How Big is Our Safety Net for the Recession-who's gonna get hurt the worst?
I know I agreed to post more upbeat news, but I'm also interested in how people will react/handle the recession. I'll leave the complex economic charting to the rest of you and post a bit about predicted effects on people.
"Economists rarely agree on anything, but a great many do agree on one unfortunate matter these days: the current economic downturn is likely to develop into the worst recession since the downturn of 1981-82.
The United States is a far different place. Government programs in place then to cushion and counter recessions have been scaled back sharply, raising questions about whether they are up to the task as the economic outlook darkens today.
Unemployment insurance is not as generous now. Yet the unemployment rate is at 6.5 percent and some forecasters say it could top 8 percent next year. It hit 10.8 percent in the early 1980s.
....Rebecca Blank, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, noted that the recession of 2001 hurt factory workers most but had little effect on the low-wage jobs that many women hold.
“But this recession is really hitting those jobs, and the question is what will happen to that group of women. Is there a safety net?” she asked. Ms. Blank complained that low-wage-earning women often failed to qualify for unemployment benefits because many states do not provide such assistance to part-time workers or those who fail to work six quarters in a row."
More here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/16/weekinreview/16greenhouse.html?fta=y
"Economists rarely agree on anything, but a great many do agree on one unfortunate matter these days: the current economic downturn is likely to develop into the worst recession since the downturn of 1981-82.
The United States is a far different place. Government programs in place then to cushion and counter recessions have been scaled back sharply, raising questions about whether they are up to the task as the economic outlook darkens today.
Unemployment insurance is not as generous now. Yet the unemployment rate is at 6.5 percent and some forecasters say it could top 8 percent next year. It hit 10.8 percent in the early 1980s.
....Rebecca Blank, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, noted that the recession of 2001 hurt factory workers most but had little effect on the low-wage jobs that many women hold.
“But this recession is really hitting those jobs, and the question is what will happen to that group of women. Is there a safety net?” she asked. Ms. Blank complained that low-wage-earning women often failed to qualify for unemployment benefits because many states do not provide such assistance to part-time workers or those who fail to work six quarters in a row."
More here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/16/weekinreview/16greenhouse.html?fta=y