CUED

Labor Market Trends and Employment Policy

Feature:

Persistent Unemployment in Illinois - The Case for Reauthorizing Federal Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Benefits
December 2003; Nik Theodore, Chirag Mehta, Andrew Stettner, Sharon Mastracci

Abstract
November 2003 marked two years of recovery for the U.S. economy. Government reports have trumpeted the good news: growth in the gross domestic product reached its highest level in nearly two decades, businesses are investing again, and exports edged up slightly. But while the recovery finally appears to be gathering momentum, employment figures remain disappointing. This disjuncture between generally positive economic indicators and slow employment growth is explained in part by rising output per worker. Productivity gains have meant that businesses are able to increase output without hiring substantial numbers of new employees. In addition, businesses have been reluctant to hire in response to improving economic conditions, an indication that they are unsure about the strength of the recovery. For these reasons, businesses might be recovering, but workers are not.

Illinois Minimum Wage Study
March 2003; Ron Baiman, Marc Doussard, Sharon Mastracci, Joe Persky, Nik Theodore

Abstract
The Illinois General Assembly is considering the creation of a state minimum wage of $6.50 as well as a statutory provision to adjust that wage for inflation. The UIC Center for Urban Economic Development has undertaken a comprehensive assessment of the need for and the economic impact of the proposed Illinois minimum wage. Our research was designed to answer three specific questions:

Is the minimum wage an effective policy for improving the earnings of low-income households?
Does raising the minimum wage weaken the competitive position of Illinois industries or impose excessive increases in labor costs?
Does a higher minimum wage result in lower employment levels?

To answer these questions, we analyzed the wage and employment characteristics of Illinois households with workers earning at or near the minimum wage, conducted an in-depth statistical study of the relationship between state minimum wages and employment levels, and examined the changing characteristics of the low-wage workforce over a five-year period surrounding the 1997 federal minimum wage increase. The evidence from this research suggests that an inflation-indexed Illinois minimum wage of $6.50 per hour will improve the earnings of a significant share of low-income workers and households while imposing minimal costs to businesses and resulting in a negligible impact on overall employment.

 

Publications:

Local Policy
Regional/National Policy
Globalization

Local Policy

• A Self-Sufficiency Living Wage for Chicago; (October 2002)
• A Step in the Right Direction: An Analysis of Forecasted Costs and Benefits of the Chicago Living Wage Ordinance; (June 2002)
• Background Research for the Chicago Jobs & Living Wage Campaign; (June 1996, Paper #424)
• A Report of The City of Chicago Strategic Neighborhood Action Program; (March 1994, Paper #387)
• Creating A High Performance Economy in Chicago: An Exploration of Potential; (January 1994, Paper #381)
• A Methodology and Measuring the Benefits and Costs of Economics Development Programs: Manual for Cost-Benefit Analysis Using the UICUED Evaluation Spreadsheet and the REMI Model; (July 1993, Paper # 362-A)
• A Methodology and Measuring the Benefits and Costs of Economics Development Programs: Case Studies Using the UICUED Evaluation Spreadsheet; (April 1994; Paper #362-B)
• A Methodology and Measuring the Benefits and Costs of Economics Development Programs: Technical Documentation; (July 1993, Paper # 362-C)
• Structural Change and Import Substitution in Chicago; (April 1992, Paper #348)
• Real Estate Development and Property Taxes in DuPage County: Final Report; (February 1992, Paper # 342)
• Structures for Airport Governance; (August 1990, Paper #320)
• Employment Impacts of City of Chicago Purchasing Contracts; (March 1989, Paper #254)
• Linked Development in U. S. Cities: Description of Policy Efforts With A Brief Discussion of Critical Issues; (February 1998, Paper #246)
• The State of the Economy and Economic Development in the Chicago Metropolitan Region; (May 1986, Paper #240)
• Employment and the 1992 Chicago World's Fair; (September 1984, Paper #201)
• Impact of the Chicago Building Code on Small Businesses; (June 1982, Paper #146)
• Long Range Marketing Plan-Private Industry Council of Chicago; (September 1980, Paper #132)

Regional/National Policy

• A Regional County-Level Cost-of-Living Index for Illinois; (April 2004)
• Illinois Five-Year State and Regional Economic Development Strategy; (2001)
• Living with Welfare Reform: A Survey of Low Income Families in Illinois; (January 2000)
• The Impact of the Federal and State Urban Development Action Grants (UDAG, IDAG) on Chicago: 1976-1985; (1987, Paper #236)
• Households' Needs and Community Response in Three Chicago Neighborhoods: The Impact of the New Federalism; (1984, Paper #186)
• Discussion Papers on Enterprise Zones; (August 1982, Paper #185)
• Facilitating Federal Technology Transfer to Small and Medium Sized Business and State and Local Government; (January 1984, Paper #179)
• The Stevenson Strategy to Reform State Regulation of Pension Funds; (Paper #168)

Globalization

• The Impact on the Chicago Regional Economy of Operation Jobs; (October 1995, Paper #410)
• An Analysis of the A.E. Staley/Tate and Lyle Lockout in Decatur, Illinois; (March 1995, Paper #404)
• Manual for Monitoring Local Manufacturing Employment, Plant Closings, and Major Layoffs; (April 1994, Paper #382)
• Monitoring Manufacturing Employment Trends in Chicago and Illinois: Implications for NAFTA Impacts; (May 1994, Paper #382-A)
• Transnational Investment and Job Loss: The Case of Chicago; (October 1992, Paper #350-A)
• Transnational Investment and Job Loss: The Case of Chicago, Appendix 1; (October 1992, Paper #350-B)
• Transnational Investment and Job Loss: The Case of Chicago, Appendix 2; (October 1992, Paper #350-C)
• Transnational Investment and Job loss in Chicago: Impacts on Women, African-Americans and Latinos; (January 1993; Paper #350-D)
• NAFTA and the New Transnational Corporate Agenda; (April 1993, Paper #350-E)
• The Evolving Supra-National Policy Arena; (August 1993, Paper #350-F)

Ordering Information

This website is maintained by Cedric Williams, Manager System Services,
UIC-Center for Urban Economic Development