How Has the Recession Affected our Current Job Market?

Topic: Recession's effect on job market and work place.
Disciplinary Perspective(s): Sociology, current studies
Research Question(s): How Has the Recession Affected our Current Job Market? How has the recession changed the workplace? 

Illegal Immigration and its Effect on the American Workplace

          Illegal immigration is a huge problem in our country today. But how big of problem is illegal immigration in the American workforce? How many citizens have lost jobs due to illegal aliens? The answers to these questions are vital in an ever dying job market. I would like to learn the consequences my country is suffering due to illegal aliens. How is this problem hurting the U.S. socially, economically, and physically? More and more local businesses give hard labor to illegal immigrants for less money and take no tax out of the gross pay. Is this a local problem or are we dealing with a crisis in the federal level?

Drive-Thru U: The New College Experience

          The college experience is a time that every student used to have to go through. Some loved it and others hated it. Today, the "college experience" has metamorphosed into something different. With unemployment at a very high rate, the search for a good job is a knife fight in the America of today. A college degree is always a good weapon to have when you make that resume. But college is expensive and sometimes not available to all students. Hence the birth of the para-university.

          A para-university is a new opportunity for those seeking a college degree. It is usually a school online that offers various degrees. Para-universities are booming today and with good reason. They are convenient, relatively cheap, and offer what the consumer desires. But are para-universities good for our public school system and traditional colleges. I would have to say that the para-university is good for both. Let's address its affect of the public school system. A young person can get average grades in high school but get no scholarship money for college. The quick response is to take out loans but is this smart for a young person to already have the burden of debt at the beginning of the adult life? No, it is not. The para-university offers this person an opportunity. It offers them an opportunity to receive a higher education which usually results in obtaining a better job. Knowing that there is a para-university to attend might raise the morale of current high school students who would otherwise have no hope of going to college.

Although technically in competition, I don't believe the para-university is a problem for the traditional university. The reasoning is that those who have the means and ability to attend a regular college, will always do so. I see the para-university not as something that would prevent students from attending the usual universities. I believe that attending a college in physical form gives you a sense of self-fulfillment and pride not found in a para-university. But for those who have children, work a job, or don't have the money, the para-university is a perfect fit.

21st Century Stress

          Work has changed drastically throughout the years. Work that used to be a man's job, now is done by a machine due to advances in science and technology. Some may say that this is good for manufacturers and businesses in that it prevents human error. Jeremy Rifkin shares a different view. In his book, The End of Work, he points out his problem with the machines.

          New science and technology usually brings with it improvement in whatever field the technology is applicable. Jeremy Rifkin argues this is not true. Science tells us that the introduction of machines in the work place makes tasks easier and more efficient, better for management, and better for workers. Rifkin disagrees and points out that "In the industrial era, workers became so enmeshed in the rhythms of mechanical machinery that hey often described their own fatigue in machine terms-complaining of being "worn out" or experiencing a "breakdown." Although machines had been introduced, the workers livelihood had not improved proving that machines are not always the best route to go by. These conditions lead to higher stress among workers which leads to falling productivity. With the well-being of millions of workers at stake, is it really necessary to computerize and digitize every aspect of the American work place? Perhaps adding the human touch might help companies get through this struggling economy. Rifkin is correct is questioning the over usage of machines. Machines are not always a good thing...just ask John Connor...