0.6%
• Rate Change Over Gov. Wolf Term –   DOWN   1.2%

As noted above, total unemployment’s rounded percentage of the labor force, or unemployment rate, fell over the prior month (rate = unemployment / labor force). The labor force is the number of employed individuals combined with the number of unemployed individuals actively searching for work. Labor force growth is a sign of a strengthening economy from more people working and/or more individuals searching for jobs. Halting a string of consecutive monthly decreases, PA’s labor force grew by 6,837 individuals from June to July 2018, a combination of total employment* rising by 15,070 and unemployment down by 8,233 as noted above. Despite the increase, total labor force growth under Gov. Wolf has declined from a peak of +52,798 in March 2016 (unemployment -312 & total employment +53,110) to being down -36,611 as of July 2018 (unemployment -78,622 & total employment +42,011). State labor force statistics for the month are as follows: 

• Total Labor Force – 6,369,951
• Change Over Month –    UP   6,837
• Change Over Year –   DOWN   50,228
• Change Over Gov. Wolf Term –    DOWN  36,611

Non-farm* job rolls rose by 2,100 from June to July 2018, marking a 16th consecutive month of growth and pushing total non-farm employment to a new record high of 6.020 million. Year-over-year for July 2018, the commonwealth added 71,900 new non-farm jobs. Since Gov. Wolf took office, 204,000 new non-farm jobs have been added, 53,000 more than were added over Gov. Corbett’s four-year term. The addition of 204,000 non-farm jobs ranks the commonwealth 34th out of 50 states for new percentage job growth, an improvement from it’s ranking of 48th in the same survey over Gov. Corbett’s term. State non-farm employment statistics for the month are as follows:

• Total Employment – 6,020,500
• Change Over Month –    UP   2,100
• Change Over Year –   UP   71,900
• Change Over Gov. Wolf Term –   UP   204,600

*Total employment for labor force provided by U.S. Census Household survey. The separate BLS Establishment survey measures non-farm jobs only