Assign 5 Persuasive Paper Part 3 C Garcia Pickens Fall 2014

ASSIGNMENT 5 PERSUASIVE PAPER PART 3 C GARCIA FALL 2014

By Claire Garcia (Pickens)

Professor Dolores Belew

ENG215 Fall 2014 – Assignment #5

14 December 2014


To reduce the sociological and economic effects of long-term unemployment on society the

focus of reform requires a reorganization with an aggressive emphasis on three primary areas of

concern. Solution finding in the areas of the negative effects of long-term unemployment, an

Unemployment Office Cartoon (2009)

overabundance of underperforming college degrees, and the negative psychological effects of

unemployment will produce an unemployment reform that will create marked advantages for

society. From the origination of the unemployment reform movement, also known as social

insurance, there have been conflicting viewpoints regarding the intended results of the program.

Consistent roadblocks and problems have been in existence since its origination and have arisen

since its implementation. Examining the statistics regarding those unemployed longer than 27


weeks, also known as the LTU or long-term unemployed, shows an area of needed

unemployment reformation. The over issuance of underperforming college degrees is

contributing a perpetuation of unemployable college graduates. Negative psychological aspects

of the result of unemployment are further reason to organize and implement preventative

unemployment reform as soon as possible. A more effective preventative unemployment reform

act including reformation in the three target areas of long-term unemployment solutions, better

career training with improved college degree choices, and psychological solutions that prevent

negative after effects of unemployment, will have a positive effect on society both sociologically

and economically.

A History of Unemployment Reform and Overview of Current Related Problems

Modelled after a system created in Great Britain, the United States began its own unemployment

system during the American Progressive reform movement of the early twentieth century

(Yellowitz, 1968). Unemployment was created largely because of the belief that workers could

not control the actions of their employer, nor the conditions of their employment.

Representatives responsible for the creation, presentation, and implementation of the reform

believed that workers had the right to have the government intercede and act on their behalf. The

American Association for Labor Legislation created the first unemployment bill in 1916. Most

of which mirrored the legislation put in place by the British in 1911. Since its origination, debate

continues regarding the emphasis of the programs directionality towards relief or prevention.

Three persistent issues prevent unemployment from being as effectively preventative as it has the

potential to be. The propensity of the unemployed to remain unemployed when deemed long-

term, longer than 27 weeks, is an issue that needs correction. The overabundance of

underperforming degrees that have a high rate of unemployment needs reduction. The long-term


unemployed need psychological solutions to overcome the discouragement that becomes

commonplace for them following any period of unemployment, particularly long-term

unemployment.

Problem 1: Long-Term Unemployment

Long-term unemployment, people remaining jobless for 27 weeks or longer, is a persistent

problem that needs attention. According to the Brookings Papers on Economic Activity (2014)

only 11 percent of this particular demographic will be able to hold an employed position for one

year or longer once re-employed. According to the same study, percentages for sustainable

employment are better if employment is found before being unemployed for 27 weeks or longer.

Most unemployed for 27 weeks or longer return to the status of unemployed and are once again

in need of unemployment assistance. Some continue to look for work, while some remove

themselves from the job market altogether. The long-term unemployed are a less favored

applicant, and have issues finding employment even in states where unemployment numbers are

lower (Diamond, 2013). Another contributing factor to LTU are the college educated

unemployed professionals, plagued by the task of finding a job worth keeping or that will

provide an income comparable to what they had previously (McKee-Ryan, 2009). Due to the

recessionary corporate layoffs that became commonplace in the United States for a period, about

36% of the long-term unemployment comes from white-collar sales professions (Brookings

Papers on Economic Activity, 2014). Immediate attention and reform is needed to solve the

issues related to long-term unemployment, with aggressive attention to improving the re-

employment statistics for the unemployed that reach 27 weeks or longer.

Problem 2: Overabundance of Underperforming College Degrees. In the United States, only

18 percent of the unemployed population lacks a high school degree (O’Shaughnessy, 2011).


This phenomenon suggests that post high school education is not pointing our citizens towards

the possibility of steady employment. According to a recent article by CBS Money Watch

(2011), receiving a bachelor’s degree in the area of clinical psychology leaves you with a 19.5%

chance of unemployment. A degree in fine arts results in a 16.2% chance of unemployment.

Though psychology is listed in five of the most unemployed degrees, it remains the fifth most

popular field of study. The abundance of people earning these degrees with the hope of a better,

more stable future is actually resulting in a further mismatch of unemployed people to job

vacancies in these risky fields of study. In addition, colleges are graduating students at a higher

rate than jobs are becoming available in the United States marketplace (Duke, 2013). This

statistic is resulting in large numbers of college graduates that are either unemployed or

“underemployed.” College graduation is no longer the most secure way to a steadier job or

higher earning potential (Duke, 2013). Reformation is needed to curtail the number of graduates

entering the marketplace with underperforming college degrees.

Problem 3: Unemployment Results in Discouraged Job Seekers. Unemployment results in an

increased suicide risk, alcoholism, as well as self-esteem disorders (Fryer, 2014). Characteristics

of the long-term unemployed include becoming professionally passive, as well as socially

excluded (Wilczynska-Kwiatek, 2008). Often resulting in a person devaluing their self-imposed

image of what they contribute to society. Though this seems to be more pronounced in women,

it is something both men and women experience because of unemployment. Theory exists that

the removal from a structured system of accountability to an employer as well as appropriate

social interaction is at the root of the cause for the psychological downfalls associated with

unemployment (Fryer, 2014). When the fear of failure begins to outweigh the risk of trying, the

long-term unemployed sometimes give up on job seeking altogether. The long-term


psychological damage created by the long-term unemployment situation is an issue not solvable

by simply creating more jobs. The delicate psychological situation that is an unfortunate side

effect of unemployment needs attention by way of aggressive preventative unemployment

reform.

Solution. While unemployment reform involves far more than the three problems listed, the

marriage of these three problems I have for mentioned is at the foundation of improving the

entire program. The solution involves a multi-faceted approach that attacks each of these

foundational problems to provide advantages for society that prevent our citizens from becoming

unemployed, to rehabilitate and reemploy more efficiently during periods of long-term

unemployment, and to reverse the psychological effects caused by unemployment. Recently

unemployment reform, while beneficial in preventing discrimination against particular

sociological groups, is not focused on aggressively moving unemployment to a new level by

promoting a better job market for the United States Citizens (McCormick, 2012).

Step one of a more proactive solution involves reformation of the federal college funding system.

With strict limitations in place, funding will have annual allocated limits per degree type.

Limited funding for high unemployment fields creates the advantage that it will push college

entrants towards degrees that will have a higher rate of sustainable employment. The problems

related to long-term unemployment directly coincide with the psychological issues for

mentioned. The advantage of a shift from social, governmental, responsibility back to individual

responsibility will encourage the unemployed to be more personally involved in their recovery

and return to the job market (Fryer, 2014). Required community service hours that are

proportional to the time unemployed will promote the much-needed social interaction.

Community service hours are interchangeable for technical training, or interviewing time.


Incentives will be provided for people who are willing to enroll in technical training for jobs that

have a higher employable rate. Benefits decrease and eventually disappear for people that avoid

community service, training, or job searching. The solution is a social shift from manipulation of

the system, to a system of positive encouragement related to positive actions taken by the

unemployed. The advantages of these solutions is that they help college entrants choose degrees

that have expectations that are more realistic, help the unemployed feel involved in society

which reduced negative psychological effects, and reward them for efforts to improve their

employment opportunities.

Disadvantages. Because no solution is fool proof, it is important to note the disadvantages

associated with the proposed solutions. Restricting government funding by degree type will

change the timing of college entrance for many individuals. Those seeking college degrees will

be required to plan more than before, and apply for college funding more expediently to

increases their chances of acceptance. Those denied will need to find alternatives to their

education funding and/or reapply as needed for their degree type until they are accepted.

Incentives and tracking related to keeping the unemployed engaged in productive life carry with

them expenses that will not be offset until the program is fully functioning and has a positive

effect on the unemployment market. The reduction in the negative psychological effects of long-

term unemployment will be dependent on the structure and implementation of the system that

monitors the proposed solutions. While it would be easy to see the disadvantages as negative

elements, it is more productive to see them as springboards for panel discussions used to shape

and implement the proposed solutions.

Call to Action. Identification of the problems associated with some of the long-term issues that

plague unemployment is the first step in creating a plan towards a brighter future for the concept


of social insurance. Since its inception in the early twentieth century, unemployment was

intended to assist and protect our jobless citizens. As the economics and sociological aspects of

society transform, unemployment implementation must also change to keep pace with the new

and ever evolving way our society functions. Though there are disadvantages associated with

the proposed solutions, the advantages of the implementation of at least one of these solutions far

outweigh the alternative of ignoring an issue that will only worsen without attention. It is time to

give persistent aggressive attention to the issues at hand, reform of unemployment and bring the

American Dream back for the citizens of the United States that have been up until now left

behind to experience their own personal unemployment nightmare.

Happily-Empl (2014)


References

Brookings Papers on Economic Activity (Spring 2014 Conference). Are The Long-Term

Unemployed on the Margins of the Labor Market? Retrieved from

http://www.brookings.edu/about/projects/bpea/papers/2014/are-longterm-unemployed-

margins-labor-market

Diamond, Peter (2013). Cyclical Unemployment, Structural Unemployment. Research Review,

Jan-Jun 2013, Issue 19, p31-34, 4p. .

Duke, Selwyn (2013, Aug 5). Diploma Disaster? New American, Vol. 29 Issue 15, p10-15.

Fryer, David, Stambe, Rose (2014 Apr). Neoliberal Austerity and Unemployment. Psychologist,

Vol. 27, Issue 4, p244-248.

Happily-Empl Image (2014). Retrieved from http://www.bbj.hu/images2/201401/happily-

empl_20140103112318770.jpg

Maimon, E., Peritz, J. & Yancy, K. (2012). A Writer’s Resource: A Handbook for Writing and

Research: (4th. Ed). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

McCormic, Marcia (2012 Winter). Workplace Reform in a Jobless Recovery. Vol. 81, Issue 2,

p347-357.

McKee-Ryan, Frances. Virick, Meghna. Prussia, Gregory. Harvey, Jaron. Lilly Juliana (2009

May). Life After the Layoff: Getting a Job Worth Keeping. Journal of Organizational

Behavior. Vol. 30, Issue 4, p561-580.

http://www.brookings.edu/about/projects/bpea/papers/2014/are-longterm-unemployed-margins

http://www.brookings.edu/about/projects/bpea/papers/2014/are-longterm-unemployed-margins


O’Shaughnessy, Lynn (2011, Nov 16). 25 College Majors with the Highest Unemployment

Rates. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/25-college-majors-with-the-

highest-unemployment-rates/

Roen, D., Glau, G.R., & Maid, B.M. (2011). ENG215: The Brief Mcgraw-Hill Guide: Writing

for College, Writing for Life (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill

Unemployment Office Cartoon. (2009). Retrieved from http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-

zHBnRLVFEa0/T8pIiu_BOkI/AAAAAAAACVk/ASI4NrDkK5g/s1600/()

+unemployment+office+cartoon.jpg

United States Department of Labor, (2013, Dec 16). Overview of BLS Statistics on

Unemployment. Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/bls/unemployment.htm

Wilczynska-Kwiatek, Agnieszka. Bargiel-Matusiewicz, Kamilla. (2008). Contemporary Picture

of Women’s Unemployment. Personality Conditioning of Unemployment and its

Consequences for Psychic Health. Archives of Psychiatry & Psychotherapy, Dec2008,

Vol. 10 Issue 4, p63-68.

Yellowitz, Irwin. (1968). The Origins of Unemployment Reform in the United States. Labor

History, Fall68, Vol. 9 Issue 3, p338.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/25-college-majors-with-the-highest

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/25-college-majors-with-the-highest

Documents

Assign 5 Persuasive Paper Part 3 C Garcia Pickens Fall 2014